(Vol. 114 No. 1) Text (PDF) - Spelman College: Home

Mary Brookins Ross, C’2812Sue Bailey Thurman, HS’20*Given the title of “Spelman’s foremost ambassador,” SueBailey Thurman left Spelman to earn two degrees fromOberlin College, one from the Conservatory of Music andthe other from the College of Arts and Sciences. After servingon the national staff of the YWCA, she became the founderand first editor of the Aframerican Women’s Journal, theofficial publication of the NCNW, the first of her many editorialcontributions to that organization, founded by Dr. MaryMcLeod Bethune. Mrs. Thurman began many initiatives tosponsor international events to promote internationalfriendship and understanding among thousands of studentsat home and abroad during her years at Howard University.Her husband was famed theologian and philosopher Dr.Howard Thurman , who was professor of theology and Deanof the Chapel at Howard University at that time. Mrs. Thurman’sinitiatives continued in San Francisco, where thecouple worked to establish The Church for the Fellowship ofAll Peoples, and in Boston, where she founded the Museumof Afro-American History and the Sue Bailey ThurmanMuseum Exchange during her stay at Boston University.Mary Brookins Ross, C’28Mary Brookins Ross, who served as president of the fourmillionmember Woman’s Convention Auxiliary to theNational Baptist Convention, USA, from 1961 to 1995, hasbeen cited around the world for her invaluable contributionsto the Baptist denomination. President Jimmy Carter,at a state dinner in 1980, called Mrs. Ross “one of the finestwomen leaders in the world.” Her leadership has extendedto outspoken advocacy on subjects affecting Christianethics, higher education and public service. A dynamic orator,Mrs. Ross, who did graduate work at Wayne State Universityand the University of Michigan, has spoken toaudiences in London, Paris, Manila, Copenhagen, Tokyo,West Africa and India.Myra Smith Taylor, C’61*Another outstanding leader in the Woman’s Convention, theMyra Smith Taylor became editor of publications in 1973.In this capacity she was responsible for editing the NationalBaptist Woman and The Mission, the officialstudy quarterly of the Woman’s Convention.After receiving a Master of Arts degree fromthe Interdenominational TheologicalCenter in 1963, she did extensive postgraduatestudy, including a stint at theHarvard School of Divinity. At theFourth Assembly of the World Councilof Churches held in 1968 in Sweden,she attended as press representative,and in 1970 she traveled to Japan as adelegate to the Baptist World Alliance.Clara Stanton Jones, C’34As the only black and only woman to head the DetroitLibrary, the fifth largest system in the nation, Clara StantonJones worked to make the library a viable and relevant partof the community. She sent bookmobiles into inner cityneighborhoods, established Afro-American Studies Workshops,delivered book reviews on television and set up adultbook fairs. She also established Detroit’s TIP program, thecity’s major information and referral agency, and a seniorcitizen program, which is the most extensive in the nation.Among other Spelman women who have had leadershiproles in nonprofit organizations are:Marian Wright Edelman, C’60Marian Wright Edelman, founder and president of the Children’sDefense Fund (CDF), has been an advocate for disadvantagedAmericans for her entire careers. Under herleadership, the Washington-based CDF has become a strongnational voice for children and families. The Yale LawSchool graduate and former Spelman board chair beganher career in the mid-sixties when, as the first black womanadmitted to the Mississippi Bar, she directed the NAACPLegal Defense and Educational Fund office in Jackson, Miss.“We must take responsibility for putting into place theresources and bipartisan political support to get our prioritiesstraight, whether we’re talking about education, healthcare, child care, or violence prevention,” Mrs. Edelmanwrote in a recent CDF Report. “There are millions of childrenwho are depending on us — for protection, for guid-Marian Wright Edelman, C’60S P E L M A N M E S S E N G E R