- John B. Stephenson
John B. Stephenson (September 26, 1937 - December 6, 1994) was a
sociologist and scholar ofAppalachia , a founder of the Appalachian Studies Conference, and president ofBerea College from 1984 to 1994.Early life and education
John B. Stephenson was born in
Staunton, Virginia , on September 26, 1937.He earned a B.A. degree in sociology from the
College of William and Mary in Virginia in 1959, and M.A. (1961) and Ph.D. (1966) degrees in sociology from theUniversity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill . His dissertation, a community study of Celo, North Carolina, became his first book, "Shiloh: A Mountain Community" (1968).Teaching career
He began his teaching career at
Lees-McRae College inBanner Elk, North Carolina , from 1961 to 1964, where he met and married a colleague, Jane Ellen Baucom, in 1962. [Ford and Osborne, "John B. Stephenson", pp. 20-22.] After returning to Chapel Hill to complete his doctoral studies, he joined department of sociology at theUniversity of Kentucky in Lexington in the fall of 1966. Connecting with the emerging field ofAppalachian studies , he co-edited "Appalachia in the Sixties" (1972) with sociology graduate student David Walls. He served as dean of undergraduate studies from 1978 to 1981, as special assistant to the chancellor in 1983-84, and was the first director of the Appalachian Center, which he was instrumental in helping organize, from 1979 to 1984. [Shirley Williams, "An Idealistic Boss at Berea," "The Courier-Journal Magazine", December 1, 1985, pp. 14-19.] During this time he became an incorporator and first chair of the Appalachian Studies Conference (now known as theAppalachian Studies Association ).President of Berea College
In 1984 he was appointed the seventh president of
Berea College inBerea, Kentucky , the first president of the liberal arts college to come from a public university. [Richard Wilson, "Berea names UK official as president of college," "The Courier-Journal", January 29, 1984, p. B4.] During his tenure as president, Berea College reemphasized its historic commitment to African American and Appalachian students. The college also took initiatives to support women, including Jane Stephenson's New Opportunity School for Women. [Sidney Saylor Farr, "New Opportunities for Appalachian Women," "Appalachian Journal", Summer 2003, pp. 350-354.] Faculty and staff salaries were increased significantly.John Stephenson established ties with a diverse group of notable people whom he brought to speak at Berea College, from "Roots" author
Alex Haley , and ArchbishopDesmond Tutu of South Africa, to His Holiness, TheDalai Lama . Stephenson established the Tibetan scholarship program, which supports students at Berea College from the Tibetan exile community in India. He was also a successful fundraiser; during his tenure as president, the Berea College endowment increased from $120 to $360 million. Stephenson retired in July 1994, several years after he was diagnosed with leukemia. He died suddenly after a viral infection in December 1994.He was selected as an
American Council on Education Fellow in 1973-74, and as a Fulbright Senior Research Scholar in 1981, which he used for research in Scotland which was presented in his book, "Ford: A Village in the West Highlands of Scotland" (1984). He served on boards of the Kentucky Literacy Foundation, the nationalElderhostel program, theFrontier Nursing Service , and the Appalachian Regional Hospitals. [Larry D. Shinn, "President Emeritus John B. Stephenson dies from a viral infection," "The Berea Alumnus", Winter 1995, pp. 21-22.]Books by John B. Stephenson
*"Shiloh: A Mountain Community". Lexington: University of Kentucky Press, 1968.
*Editor, with David S. Walls, "Appalachia in the Sixties: Decade of Reawakening". Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 1972. ISBN 0-8131-0135-2
*"Ford: A Village in the West Highlands of Scotland." Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 1984. ISBN 0-8131-1507-8
*"A Scottish Diary". Photographs by J. David Stephenson. San Francisco: Custom and Limited Editions, 1990.Notes
References
Thomas R. Ford and J. Randolph Osborne, eds. "John B. Stephenson: Appalachian Humanist". Ashland, Kentucky: The Jesse Stuart Foundation, 2001. ISBN 1-931672-03-2
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