Oakwood University
President Leslie Pollard | | |
Undergraduates | 1,810[2] | |
---|---|---|
Location | , , U.S. 34°45′22″N 86°39′11″W / 34.756°N 86.653°W | |
Campus | Suburban, 1,185 acres (480 ha) | |
Colors | Blue & Gold | |
Nickname | Ambassadors | |
Sporting affiliations | NAIA – GCAC USCAA Division I – Independent | |
Mascot | The Ambassador | |
Website | oakwood | |
Oakwood University is a
Oakwood University is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) and the Department of Education of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists (through the Adventist Accrediting Association) to award associate, baccalaureate, and master's degrees.
Oakwood University owns and operates the Christian radio station WJOU 90.1 FM, formerly WOCG.[4]
Oakwood University is the only
In 2014, it became the first HBCU to offer a
In 2018, the
History
Early years
Oakwood University has its origins in the post-
Named for the oak trees surrounding it and the white SDA Church leaders' belief that industrial work is fitting for southern African-Americans,[3] students were initially required to work in industrial positions on-campus to pay for their tuition. Their jobs included machine shop and farm work for male students and print shop, laundry and tailor shop work for female students.[13] Classes commenced in November 1896[10] with 16 students enrolled.[10][12] Solon Marquis Jacobs served as the school's first principal beginning in 1896, and in 1917, James Irving Beardsley was appointed the first president.[8] By that same year, the school offered a theology program as well as a programs for various trades, such as farming, teaching, masonry and pre-nursing.[11][10] Prior to 1917, the school was renamed Huntsville Training School and Oakwood Manual Training School[10] before it became Oakwood Junior College.[12]
Social activism
In 1931, after years of student complaints about school conditions—including "heavy work schedules, low wages, the inability to accumulate academic credit due to the workloads" and
Due to the conservative ideologies of the SDA Church, students' initial involvement in the
The Church and the South's expectations for women hindered female students' freedom to choose to participate in
Accreditation and growth
Oakwood began with an initial enrollment of 16 students in 1896,[10][12][15] and increased to more than 100 by 1917 and 200 in 1927.[15]
It was initially accredited as a junior college in 1943,[15] and the school's first baccalaureate degrees were awarded in 1945.[12][10]
Between 1958 and 1963, Oakwood made progress toward full senior college accreditation by the
Oakwood's enrollment reached over 1,000 in 1974,[15] and from 1973 to 1982, the number of graduates increased from 124 to 200.[11]
By 2003, Oakwood offered
In 2008, Oakwood College was renamed Oakwood University[15] and was approved to offer a graduate program in religion.[11] That same year, enrollment increased to 1,865 with representation from 42 U.S. states and 30 countries.[11] By fall 2012, enrollment reached 2,019.[15]
In 2014, Oakwood was approved to transfer from sponsorship under the General Conference to sponsorship under the North American Division.[6][16]
In 2016, Oakwood achieved full accreditation by the Adventist Accrediting Association.[6]
Academics
Oakwood University offers undergraduate and graduate degrees through the following schools:[17]
- School of Arts & Sciences
- School of Business & Information Systems
- School of Education & Social Sciences
- School of Nursing & Health Professions
- School of Theology
In 2004, Oakwood entered into a
In 2009, Oakwood was the first HBCU to enter NASA's Mentor-Protégé signing agreement with SAIC. Through the three-year agreement, SAIC continued to provide Oakwood with technology enhancement, contract management and business administration support and would also begin offering technical and engineering internships to students.[20][18] By 2015, Oakwood had entered into similar contracts with Boeing, Leidos and Honeywell, among others.[19]
Student activities
There are over 30 clubs and organizations on campus.[21]
Musical groups
The Aeolians, Oakwood University's premier touring ensemble, was founded in 1946 by former professor, Dr.
Academic competitions
At the 2008
Athletics
The Oakwood athletic teams are called the Ambassadors and Lady Ambassadors. The university is a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), primarily competing in the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference (GCAC) since the 2022–23 academic year.[26] The Ambassadors and Lady Ambassadors previously competed as a member of the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) until after the 2021–22 school year.[27]
Oakwood competes in five intercollegiate varsity sports: men's teams include basketball and soccer; while women's teams include basketball, soccer and volleyball. Former sports included baseball and softball.
