AUM senior embraces civil rights advocacy as inaugural Deborah Gray Scholar
Auburn University at Montgomery senior Annie Anderson has been named an inaugural Deborah Gray Scholar by the Fred D. Gray Institute, an honor that connects her academic interests and commitment to service with a passion for civil rights advocacy. She joins eight other scholars in the inaugural cohort representing universities across the U.S.
The Deborah Gray Scholars Program honors the life and career of Deborah Gray, a longtime managing director of the Tuskegee History Center and advocate for civil rights and social justice. Throughout her career, Gray served the public by curating museum exhibits and helping tell stories of Americans who fought for human and civil rights, particularly in Tuskegee and Macon County, Alabama.
“Being selected as a Deborah Gray Scholar is incredibly meaningful to me because it connects so closely with the work I hope to spend my life doing,” said Anderson. “To be part of the inaugural cohort makes it even more special. The Fred D. Gray Institute represents a legacy of courage, service and civil rights advocacy that has shaped not only Alabama, but the country. Being able to learn within that legacy while developing the skills to continue that work in my own generation is an opportunity I do not take lightly.”
Anderson is a double major in economics and communication with a concentration in journalism and a minor in gender, race and ethnic studies. She is also a member of AUM’s University Honors Program.
While her areas of study span multiple disciplines, Anderson sees them as connected by a common purpose.
“My studies in economics, journalism, race and ethnic studies, leadership and public policy may seem like separate areas, but to me they all help answer the same larger question: How can we better understand the systems that shape our communities and use that knowledge to create meaningful change?,” she said.
For Anderson, who is from Morristown, New Jersey, studying in Montgomery adds another meaningful dimension to her education.
“Montgomery has become an important part of my academic, professional and community life,” she said. “I am pursuing my education in a city that played an extraordinary role in the Black freedom struggle and the development of modern civil rights law. Being able to learn from that history while preparing to carry that work forward is deeply meaningful.”
As a Deborah Gray Scholar, Anderson is continuing to explore the intersection of race, economics, politics and access in African American communities, areas that have shaped both her academic interests and career aspirations.
“My passion comes from understanding that policy, journalism and leadership all shape whose voices are heard and whose experiences are taken seriously,” she said. “Journalism gives me a way to tell those stories, while economics and public policy helped me better understand the systems behind them.”
At AUM, Anderson is the founder and president of the Service and Leadership Club and participates in several areas of campus life, including the Economics Club, Honors Assembly, The AUMnibus student newspaper and podcast, AUMLive, The INFLUENCE and Spectrum.
“I have learned through student leadership that meaningful change can begin with something as simple as creating an organization, asking a difficult question or advocating for people who feel overlooked,” she said. “I want my leadership to remain rooted in service and in creating opportunities for others.”
Anderson expects to graduate in 2028 and plans to pursue a joint Juris Doctorate and doctorate in African American Studies. Her long-term goal is to combine law, research, scholarship and advocacy to help advance civil right and create greater opportunities for African American communities.
“I want to study both the law and the historical, political, economic and cultural forces that shape Black life in America so that I can approach civil rights advocacy from multiple perspectives,” she said.
Whether through litigation, policy, research, scholarship or public advocacy, Anderson hopes her work will contribute to protecting civil rights, expanding opportunities and advancing African American communities.
“I hope the Deborah Gray Scholars program helps me become a stronger scholar, journalist, advocate and future civil rights attorney, and I hope to use what I learn to continue the generations-long work of advancing and protecting African American communities,” she said.
