Heritage
Blue Mountain Christian University was founded in 1873 by General Mark Perrin Lowrey, a man of vision who saw the importance of providing a thorough education for women. He and his two oldest daughters made up the faculty at what was then known as Blue Mountain Female Institute. Despite the fact that the education of women was not very popular in 1873 and the South was poor, General Lowrey and his daughters enrolled fifty students the first session.
Miss Modena Lowrey, who later became Mrs. Modena Lowrey Berry, served as “Lady Principal” and then as Vice-President from 1873 to 1934. It is believed that she served in these capacities as a major college official longer than any other American woman. She was the second woman in the state’s history to be named to the Mississippi Hall of Fame.
Leadership of Blue Mountain Christian University remained in the Lowrey family until 1960 when Dr. Wilfred C. Tyler, a twenty-four-year professor of Bible at the University, assumed the presidency and served until his death in 1965. Dr. E. Harold Fisher became the sixth president in 1965 and served until 2001. Dr. Bettye Rogers Coward, the seventh president, served from 2001-2012. The current president is Dr. Barbara Childers McMillin, who assumed office on August 1, 2012.
During the early 1950's, Blue Mountain Christian University opened its doors to educating men who were called into the ministry. For the next five decades, hundreds of men received their bachelor degrees and paved the way to a historic moment in the life of the University. In 2005, men received full access to all pro-grams of the University when the Board of Trustees voted unanimously to take the University into full co-educational status. Since that time, the University’s administration, faculty, and staff have diligently worked to transition the University toward its new future.
Over the years Blue Mountain Christian University has sought to prepare students for meaningful lives. Emphasis has been given to the development of strength of character and the ability to live creatively. Through small classes, a close faculty-student relationship, and a focus on the importance of the individual, the University has endeavored to produce graduates who are well-prepared academically and spiritually to accept places of leadership in their profession, in their communities, and in the work of the denomination.