Spencer, Samuel Reid

Dr. Spencer was the 14th president of Davidson College from 1968-1983. He was born in Rock Hill, S.C., in 1919. He graduated from Davidson summa cum laude in 1940; served in the U.S. Army from 1940-1945, his duties including Assistant Professor of Military Science and Tactics at Davidson College (1941-1943). He attended U.C.L.A. and Harvard, receiving an MA and a PhD in history. He returned to Davidson, to serve as Assistant to the President (1951-1954), and Dean of Students and Professor of History (1954-1957). In 1957, he became president of Mary Baldwin College in Staunton, Va. In 1968, he returned to Davidson to serve as president. Upon his retirement in 1983, he became the president of the Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges in Richmond, Va. He has written two books and published numerous articles and speeches.