Thelma Cornelia Davidson Adair (born Thelma Cornelia Davidson; August 29, 1920) is an American educator, Presbyterian church leader, advocate for human rights, peace and justice issues, writer and activist. She has been active with

Church Women United Church Women United (CWU) is a national ecumenical Christian women's movement representing Protestant, Roman Catholic, Orthodox and other Christian women. Founded in 1941, as the United Council of Church Women, this organization has more than 1 ...

, a Christian women's advocacy movement. She is an ordained Elder for the Mount Morris Ascension Presbyterian Church of New York City in Harlem. Adair was the moderator for the 1976 Assembly United Presbyterian Church in the United States of America (UPCUSA). She married, in 1940, the Reverend Arthur Eugene Adair, founder and minister of the church from 1943 until his death in 1979. Adair is an advocate for early childhood education and helped to establish Head Start programs in Harlem. She has lived in Harlem since 1942 and is Professor Emeritus of Queens College, a CUNY college.

Early life and education

Adair was born Thelma Cornelia Davidson in 1920 in

Iron Station, North Carolina Iron Station is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Lincoln County, North Carolina, United States. A primarily industrial town, Iron Station's population was 755 as of the 2010 census. It also serves as a bedroom co ...

, one of six children. She lived there while in elementary school. Her family subsequently moved to

Kings Mountain, North Carolina Kings Mountain is a small suburban city within the Charlotte metropolitan area in Cleveland and Gaston counties, North Carolina, United States. Most of the city is in Cleveland County, with a small eastern portion in Gaston County. The popul ...

. She married Reverend Dr. Arthur Eugene Adair and they moved to New York City in 1942. He became a Senior Pastor of Mount Morris United Presbyterian Church (UPC). Adair is an affiliated graduate from Barber–Scotia College (

Concord, North Carolina Concord is the county seat and largest city in Cabarrus County, in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 105,186, with an estimated population in 2021 of 107,697. In terms of population, the cit ...

) and

Bennett College Bennett College is a private historically black liberal arts college for women in Greensboro, North Carolina. It was founded in 1873 as a normal school to educate freedmen and train both men and women as teachers. Originally coed, in 1926 it ...

(

Greensboro, North Carolina Greensboro (; formerly Greensborough) is a city in and the county seat of Guilford County, North Carolina, United States. It is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, third-most populous city in North Carolina after Charlotte, North Car ...

). She earned a master's degree and Doctorate of Education from

Teachers College, Columbia University Teachers College, Columbia University (TC), is the graduate school of education, health, and psychology of Columbia University, a private research university in New York City. Founded in 1887, it has served as one of the official faculties and ...

World War II

Like many African Americans and Americans, Adair participated in the

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

efforts at home and abroad. She worked in a war plant. She inspected radar tubes. She was also a young mother at the time. She described her experience:

Career

Adair was an organizer for West Harlem Head Start Programs. In 1944 she was an organizer for Mt. Morris UPC's Project Uplift, a precursor to the Arthur Eugene and Thelma Adair Community Life Center Head Start. The center services more than 250 children throughout various locations in Harlem. Adair has published and written numerous articles on early childhood education. Her publications are authoritative guides for early childhood educators throughout the United States. In 1976, Adair was elected as a

Moderator of the General Assembly The moderator of the General Assembly is the chairperson of a General Assembly, the highest court of a Presbyterian or Reformed church. Kirk sessions and presbyteries may also style the chairperson as moderator. The Oxford Dictionary states t ...

for the Presbyterian Church, the first black woman to attain this role, travelling to 115 countries during her term. She is one of the original founders of Presbyterian Senior Services, and is a participant with the Fellowship of the "Least Coin", a worldwide prayer movement. She was president of Church Women United from 1980 to 1984. She was honored in 2011 by Congressman

Charles Rangel Charles Bernard Rangel (, ; born June 11, 1930) is an American politician who was a U.S. representative for districts in New York from 1971 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the second-longest serving incumbent member of the Ho ...

. She attended the Selma, Alabama, 50th anniversary of the

Selma to Montgomery marches The Selma to Montgomery marches were three protest marches, held in 1965, along the 54-mile (87 km) highway from Selma, Alabama, to the state capital of Montgomery. The marches were organized by nonviolent activists to demonstrate the ...

across the

Edmund Pettus Bridge The Edmund Pettus Bridge carries U.S. Route 80 Business (US 80 Bus.) across the Alabama River in Selma, Alabama. Built in 1940, it is named after Edmund Pettus, a former Confederate brigadier general, U.S. senator, and state-lev ...

Affiliations

* Chair, Presbyterian Senior Services * Advisor, Church Women United, National Board * Board of Visitors, Davidson College * Advisory Council, National Council of Churches * Member, Harlem Hospital Community Advisory Board

Awards

* The Thelma C. Adair Award on Presbyterian Senior Services * Barber-Scotia Alumni Award for Meritorious Service in the Field of Education * Columbia University, Teacher's College Distinguished Alumni Award * United Negro College Fund Distinguished Award for Outstanding Service and Commitment of Higher Education * 1986 Recipient of Women of Faith Award from the Presbyterian Church * 1991 Recipient of National Association of Presbyterian Clergywomen Women of Faith Awards * 2008 Recipient of the Medal of Distinction Barnard College * 2011 recipient of the

Maggie Kuhn Margaret Eliza "Maggie" Kuhn (August 3, 1905 – April 22, 1995) was an American activist known for founding the Gray Panthers movement, after she was forced to retire from her job at the then-mandatory retirement age of 65. The Gray Panth ...

Presbyterian Church Award

References

External links

Elders' House (The Elders' Gift to the Children)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Adair, Thelma Davidson 1920 births Living people People from Harlem People from Lincoln County, North Carolina Activists for African-American civil rights Women civil rights activists American women's rights activists American Presbyterians Teachers College, Columbia University alumni Education activists Elder rights activists American anti-racism activists African-American centenarians American centenarians Women centenarians 21st-century African-American educators 21st-century American educators 20th-century African-American people