Four Honored With Davie Award

Posted on Nov. 22, 2004

Three alumni and a former chancellor – Harvey E. Beech ’52 (LLB), William B. Harrison Jr. ’66, Charles McKimmon Winston Sr. ’53 and Paul Hardin – are the 2004 recipients of the William Richardson Davie Award.

Beech, of Kinston, is UNC’s first black graduate. An alumnus of Morehouse College, he was a law student at the North Carolina School for Negroes in Durham when Thurgood Marshall, then a young lawyer for the NAACP, asked Beech if he would join a case challenging the separate-but-equal status of UNC’s law school. He agreed, and in March 1951 the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ordered that he and four others be admitted to the law school.

Beech went on to practice law for nearly 40 years, served on UNC’s Board of Visitors from 1982 to 1990 and was honored in 1989 with the establishment of a scholarship in his name. The General Alumni Association’s Black Alumni Reunion annual awards to alumni, a faculty member and a student also carry Beech’s name.

Harrison graduated from UNC with a degree in economics. He worked his way up the ranks at Chemical Bank to become vice chair before the company underwent a pair of mergers with Manufacturers Hanover and Chase Manhattan. In 2000, Chase merged with J.P. Morgan and Co., and Harrison now works as chair and chief executive officer of J.P. Morgan Chase and Co. in New York.

Harrison served as the GAA’s international representative from 1981 to 1984 and as its second vice president from 1985 to 1986. He currently is a member of the board of visitors of the Kenan-Flagler Business School and is an honorary member of the Carolina First Campaign Steering Committee.

Winston was a partner in the opening of the Angus Barn restaurant in Raleigh and parlayed his success there into Creative Dining Food Systems Inc., which was later acquired by General Mills Restaurant Group. His next venture grew into what now is Winston Hotels, where he serves as chair.

Winston served on UNC’s Board of Visitors from 1985 to 1989 and was elected chair of the GAA’s Board of Directors in 1998. In 2000, he received the GAA’s Distinguished Service Medal. He also is a member of the Carolina First Campaign Steering Committee.

As the University’s seventh chancellor, Hardin led the Bicentennial celebration and spearheaded a fund-raising campaign that exceeded its $320 million goal by $120 million. He also formed the Employee Forum to foster communication between nonacademic employees and the administration.

Under Hardin’s leadership, the University doubled its minority representation on the faculty. He steered the campus toward resolution of a controversy over a proposed freestanding building for the Stone Center. Hardin is a past recipient of the GAA’s Distinguished Service Medal and is an honorary member of the UNC Board of Visitors and a member of the Order of the Golden Fleece.

Established by UNC’s Board of Trustees in 1984, the Davie Award is named for the Revolutionary War hero who is considered the father of the University. It is the highest honor bestowed by the trustees, recognizing extraordinary service to the University or to society.

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