Dallas Baptist University (Decatur Baptist College)
Dallas, Dallas County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Closely linked to Northwest Baptist College, which operated from 1891 to 1897, Decatur Baptist College opened its doors in 1898. The college was the result of an effort by Texas Baptist leaders to consolidate all Texas Baptist Schools under the direction of Baylor University and the Baptist General Convention of Texas. The college, which initially served primary and secondary school students in addition to the junior college program, had an enrollment of 105 in the fall of 1898. J. L. Ward, president of the college from 1900 to 1907 and 1914 to 1950, was most influential in the development and expansion of the college. By 1959 the school offered courses in religion, fine arts, business, languages, and vocational training. Increasing financial challenges and decreasing enrollment led the college to accept an invitation to move to Dallas. The school's name was changed to Dallas Baptist College in February 1965; its first classes were held that fall, with an enrollment of 941. The college became a four-year institution in 1968. Renamed Dallas Baptist University in 1985, the school began awarding graduate degrees in religion, education, and business administration. The school grew steadily under the leadership of a new president beginning in 1988 and paid its outstanding financial debts. By the 1990s, the population of the college community exceeded 3,500 as the school affirmed in its mission statement its commitment "to provide Christ-centered quality higher education." (1998)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Decatur Baptist College opened in 1898 out of a Texas Baptist effort to consolidate the state's Baptist schools under Baylor and the Baptist General Convention of Texas, at first teaching primary and secondary pupils alongside a junior-college program. Under long-serving president J. L. Ward the college broadened its offerings, and in 1965 financial pressures prompted a move to Dallas and a new name, Dallas Baptist College. It grew into a four-year institution in 1968 and became Dallas Baptist University in 1985, expanding into graduate degrees.
Why it matters
Its long arc shows how denominational colleges seeded and sustained higher education across Texas and the wider South.
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Related people
- · J. L. Ward
Themes & tags
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