CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Bertha Maxwell-Roddey, a trailblazer of Black excellence in Charlotte, died Wednesday, according to the Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Arts.
Maxwell-Roddey was the former national president of the Delta Sigma Theta sorority. The organization shared news of her death on social media Thursday morning. She was 93.
"Dr. Roddey's legacy will live on through the countless lives she has influenced through education, community advocacy, and the importance of preserving and celebrating Black history, arts, and culture," the Gantt Center posted on Facebook. "Dr. Roddey's vision and life's work are evident daily at the Gantt Center."
Among her long list of accomplishments and accolades, Maxwell-Roddey co-founded the Afro-American Cultural and Service Center, now known as the Harvey B. Gantt Center in Uptown Charlotte. The museum was launched after UNC Charlotte students demanded a forum to acknowledge the rich history and contributions of Black Americans.
“She would always tell us that African American history is often lost, stolen, or changed and she wanted to change that narrative,” Mecklenburg County Commissioner-At-Large Arthur Griffin said. “She wanted to make sure there was a place children in the community could appreciate African American history.”
Maxwell-Roddey joined UNC Charlotte in 1970 and was the school's second Black professor. She was the first director of the now-Gantt Center starting in 1974. While at UNC Charlotte, she served as the first chair of the Afro-American and African Studies Department.
RELATED: Seeking Solutions: Charlotte’s Gantt Center embarks on national initiative to help improve literacy
“She's the type of educator with almost 50 years later, students still come by to visit to say how much she touched their lives and impacted their lives,” Dr. Sonya Ramsey with UNC Charlotte, who wrote the biography "Bertha Maxwell-Roddey: A Modern-Day Race Woman and the Power of Black Leadership," said.
“It was a scholarly endeavor where I learned so much because often, the history of African American women or women in general is not in an archive it is in someone's basement,” Ramsey continued.
Prior to her work with the Gantt Center, Maxwell-Roddey was a teacher and principal in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools system, where the South Carolina native was the first Black administrator at Albemarle Road Elementary School, a predominately white school. She also worked with Habitat for Humanity, helping build hundreds of homes.
"She was really a renaissance woman," Griffin said. "In terms of looking at the future and wanting to make sure that, although we were in a segregated setting in elementary school, there was a world out there."
Griffin was one of her many students and considered her a mother figure who was there at his many milestones.
“For me she was Bertha. I knew her when I was 6 years old," Griffin said. "She just wanted us to be well-rounded so that when we went out into that world we would be prepared for that world."
In 1984, Maxwell-Roddey was awarded the Order of the Long Leaf Pine, the highest civilian honor in North Carolina, which is for "persons who have made significant contributions to the state and their communities through their exemplary service and exceptional accomplishments."
Mayor Vi Lyles issued the following statement about Maxwell-Roddey:
Today we lost someone who was influential in so many ways to this city. Bertha Maxwell-Roddey was a leader in education and culture. During her tenure at UNC Charlotte, she created space for so many African American students to thrive. As national president of Delta Sigma Theta sorority, she focused her platform on housing the unhoused. For me, she was the person who foresaw the opportunity for the Harvey B. Gantt Center through her reading, art, grace – she made something that is permanent in this city. There probably would not have been a Harvey B. Gantt Center without Bertha Maxwell-Roddey’s vision. We are grateful for her attention to the African American culture in our city. She was an activist who knew it was important to include African American history in our city’s history. To her family, we say ‘thank you’ for sharing her with us in so many ways.
Thoughts and prayers have been pouring in on social media including from the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc where she served as the 20th National President.
CMS issued the following statement:
Below is our statement from Board Chair Stephanie Sneed.
Dr. Maxwell-Roddey was a role model for generations of leaders like me. As one of the first Black female principals in CMS, she helped initiate a culture change, along with achievement, that impacted hundreds of thousands of students. Her tireless work ensuring educational opportunities for all children in Charlotte in the post-Swann era was critical to showing what Charlotte could be and should be. It is my hope that our community will honor her legacy by striving every day to live up to her charge to ensure equal opportunities for all as she was the embodiment of service, scholarship, and sisterhood.
On behalf of the CMS family, we offer our heartfelt condolences to her family.
Contact Jesse Pierre at jpierrepet@wcnc.com or follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.
WCNC Charlotte is committed to reporting on the many issues facing the communities we serve. We tell the stories of people working to solve persistent social problems. We examine how problems can be solved or addressed to improve the quality of life and make a positive difference. WCNC Charlotte is seeking solutions for you. Send your tips or questions to newstips@wcnc.com.