Can someone give me ANY INFORMATION on the history of Shorter College in North Little Rock, Arkansas? It is an AME College in the 12th Episcopal District. Bethel AME in North Little Rock is closest in proximity. All I know is that it originated as Bethel University in 1886. Who is Shorter named after, where was it started...etc. Any information would be great!

-- Anonymous, April 02, 2004

Answers

Brother Scoggins,

Here are some pearls of wisdom for you.

Whenever possible, go directly to the source. That way, the information you receive hasn't been filtered or diluted. I would recommend sending an e-mail to Shorter_College1@hotmail.com...

If that fails, contact the 12th District Office. P.O. Box 147 N. Little Rock, Arkansas 72203-0147 (501) 375-4310

Which brings me to the next pearl:

Never be afraid to ask ANYONE for information. The person you least expect to have the answer generally does.

-- Anonymous, April 02, 2004

O.K., O.K......

Shorter is named for Bishop James A. Shorter 1817-1887. This should not be a surprise (think Payne Theological Seminary, Morris Brown College, Allen University, and Quinn College). Bishop Shorter was one of the founders of Wilberforce.

-- Anonymous, April 02, 2004

HISTORY

Shorter College is a two-year, private, coed, liberal arts college affiliated with the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church. SC was founded in 1886 as a four-year institution under the name Bethel University. In 1903 the name changed to Shorter College. It became a two-year college in 1955.

Shorter College forms part of a cooperative center with Arkansas Baptist and Philander Smith Colleges in sharing resources and programs. Shorter is an open-admission school that believes everyone should have an opportunity to pursue higher education and to develop to their full potential. To this end, Shorter provides a liberal arts education leading to career degrees or liberal arts transfer degrees.

(Source: http://www.petersons.com/blackcolleges/profiles/shorterc.asp? sponsor=1714)

-- Anonymous, April 02, 2004

Shorter is named after the ninth bishop of the AME church, James A. Shorter. He served Arkansas and Texas during his tenure, organizing the TExas Annual Conference in 1867, among other things. Shorter is currently in the jurisdiction of the 12th district, under the supervision of Bishop Richard Allen Chappelle (107).

For more information, see the school's web site at This Link.

-- Anonymous, April 03, 2004