Spelman College

Spelman College is a private, historically Black, women's liberal arts college in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. It is a founding member of the Atlanta University Center academic consortium. Founded in 1881 as the Atlanta Baptist Female Seminary, Spelman awarded its first college degrees in 1901 and is the oldest private historically Black liberal arts institution for women.

History

Founding

thumb|right|upright|[[Harriet E. Giles and Sophia B. Packard began Spelman College]]

The Atlanta Baptist Female Seminary was established on 11 April 1881 in the basement of Friendship Baptist Church in Atlanta by two teachers from the Oread Institute of Worcester, Massachusetts: Harriet E. Giles and Sophia B. Packard. Giles and Packard met while Giles was a student, and Packard the preceptress of the New Salem Academy in New Salem northeast of Springfield, Massachusetts and fostered a lifelong friendship there. The two traveled to Atlanta specifically to begin a school for Black freedwomen and found support from Frank Quarles, the pastor of Friendship Baptist Church.

Giles and Packard started the school with 11 African-American women and $100 given to them by the First Baptist Church in Medford, Massachusetts

In 1882 the two women returned to Massachusetts to bid for more money and were introduced to businessman John D. Rockefeller who was an industrialist and a Northern Baptist at a church conference in Cleveland, Ohio. After Giles' death, Lucy Hale Tapley became president. Although the college was somewhat progressive, neither the founders nor the current administration were interested in challenging the status quo of young women as being primarily responsible for the family and the home. Atlanta University would provide graduate education for students; Morehouse and Spelman were responsible for undergraduate education. At a time during which Black students were often denied access to graduate studies at predominantly white southern research universities, access to Atlanta University allowed the undergraduate students at Morehouse and Spelman immediate access to graduate courses.

In 1927, one of the most important buildings on campus, Sisters Chapel, was dedicated. The chapel was named for its primary benefactors, sisters Laura Spelman Rockefeller and Lucy Maria Spelman. The Spelman College Glee Club was founded in 1925, beginning the popular Atlanta tradition of the annual Spelman-Morehouse Christmas Carol Concert. The Atlanta University Summer Theater was staged by the University Players, a drama organization for AUC students. In 1930 the Spelman Nursery School was created as a training center for mothers and a practice arena for students who planned careers in education and child development. Spelman celebrated its 50th anniversary in April 1931. This milestone was accompanied by the construction of a university library that was shared amongst the Atlanta University Center institutions, and the center continues to share a library to this day.

The school continued to expand, building and acquiring more property to accommodate the growing student body. In 1947, Spelman joined the list of "approved institutions" of the Association of American Universities. In 1953, Florence Read retired, and Albert E. Manley became the first Black and first male president of the college. Under his presidency and the presidency of his successor, Donald Stewart, Spelman experienced significant growth. The college established its study abroad program, the Merrill Foreign Travel-Study Program. Zinn was dismissed from the college in 1963 for supporting Spelman students in their efforts to fight segregation; at the time, Spelman was focused on turning out "refined young ladies." Edelman herself writes that Spelman had a reputation as "a tea-pouring, very strict school designed to turn Black girls into refined ladies and teachers."

1980–present

Stewart retired in 1986, and the following year, Johnnetta Betsch Cole became the first Black female president of Spelman College. During this time, the college became noted for its commitment to community service and its ties to the local community. Cole also led the college's most successful capital campaign; between 1986 and 1996, the college raised $113.8 million, including a $20 million gift from Bill Cosby and his wife, Camille Hanks Cosby, whose daughter graduated from Spelman. In July 2015, the remainder of the funds were returned and an endowed professorship named for the Cosby couple discontinued as allegations of sexual assault by Bill Cosby grew more prominent.

