NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) – Dr. Harold Jordan, a trailblazer in the medical community, will be laid to rest this week. He died December 26, 2024, at the age of 84. His daughter, Karen Jordan, says he was a man with a calling on his life.
“It was very important to him to help others. In fact, he told me a few months ago that he was born to help people,” Jordan said.
Karen says her father was a man of many talents, but he was a family man first.
“He taught us to always do our best when we were growing up. Our parents never drilled into us. They never said you have to make A’s in school, they said, ‘You have to do your best.’”
Dr. Jordan was a third-generation graduate of Meharry Medical College.
“I’m very proud of that legacy, extremely proud because I have my dad and my ancestors who committed their lives to helping people, especially people in the black community,” she said.
He would then go on to become the first black resident at Vanderbilt University in 1964.
“He was determined to be successful. He knew that eyes were on him as a test case, and he wanted to make sure that he represented well,” said Karen Jordan.
Dr. Jordan served as Tennessee’s first black commissioner of mental health. He also chaired the department of psychiatry at Meharry for 18 years, and there’s an annual lecture in his honor at Vanderbilt.
“He never saw himself as a big deal in any way. My father just was clothed in humility.”
Among his accolades, a building named after him in Nashville, The Harold Jordan Habilitation Center.
“He was very excited about the building, but also very modest about it,” Jordan said.
Dr. Jordan told WSMV4 this in 2010 about the recognition, “Always wonder if you deserve honors like that, but I’ll accept it.”
“My grandmother loved to brag about it. She made a whole scrapbook of the Harold Jordan center, that she kept in her living room. My dad never bragged about it at all or bragged about anything that he did,” Karen Jordan said.
Now, she’s on a journey to keep Dr. Jordan’s legacy alive.
“I want to let future generations know about this man who existed to help hopefully make their lives better, especially the lives of other black and minority physicians, to make their paths easier.”
Karen says she’s working on a book about her dad and she’s looking to produce a full-length documentary about his life and commitment to help others.
Doctor Jordan will be laid to rest Saturday, January 25 with funeral services happening at Clark Memorial United Methodist Church.
The family released this statement about a scholarship fund:
“In lieu of flowers, the Jordan family has asked that those wishing to honor Dr. Harold Jordan’s memory, please donate to The Dr. Harold W. and Geraldine C. Jordan Scholarship Fund at Meharry Medical College. Your contribution will help continue his legacy of supporting education and health care.”
You can click here to donate.
Statement from Meharry Medical College
“With deep respect and sorrow, Meharry Medical College honors Dr. Harold Jordan, an alumnus who embodied our highest ideals and left a lasting impact on medicine. As the first Black resident at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Dr. Jordan shattered barriers, paving the way for future generations.
At Meharry, Dr. Jordan led with vision and compassion, chairing the Department of Psychiatry for 18 years and mentoring countless students. He also served as acting dean of the School of Medicine, inspiring excellence and equity in every role. Among his many accolades, Dr. Jordan received Meharry’s President’s Award and the Humanism in Clinical Medicine Award, reflecting his profound dedication to patient care and medical education.
Dr. Jordan’s legacy extends beyond titles—it lives in the students he mentored, the patients he served and the barriers he broke. We offer our deepest condolences to his family and all who were touched by his life. May his memory inspire us to lead with humanity, foster equity and serve with purpose.”
Statement from Vanderbilt University Medical Center
“On behalf of the Vanderbilt University Medical Center Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, it is with great humility and sadness that we announce the passing of Harold Jordan, MD. Dr. Jordan was a beacon of hope and light who blazed trails at Vanderbilt University Medical Center as he became its first African American resident in 1964. Dr. Harold Jordan is a giant in the history of our department who served as a champion of diversity and inclusion. Each year our department recognizes his life and legacy with the Dr. Harold Jordan lecture series—given by esteemed academic champions of diversity and inclusion and the Dr. Harold Jordan award, which is awarded to a physician trainee who contributes to the department’s diversity and inclusion mission. The Vanderbilt University Medical Center Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences extends its deepest condolences to the entire family of Dr. Jordan. May the legacy of Dr. Harold Jordan continue to live on.”
-Melissa Hall, MD, FAPA, Director of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Social Justice, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
Copyright 2025 WSMV. All rights reserved.
