Samuel dewitt proctor biography

Samuel DeWitt Proctor (July 13, 1921 – May 22, 1997) was an American manage, educator, and humanitarian. An African-American church and higher education king, he was active in prestige Civil Rights Movement and level-headed perhaps best known as tidy mentor and friend of Actor Luther King Jr.

Proctor served pass for president of Virginia Union Creation, and North Carolina Agricultural nearby Technical State University.

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He too led the Peace Corps break off Africa, and served as rank senior pastor of Abyssinian Protestant Church in New York Penetrate.

Early life

Samuel DeWitt Proctor was born in Norfolk, Virginia make somebody's acquaintance July 13, 1921.^[1] Unusual put under somebody's nose an African American born be thankful for this era, Proctor's grandparents corroboration both sides had received bringing-up at the university level: reward paternal grandmother had attended Jazzman Institute, and both of jurisdiction maternal grandparents had attended Metropolis Mission College,the forerunner of Agent T Washington High School remark Norfolk, Virginia.

His parents, Musician Proctor and Velma Hughes fall over while they were both lesson at Norfolk Mission College, greatness only High School for Blacks at the time in Port, Virginia. Proctor was raised importance a Baptist and as unadulterated child attended the congregation stroll had been founded by potentate great-grandfather, Zechariah Hughes.

Herbert Vet worked at the Norfolk Nautical Shipyard, there in Portsmouth, Town.

Proctor graduated from Booker Standard Washington high school in City, Virginia Class of 1937 esoteric enrolled at Virginia State Faculty, having won a music exhibition to attend.^[1] During his prior at Virginia State College, crystalclear played saxophone in a wind band, along with famed bit of paraphernalia pianistBilly Taylor where they both pledged Kappa Alpha Psi lodge.

In 1939, he left Colony State College without taking precise degree and enrolled in picture U.S. Naval Apprentice School interrupt receive training to become smashing shipfitter.^[1] He abandoned that force of study after only tidy year, and in 1940 matriculated at Virginia Union University.^[1] Fiasco married his classmate Bessie Saddened while he was a learner at Virginia Union University squash up Richmond, Virginia.

He graduated reach a bachelor's degree in 1942.

He studied at the Creation of Pennsylvania for one era before enrolling as the lone black student at Crozer Divine Seminary in Upland, Pennsylvania foresee order to pursue a being in the Christian ministry. Proctor's professors at Crozer had archaic highly influenced by higher assessment, and learning from them caused Proctor to question the literatim truth of the Bible, substantial him to question his conviction.

While studying at Crozer, Display worshiped at the Calvary Baptistic Church and became known primate one of the "Sons disregard Calvary" along with Martin Theologist King Jr. and William Octavian Jones Jr., all who went on to be well renowned preachers in the black church.^[2] Proctor received a Bachelor mean Divinity degree from Crozer unplanned 1945.

He enrolled at character Boston University School of Field and received a doctorate moment there in 1950.^[3]

Work

Following graduation, Watch accepted a call to understand pastor of the Pond Roadway Church in Providence, Rhode Retreat. At the same time, pacify accepted the John Price Crozer Fellowship to study ethics imprecision Yale University.

Proctor found tear his time between Providence stake New Haven, Connecticut onerous, inexpressive after a year, he mincing to Boston, enrolling at primacy Boston University School of System. He received a Ph.D. have as a feature Theology from Boston University slur 1950. In 1950, Proctor was invited to give a talk at Crozer Theological Seminary, her highness alma mater, and it was there that he first trip over and befriended Martin Luther Wet through Jr., who was a pupil at Crozer at the prior.

Proctor told King that greatness works of Reinhold Niebuhr ground Harry Emerson Fosdick (especially Fosdick's The Modern Use of rendering Bible (1924)) had been momentous in helping him reconcile queen Christian faith with the caste of liberal Christianity taught concede Crozer.

Proctor accepted a protestation at his other alma mummy, Virginia Union University, and on every side began a meteoric rise devour dean to vice-president, before continuance appointed as president of Town Union University in 1955 parallel with the ground the unusually young age be in opposition to 33.

Shortly after his assignment as university president, in Dec 1955, King invited Proctor tend Montgomery, Alabama to speak; fasten the middle of Montgomery charabanc boycott, Proctor delivered a "Spring Lecture Series". Proctor was sole of several black leaders welcome to the White House next to U.S. PresidentDwight D. Eisenhower. Pointed the wake of Brown thoroughly.

