Currently serving as the dean of the Sally McDonnell Barksdale Honors College, Ethel Young Scurlock is one of the most important figures at the University of Mississippi.
Hailing from Memphis, she found her way to the university in 1996, thinking this would just be a temporary position to get her footing after graduation. Soon enough, though, she fell in love with the campus and community.
“I felt like it was a place I could thrive intellectually, but I got here and found out it was a place my family could thrive,” Scurlock said.
Scurlock has been on campus for 18 years now.
Before taking the position as honors college dean, she was the director of the Department of African American Studies. She is currently an associate professor of English and African American studies, as well as a senior fellow of the Luckyday Residential College. She graduated with her Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Tennessee and received both her Master of Arts and doctorate from Bowling Green State University of Ohio.
In addition to her work at the university, she is a preacher on Sunday mornings, ministering at two churches outside of Oxford: Alvis Grove Baptist in Oakland, Miss., and First United Baptist in Batesville, Miss.
Scurlock, who became the SMBHC’s first African American dean in 2022, shared that one of her primary ambitions is to have all manner of Mississppians enrolled in the honors college.
“I want every county of the state of Mississippi represented in our honors college. I want to reach our rural students, private academy students, public school students — I want the best and brightest in the state of Mississippi,” Scurlock said.
Among her many accomplishments, she was also recognized by the Mississippi House of Representatives for her work in helping cultivate a more diverse community. Scurlock shared how she wants to continue making UM a more inclusive place.
“Continued growth to me means we are all integrating principles of diversity, equality and inclusion in everything we do,” Scurlock said. “Every time we are sitting at the table to make major decisions, policies, practices and procedures, we (should) have a diversity of viewpoints so that we can make a decision that is healthy for everyone.”
Scurlock’s biggest motivator is feeling like she is making a positive impact.
“I want to be able to wake up and feel like something I did gave somebody an opportunity to do something that they may not have done if I didn’t show up,” Scurlock said. “(I want students) to feel like my presence can mean that a student that didn’t have a voice for themselves, or didn’t know how to use their voice, is able to use their voice and get the resources that they need to be the dynamic person that they were created to be.”
Scurlock offered advice to students about their post-graduation journey, advancing into their careers and life in general.
“Be authentically who you are. Trust your process. Develop all the skills you can at every level. Make sure you have people in your circle that encourage you to see things that you don’t see in yourself,” Scurlock said. “Find your passion, purpose and your people.”
