Calvin Hernton, Emeritus Professor of African American Studies, Dies
		Calvin Hernton, emeritus professor of African American Studies, died Sunday, September 31, after a long struggle with cancer. Professor Hernton spent two years as a Writer-In-Residence at Oberlin College (1970-72) and then became an associate professor in the African American Studies Department. In 1980 he was promoted to Professor of African American Studies and Creative Writing, a position he held until his retirement in 1999. Prior to joining the Oberlin faculty, he received the B.A. in sociology from Talladega College in 1954 and an M.A. in the same field from Fisk University in 1956. Hernton then spent 1956-58 as a social worker with children before taking on a series of academic appointments at several colleges and universities. He spent the next several years back in social work and then returned to academe as a writer-in-residence at Central State University before joining the Oberlin faculty in 1970. Professor Hernton had a long and distinguished career at Oberlin College and in the outside world. With interests in African, Caribbean and African American literature, he was one of the guiding forces in the development of the African American Studies Department at Oberlin, serving as the department chair from 1996 until his retirement. He was the author of seven books in the fields of sociology, poetry and fiction. He wrote several plays and had numerous scholarly articles and poems published, and was invited frequently to make presentations, lectures and readings at colleges and universities around around the world. A gifted teacher, he will be well-remembered by many generations of Oberlin students. Hernton is survived by his wife, Mary, and his son, Antone. Funeral arrangements will be private and a memorial service will be announced at a later date.
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