Monty Bruell '79, far left, and his classmates cross the quad as seventh graders in the fall of 1973
For decades, Baylor has celebrated MLK Day as a "day on" to serve the community and learn more about the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and this year's celebration kicked off with a panel discussion in Alumni Chapel featuring the pioneers of Baylor's integration efforts in the 1970s.
The panel featured Monty Bruell '79, who was admitted as a seventh grader in 1973 as the first black student to attend and graduate from Baylor; classmate Ned Murray '79; Eddie Hart '80, who came the following year as a seventh grader; and '79; Rick Montague, who was the associate director of admissions at the time. The discussion was moderated by Tawambi Settles, who currently serves as Baylor's director of diversity and inclusion.
Also attending in 1974 as seventh graders were Wilford Ford '80, Grayland Hilt '80, and Julian Pouncy, who left after three years. Kevin Muhommad '81 (formerly Kevin Dobbs) enrolled in 1975. When Baylor became coed in the fall of 1985, Tara Wynn '89, became the first black female student enrolled at Baylor.
In addition to the chapel event, juniors and seniors will work at 18 sites off campus including Battery Heights, the Chattanooga Zoo, Clinica Medicos, Glass Street trails, Red Bank LifeCare Center, Red Bank Pet Placement Center, Memorial Hospital, the Community Kitchen, among others.
Faculty-led discussion topics for freshmen and sophomores include sessions on "Lesser-known Figures of the Civil Rights Movement, "History of Hip Hop Music," “Strange Fruit," “I Have a Dream,” "Civil Rights in Chattanooga," and "Music of the Civil Rights Movement."