UC professor LaVerne Summerlin celebrates over 50 years
January 20, 2022
Only 15 years before professor of English LaVerne Summerlin joined UC’s faculty, Rosa Parks took her place on a bus in Montgomery, Alabama, and changed history. With the country on the cusp of seismic civil rights change, Summerlin joined UC’s faculty in 1970, and since, she has exerted her own quiet influence on classes, academic programs, and campus culture—changing history in her own way. Summerlin will be honored at UC’s 2022 Onyx & Ruby Gala, which each year recognizes the achievements of Black alumni, faculty and staff for their achievements at UC. She will receive the Tower of Strength Award for shaping students’ personal and professional development.