In 1997, Cole stepped down and Audrey Forbes Manley became Spelman's first alumna president. After Manley’s retirement in 2002, Beverly Daniel Tatum served as the college’s president until 2015, when Mary Schmidt Campbell was named the tenth president. The campus now comprises 26 buildings on in Atlanta. The following year, Oprah Winfrey served as the keynote commencement speaker. In 2017, Spelman's leadership voted to allow transgender women to enroll. In 2018, Spelman received $30 million from Spelman trustee Ronda Stryker for the construction of a new state-of-the-art building on campus. Two years later, the college received another significant donation: $40 million from philanthropists Reed Hastings and his wife Patty Quillin to be used as scholarship funds for students enrolled at Spelman. In July 2020, Spelman received a notably large undisclosed donation from philanthropist MacKenzie Scott.

thumb|right|Spelman College sign in 2025

In April 2022, Helene Gayle was named the 11th president of Spelman College. In January 2024, Spelman received the largest single donation in its history and one of the largest ever to a HBCU with $100 million given by Spelman trustee Ronda Stryker and her husband, William Johnston. Spelman stated that $75 million of the $100 million donation will go towards endowed scholarships for future students, and the remaining $25 million will be used to "develop an academic focus on public policy and democracy, improve student housing and provide flexible funding to meet critical strategic needs."

Presidents

Since its inception Spelman has had 11 presidents:

Sophia B. Packard (1888) founded the women's seminary with Giles in a basement of the historic Friendship Baptist Church (Atlanta) and cultivated Rockefeller support for the school
Harriet E. Giles (1891) under whom the school granted its first college degrees
Lucy Hale Tapley (1910) under whom the school decided to focus on higher education, the school officially became Spelman College (1927), and Sisters Chapel, one of the main buildings on campus, was erected
Florence M. Read, (1927) under whom the school established an endowment fund of over $3 million, the school came into agreement with Atlanta University and Morehouse College to form the Atlanta University Center (later Clark-Atlanta University, Morris Brown College, Morehouse School of Medicine, and the Interdenominational Theological Center were added), the Arnett Library was built, and Spelman earned approval from the American Association of Universities
Albert E. Manley (1953) (the first Black and first male president of Spelman), under whom study abroad programs were established, the fine arts center was built, and three new residence halls and several classroom buildings were renovated. According to Howard Zinn, Manley tried to suppress the student civil rights movement that was taking place on campus during his tenure
Donald M. Stewart (1976) under whom the departments of women's studies and chemistry were founded, and three strategic programs were formed: the Comprehensive Writing Program, the Women's Research and Resource Center, and the Ethel Waddell Githii Honors Program, and a continuing education department and a computer literacy program were established
Johnnetta B. Cole (1987) (the first African-American woman president of Spelman), under whom the college received $20 million from Drs. William and Camille Cosby for the construction of the Cosby Academic Center and instituted the Cole Institute for Community Service
Audrey F. Manley (1997) (the first alumna president of Spelman), under whom Spelman gained a Phi Beta Kappa chapter, Spelman was accepted as a provisional member of NCAA Division III athletics, and the Science Center was finished
Beverly Daniel Tatum, (2002) under whom renovation of Sisters Chapel began and the state-of-the-art Wellness Center was finished
Mary Schmidt Campbell, (2015) under whom Spelman began its largest comprehensive campaign in the institution's history setting a fundraising goal of $250 million.
Helene Gayle, (2022) is a leading epidemiologist with over 20 years of experience with the Centers for Disease Control. She served as president and CEO of The Chicago Community Trust, one of the nation's oldest and largest community foundations. She also served as president and CEO of Atlanta-based CARE, one of the largest international humanitarian organizations Some Black Women artists the museum has featured include Amy Sherald, Harmonia Rosales, Mickalene Thomas, Beverly Buchanan, Zanele Muholi, and Reneé Stout. Each semester, the museum features a new exhibit.

In 2016, the museum collaborated with Spelman's Department of Art and Art History to start a two-year curatorial studies program to increase diversity in the museum industry.

Academics

Spelman is ranked tied for 40th of 211 of among national liberal arts colleges and 1st among 79 historically Black colleges in the United States by U.S. News & World Report for 2025; additionally, it tied for 1st in "Social Mobility", tied for 16th for "Most Innovative", tied for 30th for "Best Undergraduate Teaching", and 60th for "Best Value" among liberal arts colleges. Spelman leads the nation in enrolling the highest percentage of Gates Millennium Scholars. Spelman ranked first among baccalaureate origin institutions of African-American women who earned science, engineering, and mathematics doctoral degrees. Spelman ranked among the top 50 four-year colleges and universities for producing Fulbright and Gilman Scholars, and ranked the second-largest producer of African-American college graduates who attend medical school.

Spelman is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS). Spelman is a member of the Coalition of Women's Colleges, National Association of Schools of Music (NASM), National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE), Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, The College Fund/UNCF, National Association for College Admissions Counseling, and State of Georgia Professional Standards Commission (PSC).

