Ruth Simmons
Birth Name: Ruth Geary Stubblefield
Place of Birth: Grapeland, Houston, Texas, United States
Date of Birth: July 3, 1945
Ethnicity: African-American [including Gabonese], some Indigenous American [likely Taíno or Carib tribes]
Ruth Simmons is an American professor and an academic administrator. She has been President of Smith College, from 1995 to 2001, President of Brown University, from October 14, 2001 to June 30, 2012, and President of Prairie View A&M University, from July 1, 2017 to February 28, 2023. She is the first black president of an Ivy League Institution (Brown), and the first female president of Brown.
Ruth is the daughter of Fanny (Campbell) and Isaac Stubblefield, a sharecropper. Her family moved to Houston during her school years. A DNA test taken on the show Finding Your Roots with Henry Louis Gates, Jr. (2012) identified some of Ruth’s genetic ancestry as Indigenous, most likely from the Taíno or Carib tribes. Her brother’s DNA test showed African ancestry from Gabon, from the Benza and Kota people.
Ruth is married to Norbert Alonzo Simmons, with whom she has two children.
Ruth’s paternal grandfather was Wesley Stubblefield (the son of John Stubblefield and Louisa Smith). Wesley was born in Texas.
Ruth’s paternal grandmother was Flossie Beasley (the daughter of Peter Beasley and Lucinda Potts). Flossie was born in Texas.
Ruth’s paternal grandfather was Wesley Stubblefield (the son of John Stubblefield and Louisa Smith). Wesley was born in Texas.
Ruth’s paternal grandmother was Flossie Beasley (the daughter of Peter Beasley and Lucinda Potts). Flossie was born in Texas.