If I Had It to
Do Over Again,
I Would Without
Hesitation
In 1956, JoAnne Smart of Raleigh and Bettye Tillman of
Wadesboro were the first blacks to enroll at The University of
North Carolina at Greensboro. This account of the experience is
reprinted from the Spring 1980 issue of Alumni News.
by JoAnne Smart Drane '60
| first learned of my admittance
to Woman's College on August 13,1956.
Around nine o'clock in the evening, I
was informed by the lady for whom my
mother and I worked as domestics that I
had a long distance call. I had no idea
who might be calling. I certainly did not
expect news which was to have such a
profound effect on me at that particular
moment and perhaps for the rest of my
life.
The voice on the other end of the
line gave a name which I did not
recognize. This person identified
himself as a news reporter who wanted
to know, "How does it feel to be one of
the first two Negro girls accepted to
attend the Woman's College in
Greensboro?" Until that very moment I
did not know that I had been admitted.
The reporter assured me that this was
true and told me that I would be
receiving a letter from the registrar
confirming this perhaps the very next
day.
Once the impact of his inquiry got
through to me, I did not know quite how
I felt or what to say. I was quoted in the
papers the next day as saying, "I am
wonderfully pleased and looking
forward to enrolling." "I'm so excited I
don't know what to say. I'm so very,
very happy." "I am hoping to hear
something from Woman's College
soon."
As soon as I hung up the telephone,
I could not get back to our quarters fast
enough to tell my mother the great news.
I must have walked on clouds or flown
for one simply does not carry an
extraordinary announcement in an
ordinary way. At first we rejoiced: We
laughed, and we cried. After the initial
euphoria had worn off, however, we
wondered aloud and to ourselves what
the real impact of this was going to mean
to me, to her, to our family, to our
friends, and to our race.
During the next few days and weeks
following the publicity given by the
media to the announcement that Bettye
Ann Davis Tillman and I would enroll at
Woman's College in the fall, I became
quite a celebrity. The telephone rang
constantly. Many people sent
congratulations; others expressed doubts
20 • BULLETIN • Fall 1991
NO COPYRIGHT - UNITED STATES. This item has been determined to be free of copyright restrictions in the United States. The user is responsible for determining actual copyright status for any reuse of the material.
If I Had It to
Do Over Again,
I Would Without
Hesitation
In 1956, JoAnne Smart of Raleigh and Bettye Tillman of
Wadesboro were the first blacks to enroll at The University of
North Carolina at Greensboro. This account of the experience is
reprinted from the Spring 1980 issue of Alumni News.
by JoAnne Smart Drane '60
| first learned of my admittance
to Woman's College on August 13,1956.
Around nine o'clock in the evening, I
was informed by the lady for whom my
mother and I worked as domestics that I
had a long distance call. I had no idea
who might be calling. I certainly did not
expect news which was to have such a
profound effect on me at that particular
moment and perhaps for the rest of my
life.
The voice on the other end of the
line gave a name which I did not
recognize. This person identified
himself as a news reporter who wanted
to know, "How does it feel to be one of
the first two Negro girls accepted to
attend the Woman's College in
Greensboro?" Until that very moment I
did not know that I had been admitted.
The reporter assured me that this was
true and told me that I would be
receiving a letter from the registrar
confirming this perhaps the very next
day.
Once the impact of his inquiry got
through to me, I did not know quite how
I felt or what to say. I was quoted in the
papers the next day as saying, "I am
wonderfully pleased and looking
forward to enrolling." "I'm so excited I
don't know what to say. I'm so very,
very happy." "I am hoping to hear
something from Woman's College
soon."
As soon as I hung up the telephone,
I could not get back to our quarters fast
enough to tell my mother the great news.
I must have walked on clouds or flown
for one simply does not carry an
extraordinary announcement in an
ordinary way. At first we rejoiced: We
laughed, and we cried. After the initial
euphoria had worn off, however, we
wondered aloud and to ourselves what
the real impact of this was going to mean
to me, to her, to our family, to our
friends, and to our race.
During the next few days and weeks
following the publicity given by the
media to the announcement that Bettye
Ann Davis Tillman and I would enroll at
Woman's College in the fall, I became
quite a celebrity. The telephone rang
constantly. Many people sent
congratulations; others expressed doubts
20 • BULLETIN • Fall 1991
