Please join faculty, staff and administrators on Friday, March 4 at 11:00 a.m. as Prairie View A&M University honors the legacy of Dr. Alfred N. Poindexter. Dr. Poindexter spent more than five decades teaching in the College of Agriculture and Human Sciences and was a staple in the Waller County area. The Veterinary Hospital will be dedicated to Dr. Poindexter and the building will be officially christened the Alfred. N. Poindexter Veterinary Hospital.
Alfred N. Poindexter was born on July 22, 1921, in Kansas City, Mo., to Alfred Nelson Poindexter Sr. and Willa Williams Poindexter. He attended Kansas State Teachers College in Pittsburg, Kansas, for two years and in 1945 received his doctor of veterinary medicine (DVM) from Kansas State University in Manhattan – where he was the only African-American in his class. While earning his DVM, Poindexter proudly served in the Army Specialized Training Program during World War II.
After graduation, Dr. Poindexter joined the staff at Prairie View University (now Prairie View A&M University/PVAMU) and began a career as a professor and veterinarian. During his tenure, Dr. Poindexter taught classes in physiology and anatomy, diseases and sanitation, animal breeding and reproductive physiology, and animal health.
In 1947, Dr. Poindexter was one of the first two African-Americans accepted into the Texas Veterinary Medical Association. Through his career, he received numerous accolades for his notable achievements in teaching, research and service. In 1992, Dr. Poindexter was chosen by the Texas Commissioner of Agriculture as one of four most outstanding black agriculturalists in Texas.
By 1996, Dr. Poindexter received the George Washington Carver Award for Public Service from Tuskegee University. That same year, he was inducted into the Texas State Fair’s Texas Heritage Hall of Honor.
Dr. Poindexter made an indelible mark in the community. Poindexter retired after an astounding 59-years of service to the university. His easygoing manner and famed storytelling abilities will forever be remembered. Generations of students gained scientific knowledge from his classes and earned lessons in humanity from his example.