Ferdinand Douglass Bluford (August 4, 1882 – December 21, 1955) was an American

educator A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. whe ...

, and the third president of

North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University (also known as North Carolina A&T State University, North Carolina A&T, N.C. A&T, or simply A&T) is a public, historically black land-grant research university in Greensboro, North Caro ...

. Bluford headed the college for 30 years, serving longer than any president or chancellor in the school's history.

Early life

Ferdinand D. Bluford was born on August 4, 1882, in

Capahosic, Virginia Capahosic is an unincorporated community in Gloucester County, in the U. S. state of Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the A ...

, to P. and Alice Bluford. He completed elementary school in 1900 and attended high school at Wayland Academy in

Richmond, Virginia (Thus do we reach the stars) , image_map = , mapsize = 250 px , map_caption = Location within Virginia , pushpin_map = Virginia#USA , pushpin_label = Richmond , pushpin_m ...

. He would later go on to attend college at

Virginia Union University Virginia Union University is a private historically black Baptist university in Richmond, Virginia. It is affiliated with the American Baptist Churches USA. History The American Baptist Home Mission Society (ABHMS) founded the school as Richm ...

, where he was ranked as one of the three best students in his class. He was a charter member of Gamma Chapter of

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 ...

. After graduating from Virginia Union University in 1908, Bluford would receive a Bachelor of

Pedagogy Pedagogy (), most commonly understood as the approach to teaching, is the theory and practice of learning, and how this process influences, and is influenced by, the social, political and psychological development of learners. Pedagogy, taken as ...

degree from

Howard University Howard University (Howard) is a private, federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity" and accredited by the Middle States Commissi ...

in 1909.

Career

Bluford taught at the A&M College in

Normal, Kentucky Normal is a residential unincorporated community, located within the city of Ashland, Kentucky along U.S. Route 23 and U.S. Route 60 and the Ohio River. It was annexed by the City of Ashland in 1905. Previously, Normal was an independent comm ...

, in addition to

Kentucky State College Kentucky State University (KSU and KYSU) is a public historically black land-grant university in Frankfort, Kentucky. Founded in 1886 as the State Normal School for Colored Persons, and becoming a land-grant college in 1890, KSU is the second-o ...

, and the now defunct Saint Paul Normal and Industrial School in

Lawrenceville, Virginia Lawrenceville is a town in Brunswick County, Virginia, United States. The population was 1,438 at the 2010 census. Located by the Meherrin River, it is the county seat of Brunswick County. In colonial times, Lieutenant Governor Alexander Spotswoo ...

. Before assuming the title of president of North Carolina A&T, Bluford was a professor of English for six years, dean and vice president. He was appointed acting president after the death of his predecessor, Dr.

James B. Dudley James Benson Dudley (November 2, 1859 – April 4, 1925) was President of North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University from 1896 until his death in 1925. James B. Dudley High School in the town of Greensboro, North Carolina, w ...

in 1925; and was chosen unanimously by members of the Board of Trustees as president on June 13, 1925. Under Bluford’s guidance, A&T was raised from a "D" class college in 1927 to an "A" class institution in 1932 by the North Carolina Department of Education. By 1955, the campus had grown to , the farm land reached a total of and the property value of the 35 campus buildings was $12 million. During Bluford's administration, the Graduate School and the Schools of

Agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...

Education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty. Va ...

, General Studies,

Engineering Engineering is the use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...

, and

Nursing Nursing is a profession within the health care sector focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life. Nurses may be differentiated from other health ...

were established as well as the Technical Institute.

Death and legacy

Bluford died on December 21, 1955, at the age of 73; His body lay in state inside the newly built campus Library. The next morning, the ''Greensboro Daily News'' carried a front-page column detailing Bluford’s contributions to A&T, Greensboro and the country. Bluford is buried at Piedmont Memorial Park in Greensboro, North Carolina. The university library is named for Bluford. The original building, completed in 1955 is now the Edward B. Fort Interdisciplinary Research Center. A new library was dedicated and named for Bluford on September 10, 1991.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bluford, Ferdinand D. North Carolina A&T State University leaders 20th-century African-American academics Howard University alumni Virginia Union University alumni People from Gloucester County, Virginia 1882 births 1955 deaths 20th-century African-American educators 20th-century American educators 20th-century American academics