Georgia Tech’s first Black graduate hands granddaughter her diploma 59 years later
Ronald Yancey became the school’s first Black graduate in 1965
ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - On graduation day at Georgia Tech, thousands of students walk across the stage at McCamish Pavilion.
These young adults have spent the last four(ish) years working their tails off for this moment where school ends and careers begin.
The excitement was visible.
“If we’re going from 0-to-10, I’m at, like, 100,” said Deanna, a graduate student who earned her master’s degree in electrical and computer engineering.
“It was pretty difficult,” she admitted.
While the ceremonies are at McCamish Pavilion, any discussion of Georgia Tech graduation isn’t complete without a visit to the nearby Clough Commons.
Because inside the mostly empty building is a statue.
“We’re here with the statue of Mr. Ronald Yancey,” said Georgia Tech junior and biomedical engineering major Azeh Ndifor. “He was the first Black graduate from Georgia Tech.”
Yancey is a story of firsts, so Black students like Ndifor can be next.
“Being the first anything is never easy,” Ndifor said.
Yancey’s statue sits in the foyer, watching people come and go and posing for photos with graduates.
“You know, seeing this statue when I come through here all the time for class, it’s just a reminder of what I’m working towards,” Ndifor said.
But as special as this is for Ndifor, the statue of Ronald Yancey is even more special for Deanna…Yancey, Ronald’s granddaughter.
“He’s broken barriers and he’s opened doors that I will never have to experience opening myself,” Deanna Yancey said.
Deanna got her undergraduate degree in electrical engineering from Penn State but couldn’t pass the chance to get her master’s from Georgia Tech.
“So, Georgia Tech, in my opinion, is just one of the top engineering schools in the nation,” she said.
As Deanna walked across the stage Friday afternoon, she also got a nice photo op with Ronald Yancey, the real Ronald Yancey, who handed his granddaughter her diploma.
“I couldn’t thank Georgia Tech enough,” Deanna said of the moment.
Neither can many of the students who follow through those doors Ronald knocked down 59 years ago.
“He kind of paved the path, because without this, I wouldn’t be here,” Ndifor said.
“It’s just beyond me how someone could be so strong in such a hard time,” Deanna added.
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