Virginia Union University

Virginia Union University
Former names	Colver Institute (1865–1886); Richmond Theological Institute (1886–1899); Wayland Seminary (1865–1899); Hartshorn Memorial College (1883–1932)
Motto	The Lord Will Provide
Type	Private historically black university
Established	1865; 159 years ago
Religious affiliation	American Baptist Churches USA
Endowment	$29 million
President	Hakim Lucas
Students	1,700
Location	Richmond, Virginia, United States; [ ⚑ ] : 37°33′45.8″N 77°27′3″W / 37.562722°N 77.45083°W
Campus	Urban, 84 acres (33.99 ha)
\|u}}rs	Maroon and Steel;
Nickname	Panthers
Website	www.vuu.edu
	Virginia Union University
	U.S. National Register of Historic Places
	Virginia Landmarks Register
Location	1500 N. Lombardy St., Richmond, Virginia, United States
Area	11 acres (4.5 ha)
Built	1899
Architect	John H. Coxhead
Architectural style	Richardsonian Romanesque
NRHP reference #	82004590
VLR #	127-0354
Significant dates
Added to NRHP	July 26, 1982
Designated VLR	June 16, 1981

Short description: Baptist university in Richmond, Virginia, U.S.

Virginia Union University is a private historically black Baptist university in Richmond, Virginia. It is affiliated with the National Baptist Convention USA, Inc. and the American Baptist Churches USA.

History

Pickford Hall, Virginia Union University

The American Baptist Home Mission Society (ABHMS) founded the school as Richmond Theological Institute in 1865 shortly after Union troops took control of Richmond, Virginia, at the end of the American Civil War, for African-American freedmen to enter into the ministry.^[4] The college had the first academic library at an HBCU, building the library in 1865 the same year the college was established.^[5]

Its mission was soon expanded to offer courses and programs at college, high school, and preparatory levels, to both men and women.^[6] This effort was the beginning of Virginia Union University. Separate branches of the National Theological Institute were set up in Washington, D.C., and Richmond, Virginia, with classes beginning in 1867. In Washington, the school became known as Wayland Seminary, named in commemoration of Francis Wayland, former president of Brown University and a leader in the anti-slavery struggle. The first and only president was George Mellen Prentiss King, who administered Wayland for thirty years (1867–1897). Famous students there included Booker T. Washington and Adam Clayton Powell, Sr.^[6]

Beginning in 1867, Colver Institute was housed in a building long known as Lumpkin's Jail, a former "slave jail" owned by Mary Ann Lumpkin, the African-American widow of the deceased white owner. It became Richmond Theological Institute (formerly Colver and joined with Wayland Seminary of Washington in 1899 to form Virginia Union University at Richmond.^[7]

In 1932, the women's college Hartshorn Memorial College,^[8]^[9] established in Richmond in 1883, became a part of Virginia Union University. Storer College, a historically black Baptist college in West Virginia founded in 1867, merged its endowment with Virginia Union in 1964.^[10]

University presidents
Name	Term
Malcolm MacVicar	1899–1904
George Rice Hovey	1904–1918
William John Clark	1919–1941
John Malcus Ellison*	1941–1955
Samuel Dewitt Proctor	1955–1960
Thomas Howard Henderson	1960–1970
Allix Bledsoe James	1970–1979
David Thomas Shannon	1979–1985
S. Dallas Simmons	1985–1999
Bernard Wayne Franklin	1999–2003
Belinda C. Anderson	2003–2008
Claude G. Perkins	2009–2016
Joseph F. Johnson	2016-2017(Acting)
Hakim Lucas	2017−present
*first alumnus and African-American to serve as president of the university

Academics

The university is divided into four main schools:^[11]

Evelyn Reid Syphax School of Education and Interdisciplinary Studies
School of Arts and Sciences
Samuel DeWitt Proctor School of Theology
Sydney Lewis School of Business

Theology program

Virginia Union University's Theological training program is called The Samuel DeWitt Proctor School of Theology. James Henry Harris, the early American civil rights advocate, was a graduate. The school is a member of the Washington Theological Consortium.^[12]

Student activities

There are over 20 student organizations, including several fraternities and sororities.

