Sumner was born in Arkansas in 1895. As a teenager without a high school education, he was able to pass an entrance exam to Lincoln University and graduate magna cum laude with honors. He later enrolled at Clark University to pursue a bachelor of arts in English in 1916. After graduation he returned to Lincoln as a graduate student and was mentored by Stanley Hall. Although he was approved as a PhD candidate, he could not begin his doctoral dissertation because he was drafted into the army during World War I. Upon returning from the war, he reenrolled in the doctoral program at Clark and in 1920 his dissertation titled "Psychoanalysis of Freud and Adler" was accepted. Sumner became a professor at various universities and managed to publish several articles despite the refusal of research agencies to provide funding for him because of his color. He was interested in understanding racial bias and supporting educational justice. Sumner is also credited as one of the founders of the psychology department at Howard University, which he chaired from 1928 until his death in 1954.Reference Thomas, R. (2006). "Sumner, Francis Cecil." African American National Biography, edited by Henry Louis Gates Jr, edited by Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham. Oxford African American Studies Center.