When Barbara Ann Walker and the Rev. Robert Gilbert walked across the graduation stage on June 2, 1967, Baylor University had gone over 120 years without granting a degree to a Black student. The story of Baylor’s integration is long, challenging and still developing, but more than anything, it is a story centered around the actions not of governments or university administrations but of outspoken support from students themselves.

“She was one of those people that those other students of color were gravitating to, because she was a waymaker,” Hernandez said. “She was saying, ‘No, you belong here. And look, with this accomplishment, I belong here too.'”

With the ceremonial groundbreaking of the Memorial to Enslaved Persons set to take place in late February, Dr. Todd Copeland gave insights on the lives of Ann Freeman — a slave believed to have served the university’s namesake, Judge R.E.B. Baylor — as well as other slaves throughout the university’s early history.

“The idea behind this season of prayer is that we pray for our college students, who are our next generation of leaders,” Dr. Charles Ramsey, director for campus ministries and church connections, said. “If they are the leaders of the future church, surely we have the time in our day to invest in them and support them.”