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About NHAA, Inc.

Hampton's alumni, together since 1878.

The National Hampton Alumni Association, Inc. is the official alumni association of Hampton University. For nearly 150 years, Hamptonians have organized to support one another, open doors for students and strengthen the institution that shaped them.

Our Story Meet the Leadership
Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute seen across the water around 1900, with the clock tower of the Memorial Church at left
Hampton’s campus across the water, about 1900. The Memorial Church, completed in 1886, stands at left.Detroit Photographic Co. · Library of Congress

Who We Are

One Hampton. Every generation.

NHAA, Inc. exists to connect, engage and empower Hampton University alumni around the world. As the official alumni association, we cultivate lifelong relationships that strengthen the Hampton experience, advance the University's mission and create opportunities for Pirates to serve, lead and give back.

We do this through our chapters and regions, leadership development, networking, mentorship, scholarships, community service, advocacy and alumni engagement. Every alumnus has a role in preserving Hampton's legacy and shaping its future.

Our purpose, from the Bylaws

  1. Raise monies for Hampton University
  2. Recruit students to attend Hampton University
  3. Work cooperatively with University personnel to develop and implement programs that will benefit Hampton and the National Hampton Alumni Association, Inc.
  • Anchored in Tradition.
  • Driven by Purpose.
  • Committed to Impact.
Read the Bylaws
Seated studio portrait of Booker T. Washington holding a newspaper
Booker T. Washington, Class of 1875, president of the Association from 1881. Library of Congress

The sight of it seemed to give me new life. I felt that a new kind of existence had now begun—that life would now have a new meaning.

Booker T. Washington, Class of 1875, on first seeing Hampton · Up From Slavery

Our Story

An unbroken line since 1878.

From a resolution adopted by a handful of graduates to a national association of chapters and regions, Hampton's alumni have always organized around one idea: lifting the next student.

  1. 1868April 1

    Hampton opens its doors

    Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute opens under General Samuel Chapman Armstrong, with support from the American Missionary Association. By 1874, students have raised its main building, Virginia Hall, designed by Richard Morris Hunt.

    Virginia Hall, a large Victorian building with a central tower and dormer windows, behind a lawn and bare trees
    Virginia Hall, completed in 1874. Library of Congress

  2. 1877August 20

    Graduates resolve to organize

    Meeting in Saratoga Springs, New York, Hampton graduates adopt a preamble and resolutions calling for a reunion in the school's tenth year "for the purpose of forming the Alumni Association of the Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute."

  3. 1878May

    The Hampton Alumni Association is founded

    The Association is partially organized. George W. Davis, Class of 1874, is elected its first president and Alice S. Harris, Class of 1877, its first secretary.

  4. 1881May

    A constitution, and a promise to students

    At the first triennial meeting the Association is fully organized and adopts a constitution. Booker T. Washington, Class of 1875, is elected president. The minutes record the start of alumni giving to students:

    “On motion it was decided to raise a fund to be devoted to the benefit of a student in Hampton.”

  5. 1899June 14

    A national voice at the reunion

    Professor Kelly Miller of Howard University, the mathematician and sociologist, delivers “The Primary Needs of the Negro Race” before the Alumni Association of the Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute. Howard University Press publishes the address the same year.

    Find the address in HathiTrust
    Title page: “The Primary Needs of the Negro Race.” An address delivered before the Alumni Association of the Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute by Prof. Kelly Miller of Howard University, June 14, 1899. Washington, D.C., Howard University Press, 1899.
    Title page, 1899

  6. 1920s

    A voice in Hampton's future

    At Principal James E. Gregg's suggestion, the Association appoints a committee of visitation in 1920 to visit the Institute each year and offer constructive suggestions. Alumni also call for a graduate on the Board of Trustees, and Robert R. Moton, Class of 1890, is selected. Biennial reunions begin in 1925.

  7. 1935–45

    Investing in students and honoring alumni

    The Alumni Loan Fund (1935) offers students interest-free loans. In 1941 the Alumni Award is presented to celebrated soprano Dorothy Maynor, Class of 1933. Annual reunions begin in June 1942, and in 1945 Dr. Flemmie P. Kittrell, Class of 1928, is elected an Alumni Trustee.

  8. 1960s

    Boosters, parents and the Centennial

    Robert Anderson, Class of 1940, founds the Hampton Boosters. Julia Macbeth Green, Class of 1943, founds the Hampton Institute Parent Involvement Organization in 1965. Dr. W. Adrian Freeman leads the 1966 Alumni Campaign Fund toward Hampton's 100th birthday in 1968.

  9. 1974

    The Emeritus Class

    So that Hamptonians can continue their reunions beyond the 50th year, the Emeritus Class is organized under the guidance of Alphonso Knight, Class of 1947, with Dr. W. Adrian Freeman, Class of 1922, as its first president.

  10. 1986May 7

    National Hampton Alumni Association, Inc.

    The Association incorporates under the Code of Virginia for charitable and educational purposes. The new structure brings together a President, Board of Directors, Alumni Council, regions, chapters and professional associations, the framework that guides NHAA, Inc. today.

  11. 1994

    The first biennial convention

    Alumni gather in Dedham, Massachusetts, for the first NHAA, Inc. biennial convention, which rotates between the East and West in the years that follow. Today it continues as the Hampton Alumni Conference.

  12. 1999

    A $5 million promise kept

    The Association completes its $5 million Endowed Scholarship Campaign, presenting the gift to the University President at the January 1999 meeting of the Board of Directors.

