L-R: Community Relations Council members Willie White, Vernice Avant and Mildrette White; Slaughter-Harvey; Cordella Smith, Center Director; Lawrence McDonald, SGA President; De’Shundra Brown, SGA Reporter and Charles Latham, President of 100 Black Men of Grenada

The Finch-Henry Job Corps Center Summer Commencement Exercises were recently held with Dr. Constance Slaughter-Harvey as the speaker. Over eighty students out of 146 eligible students returned to take part in the exercises. Dr. Slaughter-Harvey’s life’s work in education, government, civil rights and the legal field made her the ideal person to speak to the students, staff and community supporter. Slaughter-Harvey was the first African American female to receive a law degree from the University of Mississippi and the first female African American to serve as a judge in the State of Mississippi. She was a very close associate of the two men for which the center is named after, Governor Cliff Finch and Dr. Aaron E. Henry.
Attorney Slaughter-Harvey was appointed by former Governor Finch as a Fair Hearings Officer in 1978 and was first African American to serve in this position. She and Dr. Henry were life-long friends and he served as one of her mentors as they were both Democrats and life members of the National Association for the Advancement of Color People. Dr. Aaron and Mrs. Noel Henry and their daughter, Rebecca were clients as well as friends.
Attorney Slaughter-Hervey recounted some of her working relationships with Governor Finch and Dr. Henry. She praised Governor Finch for his strong challenge to her to “do the right thing” in her appointed position. She praised Dr. Henry for his life long work to make life better for African Americans and the less fortunate.
Slaughter-Harvey challenged the graduates to “do the right thing” as they move forward with their careers and life in general.