The Key to the Door frames and highlights the stories of some of the first black students of the University of Virginia. This inspiring account of resilience and transformation offers a diversity of experiences and perspectives through firstperson narratives of black students during the University of Virginia’s era of incremental desegregation. The authors detail what life was like before enrolling, during their time at the University, and after graduation. In addition to these first-person accounts, the volume includes a historical overview of African Americans at the University of Virginia—from its first slaves and free black employees, through its first black applicant, student admission, graduate, and faculty appointments, on to its progress and challenges in the twenty-first century. This contextualization, along with essays from graduates of the schools of law, medicine, engineering, and education, combine to create a candid and long-overdue account of African American experiences in the University’s history.