1945-1958

Born in Ben Lomond, Ark., in 1901, Dr. Ellis graduated from Henderson-Brown in 1921 and, after teaching at the Henderson-Brown Academy, entered graduate school and received a master’s degree from Yale University in 1923. He would receive a Ph.D. in philosophy from the same institution a decade later. He returned to Henderson-Brown and remained on the teaching staff at Henderson State Teachers College after the Henderson-Brown merger with Hendrix in 1929. In 1935 Dr. Ellis joined the Hendrix faculty as a teacher of philosophy and director of the library. He returned to Henderson State Teachers College as president in 1941. At the time he was named President of Hendrix in 1945, Dr. Ellis was also being considered for the presidency of Centenary College, a Methodist institution in Shreveport, La. Under Dr. Ellis the college experienced a rise in attendance as returning W.W. II veterans enrolled in great numbers, added several important buildings to the campus, launched a revived general education program and established a closer relationship between Hendrix and the United Methodist Church of Arkansas.