On October 28 at a ceremony at the Georgia State Archives in Morrow attended by University System of Georgia Chancellor Hank Huckaby and Governor Nathan Deal, Dr. Charles H. “Trey” Wilson III, associate professor of political science, received an “Award for Excellence in Documenting Georgia’s History” from the Georgia Historical Records Advisory Council for his book titled The History of Brenau University, 1878-2013, published by Teneo Press in 2014.

The book tells the story of Brenau University in Gainesville, which was founded in 1878 to educate women and is today one of only a handful of women’s colleges still in existence. Dr. Wilson examined such themes as the historical demographics of Brenau’s students and personnel, the evolution of academics and athletics at the university, the development of policies on desegregation, the evolution of physical space on campus, and the history of student organizations (including secret societies) and rules at Brenau. Some of his insights are particularly important because they represent “firsts” for a women’s college in the region. Brenau innovated when it came to intercollegiate athletics, student governance, and curriculum development, among other things.

The GHRAC commended Dr. Wilson for his expert use of literally hundreds of painstakingly researched primary sources (such as letters, documents, photographs, yearbooks, student newspapers, student handbooks, etc.) in producing such a well-written and detailed history.

Dr. Wilson is currently working on his second book, which will be a comparative examination of desegregation at two southern women’s colleges. He is conducting his research this semester aided by a UNG Presidential Scholar Award.