In April 2018, the Harvard Business School community was invited to mark the 50th
anniversary of the founding of the African-American Student Union at HBS as a key
inflection point in the School’s history, which offered not only an occasion for reflection,
but also was an exciting opportunity for HBS to conduct new research, convene thought
leaders, and undertake initiatives to advance African American business leaders. Throughout
the year leading up to the anniversary, the student organization, the African-American
Alumni Association, and the faculty of the Leadership Initiative hosted a range of
events focused on the advancement of African American business leaders. The activities
culminated in a two-day Conference on African American Business Leadership, a multi-disciplinary
event that celebrated the vibrant and important role that African Americans have played
in shaping our institution, the business world, and society at large.
This website has been designed to provide you with information and access to resources,
programs, recent articles, and relevant links related to African Americans in business,
as well as links to the AASU50 celebration at HBS in 2018.
African Americans at HBS
The History of AASU
Seven years after the founding of Harvard Business School in 1915, Wendell Thomas
Cunningham became the first black student to graduate from the institution. Cunningham
was one of 27 men who received the Master in Business Administration degree in 1915.
Between 1915 and 1968, there were a total 42 black graduates of HBS with many class
years having no black graduates at all.
The representation of blacks at HBS took a major turn in the spring of 1968 when 5
students, including the first black woman to graduate from HBS, joined forces to form
the predecessor of the African American Student Union (originally called the Afro-American
Student Union).
More on the history of AASU
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These five founders sought to increase the enrollment of blacks at HBS and worked
with the Administration to conduct an outreach program to a number of undergraduate
colleges including Historically Black Colleges and Universities. The number of black
graduates increased from 5 in 1969 to 27 in 1970 to 57 in 1971.
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Lillian L. Lambert, MBA 1969
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E. Theodore Lewis, MBA 1969
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Clifford E. Darden, MBA 1969, DBA 1982
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A. Leroy Willis, MBA 1969
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George Price, MBA 1970
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Five students founded the African American Student Union (AASU) in 1968. Their commitment
became a driving force behind the dramatically increased enrollment of African American
students in the following decades—students who were of Harvard Business School, not
simply in it, and helped to shape its future.
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Clifford E. Darden, MBA 1969, DBA 1982
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Don Harmon, MBA 1970
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Grover P. Walker, MBA 1971
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Matthew Augustine, Jr., MBA 1971
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Charles V. Bush, MBA 1972
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Kelly G. Jacobs, MBA 1972
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Vernon C. Stansbury, Jr., MBA 1973
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Walter L. Ross, MBA 1973
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Terry L. Jones, MBA 1974
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Stephen R. Bryant, MBA 1974
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Harry G. Walker, III, MBA 1975
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Jonathan L. Weaver, MBA 1975
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Frank E. Lattimore, MBA 1976
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Anita R. Goodman, MBA 1977
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Sylvia C. Carroll, MBA 1978
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Edwin C. Reed, MBA 1979
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Michael R. Russell, MBA 1980
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Kimberly A. Kispert, MBA 1981
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George L. Van Amson, MBA 1982
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Kym M. Nelson, MBA 1983
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George Ellis, MBA 1984
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Gail S. Morales, MBA 1985
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Robert R. Davenport III, MBA 1986
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Stuart A. Taylor, II, MBA 1987
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Arnold J. Lewis, MBA 1988
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Belinda C. Stubblefield, MBA 1989
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Douglass P. Selby, MBA 1990
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Charles M. Henderson, Jr., MBA 1991
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LaDetra J. White, MBA 1992
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Kenneth H. Fearn, Jr., MBA 1993
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Valerie S. Grant, MBA 1994
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Kimberly Corbin, MBA 1995
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Jill Pemberton, MBA 1996
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Beverly J. Anderson, MBA 1997
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Lisa Skeete Tatum, MBA 1998
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Brickson E. Diamond, MBA 1999
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John A. Majors, MBA 2000
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Shari P. Hubert, MBA 2000
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Demond T. Martin, MBA 2001
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Marc A. Chennault, MBA 2001
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Craig M. Robinson, MBA 2002
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A. Keith Gordon, MBA 2002
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Raquelle E. Hunter, MBA 2003
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Rayford L. Davis, MBA 2003
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Tarik A. Brooks, MBA 2004
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Torarie N. Durden, MBA 2004
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Kurt A. Summers, Jr., MBA 2005
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Seble Tareke Williams, MBA 2005
