Phail Wynn, Jr. ( – July 24, 2018) was an American academic administrator, corporate director and

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

veteran. He was the president of the

Durham Technical Community College Durham Technical Community College (Durham Tech) is a public community college in Durham, North Carolina. The college serves Northern Durham County at its Northern Durham Center, and in Orange County at its Orange County Campus completed in 20 ...

from 1980 to 2007.

Early life

Wynn was born in an African-American family in Oklahoma. He graduated from the

University of Oklahoma The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two Territories became the state of Oklahom ...

, where he earned a bachelor's degree. He earned a PhD from

North Carolina State University North Carolina State University (NC State) is a public land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina system, it is the largest university in the Carolinas. The universit ...

and an MBA from the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...

. He joined the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

and served in

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

during the

Career

Wynn served as the president of

from 1980 to 2007, and as the vice president for Durham and Regional Affairs at

Duke University Duke University is a private research university in Durham, North Carolina. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco and electric power industrialist James ...

from 2007 to 2018. Wynn served on the board of directors of SunTrust Banks from 2004 to 2018. Wynn served on the Board, Leadership Council, and as Interim president of Triangle Community Foundation on two separate occasions.

Personal life and death

Wynn had a wife, Peggy, and a son, Rahsaan, a Marine Corps master gunnery sergeant. They resided in Durham, North Carolina, where he died on July 24, 2018, at age 70. His funeral was held on July 30, 2018, at the Duke Chapel.

References

1940s births 2018 deaths African-American United States Army personnel Academics from Oklahoma People from Durham, North Carolina University of Oklahoma alumni North Carolina State University alumni UNC Kenan–Flagler Business School alumni United States Army personnel of the Vietnam War Duke University people SunTrust Banks people American corporate directors United States Army officers 21st-century African-American people African Americans in the Vietnam War 20th-century African-American academics 20th-century American academics {{Oklahoma-university-stub