# Samford University

> private Christian university in Homewood, Alabama

**Wikidata**: [Q6381586](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6381586)  
**Wikipedia**: [English](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samford_University)  
**Source**: https://4ort.xyz/entity/samford-university

## Summary
Samford University is a private Christian university located in Homewood (Birmingham), Alabama. Founded in 1841, it is a Baptist-affiliated, private not-for-profit institution that enrolled about 5,729 students and employed about 1,169 staff as of fall 2020.

## Key Facts
- Founded (inception): 1841.
- Type: Private Christian university; instance of a private not-for-profit educational institution and a church college.
- Religious affiliation: Baptists.
- Location: 800 Lakeshore Drive, Homewood/Birmingham, AL 35229-2240; coordinates 33.4657, -86.7921; postal code 35229-2240.
- Enrollment (point in time): 5,729 students (2020-09).
- Employees (point in time): 1,169 staff (2020-09).
- Endowment (point in time): $332,869,066 (2020-06-30).
- Total assets (point in time): $717,316,592 (2020-06-30).
- Admissions: admission rate 0.84 and admission yield rate 0.30 (both for 2020).
- Athletics program: Samford Bulldogs.
- Website: http://samford.edu/
- Notable campus component: Lucille Stewart Beeson Law Library.
- Classification: Carnegie classifications include "master's colleges and universities: larger programs", "majority undergraduate", and "research doctoral: single program - education".
- Identifiers: ROR 0040cz635; ISNI 0000000107432197; VIAF 144735593; GRID grid.263055.7.
- Aliases: Howard College; Chinese names 沙姆福德大學 and 桑福德大学.
- Memberships: American Council on Education; Alabama Association of Nonprofits.
- Social media handles (examples): Twitter SamfordU; Instagram samfordu; Facebook SamfordUniversity; TikTok samfordu; Threads samfordu; Pinterest samfordu.

## FAQs
### Q: Where is Samford University located?
A: Samford University is located in Homewood, a suburb of Birmingham, Alabama. The campus street address is 800 Lakeshore Drive, Birmingham, AL 35229-2240 and its coordinates are 33.4657, -86.7921.

### Q: How large is Samford University?
A: As of September 2020 Samford reported about 5,729 students and approximately 1,169 employees. Its endowment was $332,869,066 and total assets were $717,316,592 (both as of June 30, 2020).

### Q: What is Samford's religious affiliation?
A: Samford University is a private Christian university with a Baptist religious affiliation.

### Q: How selective is admission to Samford University?
A: For 2020 Samford reported an admission rate of 0.84 and an admission yield rate of 0.30.

## Why It Matters
Samford University serves as a long-standing private Christian higher-education institution in the Birmingham/Homewood area, with origins dating to 1841. Its combination of undergraduate and graduate programs places it in Carnegie classifications that reflect a majority-undergraduate institution with larger master's programs and a single doctoral program in education, indicating a mix of professional and liberal-arts training alongside focused graduate study. Financially, Samford maintained a multi-hundred-million dollar endowment and substantial assets as of mid-2020, supporting operations, scholarships, and campus services. The university’s Baptist affiliation and status as a church college situate it within the landscape of U.S. faith-based higher education; institutional memberships (for example, the American Council on Education) connect it to broader national networks. Campus resources such as the Lucille Stewart Beeson Law Library and an established athletics program (Samford Bulldogs) contribute to student life, academic support, and community engagement. For prospective students, researchers, and regional stakeholders, Samford represents a significant private institution in Alabama’s higher-education ecosystem.

## Notable For
- Being a private Christian university with a Baptist affiliation and origins in 1841.
- Classified as a "master's colleges and universities: larger programs" while also holding a research doctoral single program in education.
- Hosting the Lucille Stewart Beeson Law Library as a named campus component.
- Operating the Samford Bulldogs athletics program and maintaining active institutional memberships (e.g., American Council on Education).
- Maintaining significant financial resources as reported in mid-2020 (endowment ~$332.9M; total assets ~$717.3M).

## Body

### Overview
- Official name: Samford University.
- Short description (Wikidata): private Christian university in Homewood, Alabama.
- Instance of: university; private not-for-profit educational institution; church college.
- Aliases: Howard College; 沙姆福德大學; 桑福德大学.

### Location & Campus
- Primary campus address: 800 Lakeshore Drive, Birmingham, AL 35229-2240.
- City/area: Homewood; located in Birmingham (structured property "located_in": Birmingham).
- Coordinates: latitude 33.4657, longitude -86.7921.
- Postal code: 35229-2240.

### Founding & Identity
- Inception year: 1841.
- Religious affiliation: Baptists.
- Institutional classification: private Christian university; church college; private not-for-profit educational institution.

### Size & Financials
- Student body: 5,729 (point in time: 2020-09).
- Employees: 1,169 (point in time: 2020-09).
- Endowment: $332,869,066 (point in time: 2020-06-30).
- Total assets: $717,316,592 (point in time: 2020-06-30).

### Admissions & Enrollment Metrics
- Admission rate: 0.84 (point in time: 2020).
- Admission yield rate: 0.30 (point in time: 2020).

### Academics & Classification
- Carnegie classifications include:
  - "master's colleges and universities: larger programs"
  - "majority undergraduate"
  - "research doctoral: single program - education"
  - Other descriptive classifications indicating four-year, medium, highly residential characteristics and a mix of professions plus arts & sciences.
- Noted campus academic resource: Lucille Stewart Beeson Law Library (listed as a part of the university).

### Governance, Memberships & Affiliations
- Member of the American Council on Education.
- Member of the Alabama Association of Nonprofits.
- Sevis school ID: 519.

### Athletics
- Athletics program name: Samford Bulldogs.

### Identifiers & Online Presence
- Website: http://samford.edu/ (English).
- ROR ID: 0040cz635.
- ISNI: 0000000107432197.
- VIAF: 144735593.
- GRID: grid.263055.7.
- Freebase ID: /m/02zg12.
- Geonames ID: 4088344.
- Library of Congress authority ID: n50058974.
- MusicBrainz place ID: ef6a2997-48cb-4a76-86a4-096702e1963f.
- Social media handles: Twitter SamfordU; Instagram samfordu; Facebook SamfordUniversity; TikTok samfordu; Threads samfordu; Pinterest samfordu.
- Wikipedia title: Samford University; commons category: Samford University.

### Additional Data Points
- Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) ID: 102049.
- Ringgold ID: 1744.
- SNAC ARK ID: w6285kgd.
- KISTI ID: K000207821.
- Admission and social-media snapshot follower counts recorded at various point-in-time qualifiers in the source data.

(End of entry.)

## References

1. Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System
2. GRID Release 2017-01-10
3. Virtual International Authority File
4. [Source](https://web.archive.org/web/20240120080233/https://acememberdirectory.azurewebsites.net/)
5. [Source](https://web.archive.org/web/20230604111442/http://www.alabamanonprofits.org/member-benefits/meet-our-members/)
6. [Source](https://www.samford.edu/cumberlandlaw/library/)
7. Google Knowledge Graph
8. Czech National Authority Database
9. MusicBrainz
10. GeoNames
11. Freebase Data Dumps
12. [Source](http://samford.edu/)
13. GRID Release 2015-12-14
14. GRID Release 2016-12-06
15. Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education
16. [Source](https://snaccooperative.org/)
17. Aligned ISNI and Ringgold identifiers for institutions
18. [Source](https://www.samford.edu/)
19. Microsoft Academic Knowledge Graph
20. National Library of Israel Names and Subjects Authority File
21. [OpenAlex](https://docs.openalex.org/download-snapshot/snapshot-data-format)