This article is missing information about Leadership, governing board, relationship with faculty, student governance, faculty governance, constituent schools, endowment, fundraising. This concern has been noted on the talk page where whether or not to include such information may be discussed. (October 2010)

Albany State University is a four-year, state-supported, historically black university (HBCU) located in Albany, Georgia, United States. It is one of three HBCU's in the University System of Georgia. ASU is a member-school of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund.

History[link]

Establishment[link]

Joseph Winthrop Holley, born in 1874 to former slaves in Winnsboro, South Carolina, founded the institution in 1903 as the Albany Bible and Manual Training Institute. Two educators, Reverend Samuel Loomis and his wife, sent Holley to Brainerd Institute and then Revere Lay College (Massachusetts). While attending Revere Lay, Holley got to know one of the school's trustees, New England businessman, Rowland Hazard. After taking a liking to Holley, Hazard arranged for him to continue his education at Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts. Holley aspired to become a minister and prepared by completing his education at Pennsylvania's Lincoln University.

W. E. B. Du Bois inspired Holley to return to the South after he read Du Bois's writings on the plight of black people in Albany, GA in The Souls of Black Folk. Holley relocated to Albany to start a school. With the help of a $2,600 gift from the Hazard family, Holley organized a board of trustees and purchased 50 acres (200,000 m²) of land for the campus, all within a year. The aim of the institution at the time, was to provide elementary education and teacher training for the local Black population. The institution became financially state supported in 1917 as a two-year agricultural and teacher training college. Its new name became the Georgia Normal and Agricultural College.^[3]

In 1932, the school became part of the University System of Georgia and in 1943 it was granted four-year status and renamed Albany State College. The transition to four-year status heavily increased the school's enrollment. In 1981 the college offered its first graduate program and in 1996 the name was changed to Albany State University.

Holley served as President of the school from 1903–1943. He was succeeded by Aaron Brown (1943–1954), William Dennis (1954–1965), Thomas Miller Jenkins (1965–1969), Charles Hayes (1969–1980), Billy C. Black (1980–1996), Portia Holmes Shields (1996–2005), and Everette J. Freeman (2005 – present)^[3]

U.S. Civil Rights and the Albany Movement[link]

The college played a significant role in the American Civil Rights Movement in the early 1960s. Many students from the school, Black improvement organizations, and representatives from the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) came together to create the Albany Movement. The movement brought prominent civil rights leaders to the town including Martin Luther King Jr. During this time period, over 3,000 people were arrested. Albany, Georgia has several mass arrests during the movement including the largest mass arrest of over 700 people (the largest in United States history) Approximately 40 students were either suspended of expelled by then ASC president William H. Dennis for their participation in the Albany Movement Those expelled included American University Professor Emeritus Bernice Johnson Reagon. On December 10, 2011, thirty two of the students who were expelled were granted honorary degrees. The school awarded thirty one honorary baccalaureate degrees and one honorary doctorate – that to Bernice Johnson Reagon. A noted cultural historian, Reagon was also the commencement speaker. In addition to Johnson, those being honored Saturday are Walter Armstrong, Marva Berry, Lillian Sue Bethel, Hosezell Blash, Ann Booyer, Bobby Burch, Henri Cohen, Janie Culbreth, Brenda Darton, Richard Gay Jr., Lula T. George, Larry Gibson, Bertha Gober, Blanton Hall, Gail Hall, Benjamin Humphries, Donchester Johnson, Opal Jones, Annette Jones, James Jones, Nick Louketis, Harold Manning, Alton Moultrie, Wilda Person, Ola Mae Quartimon, Charles Ranson, Andrew Reid, Jeanette Sibley, Betty Slater Williams, Evelyn Toney and Andrew Williams.^[5]

Albany State University[link]