Athletics

Virginia Union competes in the NCAA Division II in the Eastern Division of the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association. The school has varsity teams in men's basketball, football, cross country, golf, tennis and track and field, and in women's basketball, bowling, cross country, tennis and track and field, softball and volleyball.^[13]

In 2018, both Virginia Union University's DII Men & Women's Basketball Teams won the CIAA Championship.^[14] Virginia Union plays basketball and volleyball in the Barco-Stevens Hall, built as the Belgian Building for the 1939 New York World's Fair. The building, which has stone reliefs depicting the Belgian Congo, was one of thirteen facilities designated as "unique" by NCAA News in 2005. The building was awarded to the university in 1941 and moved to its present location in 1943. The basketball team began using the facility in early 1947.^[15]

Affiliations

It is affiliated with the American Baptist Churches USA. ^[16]

Notable alumni

Charles S. Johnson
Spottswood William Robinson III
Douglas Wilder
Ben Wallace
Donald McEachin

Name	Class year	Notability	Reference(s)
Roger Anderson		NFL player
James Atkins	2002	Former NFL player
Mamye BaCote	1961	Virginia House of Delegates (2004-2016)
Darius Bea	attended two years	Negro league outfielder and pitcher	^[17]
Bessye J. Bearden	1900s	Journalist and social activist; mother of artist Romare Bearden
Leslie Garland Bolling	1924	Early 20th century wood carver
Simeon Booker	1941	award-winning journalist and the first African-American reporter for The Washington Post
Michael Brim	1988	former National Football League player
Roslyn M. Brock	1987	Chairman of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)
Homer S. Brown		judge, civil rights leader, and state representative in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Henry Allen Bullock	1928	Historian, winner of the Bancroft Prize
Tamarat Makonnen	1994	Film director, producer and writer
Emmett C. Burns, Jr.		Maryland House of Delegates (1995–2006)
Terry Davis	1989	Former NBA player	^[18]
Robert Prentiss Daniel	1924	President of Shaw and Virginia State universities for more than 30 years in total	^[19]
Will Downing	attended	R&B Singer
AJ English	1990	former Professional Basketball Player	^[18]
Walter Fauntroy	1955	Civil rights leader, minister, former Member of the U.S. House of Representatives, from Washington, D.C.'s At-large district and was a candidate for the 1972 Democratic presidential nomination
Anderson J. Franklin		Professor of Psychology at the School of Education at Boston College	^[20]
Samuel Lee Gravely, Jr.	1948	first African-American to reach the rank of admiral in the United States Navy
Abram Lincoln Harris	1922	Economist; chair, Economics Dept. Howard University (1936–1945); professor, University of Chicago
Pete Hunter	2002	former National Football League player
Cornelius Johnson	1967	Former NFL player
Eugene Kinckle Jones	1906	Member of the Black Cabinet under President Franklin D. Roosevelt and a founder of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.
Dwight Clinton Jones	1967	Mayor of Richmond, Virginia (2009–2016)
Charles Spurgeon Johnson	1916	first black president of Fisk University
Lyman T. Johnson	1930	integrated the University of Kentucky
Leontine T. Kelly	1960	a bishop of the United Methodist Church
Henry L. Marsh	1956	first African-American mayor of Richmond, Virginia and member of the Virginia Senate from the 16th district
Benjamin Mays	1916-1917, transferred to Bates College	President of Morehouse College, mentor to Martin Luther King, Jr.
Bai T. Moore		Liberian author and poet
Delores McQuinn	1976	Virginia House of Delegates (2009-present)
Charles Oakley		Professional basketball Player	^[18]
Chandler Owen	1913	Writer, editor and early member of the Socialist Party of America.
Wendell H. Phillips		member, Maryland House of Delegates (1979–1987)
Samuel DeWitt Proctor	1942	President of VUU and president of North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, where he made close acquaintance with then student body president Jesse Jackson
Randall Robinson		Attorney; founder of TransAfrica
James R. Roebuck, Jr.	1966	member of Pennsylvania House of Representatives, District 188
Spottswood William Robinson III	1937	Prominent civil rights attorney, dean of Howard University Law School, first African American to be appointed to the United States District Court for the District of Columbia
Frank S. Royal	1961	chairman of VUU's board; director of public companies; former president of the National Medical Association	^[21]
Herbert Scott	1974	National Football League player, 2-time All-Pro, 3-time Pro Bowl; Dallas Cowboys	^[22]
Wyatt T Walker		Activist, civil rights motivator, musician, Theologian who gave letter to Martin Luther King from Coretta; close confidant and preacher
Ben Wallace	1996	Professional Basketball Player, NBA Defensive Player of the Year, NBA Champion, Member of Basketball Hall of Fame; Detroit Pistons	^[18]
Douglas Wilder	1951	first African-American governor of Virginia (1990–1994) and Mayor of Richmond (2005–2009)
N. Scott Phillips	1983	member, Maryland House of Delegates

