After making history and integrating Central High School with other members of the Little Rock Nine in 1957, Ernest Gideon Green became the school’s first African-American graduate on May 27, 1958. Green’s family was joined by Martin Luther King Jr. to celebrate the historic moment.
He later attended Michigan State University and served as assistant secretary of labor during the Jimmy Carter administration, from 1977-1981. Along with the other members of the Little Rock Nine, Green was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal by President Bill Clinton in 1999.
He is currently a senior managing director at Lehman Brothers.
– Zach Parker, Ghidotti