Allen University

{{Short description|Historically black university in Columbia, South Carolina, US}}

{{Infobox university

| name = Allen University

| image = Allen University seal.png

| image_size = 150

| motto = We Teach The Mind To Think, The Hands To Work, The Heart To Love

| established = {{start date and age|1870}}

| type = Private historically black university

| religious_affiliation = African Methodist Episcopal Church

| affiliation = UNCF

| endowment = $629,320 (2024)

| president = Ernest McNealey

| administrative_staff = 530

| students = 677 (fall 2023)

| city = Columbia

| state = South Carolina

| country = United States

| campus = Urban

| former_names = Payne Institute
(1870–1880)

| colors = {{color box|#025399}} {{color box|#f3cf3e}}
Royal Blue & Gold

| sports_nickname = Yellow Jackets

| mascot = Yellow Jacket

| athletics_affiliations = NCAA Division II – SIAC

| website = {{URL|https://allenuniversity.edu/|allenuniversity.edu}}

| logo = Allen University logo.png

| logo_size = 200

}}

Allen University is a private historically black university in Columbia, South Carolina, United States. It has more than 600 students and still serves a predominantly Black constituency.{{cite web |url=http://www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2013/12/11/southern-accreditor-clears-virginia-fisk-florida-am |title=Southern Accreditor Clears Virginia, Fisk, Florida A&M |website=Inside Higher Ed |date=December 11, 2013 |access-date=December 24, 2013}} The campus is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as Allen University Historic District.

History

Allen University was founded in Cokesbury in 1870 as Payne Institute by ministers of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, including John M. Brown.Simmons, William J., and Henry McNeal Turner. Men of Mark: Eminent, Progressive and Rising. GM Rewell & Company, 1887. p1113-1118 Its initial mission was to provide education to freedmen, former African American slaves and their children.

In 1880, it was moved to Columbia and renamed Allen University in honor of Richard Allen, founder of the African Methodist Episcopal Church. The university remains connected to the denomination, which is related to other Methodist churches. As one of two black colleges located in Columbia, Allen has a very strong presence in the African-American community. Allen University initially focused on training ministers and teachers, who were considered critical to the progress of African Americans. Over the years, it has enlarged its scope to produce graduates in other academic areas.

In 1885, Joseph W. Morris became president of the university.[No Headline], Washington Bee (Washington, DC), 20 June 1885, p. 3 By 1898, the university reported having a total of 9 faculty, 304 students, and 208 graduates.Hawkins, John R., ed. (1898). "[https://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:GSE.LIBR:37043830?n=49 Our Schools from Latest Reports"]. The Educator. Educational Department of the A.M.E. Church. 1 (no. 1): 47.

Academics

The university is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to offer Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees. These degree programs are organized into five divisions:

Division of Humanities
Division of Social Sciences
Division of Mathematics and Natural Sciences
Division of Business Administration
Division of Religion

In 2010, Washington Monthly reported in its annual College Guide edition that the school had a six percent graduation rate.{{cite web|url=http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/college_guide/rankings_2010/dropout_factories.php|title=Dropout Factories|work=College Guide 2010|publisher=Washington Monthly|access-date=2009-08-30|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100825232547/http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/college_guide/rankings_2010/dropout_factories.php|archive-date=2010-08-25|url-status=dead}} In 2018, Allen University launched its first graduate program, the Dickerson-Green Theological Seminary.{{cite web |url=https://www.carolinapanorama.com/hbcus/allen-university-launches-dickerson-green-theological-seminary/article_dcb6f7ee-9623-11e8-8845-032837d3f30a.html |title=Allen University launches Dickerson-Green Theological Seminary |publisher=Carolina Panorama Newspaper |date=August 2, 2018 |access-date=February 28, 2020}} Under the seminary's founding dean, Jamal-Dominique Hopkins, Dickerson-Green Theological Seminary gained member status with the Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada to offer the Master of Arts in Religion and Master of Divinity degrees.{{cite web | url=https://www.ats.edu/files/galleries/ats-members-gather-in-pittsburgh-for-2022-biennial-meeting.pdf |title=ATS members gather in Pittsburgh for 2022 ATS/COA Biennial Meeting |publisher=Association of Theological Schools Commission on Accrediting |date=June 22, 2022 |access-date=July 2, 2022}}

Campus

{{Infobox NRHP

| name = Allen University

| nrhp_type = hd

| nocat = yes

| image = Chappelle Administration Building, Allen University (Columbia).jpg

| caption = Chappelle Administration Building

| location = 1530 Harden St., Columbia, South Carolina

| coordinates = {{coord|34|0|38|N|81|1|14|W|region:US-SC_type:edu|display=inline,title}}

| area =

| built = 1891

| architecture =

| added = April 14, 1975

| refnum = 75001705{{NRISref |refnum=75001705|2010a}}

}}

Buildings such as Arnett Hall, the Chappelle Administration Building, Coppin Hall, the Joseph Simon Flippen Library, and the Canteen Building are included in what is designated as the Allen University Historic District, listed in 1975 on the National Register of Historic Places.{{Cite web

| last = Dixon | first = Nenie |author2=Pat Landholt | title = Octagon House|date= January 26, 1975 | url = http://www.nationalregister.sc.gov/richland/S10817740030/S10817740030.pdf |access-date = 17 August 2012}}{{Cite web | title = Allen University Historic District, Richland County (1530 Harden St., Columbia) | work = National Register Properties in South Carolina | publisher = South Carolina Department of Archives and History | url = http://www.nationalregister.sc.gov/richland/S10817740030/index.htm | access-date = 17 August 2012}}

In addition to its National Register of Historic Places status, Allen University Historic District falls within the boundaries of Waverly Protection Area, a Preservation District within the City of Columbia Urban Design and Historic Preservation District system.City of Columbia Preservation Districts". City of Columbia Planning and Preservation. Archived from the original on 2021-07-09. Retrieved January 2, 2023. This Preservation District is an expansion of Waverly Historic District.

