Dallas Baptist University - History

History

Decatur Baptist College, the forerunner of Dallas Baptist University, opened its doors in 1898 as the first two-year institution of higher education in Texas. The Baptist General Convention of Texas purchased the land in 1897 from Northwest Texas Baptist College. The school enjoyed a rich, full history in Decatur until 1965 when it moved to Dallas, at the invitation of the Dallas Baptist Association.

The school's historic Administration Building in Decatur, built in 1893, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

In October 1965, Dallas Baptist College began offering classes for a first class of over 500 students. The initial piece of land for the campus, overlooking Mountain Creek Lake in the hill country of southwest Dallas, were donated by John Stemmons, Roland Pelt, and associates. An interested group of businessmen donated additional acreage, and in 1994 a donation by the Louis Hexter family brought the current size of the DBU campus to 292 acres (1.18 km2).

In 1968, the college moved from junior-college to senior-college status, offering its first four-year bachelor's degrees in May 1970. In 1985, the college name officially became Dallas Baptist University. The new structure consisted of the College of Arts and Sciences, the Mary C. Crowley College of Christian Faith, the Dorothy M. Bush College of Education, and the College of Business.

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