Philip Hubbard
Philip Hubbard was born in Missouri and moved to Des Moines at age 4 when his mother — a teacher in Missouri’s segregated school system — determined that Iowa offered greater educational opportunities, earning a degree in electrical engineering in 1947 from the University of Iowa.
Student life was very different in the 1940s for African-Americans. Black students were not allowed to live in student housing or attend university events if white students complained. Instead, African-Americans found local families with which to live. Hubbard was able to pay his tuition at UI by earning money shining shoes at the Jefferson Hotel.
He was hired as a research engineer after his June 1947 graduation, becoming UI’s first black faculty member. Hubbard continued his studies at UI and received a Ph.D. in hydraulics in 1954.
Hubbard taught mechanics and hydraulics at UI from 1954 to 1966, and spoke often in the community in favor of a fair housing ordinance, which was adopted in Iowa City in 1964.
In 1966, Hubbard became dean of academic affairs, making him the first black administrator at any of Iowa’s three state universities. He was vice president of student services in 1971, becoming the first black vice president in the Big Ten.
As an administrator, Hubbard worked hard to promote policies that focused on human rights, including affirmative action. He and others founded Opportunity at Iowa in 1987, a program designed to attract and retain minority students and faculty.
Hubbard and his wife, Wynonna, raised five children in Iowa City. He retired in 1991 after 43 years with the university. He died in 2002.
Hubbard’s memoir, “My Iowa Journey: The Life Story of the University of Iowa’s First African American Professor,” was published in 1999.