In July 1996 the university system's Board of Regents approved a name change, and the school officially became Albany State University. Today Albany State University continues to provide a wide range of educational opportunities to the residents of southwest Georgia. The school participates in an engineering transfer program and a dual degree program with the Georgia Institute of Technology, one of the top engineering schools in the nation. Then President, Portia Shields created the Holley Institute summer program, which consists of an intense four weeks of study to help high school students improve low SAT scores and gain admission to college. The program has a near 100 percent success rate and has received praise from the state Board of Regents. Albany State also has the third highest student retention rate in the university system. A new stadium was opened in 2004, and new housing units opened in 2006.^[6]

Campus[link]

President's House

Academics and demographics[link]

Albany State offers undergraduate and graduate liberal arts and professional degree programs.

According to U.S. News & World Report, ASU ranks number 26 out of 81 in the magazine’s first ranking of undergraduate education at HBCUs. It is ranked as a 1st tier school on the list. ASU shares its No. 26 ranking with Alcorn State University.^[7]

Today the Albany State University student body consists of both traditional and non-traditional students who make up the more than 4,000 student population. These students come primarily from Atlanta, southwest and central Georgia, other US states and many foreign countries. The average student age is 24 and about 40 percent of the students live in on-campus housing.^[8]

Schools and colleges[link]

The Graduate school degree programs include: Business Administration, Criminal Justice, Early Childhood Education, Educational Leadership(M.Ed&Ed.S), English Education, Health and Physical Education, Mathematics Education, Middle Grades Education, Music Education, Nursing, Public Administration, School Counseling, Science Education, and Special Education.^[10]

Albany State offers more than 30 undergraduate degree programs and six advanced degrees. The university also offers the Board of Regents' engineering transfer program and the dual degree program in engineering with Georgia Tech. Today, Albany State University provides innovative instructional and professional programs through its five academic schools: Arts and Sciences, Business, Education, Nursing and Allied Health Sciences and the Graduate School. The University serves 24 counties in the Southwest Georgia area with graduate and undergraduate courses in more than 30 fields.

Student life[link]

Student organizations[link]

There are over 59 clubs and organizations including bands, choirs, religious groups, honor societies, several major Greek and honor sororities and fraternities, and ROTC.

Fraternities and Sororities[link]

All nine of the National Pan-Hellenic Council organizations currently have chapters at Albany State University. These organizations are:

Music Organizations[link]

Three of the music organizations currently have chapters at Albany State University. These organizations are:

Marching band[link]

Albany State's Marching Band participated in the 2007, 2008, 2010 2011 and will participate in the 2012 Honda Battle of the Bands (HBOB).

Athletics[link]

This unreferenced section requires citations to ensure verifiability.

Albany State University holds membership in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division II (as a member of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference) and participates in the following sports: football, basketball, baseball, cheerleading, volleyball, cross-country and track and field.

Football[link]

Home football games are played at the Albany Municipal Coliseum. In 2010, Albany State won the 2010 SBN Jake Gaither National Championship Trophy (SBN Sports Black College National Football Championship) after an 11–1 season.

Swimming[link]

Albany State sponsored men and women's swimming and diving teams in past years and were named National Black College Swimming and Diving Champions in 1979 and 1980.

Notable alumni[link]

This is a list of notable alumni which includes graduates, non-graduate former students, and current students of Albany State University. It also reflects those alumni who attended and/or graduated from the institution under its prior historical names.

