July 13, 2014
S. Dallas Simmons, Former Virginia Union President, Dies at 74
By Jeremy M. Lazarus
Special to the Trice Edney News Wire from the Richmond Free Press
(TriceEdneyWire.com) - S. Dallas Simmons led a makeover of the Virginia Union University campus during his 14 years as president of the historic Richmond, Va. school. On his watch from 1985 to 1999, the school built the L. Douglas Wilder Library and completed the renovation of other aging buildings on the current campus that opened in 1899.Credited with strong fiscal management of the 1,700-student Baptist-affiliated school, he completed the long delayed renovation of Coburn Hall that houses the campus chapel and led the rebuilding of Martin Grey Hall after it was ruined by fire. Dr. Simmons also finished the renovation of the building that now houses the School of Theology. He also formed a partnership with Richmond Police that brought a new police academy to the campus. This allowed VUU to initiate a criminal justice program.
Current VUU president, Dr. Claude G. Perkins, said Dr. Simmons “served with distinction and left a long-lasting legacy.” Among other things, “he oversaw significant milestones for Virginia Union, including the reopening of Coburn Hall, the rebuilding of Martin E. Gray Hall and the construction” of the library, Dr. Perkins said.
“He was a very fine leader and a very personable man,” said Dr. Allix B. James, a predecessor of Dr. Simmons. “He stabilized the university financially and academically.” When it came to the university, his wife of 51 years, Yvonne M. Simmons, said her husband was “a hard worker and an acute manager. He was a perfectionist who wanted everything done yesterday and done right.”
But “he loved people,” she said. “He always liked to have a gathering and have fun.”
Dr. Simmons died Saturday, July 5, after struggling with his health for several years. He was 74. Before coming to VUU, he had served four years as president of now defunct Saint Paul’s College in Lawrenceville. A native of Ahoskie, N.C., Dr. Simmons was named for his father, Spurgeon L. Simmons, but became better known by his middle name.
He began his career in higher education after earning his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from North Carolina Central University in Durham. He also earned a certificate in administration from the University of Wisconsin. He later earned his doctorate from Duke University after being awarded a fellowship from his home state, which recognized him as a top professor and administrator. .
He got in early on campus technology. His alma mater, NCCU, hired him to his first professional post — director of the campus computer center. He went on to serve as director of the computer center at Norfolk State University before returning to NCCU to be an assistant professor of business administration. He then became an assistant to the chancellor and moved up to vice chancellor for university relations.
When President Gerald Ford visited the campus, he was impressed enough with Dr. Simmons to name him as a staff assistant on the White House Advance Team. As a member of the team as the president campaigned, Dr. Simmons worked at the 1976 Republican National Convention. He left NCCU in 1981 to become Saint Paul’s president.
Both NCCU and VUU awarded him honorary doctorates for his service. He served on the boards of NCCU, Virginia Tech, Dominion Resources and Pace American Bank. Dr. Simmons, along with his membership in Kappa Alpha Psi, also belonged to Alpha Kappa Mu, Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity (Alpha Beta Boulé) and the National Association of Guardsmen Inc.
Along with his wife, his survivors include his children, S. Dallas Simmons Jr. and Kristie Lynn; his sister, Pernell Reynolds; his half-sister, Juanita James; and three grandchildren. Final tributes Family and friends paid final tributes to Dr. Simmons at noon Friday, July 11, in the Allix B. James Chapel in Coburn Hall on the Lombardy Street campus. Dr. John Kinney, dean of VUU’s School of Theology, officiated. It was followed by a Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity memorial service.The family requests memorial contributions be made to the Yvonne Martin and S. Dallas Simmons Endowed Scholarship Fund at Virginia Union University, 1500 N. Lombardy St. Richmond, Va. 23220, or to Trinity Presbyterian Church, 113 Wilkerson Road, Richmond, Va. 23227.