 | |
Former names | Phillips University (1909–1912) |
|---|---|
| Motto | Per lumen scientiae viam invenient populi (Latin) |
Motto in English | "Give The People Light, and They Will Find Their Way" |
| Type | Privatehistorically black college |
| Established | 1894; 131 years ago (1894) |
Religious affiliation | Christian Methodist Episcopal Church |
Academic affiliations | CIC UNCF |
| Endowment | $8.2M (2021) |
| President | Dwight J. Fennell, Sr. |
| Students | 972 |
| Location | , U.S. 32°22′32″N95°18′45″W / 32.3756°N 95.3124°W /32.3756; -95.3124 |
| Colors | Purple and gold |
| Nickname | Steers |
Sporting affiliations | NAIA –RRAC (primary) NAIA –Sooner (football) |
| Mascot | Steers |
| Website | texascollege.edu |
 | |
Texas College is aprivate,historically blackChristian Methodist Episcopal college inTyler, Texas. It is affiliated with theUnited Negro College Fund. It was founded in 1894 by a group of ministers affiliated with the Christian Methodist Episcopal (CME) Church, a predominantly black denomination, which was at the time known as the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church in America. They planned to provide for education of African-American students, who were excluded from thesegregated university system of Texas. They planned a full literary, scientific, and classical education fortheology,normal training of lower-school teachers, music, commercial and industrial training, and agricultural and mechanical sciences.
On January 9, 1894, Texas College was founded by a group of ministers affiliated with the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church, a black denomination. They planned a full, co-educational college to serve people inEast Texas.
On June 12, 1909, the name of the college was changed from Texas College toPhillips University. It was named for BishopHenry Phillips and his leadership. The name reversal occurred in 1910 at the Third Annual Conference of the church. In May 1912, the college was officially renamed Texas College. The subsequent years of the college were spent with refinements and enhancements of the educational enterprise.
In 1948, theD.R. Glass Library was built and designed byMcKissack & McKissack, and it is aNRHP-listed building.[1]
The Articles of Incorporation reflect such efforts with modifications and amendments during periods 1909 to 1966. The college today is open to all individuals without discrimination on the grounds of national origin, race, religion, or sex. It is authorized to offer instruction in the areas of arts and sciences, humanities, natural sciences, social sciences, preparation of teachers, and the provision of instructional supports, to those in pursuit of an education.
Texas College offers bachelor's degree programs in biology, business administration, criminal justice, computer science, English, interdisciplinary studies (teacher certification), mathematics, music, liberal studies, religion, social work, and sociology. Also available areassociate of arts degrees in early childhood education and general studies, as well as a post-baccalaureate alternative certification teacher education program for people with bachelor's degrees.[9]
According to the US Department of Education's College Scorecard, the college has a 24% graduation rate, defined as the percentage of students who graduate within eight years of their first enrollment at the college. This rate compares to themedian average of 58% graduation rate for US four-year colleges overall.[10]
The Texas College athletic teams are called the Steers. The college is a member of theNational Association of Intercollegiate Athletics, primarily competing in theRed River Athletic Conference for most of their sports since the 1998–99 academic year; its football team competes in theSooner Athletic Conference (SAC). The Steers previously competed as a founding member of theSouthwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) from 1920–21 to 1961–62, which is currently anNCAA Division IFCS athletic conference.
Texas College competes in 12 intercollegiate varsity sports: Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, football, soccer, and track and field; women's sports include basketball, cross country, soccer, softball, track and field, and volleyball.
Texas College was a member of the SWAC from 1920 to 1961 (41 years). Texas College was the SWAC football champion in 1934, 1935, 1936, and 1942, and three-way champion with Wiley College and Langston University in 1944, finishing the season with a conference record of 5–1 and an overall record of 8–1. The last SWAC football victory was against Prairie View A&M University in 2003 by a score of 21 to 10.
Its football team was revived as an official sport in 2004, and competed in theCentral States Football League (CSFL). The Texas College football team won two CSFL Conference co-championships in 2005 and 2006. In 2018, the Texas College football team joined the SAC as an associate member.
Texas College constructed a new residence hall, the Living and Learning Center, that opened in 2016. Residence halls also include the Daniel and the Maddie A. Fair Residence Hall, which was renovated in 2016, as well.[11]
Texas College has eight of the nineNational Pan-Hellenic Council organizations on campus.
| Name | Class Year | Notability | Reference(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Irma P. Hall | 1956 | Poet and stage and film actress; nominated and has received NAACP Image Award for best supporting actress for her role inSoul Food. In 2004, wonPrixe du Jury fromCannes Film Festival for her performance inThe Ladykillers; inducted into the Texas Film Hall of Fame in 2005; co-founder of the Dallas Minority Repertory Theatre | [12] |
| Jesse W. Jones | 1954 | Professor of chemistry atBaylor University and a member of theTexas House of Representatives from 1992 to 2006 | [citation needed] |
| Mildred Fay Jefferson | 1944 | The first black woman to graduate fromHarvard Medical School, the first woman to graduate in surgery from Harvard Medical School, and the first woman to become a member of the Boston Surgical Society | [13] |
| Lenton Malry | 1957 | The first African American to serve in theNew Mexico House of Representatives (1969–1979) and on theBernalillo County Board of Commissioners (1981–1989) | [14] |
| Department | Name | Notability | Reference(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home economics | Willie Lee Dorothy Campbell Glass | American educator, founded the home economics department at the college, married the president of the college,Dominion Robert Glass, in 1936 | [15] |
| Head of the humanities division | Lena Beatrice Morton | American educator and literary scholar, was recipient of the Minnie Stevens Piper Professor Award for excellence in teaching, was a life fellow of the International Institute of Arts and Letters in Switzerland, author ofNegro Poetry in America (1925),Farewell to the Public Schools, I'm Glad We Met: A Handbook for Teachers (1952),Man Under Stress (1960),Patterns of Language Usage, My First Sixty Years: Passion for Wisdom (1965), andThe Influence of the Sea Upon English Poetry from the Anglo-Saxon to the Victorian Period (1976), graduated from the University of Cincinnati and was a founding member of the school's first African-American Greek organization, Zeta chapter ofDelta Sigma Theta sorority, earned her PhD from Case Western Reserve University in 1947, is featured in vol. 6 ofAfrican American National Biography, edited by H. L. Gates, Jr. and E. B. Higginbotham | [16] |
