Black History

Trailblazing Black Va. Tech Grad & Black Student Recruitment Official Dies

Glenn Wilbert Valentine, a pioneering Black Virginia Tech graduate who played a pivotal role in increasing Black student enrollment at the university, passed away at age 69. His efforts, alongside colleague Calvin Jamison, helped to quadruple the number of Black students at Virginia Tech from 1977 to 1987.
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By Rosaland Tyler
Associate Editor
New Journal and Guide

Glenn Wilbert Valentine passed away on Oct. 3, at age 69, decades after he became one of the first Black Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech), graduates to land a job there after he graduated from the school in 1977.

On Oct. 13, his funeral was held in Christiansburg, Va., at Christian Growth Center, where he was a member and played the saxophone plus ran the sound department. Declining health forced him to step down in 2017.

During his tenure at Virginia Tech, the total number of Black students at the university more than quadrupled, increasing from 234 to 969, during a period when overall enrollment rose by 8 percent, Virginia Tech noted in a recent statement on its website.

“He enrolled at Virginia Tech in 1973 and became a leader in the university’s chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha, a historically African-American fraternity, before graduating in 1977 with a bachelor’s degree in public administration,” Virginia Tech noted.

He and another new Virginia Tech graduate, Calvin Jamison, who now serves as vice president for facilities and economic development at the University of Texas at Dallas, worked in recruitment.

Jamison said he and Valentine focused on recruiting Black students to a town nicknamed “Black-less-burg” by some at the time. “Glenn was one of the most caring and compassionate colleagues that I’ve ever worked with,” Jamison said, in a statement on Virginia Tech’s website. “With a lot of positive energy, we were always committed to helping create the best climate possible for students to be successful – we cared.”

According to Virginia Tech, “The pair traveled throughout the commonwealth and into nearby states as part of their work, sometimes using Jamison’s blue Volkswagen Super Beetle because of a rule that prohibited driving state vehicles out of Virginia. On their initial trip out of state, after a rainy night, the car failed to start right before their first meeting with a guidance counselor in Greensboro, North Carolina. They took a taxi to the appointment.”

The recent Virginia Tech statement added, “Efforts like that made a difference. From fall 1977 to fall 1987, the total number of Black students at the university more than quadrupled, increasing from 234 to 969, during a period when overall enrollment rose by 8 percent.

According to Valentine’s obituary in New River Valley News, “Over the years, he held many positions, making the Southwest Virginia area a “safe space” for students of color.”

Born in Bracey, Va., to Robert Allen Valentine Sr. (Nov. 14, 1911-Jan. 8, 1999) and Lorraine Mayo Valentine (Jan. 8, 1919-Oct. 12, 2016), he lived in Christiansburg with his wife, Bridgett Valentine, of 43 years.

Other survivors include two daughters: Maichal, Meschel, and Moriah; siblings Wayne Valentine (Denise), Brenda Valentine, Cynthia Jones (Joe), Winona Green (Priest, d.), Brenda Burford (Robert Sr.), mother-in-law Jeanette Burford (C.E., “Papa,” d.), and multiple nieces and nephews. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Glenn Valentine’s honor.