Author and professor Barbara McCaskill

As part of her research, McCaskill helped create the Civil Rights Digital Library Initiative, an archival online database of film, manuscripts, correspondence, speeches, photographs, posters and movement buttons from the civil rights era. She worked with CURO Program undergraduates and graduate students to create Freedom on Film, a teaching and research resource linked to the site that tells the story of civil rights in nine Georgia cities and towns. 

These are just part of Dr. McCaskill's crucial contributions to American higher education, contributions that are paving the way for others while maintaining the pressure where we still fall short. Such a living legacy as she continues to move forward professionally requires a powerful vision for herself and others, and the many students (and colleagues) in her orbit exemplify the richness that is our learning environment. And if you ever get the opportunity to hear her speak, don't miss it.

Image: Barbara McCaskill helps English major Laura Essex with a project during her literary magazine editing class. Photo by Dorothy Kozlowski