Academic Catalog Spring 2019

their program adheres to TEAC’s quality principles. The teacher preparation program is also approved by the Department of Education, Commonwealth of Virginia. The Bluefield College School of Nursing RN to BSN program is granted accreditation by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) for a period of five years, from November 2013 until November 2018.  CCNE is recognized by the Department of Education and is a specialized/professional accrediting agency that strives to ensure the quality and integrity of baccalaureate and graduate nursing programs.  CCNE accreditation evaluation reviews the program mission, goals, and expected outcomes; and an assessment of the performance of the program. The College has been approved for veteran compensation. Bluefield College has professional memberships in many nationally prestigious organizations. These organizations are listed on p. 9. THE HISTORY OF BLUEFIELD COLLEGE In 1919, the Baptist General Association of Virginia appointed a committee to study the need for a junior college in southwestern Virginia. The committee met in Bristol in August of that year, at which time a large group of citizens from Bluefield and vicinity came before the committee and generously offered $75,000 and 65 acres of land if the BGAV would locate the proposed college in Bluefield. The BGAV accepted, and Bluefield College opened its doors to students seeking Christian higher education in 1922. Dr. R.A. Lansdell served as the first president. During his administration, he assembled the first faculty, erected the first buildings and actively solicited funds for the college. Dr. Oscar E. Sams assumed the task of president in 1927. Under his guidance, the college developed its first summer school program and a new Aviation Department. Dr. Sams also brought accreditation to BC through the American Association of Junior Colleges and the State Board of Education. Dr. J. Taylor Stinson assumed the presidency in 1930 and launched a Department of Business Administration and a new engineering program. In the fall of 1934, Dr. Edwin C. Wade took over the presidency, and under his leadership enrollment grew to an all–time high of 306 students. FollowingWorldWar II, enrollment reached even greater proportions, including some 468 veterans. President Charles L. Harman engineered the school’s most notable growth during his tenure as president from 1946 to 1971. Under Dr. Harman, BC gained national prominence with its strong Christian stands and its decision to refuse government aid on the basis of separation of church and state. Dr. Harman organized the school’s first ever fundraising campaign and the construction of several campus facilities: Easley Library (1956), Rish Hall Girls’ Dormitory (1960), Harman Chapel (1965), and The Dome Gymnasium (1968). Under Dr. Harman, the college also implemented residential co–educational status, opened its first night school program, and obtained accreditation from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. Dr. Charles L. Tyer became president in 1972. His most notable accomplishment was leading BC to accreditation as a four–year college. Following a two–year self-study, BC began to offer baccalaureate degrees in 1975, accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS). Dr. Roy A. Dobyns assumed the presidency in 1989 and led the college in its most notable era of student growth. From 1989 to 1995, enrollment at BC more than doubled to an all–time high of 853. Under Dr. Dobyns, the College also launched its largest fundraising effort in history, the 75th Anniversary Campaign.

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