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Francis O. Idehen, MBA 2006
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Natalie C. Eckford, MBA 2006
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Alice S. Vilma, MBA 2007
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Charissa G. Lawrence, MBA 2007
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Earl A. Gordon, Jr., MBA 2008
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Lori Bowden Estiverne, MBA 2008
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Damien A. Hooper-Campbell, MBA 2009
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Lauryn A. Hale, MBA 2009
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Ainsworth C. Chambers, MBA 2010
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Erin A. Teague, MBA 2010
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Aaron C. Mitchell, MBA 2011
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Stephanie A. Atiase, MBA 2011
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Lauren B. Allen, MBA 2012
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William J. Drewery, MBA 2012
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Ariel J. Roberts, MBA 2013
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Christopher G. Hollins, MBA 2013
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Creighton L. Taylor, MBA 2014
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Stacie N. Smith, MBA 2014
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Erin L. Patten, MBA 2015
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Neil O. Wusu, MBA 2015
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Alterrell Mills, Jr., MBA 2016
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Franci Girard, MBA 2016
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Nkem A. Oghedo, MBA 2017
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Tsion Tsegaye, MBA 2017
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Andrew Levette III, MBA 2018
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Tiana Williams, MBA 2018
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Over 100 alumni from the HBSAAA have joined volunteer committees to plan and support
AASU50-related events and projects. Volunteer committees include: the AASU50 Steering
Committee, the AASU President Portrait Project, The W50 Profiles Committee, Local
Alumni Events, AASU History/Archives, Student Relations, Membership, Marketing, Programs,
Alumni Initiatives, Finance, and Admissions.
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Jacqueline Adams, MBA 1978
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Beverly Anderson, MBA 1997
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Lionel Archille, MBA 2002
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Stephanie Atiase, MBA 2011
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Khary Barnes, MBA 2008
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Lisa Bourne, MBA 2002
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Nina Bowman, MBA 1994
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Heidi Brooks, MBA 2003
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Jason Brown, MBA 2007
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Ronald Brown, MBA 1973
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Michael Carter PLDA 2017
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Anthia Christian, MBA 1997
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Teresa Clarke, MBA 1988
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Lamont Corprew
- Phil Crutchfield, MBA 1971
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Khary Cuffe, MBA 2006
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Selena Cuffe, MBA 2003
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Carlton "Doug" Dawson PLDA 16, 2013
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Brickson Diamond, MBA 1999
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Torarie Durden, MBA 2004
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Jamal Eason, MBA 2011
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Sarah Elliot, MBA 2012
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George Ellis, MBA 1984
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Tony Frazier, MBA 1997
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Ann Fudge, MBA1977
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Mariha Gibbs, MBA 2007
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Hise Gibson DBA/TOM 2015
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Amiko Glasford, MBA 2007
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Sitella Glenn-Smith, MBA 2002
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Keith Gordon, MBA 2002
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Arianne Graham, MBA 2009
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Oneica Greaves, MBA 2015
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Lisa Hall, MBA 1993
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Scott Hilton-Clarke, MBA 1992
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W. Cecyl Hobbs, MBA 2001
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Michael Holt, MBA 2002
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Damien Hooper-Campbell, MBA 2009
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Marissa Horne, MBA 2007
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Shari Hubert, MBA 2000
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Erica Hunt Newman, MBA 2007
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Obinna Isiadinso, MBA 2002
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Duane Jackson, MBA 2013
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J. Dennis Jean-Jacques, MBA 1997
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Allison Johnson, MBA 1997
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Anna Johnson, MBA 2010
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Allison Jones, MBA 1988
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Jacqueline Jones, MBA 1997
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Jonathan Kelly, MBA 2007
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Maurice Kuykendoll, MBA 2012
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Charissa Lawrence, MBA 2007
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Rindge Leaphart, MBA 1997
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Shamika Lee, MBA 2008
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Kim Lew, MBA 1992
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Lewis Long, MBA 1991
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John Majors, MBA 2000
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Debbie McCoy, MBA 2003
