Albany State is Georgia's largest historically Black university. Joseph Winthrop Holley, the son of formerly enslaved parents, founded it on the banks of the Flint River in 1903 after reading W. E. B. Du Bois. Its students helped start the Albany Movement in 1961. After the 1994 flood swamped the campus, the state called the school "unsinkable" and paid to rebuild it on higher ground. Today it has two Albany campuses and a strong SIAC sports tradition.
About this site
Albany State University is a college & university in Albany, Dougherty County. It is one of 62 historic sites cataloged in Dougherty County on Georgia Roam.
The site sits at 31.5678, -84.1435 near Albany. The nearest cataloged historic site is Riverside Cemetery (cemetery), about 0.5 miles away. Others within a short drive include Oakview Cemetery, Flood of July 7, 1994, and Ray Charles.
This record is drawn from Georgia Roam. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.
What makes Albany State University different
Founder Joseph Winthrop Holley was inspired to start the school after reading W. E. B. Du Bois's description of Black life around Albany in The Souls of Black Folk. Before leaving the North, he also met Booker T. Washington. georgiaencyclopedia.org
Two Albany State students, Blanton Hall and Bertha Gober, were among the first people arrested in the 1961 Albany Movement. Gober went on to write an anthem for SNCC's Freedom Singers. georgiaencyclopedia.org
In 2011, fifty years after the Albany Movement, the university gave honorary degrees to 32 students who had been expelled for their activism. Bernice Johnson Reagon received an honorary doctorate and gave the commencement address. en.wikipedia.org
After the 1994 flood, Governor Zell Miller called the college "unsinkable." A major state rebuilding plan followed, and many new buildings went up on higher ground. georgiaencyclopedia.org
Alice Coachman, who in 1948 became the first Black woman to win an Olympic gold medal, earned her bachelor's degree at Albany State College in 1949. en.wikipedia.org
Four brothers who played pro basketball in the NBA and ABA all came from Albany State: Caldwell, Charles, Major and Wil Jones. en.wikipedia.org
Its basketball rivalry with Fort Valley State is known as the "Battle of the Blue and Gold." en.wikipedia.org
Joseph Winthrop Holley was born in South Carolina in 1874 to formerly enslaved parents and educated at Phillips Academy and Lincoln University. W. E. B. Du Bois's account of Black life around Albany in The Souls of Black Folk moved him to come to southwest Georgia. With a gift from the Hazard family of New England, he bought 50 acres near the Flint River and opened the Albany Bible and Manual Training Institute in 1903. In 1917 the state took the school on as the Georgia Normal and Agricultural College. It joined the University System of Georgia in 1932 and became the four-year Albany State College in 1943.
In November 1961, students Blanton Hall and Bertha Gober were arrested for entering the whites-only waiting room at Albany's bus station. Their arrest helped launch the Albany Movement, which brought Martin Luther King Jr. to the city and led to more than 1,000 arrests. The college's president expelled students involved, among them Bernice Johnson, later Bernice Johnson Reagon, founder of Sweet Honey in the Rock. In 2011 the university gave honorary degrees to 32 of those former students.
In July 1994, floodwaters from Tropical Storm Alberto poured over the campus, the worst flood in Albany's history. Governor Zell Miller called the college "unsinkable," and a major rebuilding plan followed, with new buildings raised on higher ground. The school became Albany State University in 1996. In 2017 it merged with Darton State College, whose campus became ASU's West Campus. Robert Scott, a Georgia Tech Ph.D. who had led research and development at Kraft Heinz, became president in May 2025.
ASU groups its programs into three colleges. They range from associate degrees and health-professions programs on the West Campus to master's and specialist degrees in education, business, public administration and social work. Popular fields include nursing and other health professions, education, criminal justice, business, biology and psychology. The lists below show representative majors, so check the academic catalog for the complete list.
Known for
Nursing (Darton College of Health Professions)
Continues Darton's strong health-sciences tradition. Darton's first four-year degree, approved in 2012, was in nursing.
Known for
Teacher Education
Albany State's founding mission was training teachers. It still offers bachelor's and master's degrees in early childhood, middle grades and secondary education, plus educational leadership up to the Ed.S.
