By Lisa Y. Garibay, University Communications
UTEP’s first director of African-American Studies, Maceo C. Dailey, Ph.D., died in his hometown of Baltimore, Maryland on Oct. 11, 2015. He was 72 years old.
“Maceo Dailey was a highly esteemed member of both the UTEP family and the El Paso community,” said UTEP President Diana Natalicio. “So intellectually engaged, knowledgeable and wise, he made every conversation memorable. So unassuming, kind and generous, he was admired and loved by a broad range of students and colleagues across our campus and people across this community.”
Dailey received his Ph.D. from Howard University and went on to teach there as well as at Smith College, Brown University, Boston College, Morgan State University, Spelman College, Colby College, New York University and Morehouse College.
Shortly after arriving at UTEP in 1996, Dailey founded the University’s African-American Studies Program and acted as its first chair in addition to serving as an associate professor of history.
Dean of the College of Liberal Arts Patricia D. Witherspoon, Ph.D., characterized her colleague as an extraordinary mentor, teacher and role model who set an example for students with his civility, compassion and eloquence.
“He had the gift of bringing diverse people together to talk about important issues of the day and to do so in a civil manner,” she said.
Dailey was not only widely respected throughout the UTEP and El Paso communities, he was also recognized nationally for his scholarship and asked to speak at events and institutions around the country. He published numerous chapters, essays and articles throughout his rich career, served as assistant editor for the Journal of Negro History; co-wrote African Americans in El Paso; and co-edited the books “Wheresoever My People Chance To Dwell: Oral Interviews With African American Women of El Paso” and “Tuneful Tales” by Bernice Love Wiggins.
Dailey and his wife, Sondra, established Sweet Earth Flying Press to publish books by women and people of color, including “Boy of the Border,” a forgotten manuscript by Harlem Renaissance legends Langston Hughes and Arna Bontemps.
“He worked very hard every day to make UTEP the best place for each of his students,” said Selfa A. Chew, Ph.D., interim director of African-American Studies. “He helped us dream we had a place in academia and labored with us to achieve it.”