The Holmes-Hunter Lecture Series was established in 1985 in conjunction with the University of Georgia’s Bicentennial to honor Dr. Hamilton Holmes and Charlayne Hunter-Gault, the first African American students to enroll at UGA.
Dr. Holmes earned a bachelor’s degree cum laude in 1963 and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. Following graduation from UGA, he became the first black student admitted to the Emory University School of Medicine. At the time of his death, on October 26, 1995, Dr. Holmes was an Orthopedic Surgeon in Atlanta, Associate Dean, and a member of the faculty of Emory University School of Medicine, and Chairman of the Orthopedic Unit at Grady Memorial Hospital.
Ms. Hunter-Gault received a bachelor’s degree in journalism in 1963. She wrote for The New York Times for eight years, and then was long associated with PBS’s MacNeil/Lehrer News Hour. After two years as chief correspondent with National Public Radio, Ms. Hunter-Gault left the position and began working for CNN International in Johannesburg, where she served as bureau chief until 2005. Ms. Hunter Gault has received numerous awards for reporting, including two Peabody Awards for her coverage of Africa. Her memoir about her experiences at the University of Georgia, In My Place, was published in 1992.
In 1999, the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences endowed a faculty chair in memory of the late Dr. Hamilton Holmes. In 2001, the University renamed the Academic Building the Holmes-Hunter Academic Building, honoring Hamilton and Charlayne during the University’s 40th anniversary of UGA’s desegregation celebration. In 2024, following $30 million in restorations supported by a $15 million gift from the Robert W. Woodruff Foundation and a combination of matching institutional funds and private contributions, the University dedicated the renovated Holmes-Hunter Academic Building. The renovations included restored historic features, improved accessibility, new meeting and classroom spaces for students, and a courtyard that pays tribute to the building’s namesakes.
Previous Holmes-Hunter Lecturers
Vernon Jordan
Eleanor Holmes Norton
Constance Baker Motley
Andrew Young
Bernice Johnson Reagon
Donald L. Hollowell
Niara Sudarkasa
Jesse L. Jackson
Kathleen Neal Cleaver
Derrick Bell
John Lewis
Morris Dees
Juan Williams
Michel McQueen
Cynthia Tucker
Maurice C. Daniels
Horace T. Ward
Harold Ford Jr.
Nikki Giovanni
Deborah Roberts
Shirley Franklin
Michael Thurmond
Leah Ward Sears
Ron Clark
Kasim Reed
Al Roker
Glenda Hatchett
Sanford D. Bishop, Jr.
Keith Parker
Charlayne Hunter-Gault
Monica Kaufman Pearson
Robert Benham
Henry Louis Gates, Jr.
Marilyn Holmes
Verda Colvin
Helene Gayle
Artis Stevens