Background
Branscomb, Harvie was born on December 25, 1894 in Huntsville, Alabama, United States. Son of Lewis Capers and Nancy (McAdory) Branscomb.
president Chancellor of president of the American Academy of Religion
Branscomb, Harvie was born on December 25, 1894 in Huntsville, Alabama, United States. Son of Lewis Capers and Nancy (McAdory) Branscomb.
Bachelor, Birmingham-Southern College, 1914; Doctor of Letters, Birmingham-Southern College Rhodes scholar, University of Oxford, 1914-1917; Bachelor and Master of Arts, University of Oxford Doctor of Philosophy, Columbia University, 1924; Doctor of Laws (honorary), Columbia University, 1954; Doctor of Laws (honorary), Southwestern College, 1954; Doctor of Laws (honorary), Brandeis U., 1958; Doctor of Laws (honorary), Northwestern University, 1958; DLH, Hebrew Union College Doctor of Humane Letters, Southern Methodist U., 1961.
He served as president of the American Academy of Religion in 1940. He earned a B.A. from Birmingham-Southern College and an M.A. as a Rhodes Scholar in Bible studies at the Wadham College, Oxford. After serving in the army, he taught at Southern Methodist University.
After working as the Dean of the Divinity School at Duke University, he became the fourth chancellor of Vanderbilt University in 1945. As chancellor, he oversaw the racial integration of the university, drawing harsh criticism from alumni. In 1960, at the insistence of trustees, he expelled James Lawson, an African-American divinity student and Congress of Racial Equality leader who organized sit-ins in defiance of Nashville's segregation laws.
A dozen faculty members resigned in protest. From 1947 to 1951 he served as Chairman of the United States Advisory Commission for Education Exchange under President Harry S. Truman. From 1955 to 1958 he served as Commission on Education and International Affairs of the American Council of Education.
From 1963 to 1964 he served as an educational consultant for the World Bank, and he chaired the United States Commission for UNESCO from 1963 to 1965. He also served as Vice-Chairman of the United States Delegation to the Unesco General Conference in Paris in 1964, Chair of the United States Delegation to the World Conference on the Eradication of Illiteracy in Tehran in 1965. He also travelled to Geneva for the United States Delegation to the World Health Organization Assembly in 1965 and 1966, and to Buenos Aires to chair the U.S. Delegation to the Conference of Ministers of Education and Ministers in Charge of Planning in 1966.
He held honorary degrees from Brandeis University, Northwestern University, Southwestern University, and Hebrew Union College. He died on July 23, 1998.
The state cannot control the church, nor should the church attempt to dominate the state. However, religious expression should be present in public life.
Libelous language with regard to nationality, ethnic background, sexuality or gender does not assess the value of individual and contradicts the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Board of directors Colonial Williamsburg (Virginia) General Education Board, Cordell Hull Foundation for International Education. Chairman communications of America Library Association to Brazil, 1945. Chairman United States Advisory Common for Ednl.
Exchange, 1947-1951; with commission for relief in Belgium, 1914-1915. Private Field Artillery, O.T.S., 1918. Member Society Biblical Literature and Exegesis, Association of America Rhodes Scholars, American Library Association, American Council on Education (chairman commission on education and international affairs), Sigma Alpha Epsilon, Phi Beta Kappa, Cumberland Club, Belle Meade CountryClub, Century Association Club (New York.
Married Margaret Vaughan, June 15,1921. Children: Harvie, Ben Vaughan, Lewis McAdory.