Privilege and Prejudice: The Life of a Black Pioneer

Privilege and Prejudice is a stereotype-defying autobiography. It reveals a Black man whose good fortune in birth and heritage and opportunity of time and place helped him to forge breakthroughs in four separate careers. Clifton R. Wharton Jr. entered Harvard at age 16. The first Black student accepted to the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins, he went on to receive a doctorate in economics from the University of Chicago—another first. For twenty-two years he promoted agricultural development in Latin America and Southeast Asia, earning a post as chairman of the Rockefeller Foundation. He again pioneered higher education firsts as president of Michigan State University and chancellor of the sixty-four-campus State University of New York system. As chairman and CEO of TIAA-CREF, he was the first Black CEO of a Fortune 500 company. His commitment to excellence culminated in his appointment as deputy secretary of state during the Clinton administration. A remarkable story of persistence and courage, Privilege and Prejudice also documents the challenges of competing in a society where obstacles, negative expectations, and stereotypical thinking remained stubbornly in place. An absorbing and candid narrative, it describes a most unusual childhood, a remarkable family, and a historic career.

Table of Contents:
Contents Foreword Preface Acknowledgments Prologue Chapter 1. The Beginning: Genesis and Youth Chapter 2. The Student: College Years Chapter 3. The Young Economist: The AIA, Dolores Duncan, and Chicago Chapter 4. The Development Economist 1: The ADC in Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, and Southeast Asia Chapter 5. The Development Economist 2: Back in the United States Chapter 6. The President of MSU 1: The Start and Student Demonstrations Chapter 7. The President of MSU 2: Developing a Pluralistic University Chapter 8. The President of MSU 3: Enrichment, Athletics, and Politics Chapter 9. The Chancellor of SUNY 1: Building a Higher Education System Chapter 10. The Chancellor of SUNY 2: Excellence, Flexibility, and Independence Chapter 11. The Chair and CEO of TIAA-CREF: Promoting a Future Agenda Chapter 12. The Secretary: Department of State Chapter 13. The Retiree: Roles, Recognitions, and Reflections Epilogue Appendix 1. East Asian and Pacific Affairs Committee, U.S. Department of State, 1966–68 Appendix 3. MSU All-University Presidential Search and Selection Committee, 1969 Appendix 5. MSU Commission on Admissions, 1970–71 Appendix 6. Rockefeller Foundation Board of Trustees, 1970 Appendix 8. Presidential Commission on World Hunger, 1978 Appendix 9. Independent Commission on the Future of SUNY, 1984–85 Appendix 10. Department of State, USAID Task Force Members, 1993 Appendix 12. Commission on New York State Student Financial Aid, 1998–2000 Appendix 13. New York Stock Exchange Special Committee on Market Structure, Governance, and Ownership, 1999–2000 Notes Index

About the Author :
Clifton R. Wharton Jr. has been a Black pioneer in numerous fields, serving as president of Michigan State University, chancellor of the State University of New York system, chairman and CEO of TIAA-CREF, and ultimately as deputy secretary of state.

Review :
“This adviser to six presidents . . . the first of African-American descent to head a predominantly white university of major rank . . . the first to head America’s largest university system . . . the first to serve as chair and CEO of a Fortune 500 company . . . the first to head a major American foundation . . . the first to become Deputy Secretary of State, , , , had prefigured Barack Obama . . . quietly and persistently paving the way for our first African American president.” —Bill Moyers, New York City Center Gala, May 11, 2009