  13. 2026Today

    A new chapter of leadership

    April M. Broadway takes office as National President for 2026–2028, leading 56 chapters in seven regions with a vision to be Anchored in Tradition, Driven by Purpose and Committed to Impact.

    Read her letter

Our Presidents

Leadership through the years.

From George W. Davis to April M. Broadway, every president has carried the same charge: keep the concerns of Hampton and its students first.

  1. George W. Davis1878–1881Class of 1874
  2. Booker T. Washington1881–1884Class of 1875
  3. Whit T. Williams1884–1896Class of 1876
  4. William M. Reid1896–1905Class of 1876
  5. Jesse H. Harris1905–1911Class of 1888
  6. William M. Reid1911–1931Class of 1876
  7. Joshua E. Blanton1931–1937Class of 1905
  8. Pauline V. Massey1937–1939Class of 1909
  9. Robert S. Abbott1939–1940Class of 1896
  10. Albert O. Reid1940–1945Class of 1903
  11. Saul M. Perdue1945–1949Class of 1933
  12. Gertrude Perry1949–1953Class of 1911
  13. Doswell Brooks1953–1957Class of 1921
  14. Hugh Victor Brown1957–1959Class of 1913
  15. William L. Watson1959–1967Class of 1937
  16. Frank W. Render, II1967–1971Class of 1957
  17. Amanda P. Cheatham1971–1977Class of 1930
  18. Dr. Wendell P. Holmes, Jr.1977–1981Class of 1943
  19. Thomas A. Bryant1981–1984Class of 1953
  20. Bernard Pendleton, Sr.1984–1987Class of 1941
  21. Josephine F. Whiting1987–1988Class of 1952
  22. Alphonso W. Knight1988–1992Class of 1947
  23. I. Emerson Bryan, III1992–1996Class of 1968
  24. Jacqueline L. Antoine1996–2000Class of 1960
  25. Ann (Baird-Bridges) Wells2000–2004Class of 1966
  26. Anthony Cheatham2004–2008Class of 1980
  27. Dr. Patricia Larkins Hicks2008–2010Class of 1971
  28. Dr. Joan McMillian Wickham2010–2014Class of 1978
  29. Dorothy M. Lee-Murray2014–2018Class of 1980
  30. Gena Pemberton2018–2022
  31. Willie Williams, Jr.2022–2026
  32. April M. Broadway2026–2028National President

Notable Hamptonians

An education for life.

Hampton alumni have shaped American public life, science, business, media, sports and scholarship. These are a few of the Hamptonians whose work reaches far beyond the sea.

Public Service & Government

Law & the Courts

Civil Rights & Faith

Education & Scholarship

  • Booker T. WashingtonEducator, author and founding principal of Tuskegee Institute, now Tuskegee University
  • Robert Russa MotonPrincipal of Tuskegee Institute, 1915–1935, and Hampton trustee
  • Freeman A. Hrabowski IIIMathematician and longtime President of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County
  • Flemmie KittrellNutrition scientist; the first African American woman to earn a Ph.D. in nutrition
  • Virginia Lacy JonesPioneering librarian and longtime dean of Atlanta University’s library school
  • St. Clair DrakeSociologist and anthropologist, co-author of Black Metropolis
  • Thavolia GlymphHistorian of slavery, the Civil War and Reconstruction

Media, Entertainment & the Arts

  • Ruth E. CarterTwo-time Academy Award-winning costume designer
  • Wanda SykesEmmy Award-winning comedian, actress, writer and producer
  • Rashida JonesTelevision executive and the first Black woman to lead a major cable news network, as President of MSNBC
  • Javicia LeslieActress and the first Black woman to play Batwoman in a live-action series
  • Robi ReedEmmy Award-winning casting director
  • John BiggersMuralist, painter and art educator
  • Samella LewisArtist, educator and founder of the International Review of African American Art
  • Shiona TuriniCostume designer and stylist (Insecure, Queen & Slim)
  • Nikkolas SmithArtist and illustrator of The 1619 Project: Born on the Water
  • DJ Envy (RaaShaun Casey)Syndicated radio personality and co-host of The Breakfast Club
  • Spencer ChristianEmmy-winning broadcaster and longtime Good Morning America weather forecaster
  • Angela Burt-MurrayJournalist, author and former Editor-in-Chief of Essence
  • Donna BrittAward-winning journalist, author and former Washington Post columnist
  • Emil WilbekinJournalist, media executive and former Editor-in-Chief of VIBE
  • Darrell Britt-GibsonActor (The Wire, Barry, Judas and the Black Messiah)
  • James “Biff” HendersonLongtime stage manager and on-air personality for David Letterman’s shows

Business, Science & Medicine

Military & Uniformed Service

  • Lt. Gen. Darrell K. WilliamsRetired Army lieutenant general, former Director of the Defense Logistics Agency, and President of Hampton University since 2022
  • Lt. Gen. Albert J. EdmondsRetired Air Force lieutenant general; Director of the Defense Information Systems Agency, 1994–1997
  • RADM Sylvia Trent-AdamsRetired U.S. Public Health Service Rear Admiral, former Acting U.S. Surgeon General and the first Black woman to serve as Principal Deputy Surgeon General
  • Myles B. Caggins IIIRetired Army officer who served three combat tours in Iraq and was spokesman for the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS

Athletics

Alumni includes graduates and those who studied at Hampton Institute or Hampton University. Names link to Hampton University’s official biographies. See all of Hampton’s notable alumni, or tell us about a Hamptonian who belongs here.

Governance

Carry the legacy forward.