Wesley College was a private liberal arts college in Dover, Delaware. It was acquired by Delaware State University (DSU) in 2021 and is now the DSU Downtown campus.
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History
The institution was founded in 1873 as Wilmington Conference Academy, a prep school. During this period Annie Jump Cannon, a prominent astronomer who pioneered stellar classification, graduated valedictorian from Wilmington Conference Academy in 1880. It became a two-year college in 1918 and renamed the Wesley Collegiate Institute. It was renamed again in 1941 as Wesley Junior College, and again in 1958 as Wesley College. The institution conferred its first four-year degrees in 1978.
In its last decades, the college experienced significant financial challenges and relied on state funding and grants. At one point in 2019, had the state not given Wesley $3 million, students would have lost access to federal financial aid and salaries would have been at risk. In early 2021, the college faculty voted "no confidence" against Wesley's last president, Robert E. Clark II, but Wesley College's board of trustees subsequently dismissed the resolution and supported him.
On June 30, 2020, Delaware State University (DSU) began the formal process of purchasing Wesley College. This made DSU "the first historically Black college or university to acquire another college." The acquisition was finalized one year later, on July 1, 2021. Approximately 60 percent of the Wesley community were offered employment by Delaware State University. DSU took on Wesley College's debts and did not directly pay to purchase the university. All Wesley students with non-adverse records were permitted to become DSU students. After the acquisition, the campus was known as DSU Downtown, while the Wesley name remained attached to the Wesley College of Health and Behavioral Sciences housed at the campus.
Academics
Prior to ceasing operations, many of its students pursued a liberal arts program of study. At its close, Wesley College had 917 students.
Athletics
The institution competed in National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division III athletics in the Atlantic East Conference. Its teams were known as the Wolverines.
Notable alumni
William N. Andrews (1898) – U.S. House of Representatives
Steve Azzanesi – college football coach
Clarence Bailey – professional football player
Larry Beavers – professional football player
Bill Belleville – environmental writer, documentary filmmaker, and lecturer
Colin R.J. Bonini (1991) – Republican Party politician, including serving as a member of the Delaware Senate from the 16th district (since 1995)
Franklin Brockson (1890) – U.S. House of Representatives
Joseph L. Cahall (c. 1880s) – Republican Party politician who served as Secretary of State of Delaware
Joe Callahan (B.S. 2016) – quarterback for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL)
Annie Jump Cannon (1880) – Astronomer
Steve Colavito – professional football player
Bill Collick – college football coach and athletics administrator
Ronald S. Dancer – New Jersey General Assembly
William D. Denney – Governor of Delaware and Delaware House of Representatives
Wayne Gilchrest (A.A., 1971) – Republican Party politician, including serving as U.S. Representative for Maryland's 1st congressional district (1991–2009)
Notable faculty and staff
Bob Andrus – head football coach
Steve Azzanesi – football coach
Earl D. Brooks II – executive vice president and professor of science and president of Trine University
Mike Drass – head football coach
William N. Johnston – 16th president of Welsey College
Tim Keating – head football coach
Tripp Keister – baseball coach
Chip Knapp – assistant football coach
David Laganella – music professor
John Palermo – football coach
Clarence A. Short – president of Wesley Collegiate Institute in 1926
Leroy Thompson – assistant football coach