New Nursing School to be Named in Honor of a Black Politician and Scholar

The new nursing school at the Charles Drew University of Medicine and Science in Los Angeles will be named after Mervyn M. Dymally. Dymally is currently a California state assemblyman. He previously was a state senator, a U.S. congressman, and lieutenant governor of California.

Born in Trinidad, Dymally came to the United States at the age of 19 to pursue higher education. He earned a bachelor’s degree at Los Angeles State College and a master’s degree in government from California State University at Sacramento. He later was awarded a Ph.D. from what is now Alliant International University.

Dymally was the first foreign-born black to be elected to the United States Congress.