Beyond the western wall: Henry Tisdale and the transformation of Claflin University

Henry Tisdale with students on the campus of Claflin University(Courtesy of Claflin University)

This week we’ll be talking with Dr. Henry N. Tisdale, former president of Claflin University in Orangeburg, South Carolina. This Kingstree native has had a long and distinguished academic career, earning his undergraduate degree at Claflin in 1965 and, eventually, becoming the first African American to earn a doctorate in mathematics from Dartmouth. His career path led him into college administration, and he became Claflin University’s president in 1994.

Claflin, like many historically black colleges and universities at the time, was struggling – facing declining enrollment and possible loss of accreditation. Henry Tisdale established the goal that Claflin would “enter the 21st century with an eye to become a premier liberal arts institution.” Thanks in large part to his leadership, Claflin was named the number one HBCU by Forbes magazine and was ranked in the top 4% of U.S. colleges and universities.

Tisdale tells the story of Claflin’s renaissance in his book, Beyond the Western Wall: Audacious Transformation of a Small Liberal Arts College (2025, Cecil Williams Photography/Publishing).