Hardin-Simmons University
Encyclopedia
Hardin–Simmons University (HSU) is a private Baptist
university located in Abilene, Texas
, United States
.
. In 1925, it became Simmons University. It was once again renamed to Hardin–Simmons University in 1934 in honor of Mary and John G. Hardin who were also major contributors. The University has been associated with the Baptist General Convention of Texas
since 1941.
, which met for twenty-two years on the Hardin-Simmons campus, was chartered on April 19, 1924, at the Taylor County
Courthouse
in Abilene. Royston Campbell Crane, Sr., an attorney from Sweetwater, the seat of Nolan County, first proposed establishment of the association. He was the son of William Carey Crane, an historian
who had served as a president of Baptist-affiliated Baylor University
in Waco
. Six Abilene residents were also influential in the formation of the group: Rupert N. Richardson
, later president of Hardin-Simmons; William Curry Holden
, then of Methodist-affiliated McMurry College and later first president of the Museum of Texas Tech University
in Lubbock
; L.G. Kennamer of Abilene Christian University
, a Church of Christ
institution; and J.M. Radford, Laura J.D. Scarborough, and B.E. Glammery. Other strong supporters of the movement included , James W. Hunt and Jefferson D. Sandefer, then the presidents of McMurry and Hardin-Simmons (then called Simmons College). From the original 24 members, the organization grew in sixty years to nearly 400, including 127 libraries. The original officers were Crane, president; Richardson, secretary, and Scarborough, treasurer. In 1929, the association received a 50-year charter of incorporation from the state. In 1998, after B W Aston
, historian at Hardin-Simmons, left the position of WTHA executive director, the association moved to Texas Tech and became integral to the Southwest Collection.
, engineering
, medicine
, law
, pharmacology
, physical therapy
, and seminary
. HSU offers courses in geography, Greek, Hebrew, humanities, and physical sciences, as well. The university offers a doctorate in physical therapy
, the first in Texas which is open to private citizens.
HSU students come from diverse backgrounds and a variety of Christian denominations. With an approximate enrollment of 2,500 students, the student-to-teacher ratio is 14:1.
Hardin-Simmons offers numerous opportunities to get involved: All-School SING, Campus Recreations, Greek Life, Six White Horses, Student Congress, Student Activities, International Club, International Student Fellowship, The Brand, The Bronco, Intramurals and Rec Sports, Various Academic Clubs, The World Famous Cowboy Band, Spurs Dance Team, and HSU Cheerleaders.
There are also several opportunities for students to minister to each other and to the extended Christian community at HSU. Chapel services are held weekly for the entire student body. Neighborhood outreach programs are also available for students to participate in. Baptist Student Ministries (BSM) offers free noon lunches for students every Wednesday. The BSM provides possibilities for students to get involved in Bible Study groups and go on mission trips, in addition to hosting concerts and other campus events.
, from 1941-1961. The football team won 2 conference championships and 1 co-championship.
Since the start of the American Southwest Conference play in 1997, the Hardin-Simmons athletic program has been the most dominant all-around sports program in the conference with 56 ASC team titles. In December 2010 Hardin-Simmon's Women's Soccer Team won the school's first National Championship in their Division III history. HSU claims 674 players who were named to academic All-ASC teams, 49 ASC Coach of the Year titles for HSU coaches, 43 players have been named ASC Player of the Year, 20 players were named ASC Freshman of the Year, and three athletes have been named ASC male or female athlete of the Year in the American Southwest Conference.
On a regional and national scale, HSU has had 39 first team All-Americans, 72 overall All-Americans, in addition to having 37 teams advance to NCAA Championship play, one national Player of the Year, four national Player of the Year finalists, one Texas Woman of the Year, 76 academic All-District selections, 28 academic All-Americans, and 119 All-Region performers.
Hardin-Simmons is a D-III school and offers 18 varsity sports for men and women, including: Football, Volleyball, Baseball, Softball, Soccer (men/women), Tennis (men/women), Basketball (men/women), Cross Country (men/women), Track (men/women), and Golf (men/women).
