Thanks to Melissa Haizlip, the daughter of Harold Haizlip, Class of 1957, I received the following email from Hugh Price, Class of 1963. Hugh's email brings a great deal of clarity with regards to the extended family connections involved with the Dunbar legacy. Of particular note is the fact that Kendall Price, Class of 1992E, is actually the nephew of Hugh Price, Class of 1963. That corrects my previous statement about them being cousins.
I also noted with interest that Hugh's father was a contemporary of Charles Drew and Montague Cobb at Howard Medical School. Amazing! Also, amazing to me is that according to the Matt Randolph (Class of 2016) "Remembering Dunbar" article Charles Drew's sister, Nora Drew Gregory was instrumental in recruiting Harold Haizlip to attend Amherst. And of course, Nora Drew Gregory sent her son Frederick Drew Gregory, Class of 1962, to Amherst as well. However, Fred did not graduate from Amherst, he transferred to, and graduated from, the Air Force Academy. Fred, of course, blazed his own path to glory by becoming one of the first black astronauts.One of these days, someone may want to chronicle this amazing familial connection of astounding achievement. It is simply remarkable.Peace,Everett "Skip" JenkinsClass of 1975October 9, 2026P.S. Melissa Haizlip did not attend Amherst. However, her parents were very proud of their daughter. Indeed, her father, Harold, made me quite aware of her documentary "Mr. Soul"when it came out in 2018. The documentary chronicles the life and trailblazing career of Ellis Haizlip, another product of the Dunbar legacy. I encourage you all to view it when you can.----- Forwarded Message -----From: Hugh PriceTo: Everett Jenkins <skipjen2865@aol.com>Sent: Friday, October 9, 2026 at 07:25:23 AM PDTSubject: Fwd: Amherst Memories with Kendall Price, Amherst College Class of 1992E
Skip,It's been a while. I trust all is well and wonderful with you.One of my kinfolk Melissa Haizlip (actually her mother is my wife's cousin) relayed this email chain to me. I just wanted to say how incredibly honored and deeply moved I am that you consider me to be one of the top ten Black graduates of Amherst. That's really tall cotton, as the old folks (who are my age now) used to say.It's also especially moving to be in the company of Drew, Cobb, Houston and Hastie because they were contemporaries, friends and, in the first three cases, nearby neighbors of ours in DC. My recently-deceased brother was married to Bebe, which makes Kendall my nephew. Cobb started proselytizing for Amherst when I was about a sixth-grader. His wife was my 5th-6th grade teacher, my future wife's aunt, and one of my mother's best friends. My parents provided $$ support for Houston's litigation efforts. My Dad was just a few years behind those four at Dunbar. He would love to have gone to Amherst (or Williams) but his folks couldn't afford it. His mother, though trained as a school teacher, could only land work as a handmaiden to wealthy white women and his stepfather was a laborer who didn't believe in higher education. So he went to Howard undergrad and med school.Dad, Drew and Cobb were all professional colleagues at Howard Medical School and Freedmen's Hospital. In fact we have a cherished letter which Drew sent to my Dad when he became the second Black physician to earn national board certification in urology. It's attached below.In case you haven't heard, there's a new biography out about Drew. It's called Dream Deferred, co-authored by Craig Miller with Charlene Drew Jarvis. It draws heavily on Drew's letters, which really serve to humanize the great man. Also makes clear the incredible sacrifices that he, Lenore and the children made because he was away from home so very long. Lastly, there's a very funny story about how he applied to Howard Medical School, only to be rejected because he hadn't taken enough English courses at Amherst. Very cheeky of Howard. What that had to do with medicine I do not know. That's why he went to McGill.Anyway, for all the evils and constraints of segregation, there's no question that the inspiration, support and confidence that were conveyed by these towering figures during my formative years meant the world to me.Cheers,Hugh---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: Melissa Haizlip
Date: Thu, Oct 8, 2026 at 12:48 PM
Subject: Re: Amherst Memories with Kendall Price, Amherst College Class of 1992E
To: <skipjen2865@aol.com>
