Belhaven College is a contemporary institution built on the timeless principles of service and excellence in higher education. Since its founding, Belhaven College has sought to fulfill the mission expressed in its motto: non ministrari, sed ministrare, to serve, not to be served.
Today's Belhaven is the culmination of three separate institutions of higher learning that merged over the years. Belhaven College was chartered in 1894 in Jackson, Mississippi, as a privately owned institution. In 1911, Belhaven was merged with McComb Female Institute, and in 1939 merged with the Mississippi Synodical College. The founding date of the latter institution, 1883, was adopted by the board of trustees as the official founding date of Belhaven College.
In 1894, Dr. Lewis Fitzhugh established Belhaven College for Young Ladies on Boyd Street at the former residence of Colonel Jones S. Hamilton. The College took the name of the house, Belhaven, in honor of Hamilton's ancestral home in Scotland. A fire destroyed the main building in February 1895, but with the help of Jackson citizens, the College reopened in the fall of 1896 at the same site.
Fitzhugh served as president until his death in 1904, upon which his heirs sold the College to Dr. J. R. Preston. Preston operated Belhaven until it was again destroyed by a fire in 1910, then he donated the title to the College to the Presbyterian Church. In September 1911, the school was reopened by the Central Mississippi Presbytery as Belhaven Collegiate and Industrial Institute at a new site on Peachtree Street.
Dr. R. V. Lancaster of McComb Female Institute became the third president when the two institutions merged. In 1915, the board of trustees changed the school's name to Belhaven College. During these years, improved curricula guidelines and student services were established. Dr. W. H. Frazer succeeded Lancaster as president from 1918-21, and during his tenure, enrollment grew to 230 students.
In 1921, the Reverend Guy T. Gillespie of Lexington, Mississippi, began a presidency that would last 33 years. In Gillespie's tenure, Belhaven was first accredited, an endowment fund begun, and scholarship aid made available. Through depression, war, and unstable economic times, Belhaven maintained its mission.
Dr. McFerran Crowe succeeded Gillespie in 1954, and over six years he expanded and upgraded the faculty while modernizing business operations. It was also in 1954 that the board of trustees voted to make Belhaven fully coeducational, thus ensuring continued growth.
In 1960-61, Dr. Robert F. Cooper served as acting president until the board selected Dr. Howard J. Cleland as president. During Cleland's 17-year tenure, an ambitious expansion program resulted in six major new buildings, while enrollment and the College budget tripled. Another significant change came in 1972, when the Synod of Mississippi transferred ownership of the College to the board of trustees.
In March 1978, Dr. Verne R. Kennedy became the first Belhaven alumnus to serve as chief executive of his alma mater. In eight years as president, he reaffirmed the commitment to Christian service and the covenant relationship with the Presbyterian Church and installed a more efficient administrative structure.
Another alumnus of Belhaven, Dr. Newton Wilson, became president in June 1986. His nine-year term saw the greatest growth in College history, from just over 600 students to more than 1,100. By 1995, over 80 percent of Belhaven's faculty held doctoral or equivalent degrees. The College also extended its outreach in nontraditional venues, with expanded course offerings for adult and evening students. Dr. Daniel C. Fredericks served as acting president in 1995.
A new era of leadership at Belhaven began in January 1996, as Dr. Roger Parrott became the tenth president of the College. He inherited an institution with an all-time record enrollment of approximately 1,300 students and the best-qualified faculty in the history of the College.
Over its years, Belhaven has established a reputation for faithful service to city and state, to country and God. As the College looks ahead to a new century, the opportunities and demands will grow, but the founding mission remains unchanged..."to serve, not to be served."
