Cheryl Ann Wall was born in Manhattan on October 29, 1948, to the Rev. Monroe Wall and Rennie Ray (Strayhorn) Wall, an English teacher for the New York City public schools. She graduated from the Rhodes Preparatory School in Manhattan and went on to earn a bachelor's degree in English from Howard University in 1970 and a doctorate from Harvard University in 1976. Wall's scholarship focused on Black women's writing, the Harlem Renaissance, and Zora Neale Hurston.
Wall began working at Rutgers University in 1972. During her career, which spanned nearly five decades, Wall advocated for racial diversity both in the curriculum and the classroom. She founded the Rutgers English Diversity Institute which encouraged more Black students to major in English and pursue postgraduate degrees. In 1997, Wall became one of the first Black women to head an English department at a major research university. She established the requirement that all Rutgers University English majors complete a course in African-American literature. Additionally, in 2003, Wall was co-principal with Mary Hartman of the Institute for Women's Leadership on "Reaffirming Action: Designs for Diversity in Higher Education," a Ford Foundation-funded initiative that examined the strategies higher education institutions successfully employ to enhance racial and gender equity.
Wall is the author of several books including On Freedom and the Will to Adorn: The Art of the African American Essay (2019), Worrying the Line: Black Women Writers, Lineage, and Literary Tradition (2005), Women of the Harlem Renaissance (1995), and the editor of Changing Our Own Words: Criticism, Theory, and Writing by Black Women (1989). She has edited two volumes of writing by Zora Neale Hurston for the Library of America – Novels and Short Stories (1995) and Folklore, Memoirs and Other Writings (1995) – as well as two volumes of criticism on Hurston's fiction: "Sweat:" Texts and Contexts (1997) and Their Eyes Were Watching God: A Casebook (2000). She was also the section editor for "Literature since 1975" in the Norton Anthology of African American Literature (2003).
Wall served on the editorial board of American Literature and on the advisory boards of African American Review and Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society. She was also the founding chairwoman of the board of Crossroads Theater Company in New Jersey. Crossroads continues its "commitment to literary works that examine the African American experience" and was the first African American theater to receive the 1999 Tony Award® for Outstanding Regional Theatre in the United States in the 33-year history of this award category.
Wall passed away on April 4, 2020, at her home in Highland Park, New Jersey, at the age of 71. On January 9, 2021, Wall was posthumously awarded the Hubbell Medal for Lifetime Achievement in American Literary Studies. Her daughter, Camara Epps, accepted the award on her behalf.
Also includes correspondence from Hortense J. Spillers
Includes correspondence from Hortense J. Spillers and Hazel V. Carby
Includes correspondence from Lucille Clifton
Includes correspondence from Toni Morrison
Includes correspondence from Adrienne Rich and Houston A. Baker
Includes related 3.5" floppy disc and correspondence from Adrienne Rich
Includes a photo of Gwendolyn Brooks, Cheryl Wall, Hortense Spillers, and Michael Harper
Includes correspondence from June Jordan
Includes correspondence from McKay
Includes correspondence from Anna Deveare Smith
Includes correspondence from Claudia Tate
This collection consists of the personal and professional papers of Cheryl A. Wall, Board of Governors Zora Neale Hurston Professor of English at Rutgers University and scholar of African American and African diaspora literature, the Harlem Renaissance, and Zora Neale Hurston. The collection includes correspondence, administrative materials related to her work at Rutgers University as well as the Crossroads Theatre Company, conference materials, course syllabi and readings, draft writings, and research materials. Materials date from 1966 to 2020 and are arranged into 12 series. Please note that Wall created all folder titles in quotations. The processor created all other folder titles.
Series 1, PERSONAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL, 1966 – 2004, contains articles about Wall, a diary regarding a trip to Georgia and Alabama in 2004, and Wall's undergraduate and graduate student papers. This series is arranged alphabetically by record type then by subject.
Series 2, CAREER DEVELOPMENT, 1980 – 2020, contains correspondence regarding promotions, fellowship applications, and tenure dossiers. Tenure dossiers include correspondence, syllabi, articles, and conference materials used as evidence of Wall's work during an academic year. This series is arranged alphabetically by record type then by date.
Series 3, CORRESPONDENCE, 1973 – 2017, contains primarily professional correspondence. Topics include the Works in Progress conference, professorship searches, and a Zora Neal Hurston docudrama. Correspondents include Gayl Jones, Deborah E. McDowell, and Hortense J. Spillers. Please note that additional correspondence can be found throughout the collection. This series is arranged by provenance and then alphabetically by correspondent's name.
Series 4, ADMINISTRATIVE, 1981 – 2018, includes correspondence, meeting materials, and handwritten notes related to Wall's work at Rutgers University and on various boards. Of particular note are materials related to Wall's work on the Rutgers Institute for Women's Leadership and the President's Council on Institutional Diversity and Equity, as well as her work with the Crossroads Theatre Company – a premier, historically Black theatre company -- in New Brunswick, New Jersey. This series is arranged alphabetically by organization then by record type.
