The Heman Sweatt Center for Black Males (formerly known as the African American Male Research Initiative AAMRI), is an innovative academic community consisting of professors, administrators, graduate, and undergraduate students committed to contributing to the academic success and acclimation of Black males to the University of Texas at Austin. As part of this program, students will have access to an interconnected array of programs and services.
Sweatt Center students are able to combine the best features of the university (world-class faculty, first-rate research facilities, competitive athletics) with the kind of small community that you would find at highly-competitive private colleges. Students within the Sweatt Center are able to take advantage of the following:
- Collegiate Black Male Retreat (connect with collegiate Black males from across the country)
- Power Hours (weekly empowerment meetings with FREE FOOD)
- Free academic tutoring in popular courses (science, math, writing, psychology, etc.)
- Wall Street and Silicon Valley exposure trips
- Mentorship Program (mentorship from Black male faculty, staff, and industry professionals)
- Internship Placement Programming
- Study Abroad opportunities (including China, Ghana, Senegal, and South Africa)
- College For A Day (opportunity to expose high school males to higher education)
- Academic advising, resumes, mock interviews, career counseling and more!
- Black Male Education Research Collection
- Black with Blue Passports Program and Podcast
For updates on Events, Announcements, Job Opportunities, & Scholarships please follow our social media accounts on Instagram & Twitter: @SweattCenter
Remember, as Dr. Sutton always said, you are not in this alone!
Devin Walker, Ph.D.
Director, Heman Sweatt Center for Black Males
Heman Sweatt
Heman Marion Sweatt was the first African American to be admitted to the University of Texas School of Law in 1950 as the result of the Supreme Court decision in Sweatt v. Painter.
Sweatt displayed courage and tenacity in his effort to be admitted to the Law School, and his efforts helped pave the way for the integration of predominately white universities in the South. The Sweatt v. Painter decision led to the 1954 ruling in Brown v. The Board of Education which desegregated schools across the country and opened the University of Texas at Austin to black undergraduates in 1956.
Read more about Heman Sweatt’s life on the Texas State Historical Association’s website. Learn more about Heman Sweatt and the history of integration of UT-Austin.
