Echo
Special Edition
April 25, 1964
Special Edition
Colorful Activities Mark Inauguration
Durham ’'Herald'
Lauds M'A] Head
(Reprint from Durham Morning
Herald, August 15, 1963)
In seeking a successor to re
tiring President Alfonso Elder,
the board of trustees of North
Carolina College put high on
its list of desiderata the quali
fications of sound scholarship
and some administrative ex
perience. Both standards are
met in Dr. Samuel P. Massie
who last week was elected
third president of the Durham
institution.
Dr. Massie has attained nat
ional prominence in education
by his work with the National
Science Foundation as associ
ate program and project director.
In this post he has made num
erous contacts with institu
tions throughout the United
States through the founda-
t i o n ’ s program of making
grants to colleges and univer
sities for upgrading the teach
ing of mathematics and the
sciences and for the purchase
of undergraduate science equip
ment, the latter being from its
inauguration in 1961 under Dr.
Massie’s supervision.
This work with the National
Scicnco Foundation has given
Dr. Massie not only experience
in administration but an ex
ceptional knowledge of the
financial operation o f institu
tions throughout the country.
Because the grants for purchas
ing equipment are made on a
matching basis, Dr. Massie has
had the opportunity to become
acquainted with the fiscal poli
cies of over 800 colleges and
universities. Thus an aspect of
administration all too often
(See Durham Herald, page 4)
T^ampus Echo’
Greets Massie
(Reprint irom North Carolina
College Campus Echo, Septem
ber 20, 1963)
We have not met Dr. Samuel
P. Massie, yet; we have only
seen and heard him, briefly;
but we admire him, welcome
him; he has the presidential
qualities needed for a growing
North Carolina College.
Dr. Massie brings prestige to
NCC with his long string of
achievements. He has been As
sociate Program Director for
Undergraduate Science Educa
tion of the National Science
Foundation, during which time
he administered an 8 million
dollar program for undergrad
uate science equipment. He has
been professor and chairman of
chemistry and pharmaceutical
departments in two of the na
tion’s top universities, Fisk and
Howard. Among his achieve
ments in the science field,
other than his research in can
cer, drugs, explosives and at
omic energy, he has written a
paper on his research in “phe-
nothia” science which received
international recognition. In
1961, he was hailed as one of
the six top chemistry profes-
(See Campus Echo, page 4)
National Dignitaries Honor Massie
SAMUEL P. MASSIE
Noted Chemist New NCC Head
Samuel P. Massie, the third
President of North Carolina
College at Durham, came to the
Durham institution from Wash
ington, D. C., where he was
associate program director for
undergraduate science educat
ion of the National Science
Foundation.
In this position he had the
primary responsibility for the
undergraduate instructional sci
entific equipment program,
which was budgeted for eight
million dollars.
Dr. Massie had been a staff
member of the Foundation since
August, 1960. He continues to
serve as a consultant to the
Foundation. During his last
year in Washington he also
served as Professor and Chair
man of the Pharmaceutical
Chemistry Department at Ho
ward University.
Native of Arkansas
Dr. Massie is a native of
Little Rock, Arkansas, where
he received his elementary and
secondary education, finishing,
high school at the age of 13.
Subsequently, he went to
Dunbar Junior College in Little
Rock, where he was President
of the Student Council, and to
the Agricultural, Mechanical,
and Normal College in Pine
Bluff, Arkansas, where he
graduated summa cum laude
with a major in Chemistry at
the age of 18.
He then went to Fisk Univer
sity, receiving his Master’s de
gree in Chemistry in 1940.
He returned to his Alma Ma
ter, Agricultural, Mechanical,
and Normal College, for a year
and then went to Iowa State
College (now University),
where he received his Ph.D.
degree in Organic Chemistry in
1946, his educational studies
being interrupted by two and a
half years of military research.
Fisk Instructor
After a brief stint in industry
at Eastman Kodak Company in
Rochester, New York, he re
turned to his second Alma Ma
ter, Fisk University, in 1946 as
a Chemistry instructor.
In September, 1947, he
went to Oklahoma, where for
six years he served as Profes
sor and Chairman of the
Chemistry Department of Lang
ston University. In 1953, he
served as President of the Ok
lahoma Academy of Science.
