posted: March 24, 2004.

Terrence Roberts, one of the "Little Rock Nine," will mark the 50th anniversary of the Supreme Court decision of "Brown vs. Board of Education" during Saturday morning's session. Widely recognized as one of the most historic decisions in Supreme Court history, Brown vs. Board of Education established that public education could not be racially segregated.

Roberts, now a clinical psychologist in Pasadena, Calif., and co-chairman of the graduate psychology program at Antioch University, was a 15-year-old junior when he joined eight other students at the formerly all-white Central High in Little Rock.

On Sept. 4, 1957, the "Little Rock Nine" were turned away from the school by the Arkansas National Guard at the direction of Gov. Orval Faubus. Nearly three weeks later, the group made it inside before a raucous crowd outside became unruly, prompting all nine to evacuate. Then on Sept. 25, the students were escorted to school by the U.S. Army's 101st Airborne Division under orders from President Eisenhower.

The battle for desegregation was far from over, but eight of the Little Rock Nine, including Roberts, successfully completed the 1957-58 school year.

Roberts finished his senior year of high school in Los Angeles. He earned a bachelor's degree in sociology from California State University in 1967, a master's degree in social welfare from UCLA in 1970, and a doctorate in psychology from Southern Illinois University in 1976. In 1998, Roberts was awarded a Congressional gold medal for his contributions in civil rights. Since then, he also has been the official desegregation consultant for the Little Rock school district. He provides similar services to school districts around the nation.