Intramurals
The university also offers several intramural sport activities.[28]
Move to the NAIA
On January 20, 2022, Oakwood got an invitation to join the GCAC, along with
Men's basketball
The Ambassadors men's basketball team won the 2008 USCAA National Championship in the team's first season a member of the association. The Ambassadors won their second USCAA Division I National Championship in March 2012 against
Adventist Colleges Abroad
Adventist Colleges Abroad is a program that allows Oakwood students to spend time studying at Adventist universities outside of the United States while earning credit for the degree they are pursuing at Oakwood.[32]
Principals and presidents
Everyone who served between 1896 and 1917 was a principal. Everyone listed afterward was a president.[8]
- Solon Marquis Jacobs, 1896–1897
- Henry S. Shaw, 1897–1899
- Benn Eugene Nicola, 1899–1904
- Fred R. Rogers, 1904–1905
- Granville H. Baber, 1905–1906
- Walter James Blake, 1906–1911
- Clarence Jesse Boyd, 1911–1917
- James I. Beardsley, 1917–1923
- Joseph A. Tucker, 1923–1932
- Frank Loris Peterson, 1945–1954
- Garland Jefferson Millet, 1954–1963
- Addison Vastapha Pinkney, 1963–1966
- Frank W. Hale Jr., 1966–1971
- Calvin B. Rock, 1971–1985
- Benjamin F. Reaves, 1985–1996
- Delbert W. Baker, 1996–2010
- Leslie N. Pollard, 2010–present
Notable alumni
Name | Class year | Notability | Reference(s) |
---|---|---|---|
Dr. Delbert Baker | 1975 | Administrator, educator, author and former president of Oakwood University (currently serves on the White House Board for HBCUs) | |
Barry Black | former U.S. Navy Chief of Chaplains and Chaplain of the U.S. Senate | ||
Ronald Brise
|
Florida State Representative | ||
Angela Brown | Soprano Opera Singer | ||
Alvin Chea
|
Member of the gospel group Take 6 | ||
Clifton Davis | Actor, Pastor, Singer, Songwriter | ||
T. R. M. Howard | 1931 | Civil Rights Leader, Surgeon, Entrepreneur, Mentor to Medgar Evers and Fannie Lou Hamer | |
Heather Knight | 1982 | President of Pacific Union College
|
|
Davido | Nigerian Afropop musician
|
||
Brian McKnight | R&B Singer/musician, and also brother of alumnus Claude McKnight
|
||
Claude McKnight
|
Member of the gospel group Take 6 | ||
Wintley Phipps | Pastor, Singer, Founder and President of U.S. Dream Academy | ||
John F. Street | Former mayor of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | ||
Mervyn Warren | Member of the gospel group Take 6 | ||
Committed
|
Winners of Season 2, NBC's The Sing Off | ||
Amber Bullock | 2011 | Winner of Season 4 BET's Sunday Best | |
Little Richard | American recording artist, singer-songwriter and actor. | [33] | |
Eric Thomas | 2001 | Pastor, Motivational Speaker, Author, and Educator. | |
Sydney Freeman Jr. | Educational theorist, author, and social scientist at the University of Idaho. |
Further reading
- Oakwood! A Vision Splendid, Mervyn A. Warren (1996)
- Warren, Mervyn A. (2010). Oakwood! A Vision Splendid Continues. Collegedale, Tennessee; College Press. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
- A Place Called Oakwood, Benjamin J. Baker
See also
- List of Seventh-day Adventist colleges and universities
- List of historically black colleges of the United States
- Seventh-day Adventist education
References
- ^ As of June 30, 2017. "Oakwood University has an endowment valued at nearly $15.6M, as of the end of the 2017 fiscal year. The return on its endowment was of $2.27M (14.5%), compared to the 7.76% average return ($2.88M on $37.1M) across all Baccalaureate Colleges".
- ^ Hashimoto, Giovanni (22 November 2011). "Adventist College and University Enrollment Generally Up". Spectrum. Archived from the original on 23 October 2014. Retrieved 23 November 2011.
- ^ S2CID 143226204. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
- ^ "Home - WJOU".
- ^ McLaughlin, Budd; Times, The Huntsville (27 February 2012). "Oakwood University a 'pioneer' with ISO 9001 certification". al. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f "2018 PRESIDENT'S REPORT" (PDF). Oakwood University. Retrieved 16 March 2022.
- ^ "Oakwood University Receives the Crystal Apple Award for Campus Wellness Initiatives". spectrummagazine.org. Retrieved 17 March 2022.
- ^ a b c d "Oakwood University". Encyclopedia of Seventh-day Adventists. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
- ISBN 978-0-8078-5467-9.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-8108-6826-7. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Oakwood University". Encyclopedia of Alabama. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-8280-1430-4. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
- ISBN 978-0-252-03420-6. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
- ^ a b Wherry, Xavier (17 January 2022). "'An atmosphere of pride': Remembering Martin Luther King Jr.'s speech at Oakwood University". WAAY 31 News. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Oakwood University Fact Book 2012-2013" (PDF). Oakwood University. 4 October 2016. Retrieved 16 March 2022.
- ^ "Oakwood Seeks to Become NAD Institution | Adventist Review". adventistreview.org. 27 September 2014. Retrieved 17 March 2022.
- ^ "Home - Graduate Programs".
- ^ a b c "Small Business Success Story: NASA-SAIC-Oakwood Mentor-Protégé Relationship" (PDF). Office of Small Business Programs. No. 18. Fall 2011. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
- ^ a b c Cotton, Sabrina (12 June 2015). Oakwood Magazine: Summer 2015 (Summer 2015 ed.). Oakwood University. pp. 16–17. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
- ^ Humphery, Betty. "NASA - NASA Mentor-Protégé Signing Agreement Between SAIC, Oakwood University Makes History". www.nasa.gov. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
- ^ "Life at Oakwood - Oakwood University". 24 May 2017.
- ^ "Aeolians". Archived from the original on 20 July 2011. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
- ^ Wright, Jared. Oakwood University Vocalists Star on NBC's "Sing-Off" Spectrum Blog, December 7, 2010. Includes video of their performance.
- ^ "Jacob Collier with Metropole Orkest Djesse, Vol. 1". March 2019. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
- ^ "Honda Campus All-Star Challenge".
- ^ a b "GCAC Extends Membership To Oakwood University, Wiley College, Southern University at New Orleans". January 20, 2022. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
- ^ "The USCAA Membership: Oakwood University". USCAA. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
- ^ "Intramural Sports". Oakwood University Athletics. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
- ^ Staff (March 2012). "Oakwood University Wins USCAA National Men's Basketball Championship". Adventist Today News. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
- ^ Culpepper, Reginald (March 10, 2016). "Ambassadors of Oakwood University Win USCAA Basketball Championship". HBCU Connect. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
- ^ "Oakwood Wins Men's Division I National Championship, Fourth in School History". USCAA. March 9, 2019. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
- ^ "Adventist Colleges Abroad". Oakwood University. Archived from the original on 2010-05-27. Retrieved 2010-01-13.
- ^ Hall, Kristin (2020-09-25). "Little Richard to be buried at historically black college". PBS NewsHour. Retrieved 2020-09-25.