Former U.N. ambassador will deliver 10th annual Mary Frances Early Lecture

The lecture honors Mary Frances Early, the first African-American to earn a degree from UGA, and her legacy at the university (see story).

Young, an ordained minister, first came to national prominence by serving as a top aide to the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. during the civil rights movement. He played a key role as a negotiator in civil rights protests across the South.

In 1972, Young was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from Georgia’s 5th District. After serving four years in Congress, President Jimmy Carter appointed Young as the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. He later served two terms as Atlanta’s mayor and co-chaired the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games.

In recent years, Young has worked on humanitarian efforts around the world. He is the co-founder and chair of GoodWorks International, an organization that promotes international business in Africa and the Caribbean.

Young has traveled to more than 150 countries to build the economies of developing nations with a business model that combines education, religion, democracy and free enterprise.

The Mary Frances Early Lecture was established in 2001 by the Graduate and Professional Scholars. The Graduate School assumed ­responsibility for the lecture series in 2010, working in partnership with GAPS to institutionalize it as part of UGA campus life.

“The annual lecture recognizes Early’s dedication toward making UGA an institution of higher learning for all people,” said Maureen Grasso, dean of the Graduate School. “The lecture strives to demonstrate the progress that has been made in achieving her vision and identifies the work that remains to be done.”

Early began her graduate study in 1961 in support of the first African-American undergraduates who enrolled at UGA. She was the third African-American student to enroll and graduated a year later with a master’s degree in music education.