Ernest Q. Campbell

Professor and Chair of Sociology and Anthropology Emeritus
Dean Emeritus of the Graduate School

Campbell began his teaching career at Berea College in Kentucky, Mississippi Southern, and the College of Wooster in Ohio. After teaching, Campbell earned his PhD at Vanderbilt in 1956, then taught at Florida State before pursuing post-doctoral studies at Harvard and accepting a faculty position with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Campbell returned to Vanderbilt in 1963 to chair the Department of Sociology and Anthropology. He revitalized the department and the Graduate School through his recruitment of a notable and diverse group of scholars. While working as Faculty Senate chair in 1972, Campbell advocated for a larger faculty role in university decisions and an increased emphasis on scholarly research and graduate education.  In 1973, Campbell was asked to serve as the Graduate School dean. During his tenure, he set about to enhance resources for the Graduate School, as well as attracting qualified African American students who were graduates of historically black universities. In 1983, he stepped down as dean and returned to teaching and retired from Vanderbilt in 1993.

His was known for his research in race relations, desegregation, and education. His dissertation research was based on the outcomes of educational desegregation in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. During his postdoctoral fellowship at Harvard, he examined community conflict about race and public health issues. In 1959, he published a book about the role of ministers in community attitudes regarding desegregation, Christians in Racial Crisis. Campbell also served as a co-director of a project mandated from the U.S. Civil Rights Act of 1964 to explore the effects of discrimination on race, sex, and religion. The resulting study, published in 1966, was dubbed the “Coleman Report.”

Campbell was involved in numerous professional organizations. He was president of the Southern Sociological Society. He also served as president of the Association of Graduate School Deans and served on the Council of the American Sociological Association. His on-campus leadership extended to membership on the University Research Council.

Campbell died July 28 at his home in Nashville. He was 86. More information about the life of Campbell and his contributions to the field of sociology at Vanderbilt University can be found here.