Charles Claude Selecman
C. C. Selecman | |
|---|---|
| 3rd President of Southern Methodist University | |
| In office 1923–1938 | |
| Preceded by | Hiram Boaz |
| Succeeded by | Umphrey Lee |
| Personal details | |
| Born | October 13, 1874 Savannah, Missouri, U.S. |
| Died | March 27, 1958 (aged 83) Dallas, Texas, U.S. |
| Education | Central College |
Charles Claude Selecman (October 13, 1874 – March 27, 1958) was an American Methodist pastor and the third president of Southern Methodist University from 1923 to 1938. Selecman entered office during a difficult financial time for SMU and managed to put the university on sounder footing while expanding the campus and growing the enrollment. These achievements would largely be overshadowed, however, by his chilling effect on SMU's intellectual and social environment.
Selecman was a religious fundamentalist and opponent of secular education who banned dances, shuttered student groups he opposed, and fired faculty with whom he disagreed, including theologian and future Vanderbilt chancellor Harvie Branscomb. In Charles Ferguson's 1929 satirical novel Pigskin, a character based on Selecman is described as "a cross between the Apostle Paul and Benito Mussolini."
In 1938, Selecman was elected as a bishop in the Methodist Episcopal Church, South and departed SMU. In this capacity, he would lead both the Oklahoma Conference and the North Texas Conference. He would ascend to the Methodist Church's highest office, becoming president of the Council of Bishops in 1945.