Benedict College

Benedict College is a private historically black, liberal arts college in Columbia, South Carolina. Founded in 1870 by northern Baptists, it was originally a teachers' college. It has since expanded to offer majors in many disciplines across the liberal arts. The campus includes buildings in the Benedict College Historic District, a historic area listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Benedict College
Former names
Benedict Institute
MottoA Power for Good in Society
TypePrivate, HBCU
Established1870
Religious affiliation
American Baptist Churches USA
Endowment$23 million (as of 2007)[1]
PresidentRoslyn Clark Artis
Students2,247
Location
Columbia
,
South Carolina
,
United States
Campus110-acre (45 ha)
ColorsPurple and gold
         
AthleticsNCAA Division II - SLIAC
NicknameTigers
Sports14 varsity sports
Websitewww.benedict.edu

History
Benedict College Historic District
LocationRoughly bounded by Laurel, Oak, Taylor and Harden Sts. on Benedict College campus, Columbia, South Carolina
Area3.9 acres (1.6 ha)
ArchitectUrquhart, James B.
Architectural styleClassical Revival
NRHP reference No.87000809[2]
Added to NRHPApril 20, 1987

Benedict College was founded in 1870 on land that had been a 110-acre (45 ha) plantation in Columbia, South Carolina. Bathsheba A. Benedict of Pawtucket of Rhode Island provided the $13,000.00 to purchase the land as part of the American Baptist Home Mission Society. Benedict Institute opened on December 12, 1870, on the grounds of a plantation formerly worked by slaves, to educate African-Americans recently freed from slavery.[3]

Benedict's first class consisted of ten freedmen and one teacher, the Reverend Timothy L. Dodge, D.D. He was a college-trained preacher from the North, who became president of the Institute. Benedict Institute set out from humble beginnings in a dilapidated former slaveholder's mansion to prepare men and women to be "powers for good in society". The dilapidated mansion, built in 1839, served as the first schoolhouse, where grammar school subjects, along with Bible and theology, were taught. Eventually, other subjects were added to the curriculum to address the original objective of the school: to train teachers and preachers.

On November 2, 1894, the institution was chartered as a liberal arts college by the South Carolina Legislature and the name Benedict Institute was changed to Benedict College.

From 1870 to 1930, Benedict College was led by a succession of seven northern white Baptist ministers, all college trained. On April 10, 1930, the Reverend John J. Starks, who earned his bachelor's degree from the college in 1891, became the first African-American president of the college. Five African-American presidents have succeeded him.

Late 20th century to present

In 1994, with a strategic planning process in place, Benedict College set an enrollment goal of "2000 by the year 2000". The goal was achieved in 1996 with an enrollment of 2,138 students. The fall 2002 enrollment was 3,000. Benedict College is engaged in an ongoing strategic planning process, which will guide the college in the 21st century.

The college is implementing a $50 million campus improvement plan, which includes land acquisition and the completion of a comprehensive athletics complex. Campus facilities improvements over the past nine years have included installation of air-conditioning, fire sprinkler systems, and security systems in residence halls; completion of an activities field and community park; renovation of historic Antisdel Chapel, Bacoats and Alumni Halls, and restoration of historic Morgan, Pratt, and Starks halls, including the Student Leadership Development Center. During this period, new construction has included three residence halls, a parking garage, a campus center/dining hall, an Administration Building, and a Business Development Center. Additionally, buildings were acquired to house a fitness center, and the Division of Community Development/Center for Excellence. Three apartment complexes have been purchased for student housing. As a part of the college's community development thrust, more than 50 dilapidated properties in the adjacent community have been renovated.

Benedict College Historic District

The Benedict College Historic District was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1987.[2] It encompasses five buildings constructed between 1895 and 1937: Morgan Hall (1895), Pratt Hall (1902), Duckett Hall (1925), Antisdel Chapel (1932), and Starks Center (1937).[4][5]

Academics

Benedict offers 29 degrees from 12 departments.[6][7]

In addition to offering traditional education, the college also offers continuing education for those "non-traditional students".

Accreditation

Benedict College is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award baccalaureate degrees.