Name Class year Notability References James Blaylock member of the Georgia Department of Veterans Service [11] Alice Coachman 1949 first African-American woman to win an Olympic gold medal and the only American woman to win a gold medal in the 1948 [12] Walter Curry professional football player Gregory Daniels 1974 First African American VP of Nissan North America [13] Kenneth Gant former professional football player [14] Jonnie Mae Gibson Fifth African American Woman in FBI [15][16] Big James Henderson 1984–1986 former powerlifter who competed in the International Powerlifting Federation and won five world bench press titles. Offensive Lineman for the 1985 SIAC Conference Championship football team. [17] Art Green former CFL and NFL player [18] James Holmes[disambiguation needed ] 1968 First African American Director of the US Census Bureau [19] Caldwell Jones former professional basketball player [20] Charles Jones former professional basketball player [21] Major Jones former professional basketball player [22] Wil Jones former professional basketball player [22] Dan Land former professional football player [14] Jo Marie Payton actress [23] Bernice Johnson Reagon singer, composer, scholar, and social activist; Professor Emeritus of History at American University in Washington, DC; Curator Emeritus at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of American History in Washington, DC; 2002–04 Cosby Chair Professor of Fine Arts at Spelman College in Atlanta Georgia [24] Shirley Sherrod 1970 Civil rights advocate, former Georgia State Director of Rural Development for the United States Department of Agriculture [25] Albert Sloan Twelfth President of Miles College [26] Phelan Thomas first African American cosmetic dentist certified as a Diplomate of the American Board of Aesthetic Dentistry by the American Society for Dental Aesthetics [27][28]

Suggested reading[link]

• Brown, Titus. Albany State University : a centennial history, 1903–2003. Charleston, SC: Arcadia Pub.. ISBN 0-7385-1493-4. http://catalog.loc.gov/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?Search_Arg=0738514934&Search_Code=STNO&PID=6801&SEQ=20080401115017&CNT=25&HIST=1. 

External links[link]

• Albany State University's official website
• University System of Georgia Albany State University Profile

References[link]

Coordinates: 31°34′08″N 84°08′31″W / 31.569°N 84.142°W / 31.569; -84.142

A state university system in the United States is a group of public universities supported by an individual state, or a similar entity such as the District of Columbia. These systems constitute the majority of public-funded universities in the country. Each state supports at least one such system.

Federal funded colleges and universities are limited to military personnel and government employees. Members of foreign militaries and governments also attend some schools. These schools include the United States military academies, Naval Postgraduate School, and military staff colleges.

A state university system normally means a single legal entity and administration, but may consist of several institutions, each with its own identity as a university. Some states—such as California and Texas—support more than one such system.

State universities get subsidies from their states. The amount of the subsidy varies from university to university and state to state, but the effect is to lower tuition costs below that of private universities. As more and more Americans attend college, and private tuition rates increase well beyond the rate of inflation, admission to state universities is becoming more and more competitive.

History[link]

This section requires expansion.

Consideration of public higher education was included in the earliest westward expansion of the US, with the Northwest Ordinance of 1787, which established the Northwest Territory. It stated: "Religion, morality, and knowledge, being necessary to good government and the happiness of mankind, schools and the means of education shall forever be encouraged." Ohio University (1804) was the first state school so established in the territory, with the other developing states following suit. On a national basis, the state university system was also assisted by the establishment of the Land-grant universities, under the Morrill Land-Grant Colleges Act of 1862 and 1890.

The tradition of publicly funded state colleges began primarily in the southern states, where other private educational institutions were less developed. The University of Georgia is the country's first chartered public university, established on January 27, 1785 by an act of the General Assembly of Georgia. However, the University of Georgia did not hold classes until 16 years later in the fall of 1801. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, while chartered four years after Georgia in 1789, was the first state university to hold classes. Classes began at UNC in 1795, and UNC is the only state university to have graduated students in the 18th century. The University of South Carolina was chartered in 1801 and held classes for the first time in 1805. The University of Tennessee was originally chartered as Blount College in 1794, but had a very difficult beginning—graduating only one student—and did not begin receiving the promised state funds until 1807 when it was renamed East Tennessee University. The first state university that matches most modern definitions of the term—including a strict secular course of study, offering professional and graduate coursework, and allowing students to select their coursework—was the University of Virginia. Established due to the work of Thomas Jefferson and grounded in his philosophy of a strong secular state, UVA was chartered in 1819 and first held classes in 1825.

