Wesley College was a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * "In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorded ...

liberal arts college A liberal arts college or liberal arts institution of higher education is a college with an emphasis on Undergraduate education, undergraduate study in the Liberal arts education, liberal arts of humanities and science. Such colleges aim to impart ...

Dover, Delaware Dover ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and the List of municipalities in Delaware, second-most populous city of the U.S. state of Delaware. It is also the county seat of Kent County, Delaware, Kent County and the princ ...

. It was acquired by

Delaware State University Delaware State University (DSU or Del State) is a Statutory college#Outside New York State, privately governed, state-assisted Historically black colleges and universities, historically black Land-grant university, land-grant research universi ...

(DSU) in 2021 and is now the DSU Downtown campus.

History

The institution was founded in 1873 as Wilmington Conference Academy, a prep school. During this period

Annie Jump Cannon Annie Jump Cannon (; December 11, 1863 – April 13, 1941) was an American astronomer whose cataloging work was instrumental in the development of contemporary stellar classification. With Edward C. Pickering, she is credited with the creation of ...

, 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, 2021,

(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 Liberal arts education () is a traditional academic course in Western higher education. ''Liberal arts'' takes the term ''skill, art'' in the sense of a learned skill rather than specifically the fine arts. ''Liberal arts education'' can refe ...

program of study. At its close, Wesley College had 917 students.

Athletics

The institution competed in

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

Division III In sport, the Third Division, also called Division 3, Division Three, or Division III, is often the third-highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Association football *Belgian Third ...

athletics in the

Atlantic East Conference The Atlantic East Conference is an intercollegiate athletic conference that competes in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division III and is located in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. History Beginning play ...

. Its teams were known as the Wolverines.

Notable alumni

William N. Andrews William Noble Andrews (November 13, 1876 – December 27, 1937) was a Congressman for the 1st congressional district of Maryland who served one term from 1919 to 1921. Early life William Noble Andrews was born on November 13, 1876, in Hurlock ...

(1898)

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

Steve Azzanesi Steven M. Azzanesi (born or 1978) is an American college football coach. He is the head football coach for Alvernia University, a position he has held since 2022. He also coached for Wesley (DE) and Delaware State. He played college football f ...

college football coach *

Clarence Bailey Clarence J. Bailey (March 7, 1963 - May 29, 2006) was an American professional football player who was a running back for one season for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Wesley and Hampton. ...

professional football player *

Larry Beavers Larry Beavers (born October 7, 1985) is an American football wide receiver and kick returner who currently plays for the Kansas City Goats in The Arena League. Early life Beavers attended Annapolis High School where he played three sports: foo ...

professional football player *

Bill Belleville Bill Belleville (February 17, 1945-July 30, 2020) was an environmental writer, documentary filmmaker, and lecturer in the United States.BILL BELLEVILLE, WRITER AND ENVIRONMENTALIST, Orlando Sentinel - Oct 13, 1996 He received the Order of the S ...

environmental writer, documentary filmmaker, and lecturer *

Colin R.J. Bonini Colin Rafferty Marie Jude Bonini (born April 14, 1965) is an American politician and a Republican Party (United States), Republican former member of the Delaware Senate, where he represented the Delaware's 16th Senate district, 16th District from ...

(1991) Republican Party politician, including serving as a member of the

Delaware Senate The Delaware State Senate is the upper house of the Delaware General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Delaware. It is composed of 21 Senators, each of whom is elected to a four-year term, except when reapportionment occur ...

from the 16th district (since 1995) *

Franklin Brockson Franklin Brockson (August 6, 1865 – March 16, 1942) was an American lawyer and politician from Wilmington in New Castle County, Delaware. He was a member of the Democratic Party, who served in the Delaware General Assembly and as U.S. Repres ...

(1890)

* Joseph L. Cahall (c. 1880s) Republican Party politician who served as

Secretary of State of Delaware The secretary of state of Delaware is the head of the Department of State of the U.S. state of Delaware. The department is in charge of a wide variety of public and governmental services, and is divided into the following divisions: *Delaware Di ...

* Joe Callahan (B.S. 2016)

quarterback The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...

for the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL) *

(1880) Astronomer * Martha E. Church(B.A. 1952)College president * Steve Colavito professional football player * Bill Collick college football coach and athletics administrator * Ronald S. Dancer

New Jersey General Assembly The New Jersey General Assembly is the lower house of the New Jersey Legislature. Since the election of 1967 (1968 session), the Assembly has consisted of 80 members. Two members are elected from each of New Jersey's 40 legislative districts f ...

* William D. Denney

Governor of Delaware A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the type of political region or polity, a ''governor'' ma ...

and

Delaware House of Representatives The Delaware State House of Representatives is the lower house of the Delaware General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Delaware. It is composed of 41 Representatives from an equal number of constituencies, each of whom is ...

Wayne Gilchrest Wayne Thomas Gilchrest (born April 15, 1946) is an American politician who served as a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives representing . In 2008, Gilchrest was defeated in the Republican primary by State Senator And ...

(A.A., 1971) Republican Party politician, including serving as

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

for

Maryland's 1st congressional district Maryland's 1st congressional district encompasses the entire Eastern Shore of Maryland, including Salisbury, Maryland, Salisbury, as well as Harford County, Maryland, Harford County and parts of Baltimore County, Maryland, Baltimore County; it i ...

(1991–2009) *

Matt Gono Matthew Gono (born May 10, 1996) is a former American football offensive tackle. He played college football at Wesley College. He went undrafted and signed with the Atlanta Falcons. Professional career Atlanta Falcons Gono signed with the Atlan ...

(2017) professional football player for the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The Falcons were founded o ...

of the

(NFL) * John B. Goodman polo player *

Bob Hannah Robert William Hannah (born September 26, 1956) is an American former professional motocross racer. He competed in the AMA Motocross Championship The AMA Motocross Championship (commercially known as Pro Motocross Championship) is an American ...

college baseball coach *

William P. Jackson William Purnell Jackson (January 11, 1868March 7, 1939) was a Republican member of the United States Senate, representing the State of Maryland from 1912 to 1914. His father, William Humphreys Jackson, was a U.S. Congressman from Maryland. B ...

Treasurer of Maryland The Treasurer of Maryland is responsible for the management and investment of the cash deposits, bond sale revenue, and all other securities and collateral of the state of Maryland in the United States. In addition, the Treasurer conducts regular ...

and

United States Senator The United States Senate consists of 100 members, two from each of the 50 U.S. state, states. This list includes all senators serving in the 119th United States Congress. Party affiliation Independent Senators Angus King of Maine and Berni ...

Thomas B. McCabe Thomas Bayard McCabe (July 11, 1893 – May 27, 1982) was an American businessman who served as the 8th chairman of the Federal Reserve from 1948 to 1951. McCabe also served as president and CEO of Scott Paper Company for 39 years. Background ...

chairman of the Federal Reserve The chair of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System is the head of the Federal Reserve, and is the active executive officer of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. The chairman presides at meetings of the Board. ...

and president and CEO of

Scott Paper Company The Scott Paper Company was a manufacturer and marketer of sanitary tissue products with operations in 22 countries. Its products were sold under a variety of well-known brand names, including ''Scott Tissue'', ''Cottonelle'', ''Baby Fresh'', ''S ...

Ernie McCook Ernie McCook is an American college football coach. He is the head football coach for Shepherd University, a position he has held since 2018. He previously coached for Beall High School, South River High School, Susquehanna, Wesley, Frostbu ...

college football coach * Mark Meseroll professional football player * Charles M. Oberly, III (A.A., 1966) lawyer and Democratic Party politician, including serving as

Delaware Attorney General The attorney general of Delaware is a constitutional officer of the U.S. state of Delaware, and is the chief law officer and the head of the State Department of Justice. On January 1, 2019, Kathy Jennings was sworn in as the 46th attorney genera ...

(1983–1995);

U.S. Attorney for the District of Delaware The United States District Court for the District of Delaware (in case citations, D. Del.) is the Federal district court having jurisdiction over the entire state of Delaware. The Court sits in Wilmington. Because Delaware is the state of inco ...

