Bluefield College

Not to be confused with Bluefield State College.
Bluefield College
Motto Deus, Patria, Lux
Motto in English
 God, Country, Light
Established 1922
Type Private
Affiliation Baptist General Association of Virginia
President David W. Olive
Students 912[1]
Undergraduates 894[1]
Postgraduates 16[1]
Location Bluefield, VA, U.S.
Campus 82 acres
Colors Blue and Red          [2]
Athletics Appalachian Athletic Conference and Mid-South Conference of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics
Sports 14 varsity teams
Nickname Rams
Mascot Victor E. Ram
Affiliations Appalachian College Association, Council for Christian Colleges and Universities
Website bluefield.edu

Bluefield College is a small, Christian liberal arts college in Bluefield, Virginia, United States, in Tazewell County. It offers 22 majors, and is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. The 82-acre (330,000 m2) campus is about 150 ft (46 m) from the state line between Virginia and West Virginia.

History

Bluefield College was founded in 1922 by the Baptist General Association of Virginia (BGAV), after residents of Bluefield offered to donate land and start-up funds.[3] R.A. Landsdell became the first president in 1920, and the current administration building is named Landsdell Hall in his honor. At its founding, Bluefield was a two-year junior college. Future Nobel Prize winner John F. Nash took mathematics courses at the relatively new college while in high school. In his autobiography for the Nobel Foundation, he writes

I should mention that during my last year in the Bluefield schools that my parents had arranged for me to take supplementary math. courses at Bluefield College, which was then a 2-year institution operated by Southern Baptists. I didn't get official advanced standing at Carnegie because of my extra studies but I had advanced knowledge and ability and didn't need to learn much from the first math. courses at Carnegie.[4]

Under Charles L. Harman, president from 1946–1971, the college built Easley Library, the dormitory Rish Hall, Harman Chapel, and a geodesic dome as the gymnasium.[3]

In 1975, Bluefield reinvented itself as a four-year college, and during the 1989-1996 presidency of Roy A. Dobyns, student enrollment doubled to more than 800 students. In 1998, under the leadership of President Daniel G. MacMillan, the college cut tuition by over 20% and refocused its student recruitment on the local area.[3]

In 2007, the current president, David W. Olive, was inaugurated.[5] Shortly thereafter, the college raised tuition by about 20%,[6] and announced a new strategic plan.

Campus

Bluefield College's campus is located on 82 acres on the eastern edge of Bluefield, Virginia, facing the northern side of the East River Mountain.

Academic and administrative buildings

Residential buildings

Student life facilities

The campus also features access to outdoor activities, including an on-campus nature trail and cave.[7]

Athletic facilities

Academics

Bluefield College offers the following areas of study:

College of Arts and Letters

Department of Christian Studies

Department of Art and Design

Department of Music

Department of Theatre

Department of History

Department of English

College of Professional Programs

Department of Business

Department of Communication

Department of Graphic Communication

Department of Criminal Justice

Department of Human Services

Department of Management & Leadership

College of Sciences

Department of Biology

Department of Chemistry

Department of Exercise & Sport Science

Department of Mathematics

Department of Psychology

School of Education

School of Nursing

Online degree programs

Bluefield College has been offering online bachelor’s degree programs since 2011. The college is ranked by U.S. News & World Report in the Best Online Bachelor’s Programs category and has over 500 enrolled students.[9] The college offers four bachelor degree programs online including Criminal Justice, E-business and Entrepreneurship, Management and Leadership, and Human Services. Additionally, students have the opportunity to complete an online Master’s degree in Education and Nursing (RN to BSN). Students enrolled in the college’s non-traditional adult degree-completion programs can also earn their bachelor’s degrees on campus or online.[10][11]

Degree completion program

Bluefield College has an adult degree completion program called Inspire. Inspire is an online adult program, which is designed to accelerate the length of time to achieve a four-year degree. Some online degree programs, which they offer are e-Business / Entrepreneurship, Management and Leadership and Criminal Justice. BC has an articulation agreement with the Virginia Community College System for students wishing to transfer into the program. - Updated 2013

Athletics

Bluefield College teams, nicknamed athletically as the Rams, are part of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), primarily competing in the Mid-South Conference for football, and in the Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) for all other sports, beginning in 2014. The college has eight men's and eight women's teams. Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, soccer, tennis and volleyball. Women's sports include basketball, cheerleading, cross country, golf, soccer, softball, tennis and volleyball. The school has won national championships in men's soccer and baseball.