Determining which state university was the "first" is further complicated by the case of New Jersey's state university system. Facing the embarrassment of being the only state left that had not established a state university, the New Jersey Legislature decided to commission an already existing private university as its state university, rather than build one from the ground up, as other states had done. Rutgers University, which had previously been a private school affiliated with the Dutch Reformed Church, was designated as a state university by acts of the legislature in 1945 and 1956. It became a 'System' with the absorptions of Newark University in 1946 and The College of South Jersey in 1950, becoming Rutgers' Newark and Camden Campuses, respectively. Rutgers was chartered in 1766, nineteen years before The University of Georgia, but did not become the state university for another 179 years.

Castleton State College in Vermont is the oldest state university in New England, chartered in 1787. This was soon followed by the charter of The University of Vermont in 1791. However, neither institution was a "state university" in the modern sense of the term until many decades later. Castleton State began as the Rutland County Grammar School. It did not become a postsecondary institution until the campus became home to the State Normal School in 1867, which was privately owned despite its name, and did not become a state-owned institution until 1912. UVM was chartered as a private institution and did not become a public university until 1865.

The largest state university system is State University of New York with over 400,000 students.^[1] However, the combined enrollment of the University of California, the California State University, and the California Community Colleges systems exceeds 2,300,000 students.^[2]

Many state universities were founded in the middle 19th century, in particular supported by the Morrill Land-Grant Colleges Acts of 1862 and 1890.

Many state universities—such as UCLA and Chico State—were founded as normal schools.

Following the Second World War, many state universities were merged with smaller institutions to achieve economies of scale in administration and also to raise the prestige of the degrees granted by some smaller institutions. A prominent example of this is the State University of New York, which is the largest comprehensive system of universities, colleges, and community colleges in the world,.^[3]

During the 1970s, further mergers took place and the concept of a state system was widely adopted.

Some states have more than one state university system. For example, California has the University of California (considered top-tier) and the California State University (considered lower tier) as four-year university systems, and the California Community Colleges as its community college system.

State college system[link]

Some states maintain a separate system for state colleges (often specified as community colleges, technical colleges, or junior colleges), that is distinct from their university system. Examples include the California Community Colleges System, the Florida College System, and the Technical College System of Georgia. In these states, colleges focus primarily on awarding two-year associate's degrees and professional certificates, while universities focus on four-year bachelor's degrees and more advanced degrees. The California Community Colleges System is the largest in the world. In 2009 the Florida College System changed its name from the Florida Community College System, reflecting the fact that some of its colleges now offer four-year degrees. Some of its colleges were designated "state colleges", distinguishing them from community colleges in that they offer more four year degrees than community colleges.^[4]

Historic names[link]

University of Houston

During the growth and restructuring of the state systems, names such as University of California have changed their meanings over time.

• In some cases, the unqualified name has become the official name of the university system that includes the institution which is the original bearer of the name. Examples include:
  • University of California
  • University of North Carolina
  • University of Illinois

• In other cases, the unqualified name remains the official name of an individual institution which is now part of a larger university system. Examples include:
  • University of Alabama (at Tuscaloosa)
  • University of Houston (formerly the University of Houston–University Park)

• In some cases, the unqualified name now has no official status, but is used informally for either an individual university (particularly in sporting and similar contexts) or for the university system of which it is now part (particularly in administrative and academic contexts). Examples include:
  • University of Texas (at Austin)
  • University of Wisconsin (at Madison)

Some universities with names of the form "University of <state>" are not state universities at all, but are actually private universities. Examples include:

• University of Pennsylvania

See also[link]

• Public Universities
• National Universities
• List of American state universities
• University Revolution

References[link]

External links[link]

• History of the University of Texas.
• The Future of Flagship Universities, lecture given at Texas A&M University by Robert M. Berdahl, historian and Chancellor, University of California, Berkeley, discusses some of the history of the systems.