Amherst College, the third oldest institution of higher learning in Massachusetts, is a private liberal arts college originally founded to train impoverished young men for the ministry. When the College went coed in the mid-1970s, the first Black female students encountered a campus that was not designed, built or ready for them. Inspired by the book Black Women of Amherst College by the late Mavis C. Campbell, professor emerita of history, this podcast tells a multidimensional story of the Black women of Amherst College — including alumnae, students, faculty and staff — from the first days of the Amherst community through today. We illuminate the accomplishments and wisdom of the Black women of Amherst College and we invite you to listen, share, learn and laugh. This series is a project of Amherst College, in collaboration with WC1 Studios and Zeldavision Media.
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Amherst College, the third oldest institution of higher learning in Massachusetts, is a private liberal arts college originally founded to train impoverished young men for the ministry. When the College went coed in the mid-1970s, the first Black female students encountered a campus that was not designed, built or ready for them. Inspired by the book Black Women of Amherst College by the late Mavis C. Campbell, professor emerita of history, this podcast tells a multidimensional story of the Black women of Amherst College — including alumnae, students, faculty and staff — from the first days of the Amherst community through today. We illuminate the accomplishments and wisdom of the Black women of Amherst College and we invite you to listen, share, learn and laugh. This series is a project of Amherst College, in collaboration with WC1 Studios and Zeldavision Media.
Biddy Martin, president of Amherst from 2011 to 2022, reflects on how the institution is working in earnest to become a more welcoming, equitable and inclusive place for marginalized students, one that tackles uncomfortable truths, celebrates triumphs and fully serves its next generations of Black women.
Host: Nichelle S. Carr ’98
In conversation with: Biddy Martin, former president of Amherst College
Discussion topics:
Race, race relations and the myth of a “post-racial” society
The unique concerns of Black women at Amherst
Invisibility, hyper-visibility and “Black Girl Magic”
The 2015 Amherst Uprising
The tension faced by Black women on campus between academic growth and activism
The contributions of Dr. Anna Julia Cooper, Professor Sonia Sanchez and other unrecognized trailblazers in spaces and places on campus
Black martyrdom vs. recognition
What lies ahead for Amherst College: Reckoning, reform and celebration
Featured interview:
Rhonda Cobham-Sander, the Emily C. Jordan Folger Professor of Black Studies and English, who has taught at Amherst since 1986
Black Women of Amherst College
Amherst College, the third oldest institution of higher learning in Massachusetts, is a private liberal arts college originally founded to train impoverished young men for the ministry. When the College went coed in the mid-1970s, the first Black female students encountered a campus that was not designed, built or ready for them. Inspired by the book Black Women of Amherst College by the late Mavis C. Campbell, professor emerita of history, this podcast tells a multidimensional story of the Black women of Amherst College — including alumnae, students, faculty and staff — from the first days of the Amherst community through today. We illuminate the accomplishments and wisdom of the Black women of Amherst College and we invite you to listen, share, learn and laugh. This series is a project of Amherst College, in collaboration with WC1 Studios and Zeldavision Media.
