VERTIE LEE CARTER,
daughter of the late Thomas and Daisy James Glasgow, was born in Antioch, near Hope, Ark., on October 19, 1923.
Her Christian journey began when she joined Antioch Baptist Church on the third Sunday of January in 1936. She served as Sunday School teacher and Secretary of the Baptist Young People’s Union (BYPU) until 1942, when she joined Barraque Street Missionary Baptist Church in Pine Bluff. After moving to Little Rock, she united with Mt. Zion Baptist Church in 1964, engaging in the Christian Board of Education, the Lockhart Bronson Circle, United Adult Sunday School Class, and the Maids and Matron’s Club. In 1981, she united with the St. John Missionary Baptist Church where she was an active member until her journey ended.
Dr. Carter spent a great portion of her life in pursuit of education and wisdom. Her educational accolades include: Antioch Elementary School; honor graduate of Yerger High School, Hope, Ark.; Arkansas Agricultural, Mechanical, and Normal (AM&N) College, now University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (Bachelor of Science Degree, 1949); University of Arkansas (Master of Science Degree, 1954); Oklahoma State University; Kansas State University; Lewis Business College (Detroit); Stanford University; University of Minnesota; North Texas State University-Denton, now the University of North Texas (Doctor of Education Degree, 1970); and Arkansas Baptist College (L.L.D. Degree, 1992).
After beginning her teaching career in public schools, Dr. Carter served Arkansas Baptist College and Philander Smith College in various notable roles: Professor of Education, Dean of Instruction; Director of Adult Education, Director of Student Teaching and Chairman of the Education Division. She successfully established Teacher Education Laboratories at both colleges, chaired North Central Association and National Council of Teachers of English (NCATE) Committees at the college level, and served on North Central Association Committees in public schools. She authored several books, including, “The Key to Reading: The Teacher,” in Arkansas Teacher Association Bulletin (1957), How to Get a Career Job (1978), and Arkansas Baptist College: A Historical Perspective, 1884–1982 (1982).
Dr. Carter commanded respect of her peers and students and was the recipient of numerous honors and awards. Included were: Who’s Who in Community Service; Outstanding Educators of America; Two Thousand Women of Achievement, Horizons: One Hundred Women of Achievement by the Arkansas Press; Who’s Who in Distinguished America; Who’s Who in America; Who’s Who in the South; Who’s Who in the Southwest; Distinguished Black Americans; Alpha Chi National Honor Society; Phi Delta Kappa Fraternity; and many more.
Her civic and work experiences were many and varied. Den Mother for Cub Scouts for many years; volunteer for Easter Seals, United Way, Heart Fund, Muscular Dystrophy, and for numerous other organizations; inducted into the Order of the Eastern Star, Electra Chapter Number 5 during the early 1950s in Pine Bluff, Arkansas; former member of the Urban League Board; served on the National Advisory Board for Affirmative Action for thirteen states and the Canal Zone; board member and officer for Volunteers in Public Schools (VIPS); secretary for AAUP; assistant secretary, Pine Bluff Chapter, A. M. & N. Alumni; second Vice President, International Personnel Management Association (IPMA); served on several local, state, and national boards. Awards include IBM, Ford Foundation and Southern Education Foundation. She was a golden life member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.
Dr. Carter’s most treasured achievements:
1969-Chosen by Governor Winthrop Rockefeller, she was the first African American, the first educator, and the first woman appointed to the Arkansas Merit System Council. She received additional appointments to the council by Governors Dale Bumpers and David Pryor, and served as chairman of the Merit System Council for seven of her nineyear tenure.
2008-AM&N/U.A.P.B. National Alumni Hall of Fame.
2014-Arkansas Black Hall of Fame: education
1959-Miss Alumni, Arkansas AM&N College.
Dr. Carter visited all 50 of the United States, the Virgin Islands, Mexico, Canada, Nassau (Bahamas), and seven countries in Europe.
Dr. Carter was proud of her professional achievements; however, they don’t compare to the pride she had for her personal accomplishments. Dr. Carter met and married the late Isaiah Carter. To their union, they had two sons, Michael and Larry. Dr. Carter continued to play a supporting role in the lives of her relatives throughout her life. She continued to travel for weddings, birthdays, baby showers, graduations, funerals, and other family and friend occasions. Her desire to stay connected with family and friends never waned.
Dr. Carter was preceded in death by her husband, Isaiah Carter; her son, Michael Carter; one sister, Mrs. Marie Phillips of Hope, Ark.; and her brother, James Glasgow of Fresno, Calif.
She is survived by one son, Larry Carter, Sr. of Little Rock, Ark.; one sister, Mrs. Cleo Walker of Texarkana, Texas; three grandchildren: Larry D. Carter, Jr., Felicia Jeanette Carter, and Robert (Karen) Carter, all of Little Rock, AR; three nieces, Patricia Meadows (Cardell) of Pine Bluff, Ark.; Sheilah Walker and Sonja Kyle (Rodney), all of Arlington, Texas; five nephews: Charles Walker, Vincent Walker, and Joel Walker (Dorothy), all of Texarkana, Texas, and Paul Walker of Mesquite, Texas; goddaughters, Diane Butterfield of Jacksonville, Fla., and Betty Arnold (Percy) of Jacksonville, Ark.; two godsons, Herman Jones of Little Rock and Robert L. Kimble of Dallas, Texas; four great-grandchildren; other relatives and cherished friends.
Dr. Vertie Lee Glasgow Carter’s legacy and the lives she impacted will be remembered for generations to come.
A walk-through visitation will be Thursday, March 31, 2022, 12-6 p.m., Ruffin & Jarrett Funeral Home, 1200 Chester Street, Little Rock, Ark. Masks are required and social distancing is observed. The Home-going Service will be Friday, April 1, 2022, 11 a.m., St. John Missionary Baptist Church, 2501 Main Street, Little Rock, Ark. Interment will follow at Arkansas State Veterans’ Cemetery, North Little Rock.