GREENSBORO, N.C. — North Carolina A&T has renamed its Academic Classroom Building (ACB) after two of its most profile alumni, 1953 graduates Justice Henry Frye and his wife, Shirley Frye.
As they are well-known across the state for their historic contributions to the civil rights movement, public life, higher education, and the legal profession in North Carolina, the Fryes are the namesakes of what had been known as the Academic Classroom Building.
The building will now be known as the Henry E. and Shirley T. Frye Hall.
Frye Hall is one of six buildings on campus designed by the architectural firm of the late Phil Freelon, a nationally recognized figure in the architecture community. ACB, as most refer to the building, is notable for its angular green and white facade, soaring atrium, and large classroom spaces.
Located in the heart of campus, it stands next to the Deese Clock Tower and Proctor Hall, another Freelon-designed structure that houses the NC A&T College of Education.
The Fryes met while undergraduates at NC A&T.
Who are the Fryes?
Henry Frye graduated with highest honors, majoring in biology and minoring in chemistry and air science. He joined the Air Force and served with distinction in the Korean War. He tried to vote the same day he married Shirley in 1956 but was turned away with one of the infamous Jim Crow era poll tests used to stop Black voter registration.
He then vowed to become a lawyer to help undo systematic racism.
In 1959, Henry Frye became the first African-American student to complete all three years of study and graduate from the UNC School of Law.
His journey in law and public service commenced with groundbreaking milestones: he was the inaugural African American assistant U.S. district attorney in 1963, the pioneering Black man elected to the N.C. General Assembly in the 20th century in 1968, the first African American appointed to the N.C. Supreme Court in 1983, and subsequently served as its first African American chief justice from 1999 until his retirement in 2001.
He remained dedicated to serving Greensboro through endeavors such as establishing Greensboro National Bank to combat lending discrimination against Black business owners in the city.
Shirley Frye earned her B.S. in education and English with high honors, taught at Washington Elementary School, and then earned a master's degree in special education and psychology to become a special education teacher serving the Greensboro community.
She later returned to NC A&T as assistant vice chancellor for development and university relations and as a special assistant to the chancellor before her career led her to serve as special assistant to the president and director of planned giving at Bennett College.
She also worked for the State Department of Public Instruction and retired as vice president of community relations at WFMY News 2, where she won an Emmy.
Throughout her career, Shirley Frye has also been a devoted community volunteer. She led the integration of Greensboro’s two segregated YWCAs in the 1970s, serving as the new organization’s first president and with her work used as a model for YWCAs across the country.
A statue immortalizing the Fryes was unveiled in February at Center City Park in downtown Greensboro to pay tribute to their legacy in the city and across NC.