Description:
Southern Nazarene University is a private, Christian, liberal arts university, located on a 40-acre campus in Bethany, Oklahoma. With roots dating back to 1899, SNU grew out of several small colleges and is affiliated with the Church of the Nazarene.
Shortly after Oklahoma gained statehood, the Nazarene Church, under the direction of District Superintendent C. B. Jernigan, looked to the young state with an interest in opening a school there. Church leaders were offered ten acres of land by the El Reno Interurban Railway Company, with the added proviso of purchasing an additional thirty acres. After clearing a blackjack grove and underbrush, construction began on two dormitories. In addition to sleeping accommodations, The Girls’ Hall housed the chapel, kitchen, dining room, and laundry room; The Boys’ Hall contained administrative offices and classrooms. The college, known then as Oklahoma Holiness College, accepted its first students in October of 1909. Dr. Homer Harrison Miller was elected as the school’s first president.
During the first ten years, enrollment gradually increased, and the school changed names several times, first to Oklahoma Nazarene College, then to Bethany-Peniel College. By 1920, approximately 190 students were in attendance, embracing the school’s motto of “Character, Culture, Christ” in their commitment to training for service to God and their fellow man.
Under the administration of Dr. Roy H. Cantrell, the school experienced a leap in construction, a doubling of student enrollment, an increase in faculty and staff, and a change in curriculum to better conform to the requirements of a standard liberal arts education. In 1955, a name change was proposed:
“Inasmuch as the name ‘Peniel’ is difficult for the average person to pronounce, and inasmuch as the name ‘Peniel’ is often confused with the word ‘penal’ we therefore … change the name of the school from Bethany-Peniel College to Bethany Nazarene College.”
The final name change, to Southern Nazarene University, took place in 1986, under the leadership of Dr. Ponder W. Gilliland. Currently, Dr. Loren P. Gresham serves as president.
Notable graduates include former Colorado Senator Gary Hart, Texas Congressman Kenny Marchant, and vocalist Robert Hale. In 2006, the university was ranked 57th for Master’s degree programs by U.S. News and World Report in their Best Colleges in America annual listing edition.
Resources:
Blackburn, Bob L. Heart of the Promised Land: Oklahoma County: an Illustrated History. Woodland Hills, CA: Windsor Publications, 1982.
Faulk, Odie B., Laura E. Faulk and Bob L. Blackburn. Oklahoma City: A Centennial Portrait. Northridge, CA: Windsor Publications, 1988.
Gresham, Loren P. and L. Paul Gresham. From Many Came One, In Jesus’ Name: Southern Nazarene University Looks Back on a Century. Virginia Beach, VA: Donning Company Publishers, 1998.
Jernigan, C. B. From the Prairie Schooner to a City Flat. Oklahoma City, OK: Charles Edwin Jones,1926.
Jernigan, C. B. Pioneer Days of the Holiness Movement in the Southwest. Kansas City, MO, Pentecostal Nazarene Publishing. House, 1919.