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Nellie Craig Walker’s story continues to inspire.

It’s served as inspiration for Melanie Walker, who followed the trail blazed by her great-grandmother into a career in higher education as associate dean of finance and administration for Case Western Reserve University’s School of Law.

It inspired Kiaya Carter ’14, M.S. ’18 to establish the after Carter became aware of Nellie’s story as a graduate student at ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University.

And it’s inspiring London Thompson, a recipient of the Nellie’s Daughters Scholarship and a senior Marketing major who spoke Wednesday at an event honoring ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú’s first Black graduate.

“Nellie Craig Walker’s legacy represents resilience,” Thompson said during the Celebrating the Legacy of Nellie Craig Walker and the Power of Education event held at King Library. “As a first-generation college student, I once questioned whether I was truly capable of handling this college lifestyle. But when I look to figures like Nellie Craig Walker, I am reminded that I belong here.”

In 1905, Nellie earned a two-year teaching certificate to become the university’s first Black graduate. The daughter of a Civil War veteran father and mother who was a freed slave from Kentucky, Nellie also was the first Black educator to teach in the community’s public schools to a mixed-race class.

A in 2021 marked the renaming of ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú’s Campus Avenue Building to Nellie Craig Walker Hall in her honor.

“It’s overwhelming,” Melanie Walker said as she toured the building named for her great-grandmother for the first time. “Education can break down barriers. It has shaped the path of not just her life but the lives of the generations that came after her.

“She passed that on to her children and her grandchildren, which was my father, and they passed it on to my generation. That was just something we knew was in our future.”

Melanie Walker described Nellie’s perseverance once her husband, James Walker, passed away after 15 years of marriage. Nellie had four children to raise and supported them by operating the family tire business.

“She made a go of it. Made it thrive,” Melanie Walker said.

“Imagine what my great-grandmother had to endure. The challenges were immense. Yet, Nellie persisted. Her dreams and achievements were not just a personal victory but a victory for our family and our community for generations to come.”

When Carter was an undergraduate at ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú, she said she was not aware of Nellie’s story. But, once she returned as a graduate student, Carter “kind of stumbled upon her” and described Nellie’s Daughters Scholarship as “a labor of love for a lot of people.”

“Everybody who comes to campus needs to know who she is,” Carter said during the celebration event. “This is where the scholarship comes from. We are lucky to know who she is. We are lucky to know her resilience.”

Wednesday's celebration was a featured event from ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú's Office of Transformational and Inclusive Excellence in honor of Black History Month and was co-sponsored by and the .

Jerome Conley, dean of University Libraries, also spoke on Wednesday and thanked Melanie Walker for sharing her time, her stories, and her invaluable insight into the legacy of Nellie Craig Walker.

“Your presence here has given us not just a history lesson but a powerful reminder of how one person’s courage and determination can open doors for generations to come,” Conley said. “Nellie Craig Walker’s journey as a trailblazer is a testament to what is possible when resilience meets opportunity. Her story is not just ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University’s history, but her story is part of our shared responsibility to ensure that her legacy continues to inspire, to educate, and to uplift.”