Nanina Alba, born in Montgomery, Alabama, received her early education at the Haines Institute in Augusta, Georgia. Her father, the Reverend I.C. Champney, a Presbyterian minister, exposed her at an early age to the doctrine and principles of the church. Nannie Williemenia Champney (who later blended Nannie and Williemenia to Nanina) was an avid reader of European and American writers and turned frequently to the poets for relaxation and meditation. She began writing poetry at the age of nine; her earliest published poem, "My Muvver's Pies," was written in 1926 when she was eleven.

Upon her graduation from Knoxville College with a B.A. in 1935, Alba accepted a teaching position at Alcorn State College. There she met Reuben Andres Alba, whom she married on 27 November 1937. Their union produced two daughters, Panchita and Andrea, and Alba's devotion to her career was surpassed only by her devotion to her family...