Spelman College Suspends Cosby Endowed Professorship Indefinitely

After a long history with the Cosby family, Spelman College is the latest institution to distance themselves from the actor and comedian amid allegations of sexual assault.

Home to the Cosby Chair for the Humanities, which is a prestigious endowed professorship at the all-girls HBCU that was partly funded by a $20 million donation from Bill and Camille Cosby, college officials announced late Sunday that they were indefinitely suspending the program due to the recent news surrounding the 77-year-old.

Spelman’s latest decision follows Cosby’s resignation from his 32-year post as a member of Temple University’s board of trustees and his resignation as an honorary co-chair of the University of Massachusetts at Amherst’s capital campaign.

“The William and Camille Olivia Hanks Cosby Endowed Professorship was established to bring positive attention and accomplished visiting scholars to Spelman College in order to enhance our intellectual, cultural and creative life,” a school’s spokesperson told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “The current context prevents us from continuing to meet these objectives fully. Consequently, we will suspend the program until such time that the original goals can be met again.”

The Cosby’s donation to Spelman, which is the same institution their daughters attended, is noted as the single largest donation ever awarded to a historically black college. Not only did the donation help fund the professorship program, but it also helped pay for the construction of the Camille Olivia Hanks Cosby, Ed.D. Academic Center, which houses the Spelman College Museum of Fine Art, the college archives and offices.

SOURCE: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution