A $370,000 gift that honors the life of Japanese businessman Masami Ito will benefit undergraduate and graduate students of African American literature in UNC’s College of Arts and Sciences.
The Japan-to-Carolina ties begin with Masami Ito’s daughter, Akiyo, who came to Chapel Hill in 1992 to pursue her interest in African American and Southern literature. With the guidance and support of her mentor, English professor emeritus J. Lee Greene, Akiyo completed a master’s and doctoral degree in African American literature in the department of English. Her father traveled to Chapel Hill to see his daughter receive her Ph.D. degree; he passed away last year.
Akiyo consulted with Greene about a gift that her mother, Keiko Ito, wanted to make to UNC in honor of her father. The Ito gift will support the Peppers Scholarship Fund, and the Blyden and Roberta Jackson Fellowship — thus touching the lives of both undergraduate and graduate students in the College. The Jackson Fellowship is now funded at its original stated goal, although additional gifts will bolster the award amount. Once the endowment begins producing sufficient income, the department will name the first Blyden and Roberta Jackson Fellow.
“My father spent his adult life trying to help others, and this memorial gift continues his wishes and legacy,” Akiyo said.
Masami was born in Yokosuka, Japan, on March 19, 1926, to a Navy surgeon. He grew up in Osaka and Kyoto. He entered the Naval Academy at age 15, and after graduating, was assigned to the battleship Yamato. When the battleship embarked on its final suicide mission, the captain ordered all 38 midshipmen off the ship, saving their lives and challenging them to make use of their lives and to do good for others. Masami and his fellow midshipmen were only 19 years old. He never forgot that incident and the captain’s challenge, which he spent the rest of his life determined to fulfill, Akiyo said.
“My dad was a loving and supportive husband and father,” Akiyo said. “For most of his life, my father worked as a businessman for trading companies, with assignments in Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan and other parts of Asia. During and following World War II, relations between Japan and other countries were strained. For more than 30 years, my father committed himself not only to doing business, but also to building lasting friendships with the people all over Asia.”
Greene calls Akiyo “a first-rate student who was well-versed in African American literature.” She is now a professor of African American literature at a Japanese university.
“Akiyo is a wonderful person, and to know that a former student has that much faith and trust in me to help guide this process — that’s very rewarding,” said Greene, a triple-degree holder from UNC who taught at his alma mater for 30 years and directed Akiyo’s master’s and doctoral dissertations.
The Peppers Scholarship is awarded annually to a sophomore, junior or senior, and is not restricted to those studying African American literature. The late Wallace Peppers’ teaching in the communication studies department at UNC and his personal influence and example inspired his students in academic and cultural endeavors. Peppers and Greene were undergraduate classmates at UNC; and Greene, who now lives in Forest City, N.C., helped to create the scholarship in his honor. Peppers died in 1987.
The Blyden and Roberta Jackson endowment supports fellowship awards to entering graduate students who wish to study African American literature. The late Blyden Jackson, grandson of a slave and the first tenured black professor at the university, established the study of African American literature as a field of undergraduate and graduate work at UNC in 1969. His wife, Roberta, taught in the School of Education. The couple, for whom Jackson Hall is named, were instrumental in elevating African American faculty to tenure-track status.
“This gratifying gift attests to the professional and personal relationships that our outstanding faculty, represented by Professor Greene, build with their students, both graduate and undergraduate,” said William L. Andrews, senior associate dean for the fine arts and humanities. “In this case, African American literary study, which has been a hallmark of Carolina’s curriculum since Blyden Jackson came here, is the beneficiary. The College of Arts and Sciences is deeply grateful to the Ito family.”
To make additional gifts to the Peppers Scholarship Fund or to the Blyden and Roberta Jackson Fellowship, please contact Margaret Costley at margaret.costley@unc.edu or (919)843-0345.
