Pomfret in theCivil Rights Era

The Pomfret Bulletin/Magazine issue from 2005, with John Irick's picture on the front, is a wonderful tribute and record of diversity at Pomfret.

The "first four" African-Americans to be admitted to Pomfret School in the fall of 1964 were:

1) John Irick '65

2) Jim Parker '67

3) Martin Bolton '68

4) Carl McAuley '68

While John Irick was the first African-American to graduate from Pomfret School, Frank Mwine '61 was the first black student to take a diploma on the Hilltop.

The Afro-Latin Society was formed in 1968; it was the venue where Pomfret minority students found support, with the goal to enable them to have a community voice and help each other adjust to the cultural climate on campus. (2008 was the 40th reunion and a celebration was held on campus.)

By the 1980s, "the notion of diversity began to expand and the Afro-Latin Society needed to adjust to the changing student body. As a result, VOICE was founded in 1984 by Desi DelValle '85 and Alex Pena '85." VOICE was open to all students who might consider themselves a minority, which included international students and day students. (Interestingly, the memorial bench for the Afro-Latin Society lists its years of service as 1968-1978.)

The spelling of VOICE is not an acronym. When VOICE started in 1984, it was 'Voice.' When the Reunion occurred in 2002, Ginny Eaton changed the lettering to 'VOICE,' so that it would "make a voice" by being in all capital letters.