Marvis LaVerne Kneeland-Jones, One of the Memphis State Eight, Believed in Education

Marvis LaVerne Kneeland-Jones

Academic achievement was “foundational” and a “focus” in the Jones household, according to Dorothy D. Jones, the youngest of Marvis LaVerne Kneeland-Jones’s four children.

“She really led the charge with all of her kids,” Jones said.

Kneeland-Jones was an influential educator, musician, businesswoman, civil rights activist, and, most notably, a member of the Memphis State Eight that included Eleanor Gandy, Rose Blakney-Love, Sammie Burnett Johnson, Luther McClellan, Ralph Prater, John Simpson, and Bertha Rogers Looney.

Kneeland-Jones and her colleagues drew national attention in the fall of 1959 when they were the first Black students to integrate Memphis State University, now the University of Memphis.

Kneeland-Jones died March 13 at her home in Memphis. She was 81. Bertha Rogers Looney, Luther McClellan and Ralph Prater are the only surviving members.

Jones said those days on campus were “tough times” for her mother, who never tried to suppress those painful memories or keep her children from learning what she and the others endured in their pursuit of a college education.

They were vilified, harassed, and ostracized, even after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 1954 that separate education was “inherently unequal.”

“It was an emotional toll on her,” said Jones, remembering what her mother had told her. “A lot of those memories resurfaced, and she started talking about how it was very hard during that time.”

As daunting as it was battling discrimination, Kneeland-Jones was determined to succeed despite the obstacles. She went on to earn a Bachelor of Science degree from the university in elementary education and a Master of Science degree in education as well.

After years of study, Kneeland-Jones began teaching in Memphis City Schools and inspired hundreds of children to succeed. She taught school for 25 years and capped off a career in teaching that began in earnest and never waned.

“The same effort and tenacity she dealt with education, with her students, she did the same thing with her children,” Jones said. “She made sure that each of us had individualized and customized learning opportunities based on each child’s needs.”  

Jones said she and her siblings – Dr. Gladys A. Jones, Rufus E. Jones Jr., and Dr. Ida L. Jones Pittman – were educated in public, private, and boarding schools – or a combination thereof. And each one graduated college. 

“She set the example for us aspiring to get advanced-level degrees as well,” Jones said.

Music also was “critically important” in the Jones household, Jones said. Her mother, she pointed out, was a classical pianist and played for Washington Chapel CME Church. 

“We all played instruments,” she said.

Kneeland-Jones shared parenting responsibilities with her husband of 57 years, Tennessee’s state Rep. Rufus E. Jones Sr., a statesman, sales tax auditor, lobbyist, and trailblazing entrepreneur, who held the legislative position for 16 years. 

Kneeland-Jones met her husband on a blind date. Sammy Burnett Johnson, a member of the Memphis State Eight, had arranged the date, Jones said. He “introduced my mom to my dad.”

Rufus E. Jones Sr, then a promising entrepreneur, was finishing up at Michigan State University at the time, Jones said, adding, “So they started their courtship after that.” 

He died in 2019. In addition to his political quick wit, he was an advocate for economic development and the reputed proprietor of Jones Big Star #102 grocery store, one of his notable entrepreneurial endeavors. 

Kneeland-Jones was a powerhouse in her own right as an education advocate, organizer of voting registration drives, and worked with charitable and civic organizations. She also operated her own business and supported her husband’s endeavors, including his political campaigns.

She was a charter member of the Shelby County (TN) Chapter of the LINKS, Incorporated, The Friends of the Memphis and Shelby County Libraries, Washington Chapel C.M.E. Church, and the National, Tennessee, and Memphis Education Associations.

In 2000, the University of Memphis established the Memphis State Eight Best Paper Prize for the best historical paper on the African American experience in honor of the Memphis State Eight.

And in 2006, Shirley Raines, then-president of the U of M, invited the Memphis State Eight back to the campus to pay tribute to the eight trailblazers with a former dinner and reception. 

A historical marker was placed outside the U of M’s Administration Building in 2012. Seven of the eight former students were present for the presentation, including Kneeland-Jones.

She also was among five of the eight trailblazers in 2019 to celebrate the 60^th anniversary of that day when they courageously broke the color barrier and stepped into the annals of history.

Memorial services for Kneeland-Jones were held March 21 at Mt. Olive Cathedral C.M.E. Church. 

