Faculty member, student honored by campus NAACP chapter

The recent Image Awards hosted by the University of Georgia chapter of the NAACP honored two members of the College of Education community—a student and a faculty member.

Darris Means, an assistant professor in the department of counseling and human development services, received the Mary McLeod Bethune Educator Award, while Mansur Buffins, a senior studying social studies education and African-American studies, received the Outstanding Campus Leader award.

The annual awards ceremony also marked the organization's 20th anniversary on campus. But co-founder Erica Brantley Gwyn reminded the crowd, during her keynote speech, that black excellence goes far beyond that two-decade period. "There were plenty of people before myself that made sure to pave the way for the access for us to be in this space where we can embrace each others' cultures," she said.

This includes Hamilton Holmes and Charlayne Hunter-Gault, who in 1961 were the first black students to attend UGA, and Mary Frances Early, a College of Education alumna who, in 1962, was the first black woman to graduate from UGA.