Johnson C. Smith University (JCSU) is a
private
Private or privates may refer to:
Music
* " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation''
* Private (band), a Denmark-based band
* "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...
historically black university
Historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are institutions of higher education in the United States that were established before the Civil Rights Act of 1964 with the intention of primarily serving the African-American community. Mo ...
in
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...
. It is affiliated with the
Presbyterian Church (USA)
The Presbyterian Church (USA), abbreviated PC(USA), is a mainline Protestant denomination in the United States. It is the largest Presbyterian denomination in the US, and known for its liberal stance on doctrine and its ordaining of women and ...
and accredited by the
Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS). The university awards
Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years.
The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...
,
Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...
,
Bachelor of Social Work
A bachelor is a man who is not and has never been married.Bachelors are, in Pitt & al.'s phrasing, "men who live independently, outside of their parents' home and other institutional settings, who are neither married nor cohabitating". ().
Etymo ...
, and
Master of Social Work
The Master of Social Work (MSW) is a master's degree in the field of social work. It is a professional degree with specializations compared to Bachelor of Social Work (BSW). MSW promotes macro-, mezzo- and micro-aspects of professional social wor ...
degrees.
History
![Johnson C](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/46/Johnson_C._Smith_University%2C_Charlotte%2C_N.C.jpg)
Johnson C. Smith University was established on April 7, 1867, as the Biddle Memorial Institute at a meeting of the Catawba Presbytery in the old Charlotte Presbyterian Church.
Mary D. Biddle, a churchwoman, donated $1,400 to the school. In appreciation of this first contribution, friends requested that Mrs. Biddle name the newly established school; she did so in the name of her late husband, Captain Henry Jonathan Biddle, who had been mortally wounded during the
Battle of Glendale
The Battle of Glendale, also known as the Battle of Frayser's Farm, Frazier's Farm, Nelson's Farm, Charles City Crossroads, New Market Road, or Riddell's Shop, took place on June 30, 1862, in Henrico County, Virginia, on the sixth day of the Se ...
in 1862. Samuel C. Alexander and Willis L. Miller saw the need for a school in the south, and after the birth of the school they were elected as some of the first teachers. Its corresponding
women's school was ''
Scotia Seminary
Scotia is a Latin language, Latin placename derived from ''Scoti'', a Latin name for the Gaels, first attested in the late 3rd century.Duffy, Seán. ''Medieval Ireland: An Encyclopedia''. Routledge, 2005. p.698 The Romans referred to Ireland as ...
'' (now
Barber-Scotia College).
In 1876, the charter was changed by the legislature of the State of North Carolina and the name became Biddle University, under which name the institution operated until 1923.
In 1891, Biddle University elected
Daniel J. Sanders as the first African-American as president of a four-year institution in the south.
![Biddle Memorial Hall](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/11/Biddle_Memorial_Hall.jpg)
From 1921 to 1922, Jane Berry Smith donated funds to build a theological dormitory, a science hall, a teachers' cottage, and a memorial gate. She also provided an endowment for the institution in memory of her late husband,
Johnson C. Smith. Up until her death, she donated funds for five more buildings and a campus church. In recognition of these generous benefactions, the Board of Trustees voted to change the name of the institution to Johnson C. Smith University. The charter of the school, accordingly, was amended on March 1, 1923, by the legislature of the State of North Carolina.
In 1924,
James B. Duke
James Buchanan Duke (December 23, 1856 – October 10, 1925) was an American tobacco and electric power industrialist best known for the introduction of modern cigarette manufacture and marketing, and his involvement with Duke Universit ...
established the
Duke Endowment
The Duke Endowment is a private foundation established in 1924 by industrialist and philanthropist James B. Duke. It supports selected programs of higher education, health care, children's welfare, and spiritual life in North Carolina and South C ...
. While the largest share of that the endowment's earnings are allocated to support
Duke University
Duke University is a private research university in Durham, North Carolina. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco and electric power industrialist James ...