Eunan O'Neill Eunan O'Neill (born Newry, County Down, 12 August 1982) is a Northern Irish television presenter. O'Neill, who grew up in Crossmaglen in County Armagh, holds a postgraduate degree in Broadcast Journalism from the University of Sheffield. Since ...

(non-degreed) Irish television presenter * John Palermo (non-degreed) college football coach * Simeon S. Pennewill

and

* Bryan Robinson professional football player; awarded

all-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

football player * Charles L. Terry Jr.

and Chief Justice of the Delaware Supreme Court *

Ebrahim Victory Ebrahim Victory (; born 26 December 1933) is an Iranian mechanical engineer and researcher for the United States Air Force, the United States Navy, and NASA. He is also an author and the host of a television show in Iran. Early life Victory ...

(nondegreed) mechanical engineer and television presenter *

Rebecca Walker Rebecca Walker (born Rebecca Leventhal; November 17, 1969) is an American writer, feminist, and activist. Walker has been regarded as one of the prominent voices of Third Wave Feminism, and the coiner of the term "third wave", since publishing ...

* Carolyn Bunny Welsh Republican Party politician, former sheriff of

Chester County Chester County may refer to: * Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States ** Chester County Council, boy scout council in Pennsylvania. * Chester County, South Carolina, United States * Chester County, Tennessee, United States * Cheshire ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

Josiah O. Wolcott Josiah Oliver Wolcott (October 31, 1877 – November 11, 1938) was an American lawyer, politician and judge, from Dover, in Kent County, Delaware. He was a member of the Democratic Party, who served as Attorney General of Delaware, U.S. Senator ...

Chancellor of the

Delaware Court of Chancery The Delaware Court of Chancery is a court of equity in the U.S. state of Delaware. It is one of Delaware's three constitutional courts, along with the Supreme Court and Superior Court. Since 2018, the court consists of seven judges. The cour ...

, and

Attorney General of Delaware The attorney general of Delaware is a constitutional officer of the U.S. state of Delaware, and is the chief law officer and the head of the State Department of Justice. On January 1, 2019, Kathy Jennings was sworn in as the 46th attorney genera ...

Notable faculty and staff

* Bob Andrushead football coach *

football coach * Earl D. Brooks IIexecutive vice president and professor of

science Science is a systematic discipline that builds and organises knowledge in the form of testable hypotheses and predictions about the universe. Modern science is typically divided into twoor threemajor branches: the natural sciences, which stu ...

and

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Trine University Trine University is a private university in Angola, Indiana, and Fort Wayne, Indiana, with education centers in Detroit, Phoenix and Reston, Virginia. It was founded in 1884 and is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. History "Tri-S ...

* Martha E. Churchgeography professor *

Mike Drass Mike Drass (March 15, 1961 – May 14, 2018) was an American football coach. He was the head football coach at Wesley College in Dover, Delaware Dover ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and the List of municipalities ...

head football coach *

William N. Johnston William N. Johnston became the 16th president of Wesley College (Delaware) in June 2008 and retired in July 2015.

16th president of Welsey College * Tim Keatinghead football coach *

Tripp Keister Donald Carl "Tripp" Keister (born September 27, 1970) is an American professional baseball coach with the Omaha Storm Chasers, the Triple-A minor league affiliate of the Kansas City Royals. Career As a player As an outfielder at the University ...

baseball coach * Chip Knappassistant football coach * David Laganellamusic professor * John Palermofootball coach * Clarence A. Shortpresident of Wesley Collegiate Institute in 1926 * Leroy Thompsonassistant football coach

References

External links

*
DSU & Wesley
-

{{authority control 1873 establishments in Delaware Buildings and structures in Dover, Delaware Education in Kent County, Delaware Educational institutions established in 1873 Educational institutions disestablished in 2021 Preparatory schools in Delaware Two-year colleges in the United States Universities and colleges affiliated with the United Methodist Church Defunct private universities and colleges in Delaware Liberal arts colleges in Delaware