The Simon Green Atkins Gala is an annual event created by the WSSU Foundation to celebrate distinguished faculty, staff, alumni, and community partners and to raise scholarship dollars for the Foundation’s endowed student scholarship program. The gala is named after the Founder of Winston-Salem State University, Simon G. Atkins. Winston-Salem State University was founded as the Slater Industrial Academy by Mr. Atkins on September 28, 1892. Atkins had an audacious vision to create an institution where every student would meet the challenges of the day equipped with an education designed to intellectually prepare the “head, hand, and heart.” Twenty-five students attended classes in a one-room frame structure and were taught by a single instructor. For over 71 years, Mr. Atkins dedicated his life to improving the lives of African Americans in North Carolina and specifically his beloved Winston-Salem by improving the health, housing, and economic status of the African American Community.