2006
For the first 15 years that HSU restarted its football program (1990-2005), the Hardin-Simmons Cowboy Football team holds the distinction of having the best winning percentage (77.4%) of any Texas college football program from any division.
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
university located in Abilene, Texas
Abilene, Texas
Abilene is a city in Taylor and Jones counties in west central Texas. The population was 117,063 at the 2010 census. It is the principal city of the Abilene Metropolitan Statistical Area, which had a 2006 estimated population of 158,063. It is the county seat of Taylor County...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
History
Hardin–Simmons University was founded as Abilene Baptist College in 1891 by the Sweetwater Baptist Association and a group of cattlemen and pastors who sought to bring Christian higher education to the Southwest. The original land was donated to the university by rancher C.W. Merchant. HSU was the first school of higher education established west of Fort Worth. The college was renamed Simmons College in 1892 in honor of an early contributor, James B. SimmonsJames B. Simmons (clergyman)
James B. Simmons, D.D. , Corresponding Secretary of the American Baptist Home Mission Society from 1867 to 1874, was born in the township of Northeast, Dutchess County, New York. His father was a thrifty farmer of German extraction; his mother was of Scotch descent...
. In 1925, it became Simmons University. It was once again renamed to Hardin–Simmons University in 1934 in honor of Mary and John G. Hardin who were also major contributors. The University has been associated with the Baptist General Convention of Texas
Baptist General Convention of Texas
The Baptist General Convention of Texas is the oldest surviving Baptist convention in the state of Texas. The churches cooperating with the Baptist General Convention of Texas partner nationally and internationally with both the Southern Baptist Convention and the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship,...
since 1941.
West Texas Historical Association
The West Texas Historical AssociationWest Texas Historical Association
The West Texas Historical Association is an organization of both academics and laypersons dedicated to the preservation and dissemination of the total history of West Texas, defined geographically as all Texas counties and portions of counties located west of Interstate 35.-Formation of the...
, which met for twenty-two years on the Hardin-Simmons campus, was chartered on April 19, 1924, at the Taylor County
Taylor County, Texas
As of the census of 2000, there were 126,555 people, 47,274 households, and 32,524 families residing in the county. The population density was 138 people per square mile . There were 52,056 housing units at an average density of 57 per square mile...
Courthouse
Courthouse
A courthouse is a building that is home to a local court of law and often the regional county government as well, although this is not the case in some larger cities. The term is common in North America. In most other English speaking countries, buildings which house courts of law are simply...
in Abilene. Royston Campbell Crane, Sr., an attorney from Sweetwater, the seat of Nolan County, first proposed establishment of the association. He was the son of William Carey Crane, an historian
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
who had served as a president of Baptist-affiliated Baylor University
Baylor University
Baylor University is a private, Christian university located in Waco, Texas. Founded in 1845, Baylor is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.-History:...
in Waco
Waco, Texas
Waco is a city in and the county seat of McLennan County, Texas. Situated along the Brazos River and on the I-35 corridor, halfway between Dallas and Austin, it is the economic, cultural, and academic center of the 'Heart of Texas' region....
. Six Abilene residents were also influential in the formation of the group: Rupert N. Richardson
Rupert N. Richardson
Rupert Norval Richardson, Sr. , was an American historian and a former president of Baptist-affiliated Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene, Texas...
, later president of Hardin-Simmons; William Curry Holden
William Curry Holden
William Curry Holden , also known as Curry Holden, was an historian and archaeologist. In 1937, he became the first director of the Museum of Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas. During his tenure, the museum gained regional and state recognition for excellence...
, then of Methodist-affiliated McMurry College and later first president of the Museum of Texas Tech University
Museum of Texas Tech University
The Museum of Texas Tech University is part of Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas. It is made up of the main museum building, the Moody Planetarium, the Natural Science Research Laboratory, the research and educational elements of the Lubbock Lake Landmark, and the Val Verde County research...
in Lubbock
Lubbock, Texas
Lubbock is a city in and the county seat of Lubbock County, Texas, United States. The city is located in the northwestern part of the state, a region known historically as the Llano Estacado, and the home of Texas Tech University and Lubbock Christian University...
