Juneteenth vibes flow on UTA campus
At the heart of The University of Texas at Arlington’s campus, Andrew Billings, Kynnedi Hughs and Adrianna Williamson—student leaders for UT Arlington’s Black Student Association—joined the Maverick community for the annual celebration of Juneteenth.
“I love representing Black Student Association during events like this,” Hughs said. “I love seeing everyone from all over campus come together.”
Juneteenth—combination of “June” and “nineteenth”—has been a day of celebration for more than 150 years. It commemorates June 19, 1865, when news of the federal order ending slavery in the United States reached enslaved people in Galveston, Texas—more than two months after the end of the Civil War and more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation in January 1863.
This year marked the sixth time UTA has hosted a Juneteenth celebration. Attendees enjoyed food, music and opportunities to learn more about the holiday’s history through commemorative performances of dance and spoken word.
For Courtney Jackson, her favorite part of Juneteenth is the sense of community and camaraderie when people from different walks of life come together to learn and celebrate.
“I’ve been celebrating Juneteenth since I was a kid—I’ve always known what Juneteenth meant and what it represented,” said Jackson, an academic advisor in UTA’s Department of Kinesiology. “It’s very special to me now because every year I go to the Levitt Pavilion with my sorority and serve at the Juneteenth celebration there. We’ve had opportunities to hear from Ms. Opal Lee herself and also play a part in helping educate and spread more awareness of what Juneteenth is,” said Jackson.
In 2021, Juneteenth was officially recognized as a federal holiday, thanks in part to the decades-long advocacy of activist Opal Lee, a Fort Worth resident. Lee and her work will be honored at the National Juneteenth Museum set to open in Fort Worth’s historic Southside neighborhood in 2028.
When it opens, it will be the only one in the country specifically built to honor the legacy of Juneteenth.
Related: UTA alumni lead National Juneteenth Museum project
“We’re celebrating freedom today and that’s why I like celebrating Juneteenth,” Billings said. “Juneteenth is something bigger than just myself, so it also plays a role in why I like being here.
Verb Kulture, who operates an entertainment company that provides a platform for artists, was one of the day’s featured guests. She said it was an honor to be on UTA’s campus and help share the culture, history and art that stem from Juneteenth.
“I’m always in front of a different group of people, and for me, every opportunity I have to share this rich history and culture—it’s a different experience every time,” Kulture said. “It’s different energy, but we’re able to reach more and more people every day.”
About The University of Texas at Arlington (UTA)
Celebrating its 130th anniversary in 2025, The University of Texas at Arlington is a growing public research university in the heart of the thriving Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex. With a student body of over 41,000, UTA is the second-largest institution in the University of Texas System, offering more than 180 undergraduate and graduate degree programs. Recognized as a Carnegie R-1 university, UTA stands among the nation’s top 5% of institutions for research activity. UTA and its 280,000 alumni generate an annual economic impact of $28.8 billion for the state. The University has received the Innovation and Economic Prosperity designation from the Association of Public and Land Grant Universities and has earned recognition for its focus on student access and success, considered key drivers to economic growth and social progress for North Texas and beyond.