Wesley McClure, the ninth president of Lane College in Jackson, Tennessee, died on December 6 at Jackson-Madison County General Hospital. He was 71 years old.
Dr. McClure was a native of Jackson, Tennessee, and graduated from Lane College in 1964. He held a master’s degree in mathematics and a doctorate in educational research from the University of Virginia.
Before coming to Lane College, Dr. McClure served as president of Virginia State University and was chancellor of Southern University in Baton Rouge. Earlier in his career he held administrative posts at St. Augustine’s College and Clark College.
Wow. He was the President at VSU my freshman year. I’ll never forget what he said at orientation. “This may not be Harvard but when you get out you will be able to compete with Harvard students”. No doubt.
Dr. McClure was the president at Lane while I was there from 1999-2001. He made it known, as well as made you believe that if you do what you are suppose to, you will be out of there (school) graduating in 4 years, successfully. Dr. McClure you will be missed. Out of all my experiences at Lane, you were one person that I’ve never forgotten.
Blessing be to the family of Dr. McClure