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UTA’s first black graduate gives keynote speech

Written by Justin Sharp, The Shorthorn staff

Monday, 18 January 2010 06:59 PM

Dr. Maxwell Scarlett, Lekar Emergency Medical Associates president, was the university’s first African-American graduate in 1966. Dr. Scarlett will be the keynote speaker at Martin Luther King Jr. “Sharing the Dream” celebration Friday at 6:30 p.m. at the University Center Bluebonnet Ballroom. (The Shorthorn: Rasy Ran)

The 1960s were a tumultuous time in American history, replete with historic events. On July 2, 1964 President Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act. On Feb. 21, 1965 Malcolm X was assassinated in New York City.

And in 1966 a young Maxwell Scarlett graduated with a degree in biology, becoming the first African-American to receive a degree from Arlington State College, renamed The University of Texas at Arlington one year later. Scarlett returned Friday to the university to give a keynote speech at Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration “Sharing the Dream” Awards Banquet.

Born in 1944 in Fort Worth, Scarlett attended segregated schools throughout his primary education. He had never attended a class with white students, or been taught by a white teacher, until attending North Texas State University in 1962. He was one of the first three blacks to live in the campus dormitories.

White students would ask him questions about class work, a new experience for Scarlett.
“I thought: that’s interesting, because we’ve always been told that we were inferior, that we were stupid and dumb, unclean — that our teachers couldn’t teach and we couldn’t learn,” he said.

Scarlett faced prejudice growing up in Fort Worth during the ’40s and ’50s, such as restaurants that refused to serve blacks.
But the prejudices he faced would not hinder his determination to succeed. He decided at an early age to become a physician and followed that path diligently. “That was all I knew,” Scarlett said, referring to his upbringing in a family with two physicians as his primary male role models.

He began at North Texas State the same year UTA integrated and admitted its first black student. He chose to first attend North Texas State, where his mother had received her master’s degree. His exceptional performance as a freshman prompted his professor to recommend he teach in a biology lab. Scarlett said he submitted his application, but the department secretary told him she never received it.

During his second year, Scarlett learned that the NTSU science division chairman once said that, while he was in charge, there would never be a black or a Jew teaching there. But a new chemistry building was being erected using federal funds. One of Scarlett’s professors pointed out that discrimination was illegal, hinting at possible problems for the construction of the building should the situation persist.

Soon after, Scarlett became the first black to teach at NTSU. But he did not experience such discrimination after transferring to Arlington as a senior. “I can honestly say I had no negative experiences at UTA,” Scarlett said. The diligent student was not a member of any organization, and he made no close social ties. “I came for serious business, to learn and study and get out,” he said.

After graduating from ASC he went on to medical school at Howard in D.C., where he received his medical degree and embarked on a remarkable career — first in family practice and currently as an emergency medicine physician. In 2004, Scarlett received the UT Arlington Outstanding African-American Alumni Award and in 2005 he was given the UT Arlington Multicultural Services Trailblazer Award.

The Martin Luther King committee chairman Zeb Strong said he was pleased to have Scarlett give the keynote speech at Friday’s event. “It’s just an honor to work with him and serve with him,” said Strong, who, along with Scarlett, is a member of the African-American Alumni Association. He said these speeches are an opportunity for students “to learn and grow through seeing role models and hearing about life experiences.”

UTA Provost Donald Bobbit attended the banquet. “It was wonderful to have Dr. Scarlett come back and educate us about Dr. King’s life,” Bobbit said. “It allows us to reflect on the thoughts and ideals of this wonderful man.” Scarlett’s and King’s legacies live on in the academic successes of UTA students today.

“This freshman class is the most diverse and academically accomplished in the history of UTA,” Bobbit said in remarks delivered at the banquet on Friday. After a long and illustrious career informed by lessons learned here at UTA, Scarlett passes on a simple piece of advice to black students present and future.

“Be a student first. One who happens to be African-American,” he said.

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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 19 January 2010 08:59 PM )

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