Northwestern University Alumni

Celebrating Black Alumni at Northwestern University

Northwestern alumni have a long history of standing up for equal access and opportunity. Their actions have opened doors for future generations. During Black History Month, the Northwestern Alumni Association, in partnership with the Northwestern University Archives, is recognizing Black alumni whose work has brought about change on campus and around the world.

Meet Edgar Toppin ’55 PhD, a Historian Who Helped Establish Black History Month 

Edgar Toppin ’55 PhD was instrumental in establishing Black History Month in the United States in 1976. While serving as president of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History, Toppin worked with President Gerald Ford to transform what was a weeklong recognition called Negro History Week into a monthlong commemoration.

His role in creating Black History Month was not the first, or the last, time Toppin’s work would take the national stage. As a historian, teacher, and advocate, he worked to ensure Black perspectives were included in recorded history. Toppin wrote many works that shared the legacy of Black history in the United States, including the 15-part Christian Science Monitor series Blacks in America and nationally televised series Americans from Africa that aired in the 1960s.

Education was a priority throughout Toppin’s life. After earning bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Howard University and a doctorate in history from Northwestern, he went on to have a storied teaching and administrative career at Virginia State University. Read more about Toppin’s life and legacy.

 Meet Emma Ann Reynolds 1895 MD, an Advocate for Healthcare Equality and the First Black Woman to Earn a Medical Degree at Northwestern

Emma Ann Reynolds 1895 MD was the first Black woman to earn a medical degree from Northwestern University, and she was an early advocate for healthcare equality.

Reynolds became interested in pursuing a career in medicine after witnessing severe healthcare disparities among Black Americans during her teaching career. Inspired to make a change, she applied to nursing schools, only to experience repeated rejection because she was Black. Determined to overcome barriers, she approached Daniel Hale Williams 1883 MD, who was first Black man to graduate from Chicago Medical College of Northwestern University (now the Feinberg School of Medicine) about the lack of training opportunities for Black women. Recognizing discrimination in health care and education, Williams, along with other graduates, established Provident Hospital and Training School in Chicago, which was the first Black-owned and -operated hospital in America.

After Reynolds graduated from the first nursing class at Provident Hospital in 1892, she enrolled in Northwestern University Women’s Medical School and graduated in 1895. After medical school, she practiced around the country in Texas, Louisiana, and Washington, DC. Reynolds later settled in her home state of Ohio, establishing her own practice and serving patients until her death in 1917. Read more about Reynolds’s life and legacy.

Meet Herman S. Cage ’69, ’73 MBA, Founder of For Members Only and Participant in the 1968 Bursar’s Office Takeover

Herman S. Cage ’69, ’73 MBA stepped onto Northwestern’s campus in the fall of 1965 as one of five Black students in his class. Cage says he came to Northwestern with the explicit goal of becoming a “corporate titan.” During his time on campus, he played an instrumental role in shaping the experience for future Black students at Northwestern.

As a first-generation college student, he noted that acclimation was difficult, and he often felt a lack of support. But, by the end of his first year, he began to feel more at home on campus. In the fall of 1967, Cage created For Members Only (FMO) as a group for Black undergraduate students to be themselves, build community, and feel safe.

As the campus was rapidly changing, Cage decided to step aside from FMO and other campus organizations to focus on building his career. But a few days prior to the 1968 Bursar’s Office Takeover, fellow classmate Wayne Watson ’69, ’70 MS, ’72 PhD informed Cage of plans by FMO and the Afro-American Student Union (AASU) to protest after their demands for an improved Black student experience had not been met by the Northwestern administration. On the morning of May 3, 1968, Cage joined more than 100 fellow students in a peaceful sit-in inside Northwestern’s business office that lasted 38 hours, an event he describes as a catalyst for change for both Northwestern and himself. On the evening of May 4, 1968, representatives of FMO and AASU and the Northwestern administration negotiated an agreement that led to increased Black student enrollment and financial aid, revised housing policies, and an expanded curriculum to include African American Studies. Although work still remains to be done, the event had a lasting impact on the University.

After completing his bachelor’s degree, Cage earned his MBA from the Kellogg School of Management. Throughout his career he served in various roles in finance, information technology, operational systems, and marketing. In 2006, he founded Herman S. Cage & Associates, which offers financial planning services. “I never had the chance to be a robber baron or a corporate titan; instead I’ve ended up being somewhat of a freedom fighter in terms of my clients’ financial affairs,” Cage said during a 2019 NU Live! event. Hear Cage share his story and Northwestern experience.

Meet Eileen Cherry-Chandler ’73, ’97 PhD, Cofounder of the Northwestern Community Ensemble and Advocate for Black Culture in the Arts

As an undergraduate student, Eileen Cherry-Chandler ’73, ’97 PhD played a critical role in creating traditions that celebrated Black culture. Most notably, Cherry-Chandler and her classmates, L. Stanley Davis ’74, ’97 MS and Clifton Gerring III ’76, formed the Northwestern Community Ensemble (NCE) in 1971 to promote cultural awareness, creativity, and the singing of Black spirituals, anthems, hymns, and gospels. This May, NCE will celebrate its 50th anniversary at Northwestern.

As cultural coordinator of For Members Only, Northwestern’s Black student alliance, Cherry-Chandler channeled her love for music, writing, and performance to develop programs that celebrated Black culture in the arts. In 1970, she created “The Ritual” to welcome incoming Black students to campus and bring Northwestern’s Black community together by performing skits, reading poems, singing, and sharing history. She named the event “The Ritual” in hopes that it would become a tradition that could be replicated for years to come—which it has been for 51 years and counting. Cherry-Chandler also created Black Folks Theatre—which was renamed African American Theatre Ensemble in 1984 and has since evolved to Out Da Box—in response to a lack of opportunities for Black performers in existing theater groups.

Cherry-Chandler’s published works include poetry, fiction, and essays on critical cultural analysis related to Black life. She was actively engaged in teaching the exploration of cultural diversity through performance and is an associate professor emeritus in Theatre and Film at Bowling Green State University in Ohio.