CEDARVILLE — More than six decades after James Parker Sr. arrived at Cedarville University as its first black student, he’ll be celebrated this August when the university’s newest residence hall will bear his name.
Ironically, the demand for change that ruled racial segregation in public schools unconstitutional in 1954 continues today as the nation is calling for action after the Memorial Day death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
“We live in a sad time,” Parker, who lives in Syracuse, New York, with his wife, Mary, told Cedarville University writer Clem Boyd. “It seems like we’re going backward in a lot of things.”
University President James T. Jeremiah quickly addressed questions some students in 1954 had about admitting a minority. He informed the student body that Parker would be attending and anyone opposed should withdraw, Parker recalled.
“I never had a problem during my time at Cedarville,” Parker told Cedarville’s Boyd. “Dr. Jeremiah had a lot to do with that. He made sure I was welcomed with open arms. He was a great man.”
Parker said he was never lonely on campus. He served as vice president of the freshman class and sophomore class chaplain.
Parker said he has seen progress in race relations from his time on campus.
“There were a lot of things done that have been corrected, but there’s still more that needs to be corrected,” he said.
“We have to be Christians first, not white or black. And we have to be honest with each other. We’ve been sweeping it under the rug, and that rug is overcrowded and spilling out.”
For current students who will live in the residence hall that bears his name, Parker’s hopes mirror his hopes for the nation.
“I hope they develop a love for one another,” he said. “That they’ll learn to listen to each other, and to consider the other person’s viewpoint.”
The residence hall, located on the north end of campus, has three distinct sections, and each will bear the name of a person who has contributed significantly to the university.
The men’s wing will be named for Parker, who earned a degree in history before embarking on a decades-long career in ministry.
Parker also has a scholarship named in his honor, the Rev. James D. Parker Young Leader Scholarship. It was established to encourage student leaders from the Baptist Fellowship Association and to promote Cedarville University among minority communities.
The women’s wing will be named in honor of Pat Bates, who joined the Cedarville faculty in 1974 as dean of women. She served for 37 years at Cedarville until her retirement in 2010 as the associate dean of students. Bates passed away in 2017.
The center section, a three-story conference center for study, community, and discipleship, will be named for George Dunn, the first chairman of the Cedarville College trustee board after the merger with the Bible Baptist Institute.
Parker and the others are to be honored on campus Aug. 7.
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