Known for
Forensic Science (B.S.)
Offered with chemistry in the Department of Chemistry and Forensic Science.
Known for
Social Work (BSW and MSW)
Offers a full path from bachelor's to master's degree in social work in southwest Georgia.
Known for
Supply Chain & Logistics Management (B.S. and M.S.)
A business degree aimed at the region's distribution and manufacturing employers.
Known for
Engineering dual degree
A partnership with Georgia Tech lets students start at ASU and finish with an engineering degree from Tech.
All degree programs at Albany State University (3)
College of Arts and Sciences
Majors include Biology, Chemistry, Forensic Science, Computer Science, Mathematics, English, History, Political Science, Psychology, Sociology, Mass Communication and Visual & Performing Arts (visual art, music, music education, theater)
College of Business, Education and Professional Studies
Majors include Accounting, Management, Supply Chain & Logistics Management, Criminal Justice, Social Work and Early Childhood, Middle Grades and Secondary Education, plus the MBA, MPA, MSW, M.Ed. and Ed.S.
Darton College of Health Professions (West Campus)
Nursing, health sciences, and health and human performance programs
Alice Coachman — high jumper who in 1948 became the first Black woman to win Olympic gold (B.S., 1949) en.wikipedia.org
Bernice Johnson Reagon — singer, scholar and civil-rights activist who founded Sweet Honey in the Rock (attended, expelled after her 1961 activism, honorary doctorate 2011) en.wikipedia.org
Jo Marie Payton — actress who played Harriette Winslow on 'Family Matters' (graduate) en.wikipedia.org
Rick Ross — rapper and entrepreneur (attended on a football scholarship) en.wikipedia.org
Caldwell Jones — pro basketball center for 17 seasons in the ABA and NBA, and one of four pro-basketball brothers from Albany State (played 1969–73) en.wikipedia.org
Kenneth Gant — safety on the Dallas Cowboys' Super Bowl XXVII and XXVIII champion teams en.wikipedia.org
Shirley Sherrod — civil-rights leader, advocate for Black farmers and former USDA Georgia rural development director (attended) en.wikipedia.org
William L. Dawson — Illinois congressman (1943–1970) and the first African American to chair a congressional committee (graduated from the Albany Normal School, 1905) en.wikipedia.org
Athletics: Albany State Golden Rams
NCAA Division II · Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC)
Albany State baseball preview: Golden Rams eye repeat championship in 2026 · WALB News 102025 ASU Founders Day: History of Albany State University · Albany State UniversityThe Albany Movement: A success, not a failure · WALB News 10Albany State wins SIAC championship at home · WALB News 10Alice Coachman: "I Was Champ" · visionaryprojectAlbany State MRSB - Halftime Show vs. Kentucky State University 2026 · Albany State University Marching Rams Show Band
Yes. It is a public historically Black university founded in 1903 and the largest HBCU in Georgia. It is part of the University System of Georgia.
How big is Albany State University?
About 6,800 students in Fall 2024 (6,154 undergraduates and 614 graduate students), according to the U.S. Department of Education.
What division is Albany State?
NCAA Division II. The Golden Rams play in the SIAC and won the conference football title in 2025.
What role did Albany State play in the civil rights movement?
Its students were among the first people arrested in the 1961–62 Albany Movement. Some were expelled for their activism, and in 2011 the university gave honorary degrees to 32 of them.
What happened to Albany State in the 1994 flood?
Tropical Storm Alberto sent the Flint River over the campus in July 1994 and damaged most buildings. The state funded a large rebuilding plan, and many new buildings were placed on higher ground.
What is the West Campus?
The former Darton State College campus on Gillionville Road. It became part of ASU in the 2017 merger and houses the Darton College of Health Professions.
Can you visit Albany State?
Yes. The admissions office offers campus tours that you can request online, and visitors can walk the East Campus along the Flint River.
Get Georgia Roam — 12,000+ historic sites in your pocket
See this site and every marker, cemetery, courthouse, museum, battlefield and landmark across Georgia on one live map — find what's near you, get directions, and collect sites as you roam.
Georgia