Series 5, CONFERENCES, 1976 – 2019, includes correspondence, programs, and handwritten notes related to various conferences attended by Wall. Conferences include "Black Feminist Figures: Interventions and Inheritances," "The Future of Diversity and Opportunity in Higher Education: A National Forum on Innovation and Collaboration," and "Zora Neale Hurston: Front Porch Lies, Contemporary Truths." Of particular notes are the materials related to "Changing Our Own Words: A Symposium on Theory, Criticism and Literature by Black Women." This series is arranged alphabetically by conference title then by record type.
Series 6, TEACHING, 1972-2019, is arranged into three subseries: Subseries 1, course materials by course title, Subseries 2, lecture notes by topic - first set, and Subseries 3, lecture notes by topic - second set.
Series 6, subseries 1, COURSE MATERIALS BY COURSE TITLE, includes syllabi, readings, and handwritten and typed notes related to courses taught by Wall. Course titles include "The African American Essay," "Black Women Writers and the African American Literary Tradition," and "Harlem Renaissance: Gender, Race, and Performance." This subseries is arranged alphabetically by course title then by date and record type.
Series 6, subseries 2, LECTURE NOTES BY TOPIC - FIRST SET, n.d., contains notecards with handwritten notes for various course lectures given by Wall. Lecture topics include "art in the Harlem Renaissance," "passing," "puritan literature," and Zora Neale Hurston and her writings. Please note that each lecture topic listed within quotations indicates a set of cards related to that topic as organized by Wall. These notecards arrived as part of the first accession. One archival folder contains several sets of note cards and various topics arranged alphabetically.
Series 6, subseries 3, LECTURE NOTES BY TOPIC - SECOND SET, n.d., contains notecards with handwritten notes for various course lectures given by Wall. Lecture topics include "The Black Book," "Blues poetry," and "Blues singers." These notecards arrived as part of the third accession. Please note that each lecture topic listed within quotations indicates a set of cards related to that topic as organized by Wall. One archival folder contains several sets of note cards and various topics arranged alphabetically.
Series 7, WRITINGS AND RELATED, 1978 – 2020, includes handwritten and typed drafts, correspondence, research articles, and proofs, related to articles, books, edited books, reviews, and talks by Wall. Titles include "The Black Book: Between the Lines of History," "Harlem as Culture Capital in 1920s African American Fiction," On Freedom and the Will to Adorn: The African American Essay, Savoring the Salt: The Legacy of Toni Cade Bambara, "Changing Words in Black Women's Writing/ Changing Words in the Academy," and "Zora Neale Hurston: Art Out of Place and In Motion." This series is arranged alphabetically by type of writing, then by title, then by record type.
Series 8, SUBJECT FILES BY PERSON AS SUBJECT, 1973 – 2018, includes clippings, correspondence, readings, and handwritten notes related to research on various people. Subjects include Maya Angelou, Toni Cade Bambara, Lucille Clifton, Ann duCille, Nora Holt, Zora Neale Hurston, June Jordan, Nella Larsen, and Claudia Tate. This series is arranged alphabetically by subject's last name then by record type.
Series 9, SUBJECT FILES BY TOPIC, 1973 – 2017, includes clippings, readings, and handwritten notes related to research on various topics. Topics include "Black feminism," "Black women writers," "Harlem race capital," "Teaching 20th century American women writers," and "the underground railroad in New Jersey." This series is arranged alphabetically by topic then by record type.
Series 10, PRINT MATERIAL, 1980 – 2016, contains books, magazines, and newsletters. Items include an advance uncorrected proof copy of Savoring the Salt: The Legacy of Toni Cade Bambara by Wall, 10th and 15th anniversary issues of Essence Magazine, and newsletters from the Amistad Research Center. This series is arranged alphabetically by format then by title.
Series 11, ELECTRONIC RECORDS, 1990 - 2018, contains 3.5" floppy disks, CDs, and a zip disk. Contents include correspondence, book drafts, and teaching materials. This series is arranged alphabetically by format then by title written on the carrier.
Series 12, RESTRICTED, 2008 - 2010, contains hiring materials and related correspondence. These materials are closed until January 1, 2050.
All researchers seeking to publish materials from the collections of the John Hay Library are requested to complete a Notice of Intent to Publish, prior to reproducing, quoting, or otherwise publishing any portion or extract from this collection. Although Brown University has physical ownership of the collection and the materials contained therein, it does not claim literary rights. It is up to the researcher to determine the owners of the literary rights and to obtain any necessary permissions from them.
Cheryl A. Wall papers, MS.2020.006, Black Feminist Theory Collections/Feminist Theory Archive, Brown University Library.
This collection is arranged into 12 series.
There are no restrictions on access except for Series 11, ELECTRONIC RECORDS, and Series 12, RESTRICTED. All materials that are reformatted from Series 11 must be reviewed by the Pembroke Center Archivist before being delivered to the researcher (pembroke_archives@brown.edu). Series 12 is closed until January 1, 2050. The collection can only be seen by prior appointment. Some materials may be stored off-site and cannot be produced on the same day on which they are requested.
Please note: If you are a third party donor and are concerned that you have found material within this collection that was made available without your permission and believe our inclusion of this material violates your rights, please email the Pembroke Center Archivist at pembroke_archives@brown.edu.
Gift of Camara Epps in 2020.