, Duke's donation required that 4% of its earnings be given to the university. Over the years, this share of the Endowment's distributions has exceeded $90 million.
In 1932, the university's charter was amended, providing for the admission of women. The 65-year-old institution for men then became partially coeducational. The first residence hall for women, named in memory of
James B. Duke
James Buchanan Duke (December 23, 1856 – October 10, 1925) was an American tobacco and electric power industrialist best known for the introduction of modern cigarette manufacture and marketing, and his involvement with Duke Universit ...
, was dedicated in 1940. In 1941, women were admitted to the freshman class. In 1942, the university was a fully coeducational institution.
JCSU joined the
United Negro College Fund
UNCF, the United Negro College Fund, also known as the United Fund, is an American philanthropic organization that funds scholarships for black students and general scholarship funds for 37 private historically black colleges and universities. ...
in 1944 as a founding member. This fund was organized primarily to help church-related schools of higher learning to revamp their training programs, to expand their physical plants, to promote faculty growth and to create new areas of service.
Biddle Memorial Hall
Biddle Memorial Hall is a historic building located on the campus of Johnson C. Smith University in Charlotte, Mecklenburg County, North Carolina. It was built in 1883, and is a 3 1/2-story, five bay Romanesque style brick and stone building on a ...
is on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
.
Timeline
*1867: The Henry J. Biddle Memorial Institute was founded by the Reverends Samuel C. Alexander and Willis L. Miller. Mary D. Biddle, an excellent churchwoman of
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
, who, through appeals in one of the church papers, pledged $1,400 to the school. In appreciation of this first and generous contribution, friends requested that Biddle name the newly established school after her late husband, Major Henry Biddle.
*1867: The first class sessions were held in May in "Audience Chamber" of Seventh Street Presbyterian Church, then located in a section called "Log Town."
*1868: The permanent location for the school was established via the donation of of land from Colonel W. R. Myers.
*1869: Biddle Institute officially opens on the present site in September
*1869: The first president, the Reverend Stephen Mattoon was elected on October 9, 1869
*1871: The first class, made up of three students, graduated from the Seminary. Those students were B. F. McDowell, Calvin McCurdey, Eli Walker.
*1873: of land were purchased, extending the current site to .
*1876: Biddle Institute changes its name to Biddle University.
*1883: The Administration Building was erected. Additional land was acquired extending the site to .
*1884: The Reverend William A. Holliday is elected as the second president of the university.
*1885: The Reverend Stephen Mattoon returns to serve again, this time as interim president.
*1886: The Reverend William F. Johnson is elected as the third President of the university.
*1891: Dr.
Daniel J. Sanders is the first African-American elected as the president of the university.
*1892: Biddle University competes in the first intercollegiate football game between two historically Black colleges, winning against
Livingstone College
Livingstone College is a private, historically black Christian college in Salisbury, North Carolina. It is affiliated with the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church. Livingstone College is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Sout ...
.
*1894: Biddle University holds its Quatro-Centennial Celebration.
*1895: Carter Hall, the first substantial dormitory, was erected. The dormitory was named in after Miss Mary A. Carter of Geneva, NY in honor of the donation she provided for its construction.
*1895: “The Gold and Blue” are named the official school colors, making their debut on Easter.
*1896: Additional acreage was acquired, extending the size of the campus to .
*1905: The first student newspaper, The Argus, begins publication.
*1907: Dr. Henry Lawrence McCrorey is elected president upon the death of President Daniel J. Sanders.
*1911: Carnegie Library was erected with the aid of funding from the Carnegie Fund.
*1917: Biddle University celebrates its Fiftieth Anniversary.
*1917: of land are generously donated to the university, a donation from the daughters of the Reverend Stephen Mattoon. This donation increases the size of the campus to .