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Jonathan Miller, MBA 2014
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Alterrell Mills, MBA 2016
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Aaron Mitchell, MBA 2011
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Ronald Mitchell, MBA 1997
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Leslie Wims Morris, MBA 1997
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James Mutugi, MBA 2002
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Charlotte Newman, MBA 2010
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Rod Norman, MBA 2002
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Ali Palmer, MBA 2008
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Erin Patten, MBA 2015
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Derek Powell, AMP 183, 2012
- Ken Powell, MBA 1974
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Kevin Releford, MBA 2002
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Martin Rodgers, MBA 1997
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Demetriouse Russell, MBA 1998
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Bereket Selassie MBA 2002
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Douglass Selby, MBA 1990
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Randy S. Sessler, MBA 1997
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Stacie Smith, MBA 2014
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Kimberly Spears Carter, MBA 2005
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Yaa Stanley, MBA 2007
- Joseph Steele, MBA 1983
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Desiree Stolar HBS 2015
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Desiree Thomas GMP 2016
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Anddria Varnado, MBA 2014
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Maurice Walker, MBA 1985
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Bruce Ware, MBA 2008
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Jermaine Warren, MBA 2007
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Jeremy Watson, MBA 2016
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Benaree Wiley, MBA 1972
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Dayna Wilkinson, MBA 1981
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Les Williams, MBA 2005
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Roberto Young, MBA 2007
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Each year at the H. Naylor Fitzhugh Conference, HBSAAA and AASU celebrate a tradition
of leadership and service by conferring the Professional Achievement Award and the
Bert King Award for Service upon distinguished alumni. The Civic Commitment Award
was conferred from 1997-2001.
Bert King Award for Service
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Kenneth A. Powell, MBA 1974
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Nancy Lane, PMD 29
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Clifford E. Darden, MBA 1969, DBA 1982
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Lillian L. Lambert, MBA 1969
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Carla Harris, MBA 1987
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Ann M. Fudge, MBA 1977
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James I. Cash
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W. Dwight Raiford, MBA 1978
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Michele Johnson Rogers, MBA 1986
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Steven Rogers, MBA 1985
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E. John Rice, Jr., MBA 1992
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Rena Clark, MBA 1990
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Dennis F. Hightower, MBA 1974
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Quintin E. Primo, III, MBA 1979
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Gregory A. White, MBA 1990
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David A. Thomas
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Argelia Rodriguez, MBA 1984
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Carlton L. Guthrie, MBA 1978
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Edward Olebe, MBA 1999
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Linda Oubre, MBA 1984
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Shari P. Hubert, MBA 2000
Professional Achievement Award
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W. Don Cornwell, MBA 1971
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Herbert P. Wilkins, Sr., MBA 1970
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E. Stanley O'Neal, MBA 1978
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William M. Lewis, Jr., 1982
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Paula A. Banks, AMP 154
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Robert L. Ryan, MBA 1970
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Lawrence V. Jackson, MBA 1979
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Pamela A. Thomas-Graham, MBA 1988
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Raymond J. McGuire, MBA 1983
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Henry W. McGee III, MBA 1979
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Jonathan D. Mariner, MBA 1978
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Stuart A. Taylor II, MBA 1987
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Pamela J. Joyner, MBA 1984
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Peter C.B. Bynoe, MBA 1975
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Edward Lewis, OPM 1984
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Reginald Van Lee, MBA 1984
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Bonita C. Stewart, MBA 1983
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Keith Clinkscales, MBA 1990
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Adebayo Ogunlesi, MBA 1979
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Vivian Hunt, MBA 1995
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George Van Amson, MBA 1982
Civic Commitment Award
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Benaree Wiley, MBA 1972
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Deborah C. Wright, MBA 1983
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Catherine W. LeBlanc, MBA 1980
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Jonathan L. Weaver, MBA 1975
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Edwin C. Reed, MBA 1979
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The top five percent of each MBA Class graduates with high distinction as Baker Scholars
(named after the School's initial benefactor, George F. Baker). The list below indicates
African American graduates of the School who have received this designation.
