Historically Black Knoxville College in Tennessee, has been on the precipice of closing since losing its accreditation in 1997.
At its peak in the 1960s, Knoxville College’s enrollment reached 1,200 students. Following significant enrollment declines and its loss of accreditation, the college took out a major loan in 2003 and used the 39-acre campus as collateral. In 2014, the Environmental Protection Agency seized control of what had been the college’s science building because of the presence of toxic chemicals that had not been properly stored. By 2015, there were only 11 students enrolled for the spring semester. That spring, Knoxville College announced that it would not hold any classes for the 2015-16 academic year. In 2018, the college once again began to offer classes, but only online. This past November, the campus was dealt another blow as its century-old administration building was destroyed by fire.
In December, Rotesha Harris was named the 32nd president of Knoxville College. A former financial administrator with Clark Atlanta University, she had been serving as Knoxville’s interim president for six months following the resignation of former president Leonard Adams.
According to a recent report from WBIR-10 News, former board member Franklin Tate and a group of colleagues he refers to as stakeholders have called for Dr. Harris and current board members to resign. Tate stated he and his fellow stakeholders are willing to take legal action to have the Knoxville College administration removed from their positions.
“Let’s put living people back on that campus, and put those buildings back to use for its original purpose of higher education,” said Tate. “That’s the plan. We’re going to make it happen.”
