No Ordinary College : A History of the University of Virginia's College at Wise

by Wills, Brian Steel

• ISBN13: 9780813922935
• ISBN10: 0813922933
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2004-09-04
• Publisher: Univ of Virginia Pr

Summary

"You are making history today," the University of Virginia Extension Division agent Samuel Crockett observed to a gathering of students and faculty on September 15, 1954, in Wise, Virginia. The occasion was the opening convocation of what would become Clinch Valley College of the University of Virginia, and the 109 students assembled, many of whom were Korean War veterans or women, were indeed part of something quite special. People in Southwest Virginia and friends in Charlottesville -- not the least being University of Virginia President Colgate W. Darden Jr. -- had worked tirelessly to make this day possible. A snowbound discussion at the Colonial Inn in Wise had resulted in the conversion of the local County Poor Farm into the only branch of the University of Virginia.Since those humble beginnings, the College at Wise has flourished, growing from a two-year certificate-granting institution into a four-year baccalaureate-degree-granting college in the late 1960s. In 1999 the college completed a transition from Clinch Valley College to the University of Virginia's College at Wise. Having journeyed over uncertain ground with respect to its student population and its relationship with the University of Virginia, the College at Wise has in recent years boasted its highest historical student enrollments, garnered a national reputation as a public liberal arts college, and still operates as the university's only branch.Published for Wise's fiftieth anniversary in September 2004, Brian Steel Wills's history is essential reading for the college's alumni, faculty and administrators, and for anyone interested in a heroic chapter in the history of public higher education in Virginia.

Author Biography

Brian Steel Wills is Professor of History and Philosophy at Wise.

Table of Contents

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS	ix
INTRODUCTION From "Poor Farm" to "The College on the Hill"	1	(5)
CHAPTER 1 A College Is Born	6	(15)
1953-1954
CHAPTER 2 The Barnyard Disappears	21	(22)
1955-1957
CHAPTER 3 'As Clinch Valley Goes..."	43	(19)
1957-1962
CHAPTER 4 A 'New Team" for the College?	62	(25)
1962-1965
CHAPTER 5 What Does the College Stand For?	87	(25)
1965-1972
CHAPTER 6 Clinch Valley Swims toward the Mainstream	112	(42)
1973-1984
CHAPTER 7 Beyond Papa Joe	154	(27)
1984-1987
CHAPTER 8 From Night to Knight	181	(19)
1987-1992
CHAPTER 9 "Peace in the Valley"	200	(16)
1992-1999
CONCLUSION New Directions for a New Millennium	216	(9)
1999-2004
APPENDICES	225	(14)
Presidents during the CVC/UVa-Wise Era
Directors /Chancellors of CVC/UVa-Wise
CVC/UVa-Wise Advisory Committee/Council/Board Presidents
Governors of Virginia during the CVC /UVa-Wise Years
Student Council /Government Association Presidents
Faculty Recognitions
"Dogwood and Rhododendron"
"The Ballad of Crockett Hall"
Enrollment History of CVC/UVa-Wise by Year
The University of Virginia's College at Wise
Total Headcount by Age, Fall Semester, 2003
CVC/UVa-Wise Athletics
CVC/UVa-Wise Cavaliers Football Fight Song
Hall of Fame and Alumni Recognitions
Breakdown of Alumni by Location
CVC/UVa-Wise Alumni Association Presidents
Erroneous Names for Clinch Valley College
NOTES	239	(36)
BIBLIOGRAPHY	275	(6)
INDEX	281