First Black student at University of Alabama dies after receiving school recognition

Days after a building on campus was dedicated in her honor, the first Black student to attend the University of Alabama has died. 

In 1956, Autherine Lucy (Foster) made history when she enrolled as the university’s first Black student and became the first Black person to go to an all-White school or university in the state.

UA President Stuart R. Bell said in a statement, “While we mourn the loss of a legend who embodied love, integrity and a spirit of determination, we are comforted by knowing her legacy will continue at The University of Alabama and beyond,” 

The University of Alabama removed the name of a Klansman from a building and renamed it after Lucy. Bell said Foster “will always be remembered as one who broke barriers, reminded us of the respect due to every individual and lived a life of strength in steadfast service to her students and community.”

Lucy, who went on to become a civil rights activist and education leader was expelled from school after her third day of classes, following a violent mob that surrounded the building that now bears her name. At the time, she took shelter in the School of Education Library after university officials helped her escape.

Decades later, Foster enrolled at the university’s College of Education in 1989 and earned her master’s degree in education in 1991.

She had an endowed scholarship named after her by the university, which is given to a Black undergraduate student yearly. A clock tower was dedicated to her in 2010. In 2019, Foster received an honorary doctorate from the University of Alabama.

Lucy attended the dedication of the building Feb. 25 and spoke during the renaming ceremony held in her honor. 

Initially, university officials had decided to name the building Lucy-Graves Hall after its first Black student Autherine Lucy Foster and Bibb Graves, a former Alabama governor and a Ku Klux Klan leader. After a week of backlash from students, faculty and community members, the University of Alabama System’s Board of Trustees voted to name the building only after Foster. 

“If I’m a master teacher, do you know what I hope I’m teaching you? That love will take care of everything in our world,” Foster told attendees at the building’s dedication event last week.

“It’s not your color, it’s not how bright you are. It’s how you feel about those that you deal with,” she added.