Seventy years ago, the first African-American students were allowed to study at Saint Louis University. Two graduate students and three undergraduates were admitted.
“These students bucked the system,” said Darryl Jones chairman of the SLU Black Alumni Association’s anniversary committee.
“They could have chosen to go to a historically black college or university, but these young kids went to a predominately white university and said, ‘We want to make an impact.’”
The Black Alumni Association’s Pioneers of Inclusion Endowed Scholarship recognizes the strength and courage of the five men and women who became SLU’s first black students in 1944. The scholarship honors their legacy by supporting a high-achieving, urban, first-generation college student at SLU, Jones said.
The fundraising efforts for the scholarship kick off at the 24th Annual Ernest A. Calloway, Jr., Prayer Breakfast Reunion at 9 a.m. Saturday, April 26, in the Saint Louis Room at the university’s Busch Student Center, 20 N. Grand Blvd.
“With the rising cost of education, it’s hard for students,” Jones said. “With the scholarship, we are hoping we can keep some of those minority students in college so they can achieve their dreams.”
At the event, Jessie J. Knight Jr., a 1972 SLU graduate, will be honored as the 2014 Distinguished Black Alumni Award Recipient and be the guest speaker.
Knight is the executive vice president of external affairs for Sempra Energy, a San Diego-based Fortune 500 company, as well as chairman of San Diego Gas and Electric and chairman of SoCal Gas. (both subsidiaries of Sempra Energy).
Jones said the award recognizes alumni who embody the university’s Jesuit foundation of giving back to the community, especially to minority students.
“SLU has been so committed to diversity, going back to when I was student there,” Knight said.
Knight grew up in Springfield, Mo., and was part of the small minority of black Catholics in mid-Missouri’s “Bible Belt,” he said.
Through a scholarship, Knight was able to continue his Catholic education at SLU and earn his bachelor’s degree.
“It was a phenomenal experience,” he said of his study at SLU. “It set the stage for me to truly discover the world. Not only had I never been out of Springfield, but Saint Louis University afforded me the opportunity to study in Spain my junior year. It literally changed my life.”
His experience “put the fire in his heart” to enter international business. Beginning in 1975, he worked 10 years in both domestic and international operations for Dole Food Company Inc., including five years as director of marketing for the U.S. and Canadian pineapple business.
Today at Sempra Energy, Knight oversees all international affairs, as well as communications, community relations activities and government relations. Knight is also a life member of the Council on Foreign Relations in New York.
“The spirit of Jesuit foundation is that you are involved with the world and your community,” he said. “I have carried that torch forward since the day I walked off that campus.”
Before joining Sempra Energy in 2006, Knight served for seven years as president and chief executive officer of the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce.
From 1993 to 1999, Knight served as commissioner for the California Public Utilities Commission, after being appointed by then-Gov. Pete Wilson.
He has also served in leadership roles at the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce and the San Francisco Chronicle and San Francisco Examiner newspapers.
No matter what his professional role, he said he has always made a point to serve in the community, alongside his wife Joye Blount, vice president in wealth management advisor for U.S. Bank, and his daughter, Jessica.
“I’ve been devoted to philanthropy in the governance of many nonprofits and scores of organizations over the years,” he said, “operating under the notion that was sparked by Jesuit education – servant leadership.”
To register for the event, visit alumni.slu.edu/prayerbreakfast2014. The cost is $50 per person and includes a $20 gift to the scholarship fund. For additional information, contact Kate Flatley at 314-977-2348 or kflatle1@slu.edu.
Follow this reporter on Twitter @rebeccarivas.
