Furman University | Text

Board To Recommend 'Hands-Off' Policy to Baptist Convention

An article appearing in Furman's student newspaper, The Paladin, dated October 23, 1964. The author writes about the General Board of the South Carolina Baptist Convention's recommendation that the convention abopt a hands-off policy towards desegregation. Admission policies would be left to the trustees of it's church supported colleges.

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Furman University

Date

1964-10-23

Source

The Paladin. October 23, 1964. vol 50, issue 6

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Transcription of this Item

Board To Recommend 'Hands-Off Policy To Baptist Convention -- The General Board of the South Carolina Baptist Convention recommended last week that the convention adopt a hands-off policy toward desegregation of its church-supported colleges. Under the report of the executive committee, admissions policies would be left to trustees of the individual schools. The 1963 Baptist Convention requested that the Furman trustees postpone action on a desegregation policy until the 1964 convention. The executive committee of the Convention's General Board was directed to look into the question of desegregation at Furman. The report of the executive committee states, in part: "We consider it impractical, at this time, to adopt a uniform admissions policy for all our colleges. Therefore, we approve the policy of allowing each college to deal with student admissions in whatever way the trustees feel is best for that particular institution and the South Carolina Baptist Convention." In 1963 the General Board had challenged the Furman trustees' decision for a new admissions policy and had voted to ask the Convention to instruct the trustees to delay action. At the 1963 South Carolina Baptist Convention, Dr. Edgar Byrd attempted to amend the recommendation of the General Board to leave the matter of admissions to the trustees. At that time, however, the Convention voted by more than three to one to accept the Board's recommendation "requesting the Furman trustees to postpone action on the recently announced policy of admission of all qualified students until feasible policy could be adopted for all South Carolina Baptist institutions." The 1964 South Carolina Baptist Convention will vote on the report of the executive committee next month.