Blue Mountain Christian University (BMCU), formerly Blue Mountain College, is a private four-year Baptist college in Blue Mountain, Mississippi. Founded as a women's college in 1873, the college's board of trustees voted unanimously for the college to go fully coeducational in 2005. The university offers an array of baccalaureate degrees as well as graduate programs.
Blue Mountain Christian University
Former names
Blue Mountain Female Institute (1873–1876) Blue Mountain Female College (1910–1955) Blue Mountain College (1955–2022)
By 1873, the college was founded as a woman's college by Confederate Brigadier-General Mark Perrin Lowrey, a pastor who was known as "a preacher general" during the war. Blue Mountain Female Institute, as it was called at first, started with 50 students with Lowrey and his two daughters serving as the faculty. In 1877, the college was officially chartered by the State of Mississippi. Lowrey, his sons W. T. and B. G., and grandson Lawrence Lowrey all served as the first four presidents. By 1910, the institution was using the name Blue Mountain Female College.[1]
After the sudden death of President Lowrey in 1960, a longtime professor at the school, Dr. Wilfred Tyler, became the first non-Lowrey family president followed by Dr. E. Harold Fisher in 1965. Dr. Bettye Rogers Coward served as the seventh president from 2001 to 2012. Dr. Janice I. Nicholson, a BMC alumna, served as transitional president prior to Dr. Barbara Childers McMillin's becoming the eighth president on August 1, 2012.
Originally an independently owned institution, the college was turned over to the Mississippi Baptist Convention in 1920 by the Lowrey Family. It remained focused on women's education until 1956 when a program to train men for church-related vocations was started. In October 2005, the college's board of trustees voted to make the school fully coeducational. On November 4, 2022, the college was renamed Blue Mountain Christian University to distinguish the institution from two-year community colleges and to highlight its Christian identity and mission.
The Blue Mountain Christian (BMCU) athletic teams are called the Toppers. The college is a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), primarily competing in the Southern States Athletic Conference (SSAC; formerly known as Georgia–Alabama–Carolina Conference (GACC) until after the 2003–04 school year) since the 2013–14 academic year. The Toppers previously competed in the TranSouth Athletic Conference (TranSouth or TSAC) from 1996–97 to 2012–13.
Men's sports began competition in the 2007–08 academic year, when the school became co-educational.
BMCU competes in 18 intercollegiate sports: Men's sports include baseball, basketball, bowling, cross country, golf, soccer, tennis and track & field; while women's sports include basketball, bowling, cheerleading, cross country, golf, soccer, softball, tennis, track & field and volleyball. Club sports include men's & women's archery, bass fishing and powerlifting.
Referencesedit
^"The New Albany Meeting of the Miss. Press Association". Vicksburg Evening Post. 25 May 1910. p. 4. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
blue, mountain, christian, university, zealand, school, tapanui, unrelated, television, series, blue, mountain, state, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsour. For the New Zealand school see Tapanui For the unrelated television series see Blue Mountain State This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Blue Mountain Christian University news newspapers books scholar JSTOR January 2013 Learn how and when to remove this message Blue Mountain Christian University BMCU formerly Blue Mountain College is a private four year Baptist college in Blue Mountain Mississippi Founded as a women s college in 1873 the college s board of trustees voted unanimously for the college to go fully coeducational in 2005 The university offers an array of baccalaureate degrees as well as graduate programs Blue Mountain Christian UniversityFormer namesBlue Mountain Female Institute 1873 1876 Blue Mountain Female College 1910 1955 Blue Mountain College 1955 2022 TypePrivate collegeEstablished1873Religious affiliationBaptist Mississippi Baptist Convention Students450LocationBlue Mountain Mississippi United StatesCampusRuralColorsNavy Blue Light Blue amp Gold NicknameToppersSporting affiliationsNAIA SSACMascotRamWebsitewww bmc edu Contents 1 History 2 Notable alumni 3 Athletics 4 References 5 External linksHistory edit nbsp Blue Mountain Female College By 1873 the college was founded as a woman s college by Confederate Brigadier General Mark Perrin Lowrey a pastor who was known as a preacher general during the war Blue Mountain Female Institute as it was called at first started with 50 students with Lowrey and his two daughters serving as the faculty In 1877 the college was officially chartered by the State of Mississippi Lowrey his sons W T and B G and grandson Lawrence Lowrey all served as the first four presidents By 1910 the institution was using the name Blue Mountain Female College 1 After the sudden death of President Lowrey in 1960 a longtime professor at the school Dr Wilfred Tyler became the first non Lowrey family president followed by Dr E Harold Fisher in 1965 Dr Bettye Rogers Coward served as the seventh president from 2001 to 2012 Dr Janice I Nicholson a BMC alumna served as transitional president prior to Dr Barbara Childers McMillin s becoming the eighth president on August 1 2012 Originally an independently owned institution the college was turned over to the Mississippi Baptist Convention in 1920 by the Lowrey Family It remained focused on women s education until 1956 when a program to train men for church related vocations was started In October 2005 the college s board of trustees voted to make the school fully coeducational On November 4 2022 the college was renamed Blue Mountain Christian University to distinguish the institution from two year community colleges and to highlight its Christian identity and mission Notable alumni editGeorge Duke Humphrey 9th president of Mississippi State University Dusti Bonge Artist Biloxi Mississippi Annibel Jenkins English scholar professor at Georgia TechAthletics editThe Blue Mountain Christian BMCU athletic teams are called the Toppers The college is a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics NAIA primarily competing in the Southern States Athletic Conference SSAC formerly known as Georgia Alabama Carolina Conference GACC until after the 2003 04 school year since the 2013 14 academic year The Toppers previously competed in the TranSouth Athletic Conference TranSouth or TSAC from 1996 97 to 2012 13 Men s sports began competition in the 2007 08 academic year when the school became co educational BMCU competes in 18 intercollegiate sports Men s sports include baseball basketball bowling cross country golf soccer tennis and track amp field while women s sports include basketball bowling cheerleading cross country golf soccer softball tennis track amp field and volleyball Club sports include men s amp women s archery bass fishing and powerlifting References edit The New Albany Meeting of the Miss Press Association Vicksburg Evening Post 25 May 1910 p 4 Retrieved 3 September 2022 External links editOfficial website Official athletics website 34 40 19 N 89 1 45 W 34 67194 N 89 02917 W 34 67194 89 02917 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Blue Mountain Christian University amp oldid 1214261665 Athletics, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