*1921: After the death of her husband,
Johnson C. Smith (Crayne) (August 20, 1919), Mrs. Jane Berry Smith is interested in identifying worthwhile causes to donate to that would be of the most benefit. She becomes interested in Biddle University through her association with Dr. McCrorey and begins her benefactions to the university.
*1921: The first Greek letter organization is established. The Rho chapter of
Omega Psi Phi
Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. () is a historically African-American fraternity. The fraternity was founded on November 17, 1911, by three Howard University juniors Edgar Amos Love, Oscar James Cooper and Frank Coleman, and their faculty advi ...
fraternity was chartered on November 7, 1921.
*1922: The Science Hall and Johnson C. Smith Theological Dormitory are erected.
*1923: Biddle University in renamed Johnson C. Smith University by the board of trustees and the Division of Missions for Colored people in honor of the concerns and contributions of Mrs. Jane Berry Smith. The Charter of the university was amended on March 1, 1923, to legalize the name change. To keep the memory of Major Henry J. Biddle alive, the Administration Building was renamed “Biddle Memorial Hall”.
*1923:
Alpha Phi Alpha
Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. () is the oldest intercollegiate historically African American fraternity. It was initially a literary and social studies club organized in the 1905–1906 school year at Cornell University but later evolved int ...
fraternity is established on campus. The Alpha Omicron chapter is established on May 4, *1923.
*1924:
James B. Duke
James Buchanan Duke (December 23, 1856 – October 10, 1925) was an American tobacco and electric power industrialist best known for the introduction of modern cigarette manufacture and marketing, and his involvement with Duke Universit ...
creates an endowment for schools, hospitals, and retired and disabled ministers. Four educational institutions are added to the endowment: Trinity College (now
Duke University
Duke University is a private research university in Durham, North Carolina. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco and electric power industrialist James ...
),
Furman University
Furman University is a private liberal arts university in Greenville, South Carolina. Founded in 1826 and named for the clergyman Richard Furman, Furman University is the oldest private institution of higher learning in South Carolina. It became ...
,
Davidson College
Davidson College is a private liberal arts college in Davidson, North Carolina. It was established in 1837 by the Concord Presbytery and named after Revolutionary War general William Lee Davidson, who was killed at the nearby Battle of Cowan ...
, and Johnson C. smith University.
*1927:
Kappa Alpha Psi
Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. () is a historically African American fraternity. Since the fraternity's founding on January 5, 1911 at Indiana University Bloomington, the fraternity has never restricted membership on the basis of color, creed ...
fraternity is the third national Greek letter organization to be chartered. The Alpha Epsilon chapter is established on December 10, 1927.
*1927: The Alpha Epsilon chapter of
Phi Beta Sigma
Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. () is a historically African American fraternity. It was founded at Howard University in Washington, D.C. on January 9, 1914, by three young African-American male students with nine other Howard students as char ...
fraternity is established late in 1927.
*1929: Jane Berry Smith dies.
*1931: Johnson C. Smith University holds its first Founders Day Celebration
*1932: In 1932, the university's charter was amended, providing for the admission of women to the senior division. The 65-year-old institution for men then became partially coeducational.
*1933: Johnson C. Smith University is given an "A" rating by Southern Association of Schools and Colleges.
*1934: The university joins the
American Council on Education
The American Council on Education (ACE) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) U.S. higher education association established in 1918. ACE's members are the leaders of approximately 1,700 accredited, degree-granting colleges and universities and higher education ...
as a full member.
*1940: The Duke Residence Hall for women is built and named in honor of
James B. Duke
James Buchanan Duke (December 23, 1856 – October 10, 1925) was an American tobacco and electric power industrialist best known for the introduction of modern cigarette manufacture and marketing, and his involvement with Duke Universit ...
.
*1941: Women were admitted to the freshman class.
*1942: Johnson C. Smith celebrates its Diamond Jubilee
*1943: Dr. Hardy Liston takes over the Office of Executive Vice President.
