On Tuesday afternoon, students and administrators packed into the Colonnade Club in Pavilion VII on the UVA Lawn to honor Amos Leroy Willis, a pioneer in civil rights activism at the university. Willis was both the first African-American student to graduate from UVA’s College of Arts & Sciences in 1962 and the first African-American student to live in a Lawn room, an honor for students in their fourth year. Read below the photo for more on the event.

Amos Leroy Willis speaks inside Pavilion VII on the UVA Lawn on Tuesday

A plaque was installed in Willis’ old room, 43 West Lawn, to commemorate the strides he made in achieving racial equality. [See photo below.] Willis was admitted to the School of Engineering in 1959, which was the only desegregated school at UVA. The following year, his interests shifted to the liberal arts, and he petitioned the administration to allow his entrance to the College, which he received in January 1961.

“I asked, wouldn’t it be nice if this administration would live up to the high moral creed that Jefferson wrote in the Declaration of Independence?” Willis said. 

According to UVA President John Casteen, plaques are rarely found on the Lawn. “We reserve that kind of notation for the most extraordinary people,” he said.

To celebrate the installation, a reception was held for Willis, with his family, friends, and members of the University community in attendance. Opening remarks were made by Maurice Apprey, Dean of the Office of African-American Affairs, who reflected on Willis’ experiences “studying in an atmosphere of strife, protest and even hatred.”

Willis graduated in 1962 with a degree in Chemistry, then went on to Harvard Business School in 1969, where he received his MBA. For the past 40 years, he has worked in the fields of urban planning and economic development. “I really wanted to study the liberal arts because I wanted to get into social justice and rebuilding our communities,” he said.

Two of Willis’ children* also graduated from UVA. During his remarks, he emphasized the importance of generational strides made towards equality. “Today is about legacy,” Willis said, as he brought his young grandson to the podium. “This legacy now falls to the next generation."

*Correction: Amos Leroy Willis' son, Maceo Willis, is one of the graduates referred to; the post previously stated that two of Willis' daughters graduated from UVA.