Kittrell College was a two-year
historically black college
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. M ...
located in
Kittrell, North Carolina
Kittrell is a town in Vance County, North Carolina, United States.
History
Kittrell was chartered in 1885, with its first mayor David Outlaw, a merchant and bachelor. In 1860, one census district in Granville County the primary of the three p ...
from 1886 until 1975. It was associated with the
African Methodist Episcopal Church
The African Methodist Episcopal Church, usually called the AME Church or AME, is a predominantly African American Methodist denomination. It adheres to Wesleyan-Arminian theology and has a connexional polity. The African Methodist Episcopal ...
. After the college closed, many of its facilities became the Kittrell
Job Corps
Job Corps is a program administered by the United States Department of Labor that offers free education and vocational training to young men and women ages 16 to 24.
Mission and purpose
Job Corps' mission is to help young people ages 16 throug ...
Center campus.
History
Kittrell College was originally chartered in 1885 by the African Methodist Episcopal Church in Kittrell, North Carolina, as Kittrell Normal and Industrial School. It was founded to train underprivileged African-Americans as teachers and artisans. The first session of classes began in 1886. In 1887, the school was rechartered and subsequently renamed as Kittrell Institute. With the second charter, it was able to train ministers as well. Kitrell Institute was once again rechartered in 1899, allowing it to begin
post-secondary programs.
In 1901, its name was changed for the last time, to Kittrell College.
In 1926, Kittrell College bought four buildings from
Duke University: a library, Alspaugh Hall, Craven Memorial Hall, and Crowell Science Building. The purchase was at least partially funded by an endowment given by
Benjamin Duke; he and his father,
Washington Duke
Washington Duke (December 18, 1820 – May 8, 1905) was an American tobacco industrialist and philanthropist. During the American Civil War he enlisted in the Confederate States Navy. In 1865, Duke founded the "W. Duke, Sons & Co.", a tobacco ma ...
, were long-time donors to Kittrell. Three of the buildings were brought to the Kittrell campus, and the B.N. Duke Library was dedicated in October 1929, but the college did not have the funds to move the Crowell Science Building.
Kittrell College was closed for three years beginning in 1934 because of financial problems. The college reorganized and reopened in 1937, but closed once again in 1948. In 1953, it reopened as a high school and
junior college. The college continued high school classes until 1965, when the last high school class graduated.
In 1969, the school renovated the B.N. Duke Library for $269,900. It also opened a student center in January 1971 and planned to construct an on-campus dormitory.
All three buildings from Duke University, including the library, were destroyed by a fire in 1972.
Six students were expelled for their alleged connection with the arson.
There was also a fire in the business office in March 1973.
In the 1970s the school also faced an investigation into the misallocation of federal money and failed to fund-raise enough money to erase debts. The last class graduated in 1975 and the school was disbanded shortly after. In 1979, the campus was purchased for a Federal Jobs Corps Center, which has remained in place since.
Enrollment at closure was approximately 400.
Revitalization efforts
In 1997, several alumni were reported to be interested in restarting Kittrell College.
In December 2020, Stephanie Freeman, a North Carolina educator, proposed to reopen Kittrell College.
Notable alumni
*
Pee Wee Kirkland
Richard "Pee Wee" Kirkland (born May 6, 1945) is a former American streetball player and drug kingpin.
Career
Basketball
Born in Manhattan, New York, Kirkland played varsity basketball at Charles Evans Hughes High School in Manhattan, New York, a ...
- former
street basketball
Streetball (or street basketball) is a variation of basketball, typically played on outdoor courts and featuring significantly less formal structure and enforcement of the game's rules. As such, its format is more conducive to allowing players ...
player and member of Kittrell's basketball team
*
William Henry Ferris
William Henry Ferris (July 20, 1874 – 1941) was an author, minister, and scholar.
Early life
He was born in New Haven, Connecticut, the son of David H. and Sarah Ann Jefferson Ferris. His grandparents were free at the time of his father's birt ...
- author, minister, and scholar, editor of ''
Negro World
''Negro World'' was the newspaper of the Marcus Garvey's Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League (UNIA). Founded by Garvey and Amy Ashwood Garvey, the newspaper was published weekly in Harlem, New York, and distr ...
''
References
External links
{{authority control
Historically black schools
Historically black universities and colleges in North Carolina
Defunct private universities and colleges in North Carolina
1886 establishments in North Carolina
Educational institutions established in 1886
1975 disestablishments in North Carolina
Educational institutions disestablished in 1975