In 1931 John Morrow graduated from Rutgers College. In 1952 he earned his Ph.D. in French from the University of Pennsylvania, and served as a French professor and department chair at Talledega College, Clark College in Atlanta, Atlanta University, and North Carolina College. In 1959 President Eisenhower appointed him the first U.S. ambassador to the new Republic of Guinea. He wrote about his experiences in First American Ambassador to Guinea, published by the Rutgers University Press. From 1961 to 1963, he served for two years as U.S. representative to UNESCO, the United Nations' Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization in Paris. He returned to his New Jersey and Rutgers roots in 1964, when he was appointed professor of romance languages and chairman of the Department of Foreign Languages at University College. He retired in 1978 and died in 2000. Morrow Hall on the Busch Campus is named in his honor.

In 1969 Samuel DeWitt Proctor joined the faculty of Rutgers University. Born in 1921, Dr. Proctor's life is a towering example of faith, knowledge, and action combining to shape a better world. Educator, pastor, author, and pillar of the Civil Rights Movement, Dr. Proctor touched countless lives, including Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Reverend Jesse Jackson. Known for his oratory both in the classroom and the pulpit, Dr Proctor was one of the most sought after commencement speakers of his time. He held more than 50 honorary degrees, including one from Rutgers. At the age of 34, he became president of Virginia Union University, his alma mater, and later served as president of North Carolina A&T. In addition to Rutgers, he taught at Yale, Vanderbilt, United Ethological Seminar, and Duke. He came from a family that valued education. His grandmother, Hattie Ann, was born a slave yet graduated from the Hampton Institute. In 1997 Dr. Proctor suffered a fatal heart attack while giving a speech at Cornell College. In 2000? Rutgers University established the Samuel DeWitt Proctor Chair in Education so that his legacy might live on.

He sang the title role in the American Musical Theater Festival production of the opera, X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X. He starred as television's Hawk on Spencer for Hire and a Man Called Hawk, which he also produced. He is the first African-American M.F.A. graduate of Mason Gross, where he serves as a tenured professor of theater. His recent movies include the 1998 Academy Award nominated American History X and the 2001 action-adventure film, 15 Minutes, with Robert DeNiro.

In 1973 Paris Qualles completed his B.A. degree from Rutgers College. He is a highly acclaimed screenwriter and producer/director for television. His TV movies include The Tuskegee Airmen, which won an Emmy in 1995, and The Color of Friendship, which won an Emmy for "Outstanding Children's Program" in 2000. His other movies include Silent Witness, The Inkwell, and The Ditchdigger's Daughter. While at Rutgers, he founded the Paul Robeson Ensemble for student actors. His diverse writing career has included scripts and staff writing positions for China Beach, Law & Order, Quantum Leap, MANTIS, Equal Justice, The Heights, Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, and The Cape. In 2002 CBS aired his award-winning film on the life of Rosa Parks.

In 1979 Robert Menendez completed his J.D. at the Rutgers Law School in Newark. He has served in the U.S. Congress since 1992, when he became the first Latino congressman in New Jersey history. Prior to that, he was the first Latino mayor of Union City, serving from 1986-1992. In 1987 he was elected to the New Jersey Assembly, serving until 1991 when he became the first Latino elected to the state Senate. While in the state Senate, he sponsored New Jersey's landmark Bias Crimes Law.

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