- John E. Barnes, MBA 1960
- James A. Fletcher, MBA 1972
- Claudine B. Malone, MBA 1972
- Ronald W. Moore, MBA 1972
- John W. Keefe, MBA 1976
- Douglas R. Orane, MBA 1981
- Jeffrey M. Scruggs, MBA 1991
- Kim Crawford, MBA 1992
- Stefan Kaluzny, MBA 1992
- Okechukwu Enelama, MBA 1994
- Valerie S. Grant, MBA 1994
- Mark J.R. Williams, MBA 1994
- Corey Thomas, MBA 2002
- Sebastian Giwa, MBA 2009
- Kamala Avila-Salmon, MBA 2011
- Tawanda Sibanda, MBA 2011
- Lauren Miller, MBA 2012
- Clayton Nelson, MBA 2014
- Benjamin Tagoe, MBA 2015
- Chukudi Melvin Ike, MBA 2016
- Ifedayo Kuye, MBA 2016
AASU50 Materials
(login required)
Professor Linda Hill, the first black female professor at HBS, leads a class in a
scene from the documentary Unite–Serve–Lead.
Photo Galleries from AASU50 Conference (available for download and purchase)
Related Content
- Beating the Odds (Harvard Business Review, March-April 2018)
- Black Business Leaders Series (HBS Cold Call podcasts)
- The Road to Zero Wealth (Prosperity Now report, pdf)
- Racial Progress is Real, But So Is Racist Progress (New York Times, January 21, 2017)
- Fighting Racism is Not Just a War of Words (New York Times, October 21, 2017)
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African American Artists at HBS
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Schwartz Art Collection, Harvard Business School
The Schwartz Art Collection on view throughout Harvard Business School includes a
number of works by prominent African American artists. Click the links below, or walk
the halls of the School when you’re next on campus, to see what’s on display.
- Radcliffe Bailey, Astro Beeing, 1995
- Radcliffe Bailey, Minor, 2002-03
- Brett Cook-Dizney, Mahatma Gandhi, 2001
- Rico Gatson, Untitled (Three Diamonds), 2016
- Rico Gatson, Panel Painting #6, 2015
- Whitfield Lovell, Strive, 2000
- Whitfield Lovell, Barbados, 2009
- Lorraine O’Grady, four photographs from “Art Is…” series, 1983/2009
- Carrie Mae Weems, Untitled (outtake from Kitchen Table Series), 1990/1999
- Carrie Mae Weems, Untitled (outtake from Kitchen Table Series), 1990/1999
- Carrie Mae Weems, The Hush of Your Silence, from Who What When Where, 1998
- Carrie Mae Weems, Untitledfrom The Louisiana Project, 2003
In addition to these works in the Schwartz Art Collection, there is a portrait of
H. Naylor Fitzhugh by Charles Lilly, which is part of the HBS Art and Artifacts Collection,
and is on view in Aldrich Hall.
Learn more about the Schwartz Art Collection
In Their Own Words
Heidi Brooks, recipient of the AASU Distinguished Alumni Award, addresses the attendees.
Professor Linda Hill, the first black female professor at HBS, leads a class in a
scene from the documentary Unite–Serve–Lead.