Peggy graduated Portland State in 1959 with a degree in education. She had majored in music for two years singing soprano, however her parents urged her to get a teaching degree as “something to fall back on.” That had a lot to do with social conditions; it was only a year before she graduated that the first African American woman, Gloria Davy, sang at the Metropolitan Opera. During her time at Portland State, Peggy was the only African American in the music department.
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