With February being Black History Month, CBS Sports will be honoring Black athletes with a series of vignettes that will air on CBS Sports Network. One will focus on tennis trailblazer Lucy Diggs Slowe.
In 1917, Slowe became the first Black woman to win a major sports title when she won the American Tennis Association’s first tournament. While Slowe made history on the tennis court, her primary calling was as an educator. In 1922, she became the first Black woman to serve at any position at a university in the United States when she was named the Dean of Women at Howard University.
In addition to her title as the Dean of Women, Slowe was also a member of the school’s English department. She continued to serve as an administrator at Howard University, as she was the College Dean until her death in 1937. She also founded the National Association of College Women and the Association of Advisors to Women in Colored Schools.
The series of vignettes will be airing across CBS Sports Network and other CBS Sports digital properties.
“It is imperative that we at CBS Sports, and as an industry, work towards a more diverse and inclusive landscape,” CBS Sports executive producer and executive vice president Harold Bryant said. “Telling these stories of Black athletes is incredibly important, and we are proud that many of our Black employees have the opportunity to lead these productions. These vignettes written, produced and edited by Black CBS Sports employees continue that necessary mission of utilizing our resources in front of and behind the camera to push for more diversity and inclusion.”