The shining light that is Johnson C. Smith University

JOHNSON C. SMITH UNIVERSITY

Johnson C. Smith University, founded in 1867, with Charlotte's urban core in the background.

A small university just a few miles west of Uptown change my life. And this is why Historically Black Colleges are important.

To some, their college education is a steppingstone to career paths. To me it was much more than that. It was a journey in the discovery of my identity as a person of color.
When I stepped onto the Johnson C. Smith University campus on Beatties Ford Road, I was sincerely unimpressed. I chose the school because of issues with my citizenship that resulted in my late application. To me, the campus was not what I expected. It was small, not many hangout spots and not many people attended. Yet, I called that university my home for four years.

Not only was I able to connect with my professors because of how small my classes were, but I never once felt unsafe.  Every day, I faced life with others who looked like me and had similar experiences in this country. Attending an HBCU, though I did not know it was prior to applying, helped me realize the difference between race and ethnicity, specifically what it means to be an Afro-Latina.  

The topic of race was one I did not understand because like the rest of the world, I thought being Hispanic was just that. Meeting fellow Latinas who were also part of the Black experience was impactful, and further helped me find my place in the world. The university also taught me how to create my own seat at the table despite one not being available for me.

My experience for those four years allowed me to live at peace because in that little bubble, there was no inequality. I was seen as every other student and given the same opportunities to make my time at the university as memorable as I wanted it to be.

Johnson C. Smith is a private university and the only HBCU in Charlotte, with 1,093 students enrolled. It was built in 1867 and initially named Biddle Institute. JCSU was a founding member of the United Negro College Fund in 1944.

My favorite piece of JCSU history is the fact that it was where Black college football began when the Golden Bulls (the school’s mascot) went against Livingston College on Dec. 27, 1897.

Professional athletes and those who broke barriers attend the and graduated from the institution. For example, Pettis Norman, Curly Neal and Tim Beamer were professional athletes; Trezzvant Anderson was a pioneering journalist in the Black press and Frederick C. Branch was the Marine Corps’ first Black officer.

For more than a century, JCSU has continued to implement programs to better its students’ lives. It offers 21 undergraduate degree programs and one graduate program. Greek life is rich with nine historically Black fraternities and sororities, also known as the “Divine 9.”

In 2016, I pledged the first chapter of Lambda Theta Alpha Latin Sorority Inc., to be implemented at an HBCU. The Latinx-based Lambda Theta Phi Latin Fraternity Inc. debuted in 2015. I was also part of the International Institution of Sound, JCSU’s marching band program that earned its name after being invited to perform in Ireland.

The university has truly given me opportunities, I am sure I would not have gotten anywhere else.

Every Black History Month I think back at my experience and how lucky I was able to be part of it.

JCSU’s size was just a further steppingstone for me to reach all the opportunities the school had to offer.

JCSU’s motto, one that is used for a program that gives students that do not have the test scores or grades to be granted admission an opportunity to be admitted and participate in a college experience. That program – “Sit Lux,” Latin meaning “Let there be light” – shines on its students every day thanks to the barriers broken to produce educated and successful alumni.

Post correspondent Mayra Parrilla Guerrero is a 2019 JCSU graduate.

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