Sonja Haynes Stone Center for Black Culture

For this assignment I visited the Sonja Haynes Stone Center for Black Culture. I have been to the Stone Center before to hear several speakers, and I had a class there when I was a freshman. I had not, however, until this trip spent time looking around. I went to an exhibit that I enjoyed that is not very well advertised on campus. I also spent time reading the plaques and learning about the history of the building and about Dr. Sonja Haynes. Dr. Stone was born in Chicago in 1938 and received her BA in social science from Sarah Lawrence in 1959. She received her Ph.D. in history and philosophy of education from Northwestern University in 1975 and then cam to UNC where she became a professor of Afro-American studies. Dr. Stone did a lot to establish a strong Black Student Movement on campus and the building was dedicated in her honor in 1988.

The center has many different uses today. There are undergraduate classes and recitations held in the building, but mainly it serves as the place for speakers, events, exhibits and collaboration.