Sherman Howell Memorial

The Community Ecology Institute grieves the passing of Mr. Sherman Howell, who became a beloved member of our community in the past several years as we collaborated on the naming of our Community Engagement Center in his honor and that of his longtime friend, Dr. Vernon Gray.  During Sherman's first visit to our Freetown Farm location in Columbia, he shared that he often opens his public remarks with the statement that he was born and raised the son of a cotton farmer. During our walks and talks he reminisced about the ways in which being at Freetown Farm reminded him of the good parts of growing up on a farm and how pleased he was to see a farm remaining in Columbia to ensure that future generations have the chance to connect with the unique experiences available in the farm environment. Sherman's personal and professional passions aligned so closely with our work at the intersections of education, environment, equity and health and he will be dearly missed here and throughout our broader community. 

Sherman Howell grew up in the segregated town of Arlington, Tennessee, marched for civil rights in the 1960s and was one of the organizers of the March on Washington in 1963. When he was looking for where to put down roots in 1971, he prioritized finding a place "that represented equality and respect." When he got to Columbia, he decided to stay. Sherman served as the Vice President of Research and Agenda Planning for the African American Coalition of Howard County. He served as vice president of the Howard County Chapter of the NAACP and founded their chapter's newsletter, the Commitment. Sherman also founded and was the first chairperson of the Howard County Martin Luther King, Jr., Holiday Commission. He joined the coalition to convert the former Harriet Tubman High School, the county's first African-American high school, into a community center (now the Harriet Tubman Cultural Center).  Sherman made a habit of testifying before state and local governing bodies to make his voice heard on critical issues. He was regularly been quoted by media publications, including the Washington Post, the Dallas Morning News, the Baltimore Sun, and The Business Monthly.