Savanna Marie Clark, born to Helen and Charles Vaughn on March 10, 1927, is a long-time philanthropist and active alumni of Prairie View A&M University. Clark grew up in Hutchinson, Kansas, the oldest of seven children: four girls and three boys. She was inspired to attend Prairie View by her grandmother, who attended the university and insisted she do the same, and her cousin, who taught in the music department at Prairie View. She graduated from Prairie View in 1949 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Physical Education. In the same year, she married L. Quincy Jackson, who taught Architecture at Prairie View. She went on to attend the University of Oklahoma where she received her Master’s of Education also in Physical Education. Clark’s teaching career spanned 38 years and included institutions such as Southern University Baton Rouge, Langston University, North Carolina Central College, Durham, and the University of the District of Columbia.
After settling in Washington DC in 1969, Clark became a long-time philanthropist. This was a sentiment shared by her second husband of thirty-three years, Charles Warfield Clark, a successful urologist and an avid supporter of the arts. Clark frequently donates to several organizations including: The YWCA, the Washington Ballet, the National Symphony Orchestra, and the National Museum of Women in the Arts among others. She also maintains lifetime membership in the National Urban League and is one of the League’s oldest living members.
Clark served as secretary of the Prairie View A&M University National Alumni Association from 1985 to 1991. When looking back on her full life of 90 years, Mrs. Clark states, “I’ve helped a lot of people. I’ve had a wonderful life. I’m thankful God has given me a long life. I didn’t do any of it by myself.”