On Feb. 25, 2025, the University of Georgia celebrated the fifth anniversary of the naming of the College of Education in honor of Mary Frances Early.
This year also marks the 25th anniversary of UGA’s Mary Frances Early Lecture series, which was held earlier this month and featured Early as well as alumnae Tracey Ford and Valerie White. Ford and White helped name the spring lecture series in 2000 when they were leaders of Graduate and Professional Scholars, an organization for underrepresented graduate students at UGA.
In recognition of these milestones, Georgia’s U.S. Senator Raphael Warnock read Ms. Early’s accomplishments and the impact of her work at the university into the Congressional Record on Jan. 23, 2025.
The college will honor Ms. Early’s legacy through the first cohort of Mary Frances Early Scholars — a group of five students in the college who will each receive a $5,000 scholarship from funds raised during the initial campaign to name the college.
The five students receiving scholarships from the Mary Frances Early College of Education Endowment include:
- Amanda Nunes Costa (M.Ed. ’26), communication sciences and disorders
- Nicole Ofsie (B.S.Ed. ’25), elementary education
- Jeet Patel (B.S.Ed. ’26), sport management
- Janae Pipkin (B.S.Ed. ’25), science education
- Witney Talabert (Ph.D. ’27), counseling psychology
“On the fifth anniversary of the naming of the college, we reflect on the accomplishments of a trailblazer whose courage and dedication shaped not only our institution, but the broader fight for educational access and equality,” said Denise A. Spangler, dean of the Mary Frances Early College of Education. “This milestone is a testament to Ms. Early’s enduring influence, and we hope to continue building on her legacy through our student scholars.”
In 1962, Mary Frances Early made history when she earned a master’s degree in music education and became the first African American to graduate from the University of Georgia. She later returned to UGA, earning a specialist in education degree in 1967.
Early continued breaking barriers when she became the first African American president of the Georgia Music Educators Association in 1981. She also served as associate professor of music education and chairperson of the music department at Clark-Atlanta University, director of music for Atlanta Public Schools, and was appointed to the board of directors of the Atlanta Music Club.
Early’s determination to succeed as a graduate student and her work as a music educator were pivotal in advancing equality at UGA and throughout the South. In recognition of her contributions and her continued work in the field today, the UGA College of Education was named in her honor in 2020.
“Mary Frances Early means so much to the University of Georgia, from her inspiring example as the first African American graduate of this institution to her tireless support of her alma mater,” said President Jere W. Morehead. “Generations of UGA students have benefited from Ms. Early’s courageous legacy, and I will always be grateful that our College of Education bears her name.”