Alfred Quinn, 80, the first African American teacher in the Santa Monica school district in 1951, died Feb. 26 of complications from diabetes.
Born in Omaha, Quinn moved to Santa Monica at age 13 when his father was appointed a founding minister of the First African Methodist Episcopal Church. In 1943, he married Sylvia “Dottie” Pierce. The couple settled in Malibu and had one daughter, Jill Rene. Tragically, at 14, she ran away from home and was found shot to death in a Malibu canyon several weeks later, prompting the grieving couple to move away to Santa Monica. The case was never solved.
After serving in the Air Force, Quinn earned a doctorate degree in sociology at UCLA. He was on the faculty of Santa Monica College for 24 years, serving as dean of student services for six years and affirmative action officer for another six years. He left the college in 1988 but was elected a trustee two years later, campaigning on one platform-diversity.
In addition to teaching, Quinn served as Santa Monica’s commissioner of Parks and Recreation and commissioner of housing, when he was presented a community service award by the League of United Latin American Citizens.
Quinn is survived by his wife and three sisters. Services took place Friday in Santa Monica.