Rust College - ‘in midst of renaissance’

Rust College’s 12^th president was inaugurated in front of a group of devout Rustites November 12, with great elevation of the college’s new spirit and its accomplishments since its inception 155 years ago.

“Thanks to all responsible for this investiture bestowed on me,” Dr. Ivy R. Taylor said to faculty, guests and friends of the college. “I am humbled. I do not take it lightly leading this institution. I could never have dreamed (of this) as a little black girl in Queens.”

The first female president of Rust College grew up in New York and is a former mayor of San Antonio, Texas.

“One year after the abolition of slavery they had the foresight to establish a college on the slave auction site,” Taylor said in her inaugural address. “The U.S. Is still a young nation but not many institutions have lasted for 155 years.”

Taylor said it is necessary to reinvest in the college and assess where it stands going forward.

She spoke of prior renaissances in history that transformed nations and cultures during the middle ages to modernity — including the black plague and its economic impact on Europe.

Naming some key results, she said darkness, ignorance and economic loss took place during the bubonic plague.

But the printing press and great works of art and sculpture were born out of revolutions, Taylor said.

In the Harlem Renaissance, the great migration from the American South to Harlem, there were three square miles full of black people and businesses, the president said.

“When I arrived (at Rust), the college was in a stage of stagnation,” Taylor said.

There was a lack of art on the walls. Typewriters were sitting alongside computers in the laboratories.

Taylor said some felt the importance of tradition was holding the college back.

“I was amazed to learn the library has artifacts of art locked in a room,” she said.

Taylor said a painting by the great African American artist, William Tolliver, was found in the locked room.

A self-taught abstract and expressionistic painter, Tolliver used vivid colors and lines in his art. He learned from his mother how to create art in early life and continued throughout his life. He was a Vicksburg native who read thousands of art books and constructed works in the abstract, realism and impressionism.

He was born December 17, 1951, and died September 1, 2000.

Taylor, who recognized the importance of the artist and painting as a treasure, now has it on display.

“I felt like the painting’s presence in the library was a metaphor for all the hidden jewels that should be polished and brought to life,” she said.

Other steps she has taken in her first 18 months as president include: • repurposing a building once used by ICS Head Start as administrative space on the former MI College into a modern dormitory.

• forming a partnership with the University of Mississippi to establish an engineering program.

• giving raises to faculty and staff.

• focusing on a three-year Blue Ribbon Plan for development.

“Rust College is in the midst of a renaissance, anchored in history and purpose ... with a moral imperative to improve the business presence and experience of students, faculty and staff and alumni,” she said. “That includes improvement in facilities.

“I’m so elated to have the opportunity to lead this institution of scholars. We will be part of reshaping the impressions and the narrative about the state.”

The college will continue to build the academic environment to include improved technology, sharpening of skills and providing expert customer service.

Taylor expects history will look back favorably on this time of expansion and growth.

“Students will soar with rapture, power and with ease,” she said. “Every renaissance includes a spiritual movement – a revival that awakens God’s people to their true nature and dust off our treasures and bring them to life.

“We are all called to be a part of this great work. By their fruits, ye shall know them.”