JCSU Golden Bulls Johnson C . Smith University ( JCSU ) is a private , co - ed , four - year research university of higher learning located in the heart of Charlotte , North Carolina , United States . It is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church . JCSU is also a historically black college . JCSU offers an assortment of academic programs , aimed at ensuring that its graduates are prepared for success in the workforce . JCSU is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools ( SACS ) , National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education ( NCATE ) , Association of Collegiate Business Schools and Programs ( ACBSP ) , and Council on Social Work Accreditation ( CSWE ) . The school awards Bachelor of Science , Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Social Work degrees to its graduates . The school also presents many internship opportunities for its students . History . Johnson C . Smith University was established on April 7 , 1867 as the Biddle Memorial Institute at a meeting of the Catawba Presbytery in the old Charlotte Presbyterian Church . Mrs . Mary D . Biddle , a churchwoman , donated $ 1 , 400 to the school . In appreciation of this first contribution , friends requested Mrs . Biddle to name the newly established school after her late husband , Major Henry Biddle . Two ministers , Rev . Samuel C . Alexander and the Rev . Willis L . Miller , saw the need for a school in the south and after the birth of the school they were elected as some of the first teachers . Its coordinate women ' s school was " Scotia Seminary " ( now Barber - Scotia College ) . In 1876 , the charter was changed by the Legislature of the State of North Carolina and the name became Biddle University , under which name the institution operated until 1923 . In 1891 , Biddle University elected Dr . Daniel J . Sanders as the first African - American as President of a four - year institute in the south . From 1921 to 1922 , Jane Berry Smith donated funds to build a theological dormitory , a science hall , a teachers ' cottage and a memorial gate . She also provided an endowment for the institution in memory of her late husband , Johnson C . Smith . Up until her death she donated funds for five more buildings and a campus church . In recognition of these generous benefactions , the Board of Trustees voted to change the name of the institution to Johnson C . Smith University . The charter of the school , accordingly , was amended on March 1 , 1923 , by the Legislature of the State of North Carolina . In 1924 , James B . Duke established the Duke Endowment . While the largest share of that the Endowment ' s earnings are allocated to support Duke University , Duke ' s donation required that 4 % of its earnings be given to the university . Over the years , this share of the Endowment ' s distributions has exceeded $ 90 million . In 1932 , the university ' s charter was amended , providing for the admission of women . The 65 - year - old institution for men then became partially coeducational . The first residence hall for women , named in memory of James B . Duke , was dedicated in 1940 . In 1941 , women were admitted to the freshman class . In 1942 , the university was a fully coeducational institution . JCSU joined the United Negro College Fund in 1944 as a founding member . This fund was organized primarily to help church - related schools of higher learning to revamp their training programs , to expand their plants , to promote faculty growth and to create new areas of service . In Fall 2000 , JCSU launched the IBM Laptop Initiative becoming one of few colleges in the country and the first historically black college to provide an IBM laptop computer to every student . Known as " ThinkPad U " , JCSU gives students and their computers complete access to the campus - wide network and the Internet . Since 1994 , the ratio of computers to students improved from 1 : 10 to 1 : 1 . 1 . With this new initiative and the commitment to integrate technology throughout the curriculum , JCSU gained national recognition . It also ranked # 10 among Top HBCU ' s . Biddle Memorial Hall is on the National Register of Historic Places . Student activities . Due to its location in a large urban area , there are many social and cultural activities for JCSU students and faculty to enjoy , including professional sporting events , theater / movies , concerts , art exhibits , bands , chorale , poetry readings , and dance , among others . Athletics . Student - athletes compete in intercollegiate and intramural athletics . Students can choose to be involved in various on - campus organizations , including fraternities , sororities , and intramural sports . JCSU is a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association ( NCAA ) , Division II and the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association ( CIAA ) . Its intercollegiate sports programs include basketball , bowling , cross - country , football , golf , softball , volleyball , tennis , and track and field . Its teams are nicknamed the Golden Bulls . In 2001 the men ' s basketball team won the CIAA Basketball Tournament and advanced to the Division II Elite Eight . In 2006 the men ’ s and women ’ s basketball teams were the CIAA Western Division Champions and the Tournament Runner - ups . In 2007 the men ' s basketball team were the 2007 CIAA Western Division Champions . In 2008 the men ' s basketball team won the 2008 CIAA Men ' s Basketball Championship . In 2009 the men ' s and women ' s basketball team won the 2009 CIAA basketball championship . JCSU ' s on - campus stadium is called the Irwin Belk Complex which serves as home to the track and field and football teams , though homecoming games are played at the larger American Legion Memorial Stadium . ' COMMEMORATIVE CLASSIC ' : " " The Birth of Black College Football " " On December 27 of 1892 , Livingstone College and Biddle College , ( Johnson C . Smith ) University played in the snows of Salisbury , North Carolina , just two days after Christmas . A writer of a story in the 1930 year - book of Livingstone College provided a glimpse of that December experience when the team from Biddle Institute traveled to Livingstone ' s Old Delta Grove campus in Salisbury to play while writers recorded the results of a historic moment in sports history . According to historian T . M . Martin , the men of Biddle spent two years studying and practicing the sport of football . In 1892 , they challenged the men of Livingstone , whose team was formally organized in the fall of that year .