Rufus E. Jones Sr. was an accomplished businessman and legislator

Rufus E. Jones Sr. (left), his wife LaVerne Jones, former U.S. Rep. Harold Ford
Sr., and Mr. Jones' mother and father, Ida Mae Crawford Jones and S.L. Jones, pose
for a snapshot inside Jones Big Star on McLemore. (Courtesy photo)

Rufus E. Jones Sr. was a relatively quiet man, but his contributions to economic development in Memphis and as a legislator in the Tennessee General Assembly spoke volumes about his life and legacy.

That was the sentiment of family, friends and colleagues who paid homage to Mr. Jones when he was eulogized on Oct. 26 at Mt. Olive Cathedral C.M.E. Church. There was an intermittent downpour that day, but not enough to deter the mourners.

Mr. Jones’ sendoff was just that important that Markhum “Mark” L. Stansbury Sr. had to be there. He knew the legislator before he was elected to the Tennessee General Assembly from District 86.

He’s also known his wife, Marvis LaVerne Jones, a member of the “Memphis State 8,” the first black students to integrate the college.

“Even though I was close to his age, he would encourage and help a lot of people,” said Stansbury, a longtime WDIA Radio personality and one of several people Mr. Jones personally helped.

Rufus E. Jones Sr.

He credits Mr. Jones, the late Speaker Pro Tempore Lois DeBerry, and former U.S. Rep. Harold Ford Sr. for encouraging then-Tennessee Gov. Ned McWherter to hire him as his special assistant.

 “What stands out to me about Rufus Jones is his personal integrity, character and economic achievements,” said State Rep. GA Hardaway, chairman of the Legislative Black Caucus.

“He understood that education and economics allow you to take full advantage of the American dream,” said Hardaway, who represents District 93.

Mr. Jones advocated for African-American entrepreneurship and education, and convened “leadership to establish laws and regulations around economic development policy.”

He also was a registered lobbyist for more than 20 years.

Mr. Jones served 15 years in the House from 1981 to 1996. But he was more than just an accomplished legislator. His daughter, Dorothy D. Jones, remembers her father as a pioneering entrepreneur who served his community and loved his family.

“My family were pioneers in the early years. My father was very proud of that,” said Jones, who spoke fondly about her father and grandfather ahead of Mr. Jones’ funeral.

Her grandfather opened S.L. Jones Supermarket in the Boxtown community in 1938. After Mr. Jones graduated from Michigan State University in 1961, he took a job as a sales tax auditor for the Tennessee Department of Revenue.

He was the first African American to hold the position before following his father’s footsteps in the retail business.

After S.L. Jones expanded the Boxtown store several times, Mr. Jones and his father formed a partnership and opened a second store, Nite N Day, in the Walker Homes community in 1967. The father and son were considered one of the first multi-store supermarket owners in Tennessee.  

A third store in Midtown was opened in 1968, Jones Big Star #102. This was a franchised store. Mr. Jones later severed ties with Big Star and changed the name to Jones Supermarket.

“He fed a lot of families from our business and provided jobs,” said Jones, who started working at the store in elementary school with her three siblings alongside the store’s employees. They were paid a fair wage as well.

“Generosity is the thing that captured the man,” said Jones, putting into context her father’s work and what defined him as a public servant and pillar in the community. A good education, she was taught, is a springboard to success.

“He gave his children the best education,” Jones said, in addition to her father instilling in his children good work ethics, honesty, timeliness, excellence and service. “[And] we traveled internationally to give us a broad perspective.”

Mr. Jones’ contemporaries applauded his perspective on economics, education and as a lawmaker. They included former state senators John Ford and Roscoe Dixon, State Reps. Joe Towns Jr. (District 84) and Larry J. Miller (District 88), and U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen.

Miller said Mr. Jones was well respected in the Black Caucus and the Republican Caucus. In fact, Mr. Jones had served as chairman of the Tennessee Black Caucus of State Legislators.

“He was able to work behind the scene in a quiet way, but at the end of the day he got things accomplished,” Miller said. “He was a visionary.”

  Jones said her father was a simple man. “My dad never sought the spotlight. But when he was in it, he shined. He beamed.”

She said her father grappled with lymphoma for 19 years. He died Oct. 20 surrounded by his family. He was 79.