Baltimore native Elmo Douglass graduated from Johns Hopkins in 1954 with a degree in civil engineering. After graduation, Douglass joined the Army Corps, and later had a long career in highway and transit engineering for the California Department of Transportation. In this history, Douglass recounts his time at Hopkins as one of the first African-American undergraduates in the school of engineering. This oral history is part of the Hopkins Retrospective oral histories series.

Sidney Offit was born in 1928 in Baltimore, Maryland. He graduated from Johns Hopkins with a B.A. in English literature in 1950 and went on to have a robust and successful career as an author. He is best known for his work as a children's author, including works such as The Adventures of Homer Fink and Soupbone. He is also known for his work on televised debates with Martin Abend on WNEW-TV. In this history, Offit discusses his time at Hopkins as well as his writing. This oral history is a part of the Mame Warren oral histories series.

Donald Perry, a 1961 graduate of Johns Hopkins University, talks about his life, career, and his experience as one of the few African-American undergraduate students at Hopkins.