Oral History with Iria Jones (W'87)

In this oral history interview, Iria Jones (W’87) sat down with Eden Wolfer (’20) and Rena Xiao (’20) on July 2, 2018, in Boatwright Memorial Library. Over the course of the one hour interview, Jones discussed her experience as one of few black students on campus in the mid-1980s, from her experiences with white students, to the relationship and community building black students had to do at the time. Jones reflects on the social atmosphere at the university, recalls faculty members who she gravitated towards during her time as a student, and shares her lived experience on campus in contrast to the image of diversity the university presented to prospective students at the time.




Iria Jones is from Richmond, Virginia.  She grew up in Southside of Richmond in the Oak Grove neighborhood that is adjacent to “Old Manchester.” She attended Armstrong-Kennedy High School where she graduated from in 1983. (In 1979, Armstrong High School and John F. Kennedy High School were combined to form the Armstrong-Kennedy High School complex. The Richmond city high school complexes were eliminated after the 1985-86 school year).  She graduated from the University of Richmond in 1987 with a B.A. in Sociology and Criminal Justice and began working at the University of Richmond in the Boatwright Memorial Library where she is currently the Operations Manager.