Slowe, Lucy Diggs
1883-1937 · Contribution: 1908-1937
Education
First Black woman to serve as a university Dean of Women anywhere in the United States; first African American woman to win a national title in any sport; co-founder of Alpha Kappa Alpha, the first sorority founded by Black women

Portraits are AI-generated interpretations, not photographs.
Quick facts
- Category
- Education
Impact on the world
Slowe broke barriers in athletics, sorority leadership, and university administration, defining the role of dean of women as an advocate for Black female students.
Sources
- National Women's History Museum
1 more sources and references are available to members.
More in Education
Adams, Osceola Macarthy
1890-1985
Co-founded Delta Sigma Theta Sorority in 1913; pioneering Black actress and acting teacher who performed under the stage name Osceola Archer
Anderson, Claud
1936-
Authored 'PowerNomics: The National Plan to Empower Black America' and 'Black Labor, White Wealth,' influential books on Black economic self-sufficiency and group economics; held senior federal and state economic development posts
Armstrong, Byron Kenneth
1892-1980
Co-founded Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity in 1911; earned a PhD and built a career as a professor and academic dean across multiple universities
Asante, Molefi Kete (Arthur Lee Smith Jr.)
1942-
Coined the theory of Afrocentricity; founded the first PhD program in African American Studies in the United States at Temple University in 1988