Texas Tech University

An Evening with Beverly Daniel Tatum

Please join us on Monday, November 4th from 7:00-8:00pm at the Texas Tech University Allen Theatre for a conversation on race, campus, and community with Beverly Daniel Tatum, PhD. This is not a ticketed event and everyone is invited to attend. Doors will open at 6:30 and, with the exception of a few reserved seats, seating is first come, first serve. 

There will be a book signing following Dr. Tatum's talk and books will be available for purchase at the event. Free parking will be available in the administration and band lots. For more information, please call the TLPDC at 806-742-0133.

Beverly Tatum

Dr. Beverly Daniel Tatum

Dr. Beverly Daniel Tatum, president emerita of Spelman College, is a clinical psychologist widely known for both her expertise on race relations and as a thought leader in higher education. Her thirteen years as the president of Spelman College (2002-2015) were marked by innovation and growth and her visionary leadership was recognized in 2013 with the Carnegie Academic Leadership Award. The author of several books including the best-selling “Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?” and Other Conversations About Race (now in a new 2017 20th anniversary edition) and Can We Talk About Race? and Other Conversations in an Era of School Resegregation (2007), Tatum is a sought-after speaker on the topic of racial identity development, the impact of race in the classroom, strategies for creating inclusive campus environments, and higher education leadership. In 2005 Dr. Tatum was awarded the prestigious Brock International Prize in Education for her innovative leadership in the field. A Fellow of the American Psychological Association, she was the 2014 recipient of the APA Award for Outstanding Lifetime Contributions to Psychology.

A civic leader in the Atlanta community, Dr. Tatum is engaged in educational initiatives designed to expand educational opportunity for underserved students and their families, as well as to connect communities across lines of difference. Locally she serves on the governing boards of the Westside Future Fund, Achieve Atlanta, and the Woodruff Arts Center, as well as the Georgia Power Board of Directors. Her national service includes her membership on the boards of Teach for America, Smith College, the Educational Testing Service, and TIAA Charitable.

She holds a B.A. degree in psychology from Wesleyan University, and M.A. and Ph.D. in clinical psychology from the University of Michigan as well as an M.A. in Religious Studies from Hartford Seminary. Over the course of her career, she has served as a faculty member at the University of California, Santa Barbara, Westfield State University, and Mount Holyoke College. Prior to her 2002 appointment as president of Spelman, she served as dean and acting president at Mount Holyoke College. In spring 2017 she was the Mimi and Peter E. Haas Distinguished Visitor at Stanford University.

Books by Dr. Tatum

Why are all the Black kids sitting together in the cafeteria?: And other conversations about race. (2nd Edition, 2017)

Can we talk about race?: And other conversations in an era of school resegregation (2007)

Quotes by Dr. Tatum

“While I think it is necessary to be honest about the racism of our past and present, it is also necessary to empower children (and adults) with the vision that change is possible. Concrete examples are critical.”

"Why Are All The Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?": A Psychologist Explains the Development of Racial Identity

“Sometimes the assumptions we make about others come not from what we have been told or what we have seen on television or in books, but rather rom what we have not been told. The distortion of historical information about people of color leads young people (and older people to) to make assumptions that may go unchallenged for a long time.”

"Why Are All The Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?": A Psychologist Explains the Development of Racial Identity

“Children who have been silenced often enough learn not to talk about race publicly. Their questions don't go away, they just go unasked.”

"Why Are All The Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?": A Psychologist Explains the Development of Racial Identity

Videos featuring Dr. Tatum

Is My Skin Brown Because I Drank Chocolate Milk? | Beverly Daniel Tatum | TEDxStanford(2017)

Beverly Daniel Tatum: Why Are All of the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria? | Chicago Humanities Festival(2018)

Race in Education with Dr. Beverly Daniel Tatum | Black America(2018)

Teaching, Learning, & Professional Development Center

  • Address

    University Library Building, Room 136, Mail Stop 2044, Lubbock, TX 79409-2004
  • Phone

    806.742.0133
  • Email

    tlpdc@ttu.edu