History with ‘Hud’: Looking back at UNCW ahead of 104th graduating class
WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — The University of North Carolina Wilmington is holding its 104th commencement exercises Friday and Saturday at Trask Coliseum. But the college has come a long way in the 74 years since its first graduating class of 14 students in 1949.
UNCW began as Wilmington College in September of 1947, opening its doors to 238 students as a junior college. Classes were held from 4:00 p.m. until 9:00 p.m. each day, with 77 percent of those attending the school being WWII veterans who had just come back from overseas.
Wilmington College was upgraded to Community College status in 1957, becoming one of the first three community colleges in North Carolina. A few years later in 1961, a new campus began to take shape on NC 131, known today as College Road.
That same year, Civil Rights Activist Hubert A. Eaton entered a handshake agreement with Wilmington College President John Hoggard to integrate the college, which had been segregated for the previous 14 years. Marshall Collins and Ernest Fullwood became the first African-American students to enroll in 1962.
Fullwood became the first African-American student to graduate from the college on June 12, 1966, with Lela Pierce Thompson setting the mark as the first African-American female to graduate the following year, on July 11, 1967.
Changes continued to round out the 1960s, with Wilmington College being renamed the University of North Carolina Wilmington in July 1969, becoming the fifth campus of the UNC system.
As the student population and area continued to grow and prosper, UNCW began planning for an extension of the campus at Myrtle Grove in 1990, with the Center for Marine Science building opening in 2000. This gave UNCW’s marine-related programs direct access to coastal waters.
But the negative part side UNCW’s proximity to the coast proved itself in 2018, with significant damage coming from Hurricane Florence. The campus was closed for nearly a month as repairs took place. But students and faculty worked hard to finish out the year.
Another challenge struck just two years later, with the outbreak of the COVID pandemic in 2020. But as has been the case time and time again, UNCW bounced back and continues to educate and graduate thousands of Seahawks each year.
