GSE Alumna Endows First Chair Honoring African-American Woman

The University announced last month the first endowed chair honoring an African-American woman.

The Emily Hargroves Fisher Professorship of Education at the Graduate School of Education (GSE), named for the primary donor, will be renamed for the first honoree, Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot, upon her retirement from the post.

According to University policy, professors cannot hold a chair endowed in their name.

Lawrence-Lightfoot, a GSE professor, was the first African-American woman to receive tenure at the GSE.

"[The chair] will honor an extraordinary scholar and teacher who has inspired us all," said GSE Dean Jerome T. Murphy, who officiated at the March 25 ceremony celebrating the professorship.

Lawrence-Lightfoot, a prominent sociologist, has received numerous awards including a MacArthur Fellowship in 1984.

Her primary interest lies in "studying the school's social systems, the patterns and structures of classroom life, socialization within families and communities and the relationships between culture and learning styles," according to her GSE Web page.

It was Lawrence-Lightfoot's 1988 book, Balm in Gilead: Journey of a Healer, that inspired the donation that made her chair possible.

"It resonated with me. Throughout Sara's writing, I never felt shut out of the story despite the fact that Sara writes about African-Americans, and I am a white woman," Fisher said.

"Her work is so beautiful because she writes about feelings and these are universal," Fisher added.

Fisher, also a GSE graduate, gave a gift of $1 million toward the professorship last year.

The new post will not alter Lawrence-Lightfoot's responsibilities.

"The only change is that she now has an endowed chair," said Wendy E. Angus, her assistant. "It won't change her day-to-day work at all."

Currently, Lawrence-Lightfoot teaches two courses at the GSE in addition to her research. She also sits on a number of committees and boards of directors, including the National Academy for Education and the Boston Globe.