News Release

Boise - The profound mark that Dr. Mamie Oliver has made in Idaho's education system will be honored tonight during a celebration of Idaho Black History Month. Idaho Senator Mike Crapo, who honored Dr. Oliver earlier this month in the Congressional Record, will present her with a Gold Border copy of the statement this evening. The presentation will take place at approximately 8:30 p.m. at the Velma V. Morrison Center, immediately following a performance by jazz-fusion artist Regina Carter. "When Dr. Oliver accepted a position at Boise State University in 1972, she became Idaho's first African-American professor," Crapo wrote. "She and her students went on to establish a record of researching African-American history in Idaho that had never been done before." Dr. Oliver and her husband, Dr. H. Lincoln Oliver, built a track record of highlighting human rights by establishing the Treasure Valley Council for Church and Social Action 25 years ago. She was influential in preserving the St. Paul Baptist Church, which is now home to the Black History Museum, and has been appointed by Governors Evans and Kempthorne to leadership positions on the Martin Luther King, Jr. task force and the Governor's Coordinating Council for Families and Children.

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