Cc:This is my FAMILY! My cousins on my Mom's side (Shirlee Taylor Haizlip, married to Harold C. Haizlip, Amherst '57!) Sending this to my cousin Hugh Price!xoMelissa HaizlipOn Thu, Oct 8, 2026 at 5:08 AM <skipjen2865@aol.com> wrote:---Last month I received the email set forth below from Kendall Price, Amherst College Class of 1992E. Kendall Price is the grandson of Charles Richard Drew, Amherst College Class of 1926, and his friend Leander Gray, Amherst College Class of 1990, is the grandson of W. Montague Cobb, Amherst College Class of 1925. Both Charles Drew and Montague Cobb were graduates of Dunbar High School. While neither Kendall nor Leander are direct products of Dunbar High School. In many ways, they appear to be the legacy products of that school through their grandparents. While Dunbar may have declined, it is not dead. It's legacy lives.Peace,Everett "Skip" JenkinsClass of 1975October 8, 2026P.S. Kendall Price, Class of 1992E, is the cousin of Hugh Price, Class of 1963. While neither are graduates of Dunbar, the Dunbar influence does seem to permeate both of their lives.On Thursday, September 17, 2026 at 11:06:27 AM PDT, Kendall Price wrote:That’s a great list!Is Hugh on this email chain?Leander (Dr Cobbs grandson) and I went to Amherst together much like our grandfathersAlways enjoy the discussion!---I recently stated that Hugh Price, Class of 1963, is on my list of the Top Ten African American Amherst College Graduates. For full disclosure, the following is my full Top Ten List. Each name has a reference to a Wikipedia page listing except for William Tecumseh Sherman Jackson, Class of 1892. His credentials are set forth by the list of Dunbar High School students he helped to send to Amherst College during his teaching career.Peace,Everett "Skip" JenkinsClass of 1975September 16, 202688888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888Top Ten African American Amherst College Graduates1. Charles Richard Drew, Class of 1926 (Charles R. Drew - Wikipedia)2. Edward Jones, Class of 1826 (Edward Jones (missionary) - Wikipedia)3. Charles Hamilton Houston, Class of 1915 (Charles Hamilton Houston - Wikipedia)4. William Henry Lewis, Class of 1892 (William H. Lewis - Wikipedia)5. William Montague Cobb, Class of 1925 (William Montague Cobb - Wikipedia)6. William Henry Hastie, Jr., Class of 1925 (William H. Hastie - Wikipedia)7. Hugh Bernard Price, Class of 1963 (Hugh Bernard Price - Wikipedia)8. Ulric St. Clair Haynes, Class of 1952 (Ulric Haynes (diplomat) - Wikipedia)9. Benjamin Jefferson Davis, Jr., Class of 1925 (Benjamin J. Davis Jr. - Wikipedia)10. William Tecumseh Sherman Jackson, Class of 1892 (William Tecumseh Sherman Jackson - Segregation and Desegregation at the Catholic University of America - Guides at The Catholic University of America)88888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888William Tecumseh Sherman Jackson, Class of 1892, owed his college education to U.S. Senator George Frisbie Hoar of Massachusetts, who paid Jackson’s tuition and expenses. Jackson never forgot that kindness. He devoted his life to helping others obtain the same opportunities.After leaving Amherst, Jackson moved to Washington, D.C., where he took up teaching at the M Street High School, later renamed Dunbar High School. He married May Howard, who would become one of the most famous African-American sculptors during the period known as the Harlem Renaissance. She made busts of several notable leaders of the time, including W. E. B. Du Bois and Paul Laurence Dunbar—and Lewis.
At Dunbar, Jackson taught mathematics and coached sports for 38 years. He served as the school’s principal from 1906 to 1909. He shepherded many of his students to Amherst, which graduated more Dunbar students than any other college outside of the nation’s capital.
It was Jackson who convinced Charles Hamilton Houston, Class of 1915, to attend Amherst. Houston became a prominent lawyer and the architect of the legal challenge that resulted in Brown v. Board of Education, the landmark Supreme Court decision that in 1954 ended segregation in U.S. schools.
Jackson retired from Dunbar in 1931; his wife died a few months later. In 1942, Amherst honored him for his work as an educator. He died the following year.88888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888During the years that William Tecumseh Sherman Jackson taught at Dunbar High School, Dunbar became a major conduit of African American students to Amherst College. The following is the list of Dunbar students who went to Amherst College. Those with an asterisk (*) went to Amherst but did not graduate.1906Robert Nicholas Mattingly1907James LeCount Chestnut1909James Blaine Hunter1911John Randolph Pinkett1912*Edward Gray1915Charles Hamilton Houston1916Frances Morse Dent1920Frederick Allen Parker1921Robert Percy Barnes1923*George Nolen Calloway*Charles Dudley LeeCharles William Lewis1925William Montague Cobb*George Winston Harry1926Charles Richard DrewThurman Luce Dodson1927Chauncey Baker Larry1928Clarence Reed White1929Harold Over LewisDavid UtzGeorge Williams1931*Charles Curtis Beckwith1934*Henry Greene Risher88888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888--______________________
Melissa Haizlip
Producer / Director: Mr. SOUL!
Shoes In The Bed Productions, LLC--______________________
Melissa Haizlip
Producer / Director: Mr. SOUL!
Shoes In The Bed Productions, LLC
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