Oral history with Ms. Vernon J. Keys

              An Oral History with Ms. Vernon J. Keys
This oral history is provided through a cooperative project of USM Libraries and USM's Center for Oral History and Cultural Heritage It is presented here for reference purposes only. Interviews in this collection are protected by copyright and PERMISSION TO PUBLISH MUST BE REQUESTED from the Center for Oral History and Cultural Heritage. Please call ( 601) 266- 4574 for more information.
Biography
Ms. Vernon J. Keys was born on October 7, 1926, in Clarksdale, Mississippi. Her parents were William and Latha Johnson. She attended elementary school at Clarksdale Separate District School and in Cleveland, Ohio. She graduated from Coahoma County Agricultural High School in Clarksdale and received a bachelor's degree in sociology from J. P. Campbell College, Jackson, Mississippi. Ms. Keys also studied at Rust College, Holly Springs, Mississippi, and the Chicago School of Cosmetology, Chicago, Illinois. Ms. Keys has held a number of positions, including secretary to the principal of Colored Schools, Clarksdale Separate District School; voucher examiner for the Chicago Procurement Office, USA Corps of Engineers; and registrar's assistant, Coahoma Community College, Clarksdale. In 1965 Ms. Keys began working with the Coahoma Opportunities, Inc. ( COI), a community action agency designed to improve the economic position of the poor of Coahoma County, Mississippi. She worked first as administrative assistant to COI, then as the personnel officer. In 1979 she relocated to Jackson, Mississippi, where she worked for the Aging Services of the City of Jackson. She retired in 1995. Ms. Keys currently resides in Jackson, Mississippi, where she is an active volunteer in the Senior Service Centers and in the Missionary Department of her church, Pearl Street A. M. E. Church. She is a member of the Jackson chapter of the NAACP, the Jackson chapter of the NCSC Club, and of the West Jackson Garden Club. Ms. Keys has three children: Homer D. Hill, Williamenia Turner, and Alice C. Barnes. She also has four grandchildren and one great- grandchild.
Topics Discussed
Background Establishment of Southern Educational Recreational Association ( SERA), Head Start, Jesse Epps Establishment of Community Action Agency ( CAP), Head Start Early Childhood Development Center ( ECDC) Head Start outreach services Keys's involvement in Coahoma Opportunities, Inc. ( COI), establishment of Legal Aid and Neighborhood
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