Who We Are

The Sonja Haynes Stone Center for Research in Black Culture and History at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill was established on July 1, 1988.

Initially known as the Black Cultural Center, it was renamed for beloved faculty member Dr. Sonja Haynes Stone after her untimely passing in 1991. Upon its inception, the Stone Center was focused on raising awareness of and appreciation for African American culture within our campus community.

Over time, that focus has expanded to incorporate cultural and academic programming, including the work of the Institute of African American Research (IAAR), which was conceived of in the early 1990s and founded in 1995 by UNC faculty who believed it was important to have a free-standing center devoted to researching Black life and history.

Audience members at a Stone Center event
Attendees at Nnenna Freelon’s Stone Memorial Lecture, Fall 2018.
Dr. Genna Rae McNeil and Dr. Louise Toppin at the inaugural McNeil Black History Month Lecture
“Lift Every Voice and Sing” performed by Dr. Genna Rae McNeil, professor emeritus of history at UNC, and Dr. Louise Toppin, Professor of Music at the University of Michigan, at the inaugural McNeil Black History Month Lecture (2023).
A woman looking at a painting in the Stone Center gallery
​​Gallery opening of multimedia exhibition “DO or DIE: Affect, Ritual, Resistance by artist Fahamu Pecou,” Fall 2019.

Programs

Upcoming Events

Diaspora Festival of Black and Independent Film

Tuesday, October 3, 2023 - Thursday, November 2, 2023
6:00 pm - 1:15 pm
The Diaspora Festival of Black and Independent Film Screenings on: October 3, 5, 10, 17, 24, 26 starting (at 6:00pm) and a lunch-time screening on November 2 @12:05pm!

Brown Gallery and Museum (Fall Opening)

Wednesday, October 11, 2023
6:00 pm - 8:00 pm
The Brown Gallery and Museum at the Stone Center hosts an exhibition this fall (October -- December 2023) featuring works by artists of Native and Black ancestry whose art deal with the shared histories and intertwined struggles of Black and Indigenous communities.

Annual Dr. Stone Memorial Lecture

Tuesday, November 14, 2023
6:30 pm - 8:30 pm
Erica R. Edwards, Professor of African American Studies and English at Yale University, will deliver the 2023 edition of the Stone Memorial Lecture on Tuesday, November 14th at 6:30PM in the Stone Center Auditorium.
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Support

UISF Fellows posing on the Stone Center balcony, 2019.
UISF Fellows posing on the Stone Center balcony, 2019.

Support the Stone Center

Regardless of its size, your gifts have a real and meaningful effect on the work of the Stone Center. Whether you support deserving students through fellowship opportunities, research that leads to innovative revisions to existing schools of thought, community outreach projects, international initiatives, or our visual and performing arts programs, your gift helps us to make a difference in the lives of real people. Thank you in advance for your contribution!



Ways To Support