Spelman offers bachelor's degrees in over 30 academic majors. In addition, Spelman has strategic partnerships with over 30 accredited universities to help students complete degree programs not offered on campus in healthcare, law, and engineering. Its most popular majors, by number out of 483 graduates in 2022, were:

Psychology (70)
Biology/Biological Sciences (69)
Political Science and Government (50)
Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences (44)
Economics (42)
English Language and Literature (35)

The Ethel Waddell Githii Honors Program is a selective academic community available to students who meet the requirements.

Spelman houses several pre-professional and research programs designed to make students more competitive for admissions into graduate school programs. Approximately two-thirds of Spelman graduates have earned postgraduate degrees.

Spelman has domestic exchange and study abroad programs.

Spelman has the highest graduation rate among HBCUs, with a graduation rate of 76% after six years. It also has a student:faculty ratio of 9:1.

Honor societies

There are several registered academic honor societies on campus.

Student body

Students are all women and predominantly African-American.

Student life

Spelman offers organized and informal activities. Spelman's over 80 student organizations include community service organizations, special interest groups, honors societies, Morehouse cheerleaders, choral groups, music ensembles, dance groups, drama/theater groups, marching band, intramural sports, and student government.

Spelman's gated campus near downtown Atlanta consists of over 25 buildings on 39 acres.

New student orientation

All new Spelman students are required to attend a six-day new student orientation (NSO) in August immediately before the fall semester begins. NSO includes events, workshops, and sessions designed to teach new Spelmanites about the mission, history, culture, traditions, and sisterhood of Spelman College; students are also given information on how to successfully matriculate to Spelman Women (graduates), such as registration, advisement, placement, and planning class schedules. NSO is led by student orientation leaders known as PALs (Peer Assistant Leaders) and Spelman alumnae. During NSO, new students are required to remain on campus at all times; any leave must be approved by PALs.

White attire tradition

One of Spelman's oldest traditions are Spelmanites wearing "respectable and conservative" white attire to designated formal events on campus. The tradition began in the early 1900s when it was customary for women to wear white dresses when attending formal events. White attire is worn today for several annual events, and graduating seniors wear white attire underneath their graduation gowns for Class Day and Commencement. In 2009, My Sister's Closet was established on campus by the Student Government Association for alumnae and current students to donate white attire for Spelman students.

Student publications and media

thumb|Spelman College campus

Spelman offers a literary magazine (Aunt Chloe: A Journal of Candor), a student newspaper, The BluePrint, and student government association newsletter (Jaguar Print).

Spelman has several sororities on campus including all four of the National Pan-Hellenic Council. About three percent of students are active in Spelman's Greek system.

Residential life

Spelman College has eleven residence halls on campus with approximately 1,500 students occupying them. All first-year students are required to live on campus.

Athletics

The Spelman athletic teams were called the Jaguars. The college was a member of the Division III ranks of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), primarily competing in the Great South Athletic Conference (GSAC) from 2003–04 to 2012–13.

Spelman competed in seven intercollegiate varsity sports: Women's sports included basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, softball, tennis and volleyball.

Discontinuation

In 2013, Spelman College decided to drop varsity athletics and leave the NCAA. Using money originally budgeted to the sports programs, they created wellness programs available for all students.

Notable alumnae and faculty

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Spelman's notable alumnae include the first African-American CEO of Sam's Club and Walgreens Rosalind Brewer, Pulitzer Prize winner Alice Walker, former Dean of Harvard College Evelynn M. Hammonds, activist and Children's Defense Fund founder Marian Wright Edelman, civil rights and criminal defense lawyer Dovey Johnson Roundtree, college organist Joyce Johnson, musician, activist and historian Bernice Johnson Reagon, politician Stacey Abrams, writer Pearl Cleage, TV personality Rolonda Watts, opera singer Mattiwilda Dobbs, and actresses Cassi Davis, LaTanya Richardson, Adrienne-Joi Johnson, Keshia Knight Pulliam, Tati Gabrielle, Assemblywoman of the 18th district of New York State Taylor Darling, designor and curator Sara Penn, Lisa D. Cook, member of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, and Pamela Gunter-Smith, the first African-American president of York College of Pennsylvania.