Ruby Stutts Lyells facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Ruby Stutts Lyells
Born	1908 (1908) Anding, Mississippi, US
Died	December 22, 1994(1994-12-22) (aged 85–86) Jackson, Mississippi, US
Education	Alcorn Agricultural and Mechanical College Hampton Institute University of Chicago
Occupation	Librarian

Ruby Stutts Lyells (1908 – December 22, 1994) was an American librarian and a strong leader. She worked for civil rights for many years. She was the first African-American professional librarian in the state of Mississippi.

Ruby Lyells: Early Life and School

Ruby Elizabeth Stutts was born in 1908 in Anding, Mississippi. Her parents were Tom and Rossie A. Cowan Stutts.

She was the top student in her class at Alcorn Agricultural and Mechanical College in 1929. She then went to Hampton Institute Library School. She earned a special scholarship there. In 1930, she got her bachelor's degree in library science. This means she learned how to organize and manage libraries.

Later, she earned her master's degree from the University of Chicago in 1942. Ruby Lyells was the first Black person from Mississippi to get a degree in library science. She also received an honorary Doctor of Humanities degree from Prentiss Institute.

Ruby Lyells' Library Career

After finishing her library degree, Ruby Lyells went back to Alcorn A&M College. She became the head librarian there. She helped build the college's book collection. Her work became an example for other Black colleges. She also helped students as a counselor. She helped start the Library Division of the Mississippi Teachers Association.

She moved to Chicago for a short time to study at the University of Chicago. After graduating in 1942, Lyells returned to Mississippi. She became Mississippi's first professional Black librarian.

In 1945, Lyells became the head librarian at Jackson State University. She worked to make the school's library more modern. Two years later, she led the College Park and Carver branches of the Jackson Public Library. Ruby Lyells was the first African American to manage libraries in that system, which was segregated at the time.

Lyells also worked as a librarian in the Atlanta Public Library System. She also worked at Iowa State University.

Activism and Community Work

Ruby Lyells was known as a powerful speaker. She worked for social change for over 40 years.

She held many important leadership roles in Mississippi. She was president of the Mississippi State Federation of Colored Women's Clubs. She was also the first African-American executive director of the Mississippi State Council of Human Rights.

Lyells strongly believed in good school education. She wrote about this topic in the Journal of Negro Education in the 1940s and 1950s. She also led the Biracial Committee for the Jackson Municipal Separate School District. In 1970, federal courts chose her to help end segregation in schools.

She was a trustee for the Prentiss Institute in Prentiss, Mississippi. In May 1968, a library was named after her: the Ruby E. Stutts Lyells Library.

She supported the Republican Party for a long time. In 1970, she served on an important committee for the Republican National Convention.

Ruby Lyells passed away in Jackson on December 22, 1994. After her death, Mississippi Senator Thad Cochran spoke about her in the Senate. He praised her courage and her work in building the modern Republican Party in Mississippi. He said she defended her beliefs with "grace and with dignity and with intelligence."