The Watkins Family Decides to Further Endow the Dr. Levi Watkins, Jr., Institute at Tennessee State University
- Donald V. Watkins
- 2 days ago
- 2 min read
By: Donald V. Watkins
Copyrighted on August 15, 2026
Dr. Levi Watkins, Sr. (Class of 1933), and Dr. Levi Watkins, Jr., MD (Class of 1966), graduated from Tennessee State University in Nashville, Tennessee. TSU was the university launchpad for their remarkable careers in education and medicine.
Dr. Watkins, Sr., was the longtime president of Alabama State University in Montgomery, Alabama. Dr. Watkins, Jr., was a world-famous heart surgeon at Johns Hopkins University Medical Center in Baltimore, Maryland.
In the summer of 1962, Tennessee Democratic gubernatorial candidate Frank G. Clement visited the Clarksville, Tennessee home of Adam Watkins in broad daylight to request his political support at a time when only a small number of blacks in the state had the courage to register and vote in Tennessee elections. Clement's visit occurred 3 years prior to the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
Adam Watkins was the father of Levi Watkins, Sr., and paternal grandfather of Levi Watkins, Jr. Together with his wife Sallie Darden Watkins, Adam Watkins owned and operated Adam Watkins Plumbing Company.
Adam Watkins was prepared for Gov. Clement's visit and had a list of political demands that were aimed at improving the quality of life for blacks throughout Tennessee. A top priority on this list was greater state funding for TSU, where Levi Watkins, Sr., and his younger sister Cammie Watkins attended as students and obtained their undergraduate degrees. Cammie Watkins became a distinguished educator in Washington, D.C.
Clement made this commitment to Adam Watkins and kept his word after he was elected as governor.
In honor of the 97-year relationship between the Watkins family and TSU, which began in 1929 with the admission of Levi Watkins, Sr. to TSU, the Watkins family has decided to further endow the Dr. Levi Watkins, Jr. Institute. Established in 2020 by the Office of President at TSU and endowed with a major gift from the Watkins family, the Institute offers academically gifted high school graduates who attend an accelerated program at TSU the opportunity to become doctors and dentists in seven years on a full academic scholarship.
TSU will celebrate the Watkins family's further endowment of the Institute during its "Legacy in Action" program at its Downtown-Avon Williams campus on August 28, 2026.
The Watkins family places a premium on higher education. Since the Civil War ended in 1865, Carmichael/Varnado/Darden/Watkins family members have accumulated a treasure trove of "earned" college degrees from the following institutions of higher education: Tennessee State University, Northwestern University, Owen College, Lane College, Jackson State University, Rust College, Labette Community College, Alabama State University, Alcorn State University, Drake University, the University of California at Berkley, Temple University, Vanderbilt University, Harvard University, Harvard University School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Morgan State University, Western Michigan University, Southern Illinois University, University of Alabama, University of Alabama School of Law, Meharry Medical College, Knoxville College, Tougaloo College, Clark Atlanta University, Gallaudet University, Saint Augustine College, Spelman…