Dudley Randall was already a poet and publisher of the Broadside Press when he came to University of Detroit in 1969 to work as a librarian. He was honored thereafter as our Poet in Residence. Graduates from this period of the early 1970s remember his support of student poets and of his special kindness to the growing group of African American students on campus. When the English Department further honored Mr. Randall by establishing a poetry competition in his name, he graciously agreed to be the final judge for the entries. Thus, for over thirty years, until his death in 2001, faculty members in the English Department screened up to thirty student entries every winter, and delivered the finalists to the poet for his judgment of first, second, and third prize poems. Dudley Randall, not surprisingly, the poet was drawn to well-crafted poems with vivid images, as you will find as you read our archive.
For assistance with this collection, please contact the the University Archivist, Mara Powell at 313-993-1950 or the library reference desk at 313-993-1071. You may also email the reference desk for assistance at edesk@udmercy.edu.