Dorothy Cowser Yancy, Ph.D.

W. E. B. DuBois Award Recipient - 1996

Dr. Dorothy Cowser Yancy is President of Johnson C. Smith University.  She served as Interim President of the University from March 1, 1994 until October 7, 1994, when she was elected the 12th President of the University by the Board of Trustees.  The Alabama native holds the Bachelor of Arts degree In history and social science from Johnson C. Smith University (North Carolina), a Master of Arts degree in history from the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, and the Doctor of Philosophy degree In political science from Atlanta University (Georgia).

Yancy served as professor in the School of History, Technology and Society and in the School of Management at the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta from 1972-1994.  She was the first African-American to be promoted and tenured as a full professor at the Institute.  Previously, she taught at Albany State College, Hampton University, Evanston Township High School, and Barat College, where she was director of the Afro-American Studies Program.  She has also been Associate Director of the School of Social Sciences at Georgia Institute of Technology.

Yancy has taught classes in urban politics, African American history, United States government, race relations, labor policy, unionism, and collective bargaining.  She was the first American to lecture at the Academy of Public Administration and Social Studies of the Small Hural Ulan Bator, Mongolia In 1991.

She holds certifications In labor arbitration and mediation, and serves on a number of arbitration and mediation panels.  Yancy was the first African-American to be appointed Special Master for the Florida Public Employees Relations Commission.  Additionally, she has been a consultant to several government agencies, unions, and companies, Including General Motors and AT&T Bell Laboratories.  She Is the former President of the Association of Behavioral Scientists and the Atlanta Chapter of the Industrial Relations Research Association.  She Is former National Chair of the Woman Power Commission and member of the Executive Council of The Links, Inc.  Yancy is a current member of the Executive Council of the Association for the Study of African-American Life and History.  She was a member of labor delegations to the Soviet Union and Europe In 1988 and 1990.

Yancy has published over forty articles In academic journals, including "Dorothy Bolden, Organizer of Domestic Workers:  She Was Born Poor But She Would Not Bow Down," Sage, "Public Sector Bargaining In the South:  A Case Study of Atlanta and Memphis, "Industrial Relations Association Proceedings, "William Edward Burghardt Dubois - Atlanta Years: The Human Side -A Study Based Upon Oral Sources," The Journal of Negro History, and several articles in Black Women in America: An Historical Encyclopedia.  Yancy has authored numerous other articles and labor cases in academic journals.

Yancy has studied at the University of Singapore, Hampton University, Northeastern Illinois University (Chicago), Northwestern University, and the University of Illinois at Chicago Circle.  She was named Outstanding Teacher of the Year at the Georgia Institute of Technology, Undergraduate Faculty Member of the Year by the Georgia Tech Student Government, and Outstanding Faculty Member by the Georgia Tech Chapter of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity.  She is listed in Outstanding Young Women in America and Outstanding Professionals in Human Service, Who's Who in Black America, Who's Who Among American Women, and the World's Who's Who Among Women in Education.  Yancy was selected as "One of the Six Best Teachers in the United States." by Newsweek on Campus. She graduated in the 1983-84 Leadership Atlanta Class.

Yancy's memberships In honor societies include ANAK, Georgia Institute of Technology, Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society, Alpha Kappa Mu Honor Society, Sigma Rho Sigma Honor Society, and Omicron Delta Kappa.

Yancy serves on the following boards in North Carolina: Opera Carolina, the Charlotte Urban League, the Charlotte World Affairs Council, the Board of Advisors of the Central Carolinas, the Advisory Committee for the 1995 Mecklenburg Bond Committee, and the Chair of the Training Division of the United Way Central Carolinas, Inc. 1995 Campaign. She has served on the North Carolina Postsecondary Eligibility Review Commission, and the Board of Directors of Nations Bank of the Carolinas.