Bishop College

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name = Bishop College
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established = 1881
closed = 1988
type = HBCU
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city = Marshall and Dallas
state = Texas
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For the Anglican school in Colombo, Sri Lanka, see Bishop's College.

Bishop College was a historically black college, founded in Marshall, Texas, and later moved to Dallas, Texas, that operated from 1881 to 1988.

History

The college was founded by the Baptist Home Mission Society in 1881 as the result of a movement to build a college for African-American Baptists. The movement was started by Nathan Bishop, who had been the superintendent of several major school systems in New England. Baylor University President Rufus C. Burleson secured a pledge of $25,000 from Judge Bishop during a meeting of the National Baptist Education Society meeting in Philadelphia, PA to start the college. A committee of Baptist ministers from East Texas selected a location in Marshall, on land belonging to the Holcomb Plantation, "Wylucing".

In the early 20th century, under the leadership of the college's first African-American president, Joseph J. Rhoads, Bishop phased out its high school programs and placed emphasis on its new two-year ministerial program. During the 1930s and 1940s the program evolved into the Lacy Kirk Williams Institute, which attracted national attention; its attendants included the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Rev. Jesse Jackson. After receiving a grant from the Hoblitzelle Foundation, Bishop moved to Dallas in 1961.

The college closed in 1988 after a financial scandal led to the revocation of its accreditation, as well as its eligibility to receive funds from charities such as the United Negro College Fund. The campus, purchased in 1990 by Comer S. Cottrell, is now the site of Paul Quinn College.

In 2006, the president of Georgetown College in Georgetown, Kentucky proposed a plan to Bishop College alumni to make Georgetown their adopted "alma mater". Georgetown offers scholarships to children or grandchildren of Bishop alumni or students nominated by Bishop alumni. Upon graduation, these students receive diplomas with the name and insignia of Bishop College. Georgetown president William H. Crouch Jr. hopes the program will help the college reach its goal of increasing minority enrollment to 25% by 2012. [cite journal |last=Moser |first=Kate |title=A Home for Alumni of a Defunct College |journal=The Chronicle of Higher Education |volume=54 |issue=39 |pages=p. A6 |date=2008-06-06 |url=http://chronicle.com/weekly/v54/i39/39a00603.htm |accessdate=2008-06-03]

Notable alumni

References

External links

*Handbook of Texas|id=BB/kbb11|name=Bishop College