{"id":62964,"date":"2021-01-09T16:39:20","date_gmt":"2021-01-10T00:39:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/soulofamerica.com\/?page_id=62964"},"modified":"2022-09-16T08:23:30","modified_gmt":"2022-09-16T15:23:30","slug":"tougaloo-college","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.soulofamerica.com\/black-colleges\/tougaloo-college\/","title":{"rendered":"Tougaloo College"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Tougaloo

Tougaloo College student and Delta Sigma Theta soror<\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n

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Tougaloo College<\/h2>\n
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History<\/strong><\/p>\n

Tougaloo College is a private, coeducational, church-related, four-year, liberal arts institution located at the northern edge of Jackson, Mississippi. In 1869, the American Missionary Association of New York purchased a plantation of five hundred acres of land near Jackson, Mississippi, and established a school. <\/p>\n

In 1871, the State of Mississippi granted the institution a charter under the name of “Tougaloo University.” Today such a designation seems odd because courses for college credit were first offered in 1897, and the first Bachelor of Arts degree was granted in 1901. <\/p>\n

In 1916, the name of the institution was changed to Tougaloo College.<\/p>\n

In 1875, the Home Missionary Society of the Disciples of Christ obtained a charter from the Mississippi State Legislature to establish a school at Edwards, Mississippi, to be known as the Southern Christian Institute. The two schools merged in 1954, changing the name of the new institution to Tougaloo Southern Christian College.<\/p>\n

The alumni bodies of the two institutions united to become the National Alumni Association of Tougaloo Southern Christian College. In 1962, the name was changed again to Tougaloo College. The Tougaloo College National Alumni Association (TCNAA) was chartered in 1988. It has 42 alumni chapters throughout the United States.<\/p>\n

George A. Owens, the first Black President of the College, upgraded its faculty and curricula to meet contemporary challenges. The college established relationships with several prestigious universities facilitating the entrance of Tougaloo students into engineering, medicine, law, graduate studies, and other post-baccalaureate educational experiences. <\/p>\n

Notable among such relationships is the Brown University-Tougaloo College Program.<\/p>\n

Academic Merit<\/strong><\/p>\n

In 1995, Edgar E. Smith, Ph.D., an alumnus became president. Under Smith’s administration, the College completed its 125th year strongly, graduating 153 baccalaureate degree holders, a majority of whom committed to graduate or professional school. <\/p>\n

Tougaloo College has won national respect for its high academic standards and level of social commitment. And these organizations encourage superior scholastic achievement at the college: Alpha Kappa Delta, Alpha Kappa Mu, and Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Societies.<\/p>\n

Tougaloo College is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges to award the Associate of Arts, Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science, Master of Arts, and Master of Arts in Teaching degrees. <\/p>\n

According to the National Science Foundation, Tougaloo ranks among the Top 25 U.S. institutions whose graduates earn their Ph.D. degrees in the science and engineering disciplines.<\/p>\n