He was invited back to Fisk
(See Noted Chemist, page 2)
Dr. Samuel Proctor Massie,
4 4 - y e a r-o 1 d internationally
known chemist and educator,
will be inaugurated as third
president of North Carolina Col
lege at 3 p.m. on Saturday,
April 25.
A distinguished group of lead
ers from education, business,
and industry will join officials
of the State of North Carolina
and more than 300 representa
tives from U.S. colleges, univer
sities, and learned societies for
the colorful inaugural. Governor
Terry Sanford will bring greet
ings from the State of North
Carolina.
Tentative plans call for the
service to be held on the cam
pus in front of the James E.
Shepard Memorial Library.
Services will be shifted to Mc-
Dougald Gymnasium in case of
rain. The inauguration itself
will climax three activity-pack-
ed days of celebration bringing
to the NCC campus such dis
tinguished educators as Dr.
James Madison Nabrit, president
of Howard University; Dr. G.
Lamar Harrison, former presi
dent of Langston University in
Oklahoma and now professor of
education at Chicago Teachers
College; and Dr. Henry Gilman,
Honorary Fellow of the Chemi
cal Society of London and Dis
tinguished Professor of Chem
istry at the Iowa State Universi
ty, Ames.
Dr. Massie succeeded Dr. Al
fonso Elder, who retired on Sep
tember 1 after leading the col
lege to unprecedented academic
heights during his tenure of of
fice that started in 1948. Dr. El
der became second president oJ
NCC after the death of Dr.
James E. Shepard, founder, in
October, 1947.
Planning for the inauguration
festivities was done by a campus
trustee committee with Trustees
M. Hugh Thompson of Durham
and Dr. John R. Larkins of Ral-
PRESIDENT SAMUEL P. MASSIE is shown here in the Board of
Directors Room with photographs of the late Dr. James E. Shepard,
NCC founder, left, and Dr. Alfonso Elder, who served as NCC’s
president from 1948 until his retirement last August 1, right.
eigh serving as liaison with
campus chairman Dr. Helen G.
Edmonds, professor of history
and chairman of the Department
of History. Participation of vir
tually every faculty and staff
member in the far-flung plan
ning promises to make the
event one of the most signifi
cant in NCC history. Students
and alumni in large numbers
are expected to overflow the im
mediate inaugural area.
Inaugural activities begin
formally on Thursday with a
student buffet followed by a
drama-dance program in Duke
Auditorium.
Friday evening’s activities
include a faculty-staff inaugu
ral banquet followed by a
special concert sponsored by
the college choir. Dr. Harrison
will be the banquet speaker.
Dr. Nabrit will deliver an ad
dress at the inaugural luncheon
on Saturday.
President Massie’s inaugural
address will follow an address
by Professor Gilman on Satur
day. At this ceremony Dr.
Massie will receive the sym
bols of office.
In addition to greetings from
Governor Sanford in behalf of
the State, greetings Saturday
will el«n be pxtppried hy 'DllT'-
ham Mayor R. Wensell Graba-
rek and Dr. William C. Archie,
director of the North Carolina
Board of Higher Education.
Dr. Harrison holds earned
degrees from Howard Univer
sity (A.B.), the University of
Cincinnati (B.E. and A. M.)
and Ohio State University
(Ph.D.). The University of Li
beria awarded him an hon
orary D.C.L. degree in 1956.
He served for a time with
UNESCO and he holds member
ship in dozens of civic and ed
ucational organizations.
The Liberian Government
knighted the former Langston
University president in 1955
upon the instruction of Liber
ian President W.V.S. Tubman.
Dr. Harrison served as a
professor and administrator at
Virginia State College, West
Virginia State College and
dean at Prairie View State Col
lege, Texas, before becoming
president of Langston in 1939.
Oklahoma regents conferred
numerous honors on Dr. Harri
son. The present Langston Uni
versity library 's named for
him. ' ■ *
President Nabrit is one of
the top U. S. civil rights law
yers. He graduated with honors
from Morehouse College and
later received the J.D. degree
from Northwestern University
with honors (member of the
Order of the Coif) and member
of the editorial board of the
Illinois Law Review. He has
been the recipient of honorary
degrees from Morehouse Col
lege, Lincoln University (Pa.),
Bates College, and Georgetown
University.
His career in public service
is one of the nation’s most
notable. He has been adviser
to U. S. P ’’dents and repre
sentative cyl^umerous federal
commissior s 0,iid boards. In
(See iuau£ural, page 2)