Rachel Swarns delivered the Founders’ Week keynote address during the University of Maryland Eastern Shore’s (UMES) 140th anniversary celebration of the institution’s founding.
The program was held Wednesday, Sept. 9, in the SSC Theater on the University’s campus.
Swarns is a Pulitzer Prize winner, former New York Times reporter and author of “American Tapestry: The Story of the Black, White and Multiracial Ancestors of Michelle Obama” and “The 272: The Families who Were Enslaved and Sold to Build the American Catholic Church.”
As an investigative reporter, she has covered the justice system, policing in America, and the L.A. riots. Swarns’ work explores the complexities of race, history and the American experience.
“As we look forward to the next century of education and service to our community, an institution rich in research and steeped in historical significance like UMES remains a constant reminder of its critical importance,” said UMES President Heidi M. Anderson. “On our campus walk the descendants of the men and women Rachel Swarns gives life through detailed and colorful explanation of their difficult past—a past we must acknowledge as products of UMES join in building a more promising future.”
Swarns’ writings address societal circumstances leading to the successes and challenges faced by UMES and other HBCUs through the course of history.
In her UMES Founders’ Week celebration keynote address, Swarns called for continued vigilance in upholding moral values by way of the same individual and institutional engagement, which has sustained a global democratic society.
