Marguerite Ross Barnett
Marguerite Ross Barnett was the eighth president of the University of Houston and a former chancellor of the University of Missouri–St. Louis. Barnett was the first black woman to lead a major American university.
Barnett was born in Charlottesville, Virginia. She grew up in Buffalo, New York, and graduated from Bennett High School in 1959. After graduating from Antioch College in 1964, she earned a master of science and doctoral degrees in political science from the University of Chicago. Barnett then taught at the University of Chicago, Princeton University, Howard University, and Columbia University.
She was vice-chancellor for academic affairs at the City University of New York from 1983 to 1986, and chancellor of the University of Missouri-St. Louis, from 1986 to 1990. Additionally, she served on the boards of the Monsanto Company, the Educational Testing Services, the Student Loan Marketing Association, the American Council on Education, and the Committee on Economic Development. She also served on the board of directors of the Houston Grand Opera and the board of advisors of the Houston Symphony.
