Celebrating 100 Years
Bluefield University is celebrating its 100th year of education throughout the 2021-2022 academic year with a number of special events and activities.
BU kicked off the yearlong celebration, August 18, with a President’s Convocation, which featured the announcement of the school’s name change from Bluefield College to Bluefield University and remarks from special dignitaries, including President David Olive.
“This is a special day and a special year,” Dr. Olive said during the President’s Convocation. “This is the convening of the 100th academic year at Bluefield College, and we are going to celebrate throughout the year the rich history of this institution.”
According to Rebecca Kasey, BU’s director of marketing and public relations, the theme for the centennial celebration is “Lighthouse on the Hill,” which comes from the title of the published history of the college, written by the late Dr. David Armbrister in 2007.
“Light is a common theme in our shared Christian faith and at Bluefield College,” Dr. Olive said in a BU press release. “It is predominant upon our seal where the words ‘Deus-Patria-Lux,’ the Latin for ‘God-Country-Light’ are inscribed. And in our archives exists a century of words, both written and spoken, calling generations of students to goodness, righteousness, and truth. As we enter our 100th year of Christ-centered education, the heartbeat of this institution remains the same today as it did the day the doors first opened.”
The centennial festivities also included a birthday celebration on September 20. As part of that celebration, members of the campus community stood in formation in the campus quad to form the number 100, which was captured in an aerial photo.
Homecoming this year, October 22-24, will include special events for alumni to celebrate the 100th year, including the opening of “Lighthouse on the Hill: A Centennial Exhibit.” The exhibit will be located on the first floor of Cruise Hall and will feature archives and memorabilia from 1922 to 2021. According to Kasey, dorm rooms on the first floor will be themed to a variety of decades to showcase residence life through the years. The exhibit will be open through the summer of 2022.
The centennial celebration will continue into the spring of 2002 when music alumni return in February for a reunion and the unveiling of the centennial anthem, commissioned by Dr. John-Scott Moir, BU director of choirs and voice. Mud Pig Day in April 2022 will feature anniversary events not only for students, but also the community.
As part of the yearlong celebration, BU will also conclude a centennial campaign, designed to raise $18 million for the development of new athletic facilities, student scholarships, new academic support services for students, faculty enrichment opportunities, and other improvements. To date, the college has raised more than $16 million of that $18 million goal.
“Given the excellent leadership of the campaign steering team and the campaign cabinet that have guided this effort from its infancy to where it is today,” Dr. Olive said, “I have no doubt we will exceed this goal.”
The centennial celebration will conclude with several gala events for alumni and friends across the Commonwealth of Virginia in May 2022 and the unveiling of a new published history of the school: “In Faithful Service: A 100-Year History of Bluefield College.”
“A celebration like this is a once-in-a-lifetime event,” said Joshua Cline, vice president for institutional advancement, in a BU press release. “We are excited to tell the story of not just where we have been but where we are going in the second century of service at Bluefield College.”
