Albany State University

Albany State University is a public historically black university in Albany, Georgia. In 2017, Darton State College and Albany State University consolidated to become one university under the University System of Georgia (USG). Albany State University has two campuses in Albany (East and West Campus) and a satellite campus in Cordele (Cordele Center). History Establishment and growth Joseph Winthrop Holley, born in 1874 to former slaves in Winnsboro, South Carolina, founded the institution in 1903 as the Albany Bible and Manual Training Institute. Two educators, Reverend Samuel Lane Loomis and his wife, sent Holley to Brainerd Institute and then Revere Lay College (Massachusetts). When attending Revere Lay, Holley got to know one of the school's trustees, New England businessman Rowland Hazard. After taking a liking to Holley, Hazard arranged for him to continue his education at Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts. Holley aspired to become a minister and prepared by completing his education at Pennsylvania's Lincoln University.