U of A Celebrates Black History Month 2025

February is Black History Month, and the U of A is celebrating with a series of events on the university’s campus and in the Northwest Arkansas community.

Black History Month, or National African American History Month, is an annual celebration of the accolades, achievements, and successes of Black and African Americans. It also provides a time to honor and recognize the central and significant role that African Americans have and continue to play in U.S. history.

Black History Month grew out of “Negro History Week,” the brainchild of noted historian Carter G. Woodson and other prominent African Americans in 1926. Since 1976, every U.S. president has officially designated the month of February as Black History Month.

Key events included Silas Hunt Day on Feb. 7, which honors the anniversary of Silas Hunt’s enrollment in the U of A Law School in 1948, making the University of Arkansas the first Southern university to integrate in the modern era.

Fulbright College’s Department of Music and its Arkansas Center for Black Music also hosted the 12th annual U of A Black Music Symposium, with the theme “Bringing It Home” on Feb. 7. It featured several incredible scholars and free concerts with performers like BAANG and the Arkansas Soul Band.

Additionally, the college’s African and African American Studies Program will be hosting its inaugural Founder’s Symposium, celebrating the program’s rich history and past directors, on Feb. 26 and 27.

The full calendar of campus events recognizing Black History Month is available in the graphics below.

Additional information and events can also be found on the U of A calendar and the U of A’s Multicultural Center. 

Portions of this story also appeared in the University of Arkansas News publication.