Ferrum College
Ferrum College's 700-acre (280 ha) campus is in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains near Rocky Mount, Virginia, in Franklin County.
Construction began in earnest in 1914, and Dr. Beckham moved his family to the site, opening the first section of John Wesley Hall to begin the first term of instruction in the fall of 1914.
The board of trustees purchased an additional 96 acres in 1916, and Ferrum graduated their first diploma-earning student in 1917: Berta Thompson (1897–1975), who went on to become a public-school teacher.
After steady growth in its first decade, despite numerous crises involving sickness, financial difficulties, and luring faculty to rural Virginia, in 1926 Ferrum's trustees voted to recast the institution as a junior college.
By 1940, half of the enrolled students were college level; the elementary division closed before the end of World War II.
However, this crisis inspired a wide outpouring of support from alumni and a decision to make stronger appeals and more competitive salaries to entice faculty and staff to the college's rural location.
[3]President Derby's successor was fittingly one of the many alumni who championed a future for Ferrum Training School, Dr. Nathaniel Davis of the class of 1924.
Under his leadership, the school continued its transition into a junior college and instituted an annual hike for the students in the surrounding mountains.
Another shift was the rise in collegiate athletics, exemplified by the long career of Hank Norton, who began coaching in 1960 and continued his association with the college for over three decades.
As early as 1963, the Methodist Church Annual Conference had recommended that its schools in Virginia consider enrollment of all students without regard to race.
In 1967, Ferrum welcomed its first four African-American students: Alice Baker and Fred Dunnings of Rocky Mount, Jerry Venable from Staunton, and Allen White from Philadelphia.
A historian and political scientist by training, Dr. Hart began his tenure by explaining to the board of trustees that Ferrum would continue to grow in academics, but also as a cornerstone of the local community, likely a change brought about by Dr. Arthur's insistence that the faculty live within the bounds of the town.
In our assessment of where to go from there, it was fairly obvious that we needed to put renewed emphasis on the quality of the whole program, not just academics but student activities as well... we gradually paid off everything except a long-term note that goes until 2010.
Since 1973, the institute has held the annual Blue Ridge Folklife Festival on the fourth Saturday in October to showcase regional traditions.
It serves not only as a library, but also contains many quiet areas for study, including an art gallery, the International Programs office, the Carter Center for Academic Success, and several classrooms.
It was built in 2012 and named in honor of former football coach and athletic director Hank Norton, who spent 34 years at Ferrum.
The content is written primarily by students, and it delivers news to the Ferrum College campus and the broader Franklin community.
Seven members of the Panthers' 1968 championship team—all of whom had transferred to Marshall University—died in the 1970 plane crash that also claimed the lives of 37 Thundering Herd players and 30 others, including the team's coaches, 25 boosters, and the entire flight crew.
In March 2019, Ferrum College hosted the NCAA Division III men's wrestling championships, held at the Berglund Center in Roanoke, Virginia.
[17] In January 2020, the college announced plans to launch both women's and men's track and field programs beginning in the fall 2020 season.
