Institutional Advancement * Division of Communications * 830 Westview Drive, S.W. Atlanta, Georgia 30314

Morehouse Loses a Great Leader

ATLANTA, Feb. 18, 2002 - Hugh Morris Gloster (class of '31), who served as the seventh president of Morehouse College from 1967 to 1987, passed away on Saturday morning, February 16. He was 90 years old.

Dr. Gloster had a successful and productive career as administrator, teacher, writer, speaker, USO wartime executive, and American representative in educational programs in foreign countries.

Dr. Gloster was born May 11, 1911 in Brownsville, Tenn., to John and Sara Gloster.

As an instructor, president and member of the Board of Trustees, Dr. Gloster was one of the College's most important and active fundraisers and supporters for nearly seven decades. He was also the first alumnus to serve as president of the College. The College's administration building is named for him.

During his tenure as president, Dr. Gloster's administration amassed numerous and significant accomplishments, including:

• Established the Morehouse School of Medicine, which became independent in 1981 and graduated its first class in 1985.
• Established numerous new majors, including eight in the Department of Business and a Dual-Degree Engineering Program with the Georgia Institute of Technology and Boston University.
• More than doubled the size and salaries of the faculty, increasing the percentage of faculty Ph.D.'s to more than 65 percent, and established seven endowed academic chairs.
• More than doubled student enrollment and improved student quality by upgrading the curriculum and setting higher admissions standards.
• Raised $20 million through capital campaigns in the mid-1970's and 1980's.
• Quadrupled the endowment of Morehouse College to $29 million.
• Acquired 30 acres of adjacent urban land, valued at $2 million.
• Completed construction of 12 new facilities valued at $30 million, including an auditorium with a $360,000 pipe organ, an administration building, three classroom buildings, a dining hall, student center, four dormitories, and a 9,000-seat stadium with an Olympic track.
• Secured funding to construct a new biology-chemistry building and began to raise funds to build a new humanities building.
• Acquired a classroom building, an apartment complex, and the president's home.
• Operated the College without a deficit during the 1970's and 1980's.

A member of Phi Beta Kappa, Dr. Gloster held a B.A. degree from Morehouse College (class of 1931), the M.A. degree from Atlanta University, and a Ph.D. degree from New York University.

Gloster held honorary doctorates from Emory University, Hampton University, LeMoyne-Owen College, Mercer University, Morehouse College, the Morehouse School of Medicine, Morgan State University, New York University, St. Paul's College, the University of Haiti, Washington University, and Wayne State University.

Prior to assuming the presidency of Morehouse, Dr. Gloster held teaching positions at LeMoyne and Morehouse colleges, as well as administrative positions with the USO and Hampton Institute. At Hampton Institute Dr. Gloster raised $21 million dollars to support academic programs.

Earlier in his career, Dr. Gloster was the first American to serve under U.S. government auspices following World War II in overseas educational programs sponsored by the U.S. Department of State. From 1953 to 1955, he was Fulbright Professor of English at Hiroshima University in Japan. In 1961-1962, he served as visiting professor of English in the International Educational Exchange Program at the University of Warsaw in Poland.

Dr. Gloster also served as a member of several presidential commissions appointed by U.S. government agencies to further international education and relations. In 1984, he represented the U.S. Department of Education in travel to the People's Republic of China to develop exchange programs between China and the United States. In 1986, he was a delegate to the Republic of South Africa, under the sponsorship of USAID, to recommend steps that public and private organizations could take to upgrade education for Blacks in that country. In 1988, Dr. Gloster served as a member of a United States Agency for International Development-National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education National team to recommend ways to develop closer cooperation between colleges and universities in those countries and historically Black colleges and universities in the United States.

A prolific writer, Dr. Gloster authored many articles and delivered numerous lectures on American literature and education. He authored "Negro Voices in American Fiction," (in print since 1948) and was the co-editor of "The Brown Thrush" and "My Life - My Country - My World," which was a best selling textbook.

Dr. Gloster's illustrious career was characterized by persistent and consistent recognition. In 1986, he was selected by his peers as one of the 100 most effective college presidents in the United States. More recently, two institutions honored him in recognition of his "lifetime accomplishments." In March, he received the Distinguished Alumni Award from the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences of New York University, where he received his Ph.D. degree. In May, he received the "Magic Hands" Award from LeMoyne-Owen College where he had pursued junior college studies.

Dr. Gloster is survived by his wife Yvonne King Gloster, two daughters - Mrs. Alice Green Burnette, of Palm Coast, Florida, and Mrs. Evelyn Dawkins, of Hampton, Virginia, and one son, Hugh M. Gloster, Jr., MD, of Cincinnati, Ohio.

A wake will be held on Wednesday, February 20, at 7 p.m., and the funeral on Thursday, February 21, at 11 a.m., both in the Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel on the campus of Morehouse College. Among those expected to speak are Louis Wade Sullivan M.D., (class of '54) President, Morehouse School of Medicine and the Rev. William H. Gray III, President and CEO, The College Fund/UNCF. In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to the Hugh M. Gloster Endowed Scholarship Fund, c/o Office of Institutional Advancement, Morehouse College, 830 Westview Dr. SW, Atlanta, Ga. 30314.

Ranked the number one college in the nation for educating African American students by Black Enterprise magazine, Morehouse College is the nation's largest private liberal arts college for men. Founded in 1867, the College enrolls approximately 3,000 students and confers bachelor's degrees on more black men than any other institution in the world.

Prominent alumni include Martin Luther King Jr., Nobel Peace Prize laureate and civil rights leader; Dr. David Satcher, U.S. Surgeon General; Sheldon "Spike" Lee, filmmaker and president of 40 Acres & A Mule Productions; Maynard H. Jackson, president of Jackson Securities and the first African-American mayor of Atlanta; and Nima A. Warfield, the first African-American Rhodes Scholar from an historically black college or university.

# # #