References

↑ "Nathaniel Colver". Encyclopedia Virginia. https://encyclopediavirginia.org/10189-c764a3d149657bf/.
↑ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009. https://npgallery.nps.gov/NRHP.
↑ "Virginia Landmarks Register". Virginia Department of Historic Resources. http://www.dhr.virginia.gov/registers/register_counties_cities.htm.
↑ Raymond Pierre Hylton, Virginia Union University, Arcadia Publishing, USA, 2014, p. 7
↑ Wheeler, Maurice, et al. “A Brief History of Library Service to African Americans.” American Libraries, vol. 35, no. 2, 2004, pp. 42–45. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/25649066
↑ ^6.0 ^6.1 "Virginia Union University (1865– )". Online Encyclopedia of Significant People and Places in African American History. Blackpast.org. 10 January 2010. http://www.blackpast.org/?q=aah/virginia-union-university-1865. Retrieved May 12, 2012.
↑ William H. Brackney, Congregation and Campus: Baptists in Higher Education, Mercer University Press, USA, 2008, p. 174
↑ "A Guide to the Hartshorn Memorial College Reunion Collection 1976–1980". L. Douglas Wilder Library Archives. February 7, 1980. http://ead.lib.virginia.edu/vivaead/published/vuu/virvu00002.document.
↑ "Virginia Archives Month October 2007: Images in Celebration". Library of Virginia Archives. http://www.lva.lib.va.us/whatwedo/archweek/2007/gallery.asp?inst=12.
↑ Hylton, Raymond. "University History". About Virginia Union. Virginia Union University. http://www.vuu.edu/about_vuu/history.aspx.
↑ "Virginia Union University | Schools". http://www.vuu.edu/academics/schools.aspx.
↑ "Member Institutions". Washington Theological Consortium. http://www.washtheocon.org/members.html.
↑ "Men's Sports / Women's Sports". Virginia Union University Athletics website. http://www.vuusports.com/.
↑ Newsroom, NBC12 (4 March 2018). "VUU men's, women's basketball teams win CIAA Championship" (in en-US). https://www.nbc12.com/story/37642056/vuu-mens-and-womens-basketball-teams-win-ciaa-championship.
↑ "Facilities: Barco-Stevens Hall". Virginia Union University Athletics website. http://vuusports.com/sports/2008/4/9/GEN_0409081653.aspx.
↑ American Baptist Home Mission Societies, Colleges and Universities, abhms.org, USA, retrieved October 22, 2022
↑ Zabitka, Matt (July 30, 1952). "UC's Doc Bea Shoots Pool to Sharpen Batting Eye; Triple Off Satchel Paige Brought Words of Warning". Chester Times. p. 16. Retrieved June 25, 2021.
↑ ^18.0 ^18.1 ^18.2 ^18.3 "NBA/ABA Players who attended Virginia Union University". DataBase Sports. http://www.basketballreference.com/players/bycollege.htm?sch=Virginia+Union+University.
↑ Guthrie, R.V. (1998). Production of Black Psychologists in America: 'Even the Rat Was White' (2nd ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon. pp. 155–212.
↑ "Anderson J Franklin Boston College". Boston College, Lynch School of Education. http://www.bc.edu/schools/lsoe/facultystaff/faculty/franklin.html.
↑ "Meharry board chair to retire after 30 years". Nashville Post. January 10, 2017. https://www.nashvillepost.com/business/people/article/20848527/meharry-board-chair-to-retire-after-30-years.
↑ Ellis, Josh (May 30, 2012). "The Ultimate 53: Herb Scott Can't Be Forgotten". Dallas Cowboys.com. http://www.dallascowboys.com/news/news.cfm?id=9E47AE63-D58B-121F-CE421BAF60859E42.

External links

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Original source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia Union University. Read more

[1] "Nathaniel Colver". Encyclopedia Virginia. https://encyclopediavirginia.org/10189-c764a3d149657bf/.

