Joseph Samuel Clark | |
|---|---|
| President of Southern University | |
| In office 1914–1938 | |
| Succeeded by | Felton Grandison Clark |
| Personal details | |
| Born | June 7, 1871 Sparta, Bienville Parish, Louisiana, U.S. |
| Died | November 3, 1944 (aged 73) New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. |
| Spouse | Octavia Head |
| Children | Felton Grandison Clark |
| Alma mater | Leland College |
Joseph Samuel Clark (June 7, 1871 – November 3, 1944) was an academic administrator who spent most of his career in Louisiana. He was the head of Baton Rouge College and president of Southern University and A&M College, both historically black colleges, where he served in total from 1901 to 1938. During the years from 1914 to 1938 he led the development of Southern, designated as a land grant college in 1890 and moved to the Baton Rouge area in 1914.
Clark was a co-founder of several African-American organizations, and served in leadership roles at the state and national level in associations for African-American educators. In 1931 he declined an offer of the ambassadorship to Liberia by Republican President Herbert Hoover, as he was devoted to his mission of developing Southern University.