The Teacher Education Program is fully approved by the South Carolina Department of Education and the Program in Social Work is accredited by the Council on Social Work Education. The Environmental Health Science Program is fully accredited by the National Environmental Health Science and Protection Accreditation Council (EHAC).

Athletics
Official athletics logo.

Benedict College, known athletically as the Tigers, competes as a member of the NCAA Division II's Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC). The college sponsors 14 varsity sports; men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, football, tennis, track and field, and volleyball while women's sports include basketball, cheerleading, cross country, softball, tennis, track and field, and volleyball. The college has built the Charlie W. Johnson Stadium for its football games on-campus, which opened in 2006. Basketball games are played at HRC Arena. The college's cheer is "Break an arm, break a leg, Benedict!" The Benedict's Tigers Tennis Team won the SIAC Conference in 2015.

Marching Tigers "Band of Distinction"

Benedict's Marching Tigers "Band of Distinction" was founded in the 1960s under the direction of Roy McCollough. The band performs at most football games, home basketball games, and several special events throughout the year in the Georgia Dome of Atlanta, Georgia. The band is currently under the direction of Henry Wade Johnson.[8][9]

Notable alumni
Name Class year Notability Reference(s)
Chino Smith Negro Leagues baseball player who held a career batting average of .428 in six seasons.
Modjeska Monteith Simkins 1921 leader of African American public health reform, social reform and the civil rights movement in South Carolina [10]
Harold A. Stevens 1930 lawyer and former judge who served on the New York Court of General Sessions and New York Court of Appeals [11]
Jack B. Johnson former County Executive for Prince George's County, Maryland
LeRoy T. Walker former U.S. Olympic Committee Chairman
Waliyy Dixon Professional streetball player
Kris Bruton Basketball player who currently plays with the Harlem Globetrotters
Bennie Lewis 2009 Professional basketball player
James Maxie Ponder First African American physician in St. Petersburg, Florida [12]
Charles L. Purce 1879 President of Selma University and Simmons College of Kentucky
Mary Rice Phelps 1885 Teacher and writer [13]

References
  1. Mindy Lucas. "Benedict's Heavy Hitter". Free Times (Columbia, SC). Archived from the original on July 31, 2012. Retrieved January 17, 2012.
  2. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  3. Betsey, Charles L. (2008). "Grading for effort: the success equals effort policy at Benedict College". Historically black colleges and universities. New Brunswick, N.J.: Transaction Publishers. pp. 149‒164. ISBN 9781412812191. Retrieved May 27, 2013.
  4. J. Tracy Power (February 1987). "Benedict College Historic District" (pdf). National Register of Historic Places - Nomination and Inventory. Retrieved January 7, 2014.
  5. "Benedict College Historic District, Richland County (Columbia)". National Register Properties in South Carolina. South Carolina Department of Archives and History. Retrieved January 7, 2014. and accompanying map Archived September 24, 2015, at the Wayback Machine
  6. "Degree Programs and Majors". Archived from the original on June 29, 2005.
  7. "Academics". Benedict College. Archived from the original on September 1, 2005.
  8. "Band Membership Requirements - Benedict College". www.benedict.edu. Archived from the original on June 30, 2018. Retrieved June 6, 2019.
  9. "2018 Honda Battle of the Bands - Benedict College The Marching Tiger Band of Distinction". www.hondabattleofthebands.com.
  10. "Modjeska Simkins - Notable Black South Carolinans". scafricanamerican.com. Archived from the original on July 16, 2011. Retrieved January 26, 2011.
  11. Navarro, Mireya (November 11, 1990). "Judge Harold Stevens First Black on Court of Appeals". The New York Times. Retrieved January 25, 2011.
  12. Arsenault, Kathy (September 17, 2001). "The Ernest Ayer Ponder Collection" (PDF). University of South Florida St. Petersburg: Digital Archive. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 6, 2016. Retrieved January 28, 2016.
  13. Haley, James T. (May 1, 2012). Afro-American Encyclopaedia; Or, the Thoughts, Doings, and Sayings of the Race... CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform. p. 113. ISBN 978-1477421130. Retrieved September 18, 2019 – via HathiTrust Digital Library.

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