Walter Lee Smith (May 13, 1935 – November 25, 2021) was president of Florida A&M University (FAMU), serving from 1977 until 1985. The privately-owned Walter L. Smith Library has a collection and hold programs related to African American history. Smith received a bachelor's degree from Florida A&M University and a doctorate from

Florida State University Florida State University (FSU) is a public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher education in the st ...

. He was an

Africa-America Institute The Africa-America Institute (AAI) is an international education organization dedicated to advancing the continent's development through higher education and skills training, convening activities, and promoting greater engagement between Africa and ...

Scholar to

West Africa West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Maurit ...

in 1971 and studied African culture and history. He worked for the U.S. government on federal school desegregation programs and at the

Kennedy Space Center The John F. Kennedy Space Center (KSC, originally known as the NASA Launch Operations Center), located on Merritt Island, Florida, is one of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) ten field centers. Since December 1968 ...

developing educational curriculum for engineering assistants on the

Saturn V Saturn V is a retired American super heavy-lift launch vehicle developed by NASA under the Apollo program for human exploration of the Moon. The rocket was human-rated, with multistage rocket, three stages, and powered with liquid-propellant r ...

program before becoming an administrator at Hillsborough Community College in Tampa and then

Roxbury Community College Roxbury Community College (RCC) is a public community college in the Roxbury neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. RCC offers associate degrees in arts, and sciences, as well as certificates. RCC has transfer agreements with Curry College, North ...

in Massachusetts. From 1995 until 2000 he was a professor at the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...

. He served as FAMU's seventh non-interim president
/ref> from 1977 until 1985. FAMU's campus includes the Walter L. Smith Architecture Building Florida State has a scholarship program in his honor. The Florida State Archives have a photo of him presenting and award in 1984. In the late 1980s a video about Walter L. Smith and his accomplishments at FAMU was released. Julian Bond introduces the film. He gave a presentation on race and education in Florida in 2014. He sued FAMU President Frederick Humphries accusing him of withholding a payment over professional rivalry. In 2009 he received an award from the NEA.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Walter L. American Africanists Living people Presidents of Florida A&M University University of Florida faculty Florida State University alumni Florida A&M University faculty People from Tampa, Florida 1935 births