Culbreath Y. Melton

(Born Jan 30, 1928) Culbreth Young Melton, the son of Rev. and Mrs. T. A. Melton, was born January 30, 1928, in Danville, Virginia, where his father was pastoring. Six years later T. A. Melton was assigned a church in Durham, North Carolina, and achieved an outstanding record at the Hyde Park Pentecostal Holiness Church. Young C. Y. Melton was fortunate to be able to complete his elementary and high school edu- cation in Durham and entered Emmanuel College as a freshman in the fall of 1945.

Following two years at Emmanuel, he transferred to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he completed the A.B. and M.A. degrees. The year 1951 was a significant one in C. Y. Melton's life. It was the year W. G. Drum was named President, the year T. L. Aaron died, the year Melton returned to Emmanuel to teach, and the year he married the former Lorraine Wells.

As Dr. Melton vividly recalls, the day he arrived back on the Emmanuel campus, January 20, 1951, was the same day Aaron passed away. W. G. Drum had already been acting president due to Aaron's illness, and Melton, along with John W. Swails, joined the staff. Melton was immediately made principal of the high school and served as dean of men.

From 1952 to 1954 two years of service in the U. S. Army interrupted his work at Emmanuel, and then he returned to teach in the college and serve as registrar from 1954 to 1958. Feeling the need to continue his education, Dr. Melton left Emmanuel again in 1958 to work on his doctorate at the University of Georgia, which he completed in 1961. From 1961 to 1965 he served as Associate Director of the Reading Clinic at the University of Florida, before returning as academic dean at Emmanuel.

Dr. Melton's return to the school in 1965 was timely, as the institution was in the midst of preparation to be accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. The struggle for accreditation had gone on for some years with final approval postponed, but two years later, in 1967, the work of President Drum, Dean Melton, Dr. Kirk Hartsfield and the outstanding faculty paid off as this major step had been accomplished. The experience C. Y. Melton had obtained, along with his dedicated scholarship, made him a key supporter for President Drum until Drum's announced retirement in 1970, and Dr. Melton was elected the sixth President of Emmanuel College.

A professional educator of impeccable character, C. Y. Melton led the college to further achievements in the next 13 years. Sensing the need for a program to train full-time Christian workers for the Pentecostal Holiness Church, in 1973 Dr. Melton initiated the junior and senior years of study in Religion and named the new addition "The School of Christian Ministries." For accrediting the new school offering the B.S. or B.A. degree, he, along with the new Dean of the School of Christian Ministries, Dr. Garnet Pike, immediately contacted the American Association of Bible Colleges, and full accreditation for the School of Christian Ministries was achieved two years later.

As enrollments continued to increase in both Emmanuel College and the School of Christian Ministries in the 1970's, it was evident that more housing was needed, and to complete the main campus quadrangle a third modern residence hall, named after President Emeritus W. G. Drum, was completed in 1975. Also, with the additional staffing needs of the School of Christian Ministries, the former Lee House which had been occupied by President Drum and his family in years past was converted into office space for the School of Christian Ministries.

The college library that had occupied a wing of the Taylor Memorial Building since its construction in 1948 was becoming increasingly inadequate, and with a generous gift from Mr. Jack Shaw a new Learning Resources Center was begun on college land fronting on U. S. Highway 29. Other contributions continued to come in, and the beautiful, two-story brick veneer building with 13,000 square feet was completed debt free in 1980.

Like so many of the older buildings before it, in 1980 the Music Hall (the former Publishing House) burned almost completely. Therefore the building of the new Shaw-Leslie Library was especially fortunate. After all the shelves and books were moved to the new facility, the old library area was converted into a Music Hall and Student Center. Other construction during Dr. Melton's administration included eight attractive townhouse apartments for married students, enlargement of the gymnasium, and the addition of the beautiful granite marker at the entrance to the college on U.S. 29. Dr. Melton's involvement in educational organizations at the state and regional levels gave increased recognition to Emmanuel College. In 1983, desiring to return to the classroom, he resigned as president. He remained on the faculty full-time until 1995 and part-time until Fall 1999.