By Halley Schafer
The city of Valdosta is located in South Georgia, off of Interstate 75, 20 miles from the Florida state line. Valdosta is a small, but very active town. In this little town, we have shopping, fast food, school systems, farming, paper mills, interstates, back country roads, and last but not least a University. Valdosta State University is considered the center of this little college town.
Valdosta State University, or VSU, was established in 1906 however it did not become an accredited college institution until 1911 when the state allocated funds for it. The school opened in January of 1913 as South Georgia State Normal College, with three college freshmen and 15 sub-freshmen. In 1922, the college became a four year college and the legislature changed the college’s name to Georgia State Women’s College. The college president at the time was Richard Holmes Powell until 1933 when he was sent to Athens, Ga. to be dean of the Coordinate College. Dr. Jere M. Pound was then sent to Valdosta to be president, however this only lasted one year due to him having to take sick leave. After Dr. Pound’s death, Dr. Frank Roberson Reade became the acting president in 1934. During Dr. Roberson’s tenure, the New Deal programs allowed the College to expand physically from three to seven buildings. The Powell Library was the centerpiece of the College at the time, this building was dedicated by Eleanor Roosevelt. During this time, World War II was in full swing. The College emphasized in politics and science as its main curriculum and in 1943 the Bachelor of Science degree was added.
In 1948, Dr. Reade retired from his position as president of the college and he was followed by Dr. Ralph Thaxton, who came from the University of Georgia where he serves as professor, director, and a registrar. Soon after Dr. Thaxton’s arrival, the Board of Regiments, which was a committee that examined the whole University of Georgia System, and in 1950 the committee declared that Georgia State Women’s College would become a co-educational college known as Valdosta State College. After 1950 Business became a very popular major. By 1956 men on campus outnumbered women and Greek organizations began to form, with fraternities leading the way. Intercollegiate athletics became a main part of campus life when the Rebels, an all male basketball team was formed. In 1953 VSC began to grow in wealth of property and build North Campus, that now houses the College of Business and Air Force ROTC. Under Dr. Thaxton’s tenure, the College integrated in 1963, and over the next decade African American students, faculty, and administrators were added into the college. In 1966, the College went through a change of presidents and physical expansion occurred. The College added new buildings such as Odum Library, Fine Arts Building, the College Union, the Education Center, the Science Administration Building, and six new dormitories. Once the student body began to grown, the School of Nursing was established and graduate education programs expanded as well.
In 1993, all hard work began to pay off and VSC became VSU, which is the second regional university in the University System of Georgia. In 1988, Valdosta State University adopted the semester system and the University as a whole continued to grow.Valdosta State University is a very vibrant campus with a lot of Spanish architecture throughout many of the campus buildings. I have been here at VSU for six long years and I have loved every minute.
