History
Bluefield University was founded as "Bluefield College" in 1922 by the Baptist General Association of Virginia (BGAV), after residents of Bluefield offered to donate land and start-up funds. R.A. Landsdell became the first president in 1920, and the current administration building is named Landsdell Hall in his honor. At its founding, Bluefield was a two-year junior college. Future Nobel Prize winner John F. Nash took mathematics courses at the relatively new college while in high school. In his autobiography for the Nobel Foundation, he writes
I should mention that during my last year in the Bluefield schools that my parents had arranged for me to take supplementary math courses at Bluefield College, which was then a 2-year institution operated by Southern Baptists. I didn't get official advanced standing at Carnegie because of my extra studies but I had advanced knowledge and ability and didn't need to learn much from the first math courses at Carnegie.
Under Charles L. Harman, president from 1946 to 1971, the college built Easley Library, the dormitory Rish Hall, Harman Chapel, and a geodesic dome as the gymnasium.
In 1975, Bluefield reinvented itself as a four-year college, and during the 1989–1996 presidency of Roy A. Dobyns, student enrollment doubled to more than 800 students. In 1998, under the leadership of President Daniel G. MacMillan, the college cut tuition by over 20% and refocused its student recruitment on the local area.
In 2007 David W. Olive, was inaugurated as president. Shortly thereafter, the college raised tuition by about 20%, and announced a new strategic plan.
During the centennial anniversary of Bluefield College, it achieved university status and became Bluefield University upon announcement from President David Olive at the President's Convocation on August 18, 2021.
On July 19, 2024, the university announced the appointment of Dr. Steven Peterson as its 10th president.
Presidents
Presidents of Bluefield University have included:
Bluefield University presidents
|
| R. A. Lansdell | 1920–1926 |
| Oscar E. Sams | 1927–1930 |
| J. Taylor Stinson | 1930–1934 |
| Edwin C. Wade | 1934–1946 |
| Charles L. Harman | 1946–1971 |
| Charles L. Tyer | 1972–1988 |
| Roy A. Dobyns | 1989–1996 |
| Daniel G. MacMillan | 1997–2006 |
| David W. Olive | 2007–2023 |
| Steven Peterson | 2024–Present |
