Joseph Samuel Clark (June 7, 1871 – November 3, 1944) was an academic administrator who spent most of his career in Louisiana. He was the head of Baton Rouge College and president of

Southern University Southern University and A&M College (Southern University, Southern, SUBR or SU) is a public historically black land-grant university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. It is the largest historically black college or university (HBCU) in Louisiana, a ...

and A&M College, both

historically black colleges 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 ...

, where he served in total from 1901 to 1938. During the years from 1914 to 1938 he led the development of Southern, designated as a land grant college in 1890 and moved to the Baton Rouge area in 1914. Clark was a co-founder of several African-American organizations, and served in leadership roles at the state and national level in associations for African-American educators. In 1931 he declined an offer of the ambassadorship to Liberia by Republican President Herbert Hoover, as he was devoted to his mission of developing Southern University.

Early life and education

Joseph Samuel Clark was born on June 7, 1871 in Sparta, an unincorporated community in Bienville Parish, Louisiana, to Philip and Jane Clark. He attended local public schools, which were segregated, and also had some private study. Later he attended two preparatory colleges (equivalent to today's high school) before going to

Leland College Leland College was founded in 1870 as a college for blacks in New Orleans, Louisiana, but was open to all races. With . The college facilities had become derelict by the time of listing. In the early 21st century, only the ruins of the two dormi ...

, a historically black college, where he graduated in 1901 with a bachelor's degree. He also did some post-graduate work at the University of Chicago and Harvard University.

Career

Clark started as a teacher but was soon appointed as an administrator. In 1901 he was chosen as head of Baton Rouge College, serving until 1912. Clark was next selected as president of

and A&M College, a state university founded in New Orleans that was designated in 1890 as a land grant college for blacks. In this role, he supervised the relocation in 1914 and development of the school in the small farming community of

Scotlandville Scotlandville is a community in northern Baton Rouge, Louisiana. It was originally a small, independent rural community that developed along the Mississippi river in northern East Baton Rouge Parish. Only one African-American family lived in the vil ...

in East Baton Rouge Parish, where the state had bought more than 500 acres of land. Soon the property totaled 884 acres, as the state acquired more to support the agricultural program.Karla Rixon, "Southern University"
BlackPast Only one black family lived in the village when the college was relocated, although there were black farmers and sharecroppers in the area. By the end of his tenure, Clark supervised a college with 1,400 enrolled students. The college contributed to the growth of the community, which was also based on manufacturing. By the later 20th century, it became the largest majority-African American community in the state.Rachel L. Emanuel PhD, Ruby Jean Simms PhD, Charles Vincent PhD, ''Scotlandville''
Arcadia Publishing, 2015 Scotlandville was later incorporated as part of the city of Baton Rouge. Clark was also active in education-related organizations. He served for eight years as the president of the Louisiana State Colored Teachers' Association. He was a co-founder of the National Colored Teachers Association in 1906,Perry, Thelma D., ''History of the American Teachers Association'' (Washington, D.C.: National Education Association, 1975) later known as the American Teachers Association, and served a year as president. He was also a co-founder of the National Negro Business League and the National Urban League. In 1931 Republican US president Herbert Hoover offered Clark the post of

United States Ambassador to Liberia This is a record of ambassadors of the United States to Liberia. Liberia, as a nation, had its beginnings in 1821 when groups of free blacks from the United States emigrated from the U.S. and began establishing colonies on the coast under the d ...

. He turned it down because he was deeply involved in developing Southern University. Clark received honorary doctorates from

Selma University Selma University is a Private historically black Baptist Bible college in Selma, Alabama. It is affiliated with the Alabama State Missionary Baptist Convention. History The institution was founded in 1878 as the Alabama Baptist Normal and The ...

, Leland College, and Arkansas Baptist College.

Personal life and death

Clark married Octavia Head on December 29, 1901. They had one son,

Felton Grandison Clark Felton Grandison Clark (October 13, 1903 – July 5, 1970) was an African-American academic administrator from Louisiana. He served as the president of Southern University (SU), a Historically black colleges and universities, historically black un ...

, who also had a career in education and succeeded his father as president of Southern University in 1938. Clark died on November 3, 1944, in New Orleans.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Clark, Joseph Samuel 1871 births 1944 deaths People from Bienville Parish, Louisiana Southern University presidents African-American academics 20th-century African-American people