Armfield, Felix

English

Digital Commons at Buffalo State

The ExpositionVolume 1Issue 1 The Pan-American Article 111-1-2012In Memory of Dr. Monroe Fordham, 1939-2012Felix Armfieldarmfiefl@buffalostate.eduFollow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.buffalostate.edu/expositionThis Article is brought to you for free and open access by the History and Social Studies Education at Digital Commons at Buffalo State. It has beenaccepted for inclusion in The Exposition by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons at Buffalo State. For more information, please contactdigitalcommons@buffalostate.edu.Recommended CitationArmfield, Felix (2012) "In Memory of Dr. Monroe Fordham, 1939-2012," The Exposition: Vol. 1: Iss. 1, Article 1.Available at: http://digitalcommons.buffalostate.edu/exposition/vol1/iss1/1In Memory of Dr. Monroe Fordham 1939-2012   Monroe Fordham, Ph. D. was a founding member of the Afro-American Historical Association of the Niagara Frontier. Dr. Fordham passed June 13, 2012. Fordham joined the history faculty at Buffalo State College in 1970 and retired from the College in 1998. During Fordham’s tenure he chaired the History Department for nine years and was Interim Associate Dean for one year. The many students he taught over his years in the classroom attest to the breath of his empirical knowledge. Dr. Fordham pioneered a number of initiatives aimed at preserving state and regional African American history during his professional career. In addition, he worked with numerous community groups while helping to develop records management and records preservation programs. As a result of this community outreach on behalf of Fordham, Buffalo State College established the Monroe Fordham Regional History Center in 2002. In 2002, Fordham also received the SUNY Honorary Doctorate Degree.  In keeping with a record of public acknowledgements, Fordham again received in 2012 Herbert H. Lehman Prize for Distinguished Service to New York State History. From 1977 to 2008, Fordham served as editor of Afro-Americans in New York Life and History, an interdisciplinary journal that he took the lead role in 1Armfield: In Memory of Dr. Monroe Fordham, 1939-2012Published by Digital Commons at Buffalo State, 2012founding in 1977. Fordham was also the leading advocate behind the formation of the establishment of the Buffalo African American Microfilming Archival Program. He established this process of making sure that the materials that were processed would be return to the community’s they came from—hence he helped to establish a repository of Buffalo’s African American community history with the Frank E. Merriweather, Jr. Branch of the Buffalo Public Libraries as well as establishing the archival holdings at the College library. Fordham dedication and leadership in the Afro-American Historical Association of the Niagara Frontier helped to lay the foundation for the continued growth of the organization and the work he almost singlehandedly sought to establish. Monroe Fordham will forever be legendary in the annals of Buffalo State College’s history. Dr. Felix Armfield  Buffalo State College 2The Exposition, Vol. 1, Iss. 1 [2012], Art. 1http://digitalcommons.buffalostate.edu/exposition/vol1/iss1/1

In Memory of Dr. Monroe Fordham, 1939-2012

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In Memory of Dr. Monroe Fordham, 1939-2012

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