Several of the district's buildings were restored, using $2.9 million in funds obtained through the Historically Black Colleges and Universities Historic Building Restoration and Preservation Act. Chappelle Auditorium's seating capacity of 700 has made it the site of countless organizations' and community events.

The auditorium was the site of the meeting of educators and lawyers to initiate efforts that led to the landmark US Supreme Court case Brown v. Board of Education (1954) on school integration. Nationally known musicians and artists, including Leontyne Price, Brook Benton and Langston Hughes, have performed in the auditorium. Notable speakers include: Mary McCleod Bethune, Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.,{{cite web |url=https://www.thestate.com/news/local/article85771372.html |title=The past restored: Allen University opens renovated auditorium |date=June 24, 2016 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160625135546/https://www.thestate.com/news/local/article85771372.html |archive-date=2016-06-25 |quote=Artists including Leontyne Price, Brook Benton and Langston Hughes performed there. The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and Muhammad Ali are among the other celebrities who appeared at Chappelle Auditorium over the years.}} Muhammad Ali, Reverend Jesse Jackson, George Elmore, John H. McCray, and Senator Strom Thurmond. The auditorium was named in honor of Bishop William D. Chappelle, an Allen University President. On April 14, 1975, Chappelle Administration Building was recognized by the U.S. Department of the Interior and placed on the National Register of Historic Places.{{citation needed|date=January 2020}}

Chappelle Administration Building was designed by John Anderson Lankford (1874-1946), who is known as the "Dean of Black Architects". It is a National Historic Landmark. Lankford also served as the official architect of the AME Church.{{citation needed|date=January 2020}}

Adams Gymnatorium
Arnett Hall
Cafeteria
Chappelle Administration Building (a National Historic Landmark)
Coppin Hall
Counseling Center
Dickerson-Green Theological Seminary House
Flipper Library
Higgins Hall
Mance House
Reid Hall
Richard Allen Apartments
Williams Living and Learning Complex

Student life

Allen University is the home of more than 15 on-campus student organizations.

= National Pan-Hellenic Council organizations =

Allen University has eight of the nine national black fraternities and sororities of the National Pan-Hellenic Council present on campus.

Athletics

The Allen athletic teams are called the Yellow Jackets.

The university is a member of the NCAA Division II ranks, primarily competing in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) as a member since the 2020–21 academic year (achieving D-II full member status in 2022–23); which they were a member on a previous stint from 1947–48 to 1968–69. The Yellow Jackets previously competed in the Southeastern Athletic Conference from 1929 to 1947, the Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) from 2016–17 to 2019–20; as an NAIA Independent within the Association of Independent Institutions (AII) from 2005–06 to 2015–16; and in the defunct Eastern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (EIAC) from 1983–84 to 2004–05.

Allen competes in 12 intercollegiate varsity sports. Men's sports include basketball, cross country, football, track & field and wrestling; while women's sports include basketball, cross country, soccer, softball, track & field, volleyball, and wrestling.

= Marching band =

Following the reinstatement of the football program in 2018, the marching band, known as the Band of Gold, was reinstated under the direction of former Marching 101 director Eddie Ellis.{{Cite web|title=A Marching Band at Allen University|url=https://www.blackprwire.com/news/a-marching-band-at-allen-university|url-status=live|access-date=March 8, 2021|website=Black PRWire |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220408000736/https://www.blackprwire.com/news/a-marching-band-at-allen-university |archive-date=2022-04-08}}

Notable alumni

{{alum/start

|ilist=

|alist=

{{Alum|name=Sam Davis|year=1967|nota=A retired American football player, who played for the National Football League's Pittsburgh Steelers from 1967 to 1979. |ref=}}

{{Alum|name=Hall Johnson|year=1908|nota= American composer and arranger|ref=}}

{{Alum|name=George Harold|year=|nota=former professional American football player|ref=}}

{{Alum|name=Joseph DeLaine|year=1931|nota=minister and civil rights leader who worked with South Carolina NAACP on the legal case Briggs vs Elliot in 1952. It was one of the four cases argued under Brown vs. Board of Education|ref=}}

{{Alum|name=Dock J. Jordan|year=1892|nota=American lawyer, author, educator, civil rights activist; President of Edward Waters University and Kittrell College. |ref=}}

{{Alum|name=Lewis C. Dowdy|year=1939|nota=American educator; Sixth president and first chancellor of North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University|ref={{cite web|title=Dr. Lewis Carnegie Dowdy Chancellor of North Carolina A&T University|url=http://www.scislaw.com/genealogy/dowdy/Famous_LewisCarnegieDowdy_Academic.html|access-date=20 May 2014}}}}

{{Alum|name=Ralph Anderson|year=1949|nota=member of the South Carolina House of Representatives (1991- 1996) South Carolina Senate, 19th District (1997)|ref=}}

{{Alum|name=DeWitt Williams|year=1950|nota=member of the South Carolina Senate, 102nd District (1983-1996-present) SC Senate (1996-1997) District 102nd|ref=}}

{{Alum|name=Kay Patterson|year=1956|nota=member of the South Carolina Senate, 7th District (1985-2008)|ref=}}

{{Alum|name=William Clyburn|year=1964|nota=member of Aiken City Council (1973-1980) (1983-1983) the South Carolina House of Representatives, 82nd District (1995-Present)|ref=}}

{{Alum|name=Clementa Carlos Pinckney|year=1995|nota=member of the South Carolina House of Representatives, 73rd District (1997- 2000) SC Senate District 45 (2000-2015)|ref=}}

}}