Samford University - Entre Nous Yearbook (Birmingham, AL)

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Dr. Wright proud of campus, academic growth -Acquisition of the Cumberland School of Law from Cumberland University in 1961, uniting with Samford the traditions of one of the nationls oldest law schools. -Elevation of Howard College to Samford Univer- sity in 1965. The school was named in honor of Frank Park Samford, the institution's greatest individual benefactor, and his family. -Reinstitution of Master's degree programs in 1965. -Adoption of the 4-1-4 academic calendar in 1969, thus providing a January Term as a period for concen- trated study in one particular area. -Joining with Baptist Medical Centers to offer two- year and four-year baccalaureate nursing degrees through the Ida V. Moffett School of Nursing in 1973. -The continued growth of the academic program over the years. In 1958, only 21 majors were offered, today, Samford provides more than 50 courses of study. How does Dr. Wright think he will be remembered? As a builder, I suppose. The campus is a sort of silent testimony to what we have tried to do. That was my charge from the trustees. Build the campus. Build the faculty. Build the academic program. Build the student body. Build our relationships with the State Baptist Convention. Build our relationships in the com- munity. I have made every effort possible to do all those things. I have not been completely successful in any of them, but I am proud of the progress we have made.

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rightis Charge: Build Campus i When Dr. Leslie S. Wright became president of Samford University-then Howard College-a quar- ter of a century ago, the Shades Valley campus was barely a year old. We had seven buildings, not many trees, not many sidewalks, and a lot of mud, Dr. Wright recalled in early August. There was a great deal to be done in the way of construction. The Board of Trustees which elected him president gave Wright a clearly-defined mission. My only charge from the trustees was to build the campus, under their guidance and direction, he re- called. That has been the consuming task during these 25 years in which we have practically completed the noriginal master plan for the campus. Dr. Wright retired to the post of chancellor on Au- T gust 31, turning the reins over to his successor, Dr. Thomas E. Corts, who had served as president of Win- gate College in North Carolina for the past nine years. Wright leaves the legacy of a builder. Il The campus has grown to 27 academic buildings and .seven auxiliary structures with a total investment of nsome S50 million and a net worth of twice that figure. Enrollment has advanced from 1,500 in the fall of 1958 I to 4,100 last September. The faculty has grown from 65 ' members 25 years ago to 291 today. The annual budget has increased from 51,255,000 in 1958 to 316,417,000 i this fall. Trees have reached maturity and grass has covered lthe sloping hillsides. Ankle-deep mud is no longer a rainy day threat. Looking back over the years, Dr. Wright described Samford's progress as matter of Hmeasured growth. We have not tried to expand rapidly, but only as rapidly as we could provide high calibre programs, fa- cilities, and qualified faculty members in new academic areas,', he said. Similarly, the building of campus structures followed no predetermined sequence, although the campus mas- ter plan designed during the early 1950s was followed closely. We did not have a numbered order of buildings that would be constructed in a certain order at the outset because we did not know how the needs would develop. ,Tx 'ull'

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