The 27th Mary E. Benjamin Conference on Educational Access was held online on April 22, 2020. The annual event at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (UAPB) is named for Mary Eunice Benjamin, Ph.D.
Dr. Benjamin was vice chancellor for academic affairs at UAPB in 2013 when she was honored with the College-level promotion of Education award at the Women of Color STEM Conference. She has a lifetime of work in preparing successful students.
Benjamin graduated from Tuskegee University and Atlanta University before earning a Ph.D. in Sociology from Mississippi State University.
"It was a large white house, tree-shaded green lawn, happy college graduates, proud families, and an articulate, personable host and hostess which rounded out the reception at the college president's home many years ago," she told Women of Color magazine. "I was there as the kid sister of our family's first college graduate. The ambiance was so warm, professional, and impressive.
"I knew from that day forward that this was what I wanted: a career in a college setting, an administrative role, and all the trappings of the college environment. Thanks to Dr. and Mrs. C.V. Troupe of Fort Valley State University for welcoming me to the wonders of the Historically Black College and University (HBCU) and 1890 Land-grant institutions which remain at the forefront in developing people of color for professional careers," she said.
As the Vice-Chancellor for Academic Affairs at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, she developed programs promoting academic advancement for students and faculty. She managed recommendations for employment, promotion, tenure, and retention.
She also served as an academic liaison to the Arkansas Department of Higher Education. She provided leadership in obtaining science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) expansion grants totaling $16M from various agencies including the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Department of Education, and the Arkansas Science and Technology Authority.
As principal investigator on the grants, she developed coalitions to fund a $10M STEM Academy and Conference Center to centrally house the programs at UAPB.
