Location & Contact Information

Address:
150 Rust Avenue
Holly Springs, Mississippi 38635-2328
Main Phone: (662) 252-80000
Main Contact: Mary LeSueur
Website:http://www.rustcollege.edu/

Campus Queens

Student Members

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Sports Headlines

Rust College Student Selected to Participate in Gulf Coast Athletic Conference and Urban Edge Network Inaugural Media Assista
Rust College Student Receives NAIA 2021 Championship of Character Award
RUST COLLEGE WOMEN BASKETBALL WINS FIRST-EVER GCAC TOURNAMENT CHAMPIONSHIP
Jackson State Baseball Claims HBCU National Championship For the First Time Ever!
Lady Bearcats Basketball Adds Nine for Upcoming Season
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Marshall County Discount
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Rust College

    Rust College is the oldest, most prestigious HBCU in the state of Mississippi.
Rust College is a historically black, co-educational, senior liberal arts college founded in 1866 by the Freedmen’s Aid Society of the Methodist Episcopal Church to offer degree programs in business, education, humanities, science and mathematics, and social science. It is the mission of Rust College to equip and inspire students for excellence and service in their communities and throughout the world.

Located in Holly Springs, MS, Rust College is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges
and Schools Commission on Colleges to award the associate and baccalaureate degrees.

For more information about Rust College, call (662) 252-8000, ext. 4915, (662) 544-0950 cell, or visit www.rustcollege.edu.

Quick Facts

Undergrad Population: 0
Graduate Population: 0
Student Body: Coed
In State Tuition: $16600
Out of State Tuition: $16600
Room & Board: $0
Applications Due: ()
 Conference: GCAC, NAIA
Mascot: Bearcat
Accreditations:
Online Classes: no
Percent Men:
Percent Women:

Online Admissions Application:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfe5uLuXptvQEecSg5fKPLHWfoq4a55xqo8_b_pQdFx0xKkvg/viewform
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Majors Offered

Bachelor of Science
-Health Sciences
-Biology
-Business Administration
-Marketing
-Business Education
-Chemistry
-Computer Science
-Elementary Education
-English Education
-Mathematics
-Forensic Science
-Mathematics Education
-Social Science Education
-Social Science
-Child Care Management

Bachelor of Arts
-English
-Music
-Religion
-Sociology
-Mass Communication/Broadcast Journalism
-Mass Communication/Print Journalism
-Political Science

Associate of Science
-Early Childhood Education
-Business Administration

Bachelor of Social Work
-Social Work

Sports & Extra Curricular Activities
Choir, Choral Groups, Concert Band, Cultural Organizations, Faith-based Organizations, Fraternities, Honors Program, Jazz Band, Marching Band, Professional Associations, Radio Station, Social Clubs, Sororities, Television Station
College History
    Rust College was established in 1866 by the Freedman’s Aid Society of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Its founders were missionaries from the North who opened a school in Asbury Methodist Episcopal Church, accepting adults of all ages, as well as children, for instruction in elementary subjects. A year later the first building on the present campus was erected.

In 1870, the school was chartered as Shaw University, honoring the Reverend S.O. Shaw, who made a gift of $10,000 to the new institution. In 1892, the name was changed to Rust University to avoid confusion with another Shaw University. The name was a tribute to Richard S. Rust of Cincinnati, Ohio, Secretary of the Freedman’s Aid Society. In 1915, the title was changed to the more realistic name, Rust College.

As students progressed, high school and college courses were added to the curriculum, and in 1878 two students were graduated from the college department. As public schools for African Americans became more widespread, the need for private schools decreased, and in 1930 the grade school was discontinued. The high school continued to function until 1953.

A significant change in the administration of the institution took place in 1920 when Dr. M.S. Davage became president, the first African American to hold that position. Dr. L. M. McCoy (1924), his successor, was the first alumnus to serve his Alma Mater as president. He was followed in 1957 by Dr. Earnest A. Smith, an alumnus, class of 1937. In 1967, Dr. William A. McMillan, a non-alumnus assumed the presidency. In 1993, Dr. David L. Beckley, an alumnus, class of 1967, became the eleventh president of Rust College. In 2020, Dr. Ivy Taylor became the twelfth president of Rust College.

Among approximately 20,000 former students of Rust College, many completed only their elementary or secondary education. However, more than 5,500 have graduated from the college department. Among these alumni are bishops of the United Methodist Church and other church denominations, public school teachers and administrators, college presidents, lawyers, physicians, business and government leaders and ministers.
More Campus Photos
Unique Programs
Rust College offers the following academic program opportunities through partnerships with institutions such as: University of Mississippi (Ole Miss), The University of the Incarnate Word and Cleveland State University Marshall College of Law.
News and Upcoming Events at Rust College

Rust College Professors Win Nearly $400,000 National Science Foundation Grant to Bring Real Research into the Classroom
Under the leadership of President Johnny M. Moore, Rust College is taking a bold step forward in science education thanks to a nearly $400,000 grant f ...
Rust College and Northwest Mississippi Community College Sign MOU to Expand Student Opportunities
Administrators from Northwest Mississippi Community College (NWCC) visited with Rust College Administrators on Friday, September 5, to officially sign ...
Rust College Launches Fall Semester Under New Leadership
Rust College is abuzz with excitement and activity today as classes begin for the fall 2025 semester. This year is particularly special as Rust emb ...
Rust College Earns Gold Status as NAIA Champions of Character Five-Star Institution
Rust College Athletics has been officially recognized as a Gold NAIA Champions of Character Five-Star Institution for the 2024–2025 academic year, ear ...
Rust College Announces Dr. Johnny M. Moore as 13th President
Rust College is pleased to announce Dr. Johnny M. Moore as the 13th president in the institution's nearly 160-year history. An Arkansas native, HB ...
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