*1944: The Gamma Lambda chapter of
Delta Sigma Theta
Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. () is a historically African American sorority. The organization was founded by college-educated women dedicated to public service with an emphasis on programs that assist the African American community. Delta ...
sorority is founded on February 19, 1944.
*1944:
Alpha Kappa Alpha
Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. () is the first intercollegiate historically African American sorority. The sorority was founded on January 15, 1908, at the historically black Howard University in Washington, D.C., by a group of sixteen stud ...
sorority charters the Gamma Delta chapter the last week in February 1944.
*1945: Johnson C. Smith University joins the
United Negro College Fund
UNCF, the United Negro College Fund, also known as the United Fund, is an American philanthropic organization that funds scholarships for black students and general scholarship funds for 37 private historically black colleges and universities. ...
as a founding member.
*1947: President Henry Lawrence McCrorey retires after forty years of service. Dr. Hardy Liston is elected president.
*1947: Carter Hall is renovated, with a new structure being erected within the existing hull of the building.
*1951: Dr. Henry Lawrence McCrorey dies July 13, 1951
*1952: A revision of the university's charter is made that officially deletes reference to race.
*1955: In November 1955, the Henry Lawrence McCrorey Theological Hall was dedicated and provided a new home for the 88-year-old seminary and its library.
*1956: President Dr. Hardy Liston dies on October 20, 1956. Dr. J. W. Seabrook steps in as Interim President.
*1957: Dr. Rufus Patterson Perry is elected as president in April of that year.
*1961: The new gymnasium is erected.
*1962: Hardy Liston Residence Hall is erected. The building is dedicated later in April 1963.
*1965: The University Memorial Student Union is built.
*1966: The Reverend Dr.
Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...
speaks on campus as a part of the Centennial Celebration that began October 12, 1966.
*1967: The university holds the main Centennial Celebration on April 7, 1967, in the new gymnasium with the them of “New Dimensions in Higher Education”.
*1967: Three major construction projects are completed: The James B. Duke Memorial Library, Myers Hall (a dormitory for men), and Sanders Hall (a dormitory for women).
*1968: Dr. Rufus Patterson Perry resigns from his position as president.
*1968: The new science center is constructed.
*1969: Lionel H. Newsom becomes the ninth president of the university
*1969: The Seminary moves to
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
Georgia and merges with the
Interdenominational Theological Center
The Interdenominational Theological Center (ITC) is a consortium of five predominantly African-American denominational Christian seminaries in Atlanta, Georgia, operating together as a professional graduate school of theology. It is the largest f ...
.
*1972: The overpass connecting the two sides of the campus is erected over Beatties Ford road.
*1972: Dr. Wilbert Greenfield becomes the tenth President of Johnson C. Smith University
*1976: The Mary Irwin Belk Early Childhood Education Center is erected.
*1983: Dr. Robert L. Albright becomes the eleventh President of the university.
*1985: Greenfield Hall is erected and named in honor of past President Dr. Wilbert Greenfield.
*1986: The Lionel H. Newsom Humanities Building is built.
*1990: The Robert L. Albright Honors College Center opens
*1991: The Faculty Center opens
*1993: The Edward E. Crutchfield Jr. Center for Integrated Studies is built
*1994: The New Residence Hall opens
*1994: Dr. Dorothy Cowser Yancy becomes the first woman and twelfth President of Johnson C. Smith University
*1997: The Technology Center is built.
*2003: JCSU opens a new state-of-the-art academic and sports facility, the Irwin Belk Complex.
*2008: Dr. Ronald L. Carter becomes the thirteenth President.
*2018: Clarence D. Armbrister, J.D. becomes the fourteenth President of Johnson C. Smith University.
Academics
Johnson C. Smith University offers 24 different degrees to undergraduate students and one to postgraduates. Each student earns his or her degree through one of three colleges: the College of Arts and Letters, the College of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics), or the College of Professional Studies.