Basketball

Bluefield's men's basketball was often nationally ranked between 2007 and 2009 under head coach Jason Gillespie. In the 2008-2009 season, the Rams won 27 games, including an 18-0 mark in the AAC and a regular season championship, but fell in the conference tournament to then-rival King University by one point, finishing the season ranked seventh in NAIA Division II. Guard/forward Omar Reed went on to play professionally with the San Antonio Spurs' NBA Development League affiliate, with the Boston Celtics organization, as well as internationally in Europe and Japan.[12]

Baseball

Bluefield's baseball team won its first NCCAA Division I national championship in 2009[13] and followed with a school-record 41 wins in 2010 before losing in the NCCAA World Series finals to North Greenville. In 2007 they were the NCCAA Mid-East Regional Champs, and made their fourth NCCAA World Series appearance in 2014. Current head coach Mike White has won over 200 games with Bluefield[14] and has sent multiple players to professional baseball. The Rams play their home games at Bowen Field. As of 2014, nine former Bluefield baseball players have gone on to play professionally.[15]

Football

Bluefield fielded a football program from 1922-1941, but had not had a football program since the attack on Pearl Harbor.[16] On June 4, 2011, Bluefield College announced the return of a football program under head coach Mike Gravier, beginning with "club football" season in 2011, and began play in the NAIA in 2012.[17] The school hired Ordell Walker as the program's new head coach in 2013,[18] and the Rams earned their first win since the program's return with a 46-24 defeat of the Apprentice Builders in Newport News, Va., on September 13, 2014.[19] The Rams play their home games in 10,000-seat Mitchell Stadium.

Cross Country

Bluefield hired Coach Travis Yoder in 2014 to build a cross country and track and field program from ground zero. In his first year as head coach he had the schools first NCCAA national qualifier in school history Kendall Haynes.

In the fall of 2012, Bluefield left the AAC to become a full member of the Mid-South Conference with the addition of football. The Rams competed in the league's East Division. In 2014, the Rams returned to the AAC for all sports except football, which still competes in the Mid-South. Athletes make up about 60% at Bluefield.[20]

Notable alumni

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 http://www.wvva.com/story/26735799/2014/10/08/bluefield-college-celebrates-2nd-highest-enrollment-in-school-history
  2. ↑ http://7a517a79713fdade5d47-b564383cf68dd0a4294cbf678d906437.r27.cf2.rackcdn.com/uploaded/b/0e874463_bc-style-guide.pdf
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 History
  4. ↑ John F. Nash, Jr. - Autobiography
  5. ↑ Campus News-Inauguration
  6. ↑ Traditional Undergraduate Tuition Costs
  7. ↑ http://www.bluefield.edu/the-great-outdoors-in-bluefield/
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.6 8.7 http://bcrams.com/sports/2013/3/19/DEPT_0319130721.aspx?tab=overview
  9. ↑ U.S. News: Online Education. "Bluefield College."
  10. ↑ Bluefield College website Accessed May 27, 2014
  11. ↑ "Bluefield College Trustees Meet." SWVA Today.
  12. ↑ http://www.bluefield.edu/article/former-ram-omar-reed-ballin-in-japan/
  13. ↑ http://www.thenccaa.org/custompages/History%20PDF%20Files/Baseball_Archives.pdf
  14. ↑ http://www.naia.org/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=27900&ATCLID=205407627
  15. ↑ http://www.baseball-reference.com/schools/index.cgi?key_school=3b477009
  16. ↑ http://bcweb.bluefield.edu/pr/Football%20Returns%20to%20BC-B.pdf
  17. ↑ White, Jim (July 24, 2010). "Bluefield College names football coach". Religious Herald. Retrieved June 24, 2011.
  18. ↑ http://www.mid-southconference.org/article/2712.php
  19. ↑ http://www.bluefield.edu/article/rams-secure-first-football-win-since-41/
  20. ↑ Athletic Overview
  21. ↑ http://www.baseball-reference.com/minors/player.cgi?id=hollow003rob
  22. ↑ http://www.bluefield.edu/alumniawards/
  23. ↑ http://www.bluefield.edu/article/mixing-a-passion-for-math-and-sports/
  24. ↑ http://www.basketball-reference.com/nbdl/players/r/reedom01d.html
  25. ↑ http://www.bluefield.edu/article/tribute-to-football-great-pete-young/

External links

Coordinates: 37°14′22.1″N 81°15′7.2″W / 37.239472°N 81.252000°W