North Carolina Central University
North Carolina Central University (NCCU) is a
historically black college located in
Durham,
North Carolina.
NCCU has a current enrollment of 8,231 for the Fall of
2005. NCCU is the second largest historically black university in North Carolina after
NC A&T State University.
NCCU was chartered in
1909 and opened in
1910 as the
National Religious Training School and Chautauqua under the leadership of president
James E. Shepard. Suffering financial troubles, the school reorganized in
1915 as the
National Training School and again in
1923, when it was acquired by the state of North Carolina and renamed
Durham State Normal School.
In
1925, the state redefined the school's mission, turning it into a four-year
liberal arts college, the
North Carolina College for Negroes (NCC), the first state-supported
African-American liberal arts college in the
United States. After expanding through the support of the state and local philanthropists (including
Benjamin N. Duke), NCC was finally accredited by the
Southern Association of Colleges and Schools in
1937.
The college opened its first graduate programs in law (
1940) and
library science (
1941). In
1947, the college was renamed yet again as
North Carolina College at Durham. In the same year, founding president James Shepard died after having headed the school for nearly 40 years.
The college received its current title, North Carolina Central University, in
1969. The name "Central" was picked in order to keep the schools initials "NCC". In
1972, it became part of the 16-member
University of North Carolina System.
The NCCU School of Law is currently undergoing a multimillion dollar major renovation of the Turner Law School Building, which is scheduled to be finished in 2005. When finished, the 100,000+ sq ft (9,300 m²) building will be one of the largest public law school facilities in the
Southeast United States.
* 1909–1947: James E. Shepard, President
* 1948–1963: Alfonso Elder, President
* 1963–1966: Samuel P. Massie, President
* 1967–1982: Albert N. Whiting, President (1967–1972), Chancellor (1972–1982)
* 1983–1986: LeRoy T. Walker, Chancellor
* 1986–1992: Tyronza R. Richmond, Chancellor
* 1992–1993: Donna J. Benson, Chancellor
* 1993–2001: Julius L. Chambers, Chancellor
* 2001—: James H. Ammons, Chancellor
*
Herman Boone, former high school
football coach, featured in motion picture
Remember the Titans *
Ernie Barnes, artist and former professional football player
*
Wanda G. Bryant,
North Carolina Court of Appeals*
G.K. Butterfield, Congressman and former Associate Justice of the
North Carolina Supreme Court*
Mike Easley,
Governor of North Carolina*
Rick Elmore,
North Carolina Court of Appeals*
Maynard Jackson, first black mayor of
Atlanta, Georgia*
9th Wonder,
hip hop producer*
Ivan Dixon,
Actor*
Sam Jones,
NBA Athlete
*
North Carolina Central University*
North Carolina Central University information*
The Campus Echo Student Newspaper*
The Marching Sound Machine