; L.G. Kennamer of Abilene Christian University
Abilene Christian University
Abilene Christian University is a private university located in Abilene, Texas, affiliated with Churches of Christ. ACU was founded in 1906, as Childers Classical Institute...
, a Church of Christ
Church of Christ
Churches of Christ are autonomous Christian congregations associated with one another through common beliefs and practices. They seek to base doctrine and practice on the Bible alone, and seek to be New Testament congregations as originally established by the authority of Christ. Historically,...
institution; and J.M. Radford, Laura J.D. Scarborough, and B.E. Glammery. Other strong supporters of the movement included , James W. Hunt and Jefferson D. Sandefer, then the presidents of McMurry and Hardin-Simmons (then called Simmons College). From the original 24 members, the organization grew in sixty years to nearly 400, including 127 libraries. The original officers were Crane, president; Richardson, secretary, and Scarborough, treasurer. In 1929, the association received a 50-year charter of incorporation from the state. In 1998, after B W Aston
B W Aston
B W Aston was an American historian whose career embraced local and regional history as well as Latin American studies. From 1967-2001, he was a faculty member at Baptist-affiliated Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene, Texas.Aston was born in Fort Worth to Ernest Roy Aston and Mural Aston...
, historian at Hardin-Simmons, left the position of WTHA executive director, the association moved to Texas Tech and became integral to the Southwest Collection.
Academics
HSU is a fully accredited university and offers six undergraduate degrees with 70 majors, and seven graduate degrees with 18 programs. Pre-professional programs include dentistryDentistry
Dentistry is the branch of medicine that is involved in the study, diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of diseases, disorders and conditions of the oral cavity, maxillofacial area and the adjacent and associated structures and their impact on the human body. Dentistry is widely considered...
, engineering
Engineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
, medicine
Medicine
Medicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
, law
Law
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
, pharmacology
Pharmacology
Pharmacology is the branch of medicine and biology concerned with the study of drug action. More specifically, it is the study of the interactions that occur between a living organism and chemicals that affect normal or abnormal biochemical function...
, physical therapy
Physical therapy
Physical therapy , often abbreviated PT, is a health care profession. Physical therapy is concerned with identifying and maximizing quality of life and movement potential within the spheres of promotion, prevention, diagnosis, treatment/intervention,and rehabilitation...
, and seminary
Seminary
A seminary, theological college, or divinity school is an institution of secondary or post-secondary education for educating students in theology, generally to prepare them for ordination as clergy or for other ministry...
. HSU offers courses in geography, Greek, Hebrew, humanities, and physical sciences, as well. The university offers a doctorate in physical therapy
Physical therapy
Physical therapy , often abbreviated PT, is a health care profession. Physical therapy is concerned with identifying and maximizing quality of life and movement potential within the spheres of promotion, prevention, diagnosis, treatment/intervention,and rehabilitation...
, the first in Texas which is open to private citizens.
HSU students come from diverse backgrounds and a variety of Christian denominations. With an approximate enrollment of 2,500 students, the student-to-teacher ratio is 14:1.
Mission statement
HSU is a community dedicated to providing excellence in education enlightened by Christian faith and values.Campus Life
HSU's Student Activities host an event on campus almost every week of the semester, including concerts, movie nights, dances, game nights, pool parties, SMORES cookouts, volleyball tournaments, and much more. The Basement of the Student Center is a place for students to hang out and relax. It is complete with giant flat-screen TVs, cutting-edge gaming systems, bowling, pool, and ping-pong, all which can be used for free.Hardin-Simmons offers numerous opportunities to get involved: All-School SING, Campus Recreations, Greek Life, Six White Horses, Student Congress, Student Activities, International Club, International Student Fellowship, The Brand, The Bronco, Intramurals and Rec Sports, Various Academic Clubs, The World Famous Cowboy Band, Spurs Dance Team, and HSU Cheerleaders.
