University of Dayton Honors Diamond Soror Jessie Hathcock

January 22, 2021

Jessie graduated with a bachelor's degree in education in 1930. She was a noted educator and humanitarian, having been a literature teacher and Dean of Girls at Dunbar High School for 35 years. She was known for her encouragement and devotion to students and assisting them with the college admission process. In 1978, she became the first African American woman to receive an honorary doctorate in humanities from the University of Dayton.

Jessie was a charter member and first Basileus of Beta Eta Omega Chapter in 1934. She became an Ivy Beyond the Wall in 1986.