The Robert L. Albright Honors College is available to qualified high-achieving undergraduate students at JCSU. The college is named after the 11th president of the university.
Metropolitan College offers undergraduate degree programs to adults to enhance their opportunities for career advancement and success. Metropolitan College provides students with flexible, convenient schedules and a variety of course styles including on-campus and online courses, as well as a Flex-Option for courses that include both online and in-class instruction. Evening courses at Metropolitan College are offered in criminology, social work, and business administration.
Colleges
The university is organized into three colleges:
*College of Arts and Letters
*College of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM)
*College of Professional Studies.
James B. Duke Memorial Library
The James B. Duke Memorial Library was built in 1967 in memory of
James Buchanan Duke
James Buchanan Duke (December 23, 1856 – October 10, 1925) was an American tobacco and electric power industrialist best known for the introduction of modern cigarette manufacture and marketing, and his involvement with Duke University. ...
, a major benefactor to the university. Carnegie Library, the existing library at that time, was not large enough to meet the expanding academic programming and increasing enrollment. In 1998, the library completed a $7 million yearlong modernization and reconstruction to allow the building to serve as an information hub in a digital age.
The James B. Duke Memorial Library is also the home of a . mural created painted by Philadelphia artist
Paul F. Keene Jr. Keene that captures the history, growth, and development of the university. The vibrant mural illustrates the founding of the university by the Reverends S. L. Alexander and W. L. Miller on April 7, 1867, the original two students, the outstanding contributors to the school, historic buildings, and the first seven presidents of the university. The mural features a portrait of Jane Berry Smith who donated several buildings to the university in the early 1920s and for whom the Board of Trustees renamed the school from Biddle University. Also featured is James Buchanan Duke, a prominent North Carolina business man, who established an endowment in 1924 that included the university and the man for whom the Library is named.
Student activities
Due to its location near downtown
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...
, there are many social and cultural activities for JCSU students and faculty to enjoy, including professional sporting events, theater/movies, concerts, art exhibits, bands, chorale, poetry readings, and dance, among others.
Fraternities and sororities
All of the
National Pan-Hellenic Council
The National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) is a collaborative umbrella council composed of historically African American fraternities and sororities also referred to as Black Greek Letter Organizations (BGLOs). The NPHC was formed as a permanent ...
organizations currently have chapters at Johnson C. Smith University. These organizations are (in order of establishment):
Other organizations include:
Athletics
Student-athletes compete in intercollegiate and intramural athletics. JCSU is a member of the
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...
(NCAA),
Division II and the
Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association
The Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level. CIAA institutions mostly consist of historically black coll ...
(CIAA). Its intercollegiate sports programs include
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
,
bowling
Bowling is a target sport and recreational activity in which a player rolls a ball toward pins (in pin bowling) or another target (in target bowling). The term ''bowling'' usually refers to pin bowling (most commonly ten-pin bowling), though ...
,
cross-country
Cross country or cross-country may refer to:
Places
* Cross Country, Baltimore, a neighborhood in northwest Baltimore, Maryland
* Cross County Parkway, an east–west parkway in Westchester County, NY
* Cross County Shopping Center, a mall in Yo ...
,
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
,
golf
Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible.
Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping wi ...
,
softball
Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...
,
volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...
,
tennis
Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...
, and
track and field
Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...
. Its teams are nicknamed the Golden Bulls.
Notable alumni
Notable faculty
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Bibliography
*
*
References
External links
*
Johnson C. Smith Athletics website
{{authority control
Private universities and colleges in North Carolina
Historically black universities and colleges in the United States
Universities and colleges in Charlotte, North Carolina
Universities and colleges accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools
Universities and colleges affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA)
Educational institutions established in 1867
University and college buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in North Carolina
Presbyterianism in North Carolina
Liberal arts colleges in North Carolina
National Register of Historic Places in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina
1867 establishments in North Carolina