Miles College 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 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. Mo ...

Fairfield, Alabama Fairfield is a city in western Jefferson County, Alabama, United States. It is part of the Birmingham metropolitan area and is located southeast of Pleasant Grove. The population was 11,117 at the 2010 census. History This city was founded i ...

. Founded in 1898, it is associated with the

Christian Methodist Episcopal Church The Christian Methodist Episcopal (C.M.E.) Church is a historically black denomination within the broader context of Wesleyan Methodism founded and organized by John Wesley in England in 1744 and established in America as the Methodist Episcopal ...

(CME Church) and a member of 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. ...

History

Miles College began organization efforts in 1893 and was founded in 1898 by the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church. It was chartered as Miles Memorial College, in honor of Bishop William H. Miles. In 1941 the name was changed to Miles College.

Modern history

In January 2020,

Charles Barkley Charles Wade Barkley (born February 20, 1963) is an American former professional basketball player who is a television analyst on TNT. Nicknamed "Sir Charles", "Chuck", and "the Round Mound of Rebound", Barkley played 16 seasons in the Natio ...

, who is an Alabama native, donated $1 million to Miles College, under first female President Dr. Bobbie Knight. Barkley's gift is the biggest donation from a single person that the school has ever received. Dr. Knight said the donation will kickstart efforts to raise $100 million.

Academics

Miles is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the

Southern Association of Colleges and Schools The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) is an educational accreditor recognized by the United States Department of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. This agency accredits over 13,000 public and priv ...

(for the awarding of baccalaureate degrees), the Alabama State Department of Education, and the Council of Social Work Education. Miles College offers 25 bachelor's degrees in the following divisions: Business and Accounting, Communications, Education, Humanities, Natural Sciences and Mathematics, Social and Behavioral Sciences. Miles College is one of 41 schools in the nation with a Center of Academic Excellence under the office of the Director of National Intelligence. Miles offers 28 Bachelor's degree programs in six academic divisions to an enrollment of approximately 1,700 students and also offers an

honors program Honors colleges and honors programs are special accommodation constituent programs at public and private universities – and also public two-year institutions of higher learning – that include, among other things, supplemental or alternative ...

for undergraduate students with exceptional academic records.

Campus

Miles College purchased the Lloyd Noland Hospital site, which more than doubled the size of the campus. The college completed the construction of a new student activity and dining center, a new welcome and admissions center, and a new 204 bed residence hall. Part of the campus is listed 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 ...

. Sloan Alumni Stadium, named after the college's 13th president, Albert J. H. Sloan II, was recently expanded to include a $1 million Environ-Turf field.

Student activities

Organizations for students include the Student Government Association, Honors Curriculum, academic clubs, religious organizations,

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, general interest clubs, a

gospel choir Gospel music is a traditional genre of Christian music, and a cornerstone of Christian media. The creation, performance, significance, and even the definition of gospel music varies according to culture and social context. Gospel music is com ...

, and a

concert choir A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which ...

Radio Station

The school operates a radio station, WMWI FM 88.7. It was established in 2009 and is licensed to

Demopolis, Alabama Demopolis is the largest city in Marengo County, in west-central Alabama. The population was 7,162 at the time of the 2020 United States census, down from 7,483 at the 2010 census. The city lies at the confluence of the Black Warrior River and T ...

Marching band

The Miles College band is known as the Purple Marching Machine (PMM). The Purple Marching Machine was established in 1996, under the direction of Prof. Arthur Means, Jr. There are nearly 200 members in the band now and it is under the direction of Willie Snipes Jr. The band has performed at the

Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is an annual parade in New York City presented by the U.S.-based department store chain Macy's. The Parade first took place in 1924, tying it for the second-oldest Thanksgiving parade in the United States with ...

, numerous battle of the bands, and for the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...

. The College most recently made history in 2019 when Hosheria WF Young was appointed the First Female Drum Major in the history of the HBCU. The marching band is accompanied by the Golden Stars danceline and Steaming Flags

color guard In Military, military organizations, a colour guard (or color guard) is a detachment of soldiers assigned to the protection of Colours, standards and guidons, regimental colours and the national flag. This duty is so prestigious that the militar ...

Athletics

The Miles College athletics program competes in the

NCAA Division II NCAA Division II (D-II) is an intermediate-level division of competition in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It offers an alternative to both the larger and better-funded Division I and to the scholarship-free environmen ...

Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference The Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level. Formed in 1913, it consists mostly of historically black co ...

(SIAC). The program has men's and women's sports that include: basketball, football, volleyball, track, baseball, softball, cross country, and golf. Their mascot is the Golden Bears.

Presidents

L. L. Wilson, –1904; R. S. Williams, –1907; James Bray, 1907–1912; William A. Bell, 1912–1913; John Wesley Gilbert, 1913–1914; George A. Payne, 1914–1918; Robert T. Brown, 1918–1922; George L. Word, 1922–1926; Mack Burley, 1926–1931; Brooks Dickens, 1931–1936; William A. Bell, 1936–1961; Lucius Pitts, 1961–1971; W. Clyde Williams, 1971–1986; Leroy Johnson, 1986–1989; Albert Sloan, 1989–2005; George French Jr, 2006–August 31, 2019; Bobbie Knight (interim), September 1, 2019 – March 5, 2020; Bobbie Knight, March 5, 2020–

Notable alumni

Richard Arrington Jr. Richard Arrington Jr. (born October 19, 1934 in Livingston, Alabama) was the first Black mayor of the city of Birmingham, Alabama (U.S.), serving 20 years, from 1979 to 1999. He replaced David Vann and, upon retiring after five terms in offi ...

- First

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

Mayor of the City of Birmingham *

U. W. Clemon U.W. Clemon (born April 9, 1943) is an Alabama attorney in private practice and a former United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama. He was among the first ten African-American lawyers ad ...

- First

federal judge in the State of Alabama *

Autherine Lucy Autherine Juanita Lucy (October 5, 1929 – March 2, 2022) was an American activist who was the first African-American student to attend the University of Alabama, in 1956. Her expulsion from the institution later that year led to the university' ...

- First

to attend the University of Alabama * Fred Horn - Politician, former member of the

Alabama House of Representatives The Alabama State House of Representatives is the lower house of the Alabama Legislature, the state legislature of state of Alabama. The House is composed of 105 members representing an equal number of districts, with each constituency contai ...

Vince Hill Vincent Hill (born 16 April 1934) is an English traditional pop music singer and songwriter who is best known for his recording of the Rodgers and Hammerstein show tune "Edelweiss" (1967), which reached No. 2 on the UK Singles Chart (staying o ...

- American football player *

Juandalynn Givan Juandalynn Givan is an American lawyer and politician. She serves as a Democratic member of the Alabama House of Representatives, where she represents Jefferson County. At a committee meeting in March 2017, Givan said that African-Americans wer ...

- Politician, member of the

* Thales McReynolds - Former

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...

player * Bennett M. Stewart - Former Democratic U.S. Representative from Illinois * Paul A. G. Stewart - The 50th Bishop of the

and Vice Chairperson of Board of Trustees Miles College *

Cleopatra Tucker Cleopatra Gibson Tucker (born April 9, 1943) is an American Democratic Party politician, who has served in the New Jersey General Assembly since 2008, where she represents the 28th Legislative District. Biography Tucker was born and raised in ...

- Politician, who has served in the

New Jersey General Assembly The New Jersey General Assembly is the lower house of the New Jersey Legislature. Since the election of 1967 (1968 Session), the Assembly has consisted of 80 members. Two members are elected from each of New Jersey's 40 legislative districts for ...

since 2008

Notable faculty and staff

* John U. Monro - former dean of

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher lea ...

and director of freshman studies at the college *

Sam Shade Samuel Richard Shade (born June 14, 1973) is an American football coach and former player, currently the head coach of the Miles College football team. He played eight seasons in the National Football League (NFL) from 1995 to 2002 as a safety f ...

- professional football player and college football coach * Steven Whitman - public health researcher

References

External links

*
Official athletics website
{{Authority control African-American history of Alabama Buildings and structures in Jefferson County, Alabama Education in Jefferson County, Alabama Educational institutions established in 1905 Historic districts in Jefferson County, Alabama Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Alabama Historically black universities and colleges in the United States Methodism in Alabama National Register of Historic Places in Jefferson County, Alabama Universities and colleges accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Universities and colleges affiliated with the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church Private universities and colleges in Alabama 1905 establishments in Alabama

History

Modern history

Academics

Campus

Student activities

Radio Station

Marching band

Athletics

Presidents

Notable alumni

Notable faculty and staff

See also

References

Further reading

External links