[nris-2] "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009. https://npgallery.nps.gov/NRHP.

[register-3] "Virginia Landmarks Register". Virginia Department of Historic Resources. http://www.dhr.virginia.gov/registers/register_counties_cities.htm.

[4] Raymond Pierre Hylton, Virginia Union University, Arcadia Publishing, USA, 2014, p. 7

[5] Wheeler, Maurice, et al. “A Brief History of Library Service to African Americans.” American Libraries, vol. 35, no. 2, 2004, pp. 42–45. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/25649066

[blackpast.org-6] 6.0 ^6.1 "Virginia Union University (1865– )". Online Encyclopedia of Significant People and Places in African American History. Blackpast.org. 10 January 2010. http://www.blackpast.org/?q=aah/virginia-union-university-1865. Retrieved May 12, 2012.

[7] William H. Brackney, Congregation and Campus: Baptists in Higher Education, Mercer University Press, USA, 2008, p. 174

[8] "A Guide to the Hartshorn Memorial College Reunion Collection 1976–1980". L. Douglas Wilder Library Archives. February 7, 1980. http://ead.lib.virginia.edu/vivaead/published/vuu/virvu00002.document.

[9] "Virginia Archives Month October 2007: Images in Celebration". Library of Virginia Archives. http://www.lva.lib.va.us/whatwedo/archweek/2007/gallery.asp?inst=12.

[Hylton-10] Hylton, Raymond. "University History". About Virginia Union. Virginia Union University. http://www.vuu.edu/about_vuu/history.aspx.

[11] "Virginia Union University | Schools". http://www.vuu.edu/academics/schools.aspx.

[12] "Member Institutions". Washington Theological Consortium. http://www.washtheocon.org/members.html.

[13] "Men's Sports / Women's Sports". Virginia Union University Athletics website. http://www.vuusports.com/.

[14] Newsroom, NBC12 (4 March 2018). "VUU men's, women's basketball teams win CIAA Championship" (in en-US). https://www.nbc12.com/story/37642056/vuu-mens-and-womens-basketball-teams-win-ciaa-championship.

[15] "Facilities: Barco-Stevens Hall". Virginia Union University Athletics website. http://vuusports.com/sports/2008/4/9/GEN_0409081653.aspx.

[16] American Baptist Home Mission Societies, Colleges and Universities, abhms.org, USA, retrieved October 22, 2022

[17] Zabitka, Matt (July 30, 1952). "UC's Doc Bea Shoots Pool to Sharpen Batting Eye; Triple Off Satchel Paige Brought Words of Warning". Chester Times. p. 16. Retrieved June 25, 2021.

[baskref-18] 18.0 ^18.1 ^18.2 ^18.3 "NBA/ABA Players who attended Virginia Union University". DataBase Sports. http://www.basketballreference.com/players/bycollege.htm?sch=Virginia+Union+University.

[19] Guthrie, R.V. (1998). Production of Black Psychologists in America: 'Even the Rat Was White' (2nd ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon. pp. 155–212.

[20] "Anderson J Franklin Boston College". Boston College, Lynch School of Education. http://www.bc.edu/schools/lsoe/facultystaff/faculty/franklin.html.

[21] "Meharry board chair to retire after 30 years". Nashville Post. January 10, 2017. https://www.nashvillepost.com/business/people/article/20848527/meharry-board-chair-to-retire-after-30-years.

[22] Ellis, Josh (May 30, 2012). "The Ultimate 53: Herb Scott Can't Be Forgotten". Dallas Cowboys.com. http://www.dallascowboys.com/news/news.cfm?id=9E47AE63-D58B-121F-CE421BAF60859E42.

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v t e Colleges and universities in Virginia
Public	Christopher Newport University College of William & Mary Eastern Virginia Medical School George Mason University James Madison University Joint Forces Staff College Longwood University Marine Corps University Norfolk State University Old Dominion University Radford University Richard Bland College University of Mary Washington University of Virginia University of Virginia's College at Wise Virginia Commonwealth University Virginia Community College System Virginia Military Institute Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Virginia State University Virginia–Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine
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Defunct	Art Institute of Washington Blackstone College for Girls Elizabeth College Frederick College Gibbs College Marion College Saint Paul's College Sullins College University of Northern Virginia Virginia Intermont College Westwood College
Complete list

v t e Historically black colleges and universities
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