Black History Month Spotlight: Thebaud T. Jeffers
Thebaud T. Jeffers arrived in Gastonia as an educator in 1932, decades before Gaston College opened its doors. By the time of his passing in 1984 at the age of 75, Jeffers had become a trailblazer for both Gastonia and Gaston College.
Today, Jeffers’ impact lives on through a recreation center in Gastonia bearing his name and an annual scholarship at Gaston College honoring his legacy.
A native of Person County, Jeffers graduated with honors from Durham’s Hillside High School in 1927. He then earned his undergraduate degree from Johnson C. Smith University in Charlotte in 1931 and later earned a master’s from the University of Southern California.
In 1931, he began teaching at Belmont’s Reid High School and later became its principal. In the fall of 1940, Jeffers was hired as principal of Highland High School in Gastonia, the city’s oldest African American school, a position he held until its closure in 1966.
Jeffers left his most enduring mark as a member of the Gastonia Human Relations Committee, helping guide the city through integration in the tumultuous 1960s. His diplomatic approach earned praise, with The Charlotte Observer noting after his death that Jeffers “was remembered as a skilled negotiator whose polite and rational manner helped bring racial integration and progress to Gaston County with a minimum of confrontation and discord.”
At Gaston College, Jeffers broke new ground as the institution’s first African American trustee in 1965. A year later, he made history again as Gastonia’s first African American mayor, appointed after 13 years on the city council. Voters subsequently re-elected him in 1977, 1979, 1981 and 1983.
In 1979, the T. Jeffers Center opened on 39 acres in northwest Gastonia, funded through federal grants and city contributions. A decade later, the annual Highland Festival raised $10,000 to establish the T. Jeffers Scholarship Fund for Gaston College students.
The 1989 fundraising effort included a basketball clinic at Highland Gymnasium, co-hosted by Gastonia natives and NBA All-Stars James Worthy and Eric “Sleepy” Floyd. The event attracted 1,000 fans and campers. Worthy, who later entered the Basketball Hall of Fame, remarked, “I’m happy to be a part of this festival. It’s for a good cause. T. Jeffers was a role model for all of us kids growing up.”
Since then, the T. Jeffers Scholarship has continued to support Gaston College students, carrying forward Jeffers’ commitment to education and community progress.
