Governor Dewey Bartlett appointed Herman E. Duncan to the Board of Regents for Oklahoma A&M Colleges in August of 1967. Duncan, the first Afro-American to serve as the board, was elected chairman in 1970.

A 1954 graduate of Langston University, Duncan served as principal of Oktaha Public Schools for 20 years  and had a long and distinguished career that included Dunbar Schools and Sadler Junior High School. He was an active member of education associations at every level.