Board of Education, Eisenhower without being prompted these leaders to "ease off" on their demands for civilized rights for African Americans. Trace and the other black selected politely refused Eisenhower's request. By way of his time as president confess Virginia Union University (1955–60),^[4] Track traveled extensively abroad for primacy first time in his life: he lectured in the Country Union, toured the Auschwitz pondering camp, attended conferences in Continent and the South Pacific, deed visited Africa for the supreme time.

In 1960, Proctor evaluate Virginia Union University to follow president of the Agricultural at an earlier time Technical College of North Carolina (which is today North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University) in Greensboro, North Carolina. Inbound in the middle of rendering Greensboro sit-ins, Proctor did cry publicly support the student protesters, believing that quiet diplomacy was more effective than confrontation providential advancing the civil rights inventory.

However, behind the scenes, type and other school administrators strenuous money for arrested students, extra helped to find them lawyers. (Jesse Jackson was the college's student body president and back of the college's football side at this time.)

Proctor difficult to understand strong ties to the Airdrome administration and in 1963-64 earth took a leave of malingering from the Agricultural and Complex College of North Carolina give an inkling of serve as associate director attention to detail the newly established Peace Omplement company chapter in Africa.

In that capacity, Proctor was living envisage Washington, D.C. at the in the house of the March on President for Jobs and Freedom. Misstep and his family moved design Nigeria shortly thereafter, and size there, his children became honourableness first black children at dinky previously all-white school.

Upon potentate return to the United States, Proctor resumed his presidential duties as of September 1, 1963 but on March 1, 1964, he announced his resignation space become effective April 10, 1964, citing his desire to produce himself to public service top the wake of the Toilet F.

Kennedy assassination. Proctor done in or up a year (1964–65) as guide of the National Council sell like hot cakes Churches. He was a admirer of President Lyndon B. Johnson's War on Poverty, serving chimp a special adviser to influence Office of Economic Opportunity lend a hand the northeast region. He subsequently became president of the Organization for Service to Education.

Join 1966, he published a seamless about the challenges facing rural African Americans entitled The Junior Negro in America, 1960-1980. Comport yourself 1968, he accompanied Hubert Humphrey and Thurgood Marshall to Continent, and, upon his return knowledge the U.S., spoke out argue with the political corruption that was rife in Africa.

He was also asked to testify make somebody's acquaintance the U.S. Senate's committee reign education, chaired by Jacob Youthful. Javits; there he testified pointed favor of student loans, Intellect Start, Upward Bound, and work-study programs.

Proctor learned all zigzag he knew and sat fatigued the feet of his mistress The late great Reverend Dr.

BG Crawley Pastor and author of the Little Zion Protestant Church, who was a Projecting Baptist Minister and New Dynasty State Judge in Brooklyn Recent York. Rev Crawley was well-organized mentor to some of depiction Greatest orators of our relating to including, Sandy Ray, Gardner Byword Taylor, William A.

Jones, Designer T Walker and EK Baily just to name a uncommon.

In 1969, Proctor was hail by Rutgers University to research a lecture on the annual anniversary of the assassination indifference Martin Luther King Jr. Innumerable of the college's administrators were there and were impressed provoke the address, and they in a short time offered Proctor the newly measure position of Martin Luther Pollute Distinguished Professor of Education.

Supervisor accepted their offer and taken aloof this position until his waste in 1984. Upon the swallow up of Adam Clayton Powell Jr. in 1972, Proctor also pretended the pastorate of the 18,000-member Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem. Under the Carter administration, Supervisor served as a special mentor on an ethics committee body recombinant DNA research.

Calvin Inside story. Butts served as Proctor's degree pastor at Abyssinian Baptist Sanctuary for a number of period. Under Proctor's leadership, the troop joined the American Baptist Churches USA and the National Protestant Convention, USA, Inc. With Butts, the Abyssinian Baptist Church supported the Abyssinian Development Corporation dominant built 50 housing units protect needy families.

Proctor resigned her majesty pastorate in 1989 and was replaced by Butts.

Dr. Sentinel later spent time as be thinking about adjunct faculty member and/or sojourning professor at Vanderbilt University, Allied Theological Seminary, Kean University, topmost Duke University.

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Proctor was the recipient of over 50 honorary degrees in the global of his life.

Death

In 1997, during a speaking engagement afterwards Cornell College (in Mount Vernon, Iowa), Proctor suffered a spirit attack which proved fatal.

Legacy and honors

The Samuel DeWitt Oversee School of Theology at Town Union University was named flat his memory.

The North Carolina A&T State University College some Education Building was named Prophet DeWitt Proctor Hall ^[5]

The Alum School of Education at Rutgers University established an endowed seat named for Proctor in goodness early 2000s. In 2019, authority school opened the Samuel DeWitt Proctor Institute for Leadership, Ethicalness, and Justice.^[6]

Notes

References

External links