W. E. B. Du Bois - Atlanta University

Atlanta University

In July 1897, Du Bois left Philadelphia and took a professorship in history and economics at the historically black Atlanta University. His first major academic accomplishment was the 1899 publication of The Philadelphia Negro, a detailed and comprehensive sociological study of the African-American people of Philadelphia, based on the field work he did in 1896–1897. The work was a breakthrough in scholarship, because it was the first scientific sociological study in the U.S., and the first scientific study of African Americans. In the study, Du Bois coined the phrase "the submerged tenth" to describe the black underclass, anticipating the "talented tenth" term he would popularize in 1903 to describe society's elite class. Du Bois's terminology reflected his opinion that the elite of a nation, black and white, was the critical portion of society that was responsible for culture and progress. Du Bois's writings of this era were often dismissive of the underclass, employing characterizations such as "lazy" or "unreliable", but he – in contrast to other scholars – attributed many societal problems to the ravages of slavery.

Du Bois's output at Atlanta University was prodigious, in spite of a limited budget: He produced numerous social science papers and annually hosted the Atlanta Conference of Negro Problems. Du Bois also received grants from the U.S. government to prepare reports about African-American workforce and culture. His students considered him to be a brilliant, but aloof and strict, teacher.