Darryl Hill – “known as the Jackie Robinson of Southern college football” – became the first African American scholarship athlete to play sports for the University of Maryland in 1963.
Hill, a bold and creative entrepreneur and human rights activist, will speak at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 29, in Cole Hall at Bridgewater College.
Hill’s appearance at Bridgewater College is part of the college’s annual Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration, which is held after his official birthday observation on Jan. 19, so that all staff and students – some of whom are absent from campus in January – may participate.
Following his days of playing college football, Hill went on to launch a noteworthy and successful business career. He organized and operated Polaris Energy Corporation, which became the largest minority-owned energy management company in the United States. He then ventured abroad and in 1991 formed Northstar International, which operated forestry operations in Siberia, Russia and Brazil and built roads in Nigeria. Hill also founded Global-Pak Inc., which formed a joint venture with the largest paperboard packaging company in China.
Through his foundation, Kids Can Play USA, Hill seeks to fight against economic discrimination in youth sports by removing economic barriers.
Sponsored by the Harry and Ina Shank Peace Studies Fund and Bridgewater College’s Center for Cultural Engagement, the event is free and open to the public.
Bridgewater College is a private, four-year liberal arts college, located in the Central Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. Founded in 1880, it was the state’s first private, coeducational college. Today, Bridgewater College is home to approximately 1,800 undergraduate students.
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