There are also several opportunities for students to minister to each other and to the extended Christian community at HSU. Chapel services are held weekly for the entire student body. Neighborhood outreach programs are also available for students to participate in. Baptist Student Ministries (BSM) offers free noon lunches for students every Wednesday. The BSM provides possibilities for students to get involved in Bible Study groups and go on mission trips, in addition to hosting concerts and other campus events.
Athletics
Hardin-Simmons was a member of the Border Intercollegiate Athletic AssociationBorder Intercollegiate Athletic Association
The Border Conference , was an NCAA-affiliated college athletic conference founded in 1931 that disbanded following the 1961-1962 season...
, from 1941-1961. The football team won 2 conference championships and 1 co-championship.
Since the start of the American Southwest Conference play in 1997, the Hardin-Simmons athletic program has been the most dominant all-around sports program in the conference with 56 ASC team titles. In December 2010 Hardin-Simmon's Women's Soccer Team won the school's first National Championship in their Division III history. HSU claims 674 players who were named to academic All-ASC teams, 49 ASC Coach of the Year titles for HSU coaches, 43 players have been named ASC Player of the Year, 20 players were named ASC Freshman of the Year, and three athletes have been named ASC male or female athlete of the Year in the American Southwest Conference.
On a regional and national scale, HSU has had 39 first team All-Americans, 72 overall All-Americans, in addition to having 37 teams advance to NCAA Championship play, one national Player of the Year, four national Player of the Year finalists, one Texas Woman of the Year, 76 academic All-District selections, 28 academic All-Americans, and 119 All-Region performers.
Hardin-Simmons is a D-III school and offers 18 varsity sports for men and women, including: Football, Volleyball, Baseball, Softball, Soccer (men/women), Tennis (men/women), Basketball (men/women), Cross Country (men/women), Track (men/women), and Golf (men/women).
Presidents
| 1892–1894 | The Rev. W.C. Friley |
| 1894–1898 | Dr. George O. Thatcher |
| 1898–1901 | Dr. O.C. Pope |
| 1901–1902 | The Rev. C.R. Hairfield |
| 1902–1909 | Dr. Oscar Henry Cooper Oscar Henry Cooper Oscar Henry Cooper was the President of Baylor University from 1899 to 1902, and of Simmons College, now known as Hardin-Simmons University from 1902 to 1909.-Biography:... |
| 1909–1940 | Dr. Jefferson Davis Sandefer, Sr. |
| 1940 | Dr. Lucian Q. Campbell (acting president) |
| 1940–1943 | Dr. William R. White |
| 1943–1953 | Dr. Rupert N. Richardson Rupert N. Richardson Rupert Norval Richardson, Sr. , was an American historian and a former president of Baptist-affiliated Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene, Texas... , historian of West Texas West Texas West Texas is a vernacular term applied to a region in the southwestern quadrant of the United States that primarily encompasses the arid and semi-arid lands in the western portion of the state of Texas.... . Richardson wrote his personal reflection entitled Famous Are Thy Halls: Hardin–Simmons University As I Have Known It (1964). |
| 1953–1962 | Dr. Evan Allard Reiff |
| 1962–1963 | Dr. George L. Graham (interim) |
| 1963–1966 | Dr. James H. Landes |
| 1966–1977 | Dr. Elwin L. Skiles |
| 1977–1991 | Dr. Jesse C. Fletcher |
| 1991–2001 | Dr. Lanny Hall |
| 2001–2008 | Dr. W. Craig Turner |
| 2009- | Dr. Lanny Hall |
Awards / Distinctions
2007- US News and World Report America's Best Colleges 2007.
- Princeton Review Best Western Colleges 2007.
2006
- US News and World Report America's Best Colleges 2006.
- Princeton Review Best Western Colleges 2006.
For the first 15 years that HSU restarted its football program (1990-2005), the Hardin-Simmons Cowboy Football team holds the distinction of having the best winning percentage (77.4%) of any Texas college football program from any division.
Notable alumni
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to Lake Havasu, Arizona