There wasn’t an aspect of Fort Smith Junior College that Shelby Breedlove didn’t experience whether as a student, a coach and faculty member, an administrator or as college president. His determination and leadership as a coach helped the Lions become a stronger athletic program. His vision and insight as an administrator is still being felt today, as the two-year junior college he once led has evolved into the four-year institution that is UA Fort Smith.
A 1948 graduate of Van Buren High School, Breedlove attended FSJC for two years (1948-50) before attending College of the Ozarks (1950), Arkansas State Teachers College (1950) and the University of Arkansas, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in education (1953-54) and his master’s degree in education (1960). He also served in the United States Army (1951-53) and the Army National Guard (1955-62).
Breedlove began his coaching career at Fayetteville’s Ramey Junior High in 1954, and his teams lost only one game in a two-year span. He went on to coach basketball and baseball at Fayetteville High School (1957-60), winning a state baseball championship in 1960.
He joined the faculty of Fort Smith Junior College in 1960 and during the next four years coached men’s basketball, baseball, track and golf. His 1962 Lions basketball team finished No. 4 in the nation in the NJCAA.
After serving four years as Lions coach, Breedlove was athletic director and Dean of Men for two years. He was instrumental in developing the relationship between the Fort Smith Boys Club and the college which resulted in the construction of a new gymnasium – the Westark Fieldhouse – in 1964-65.
Breedlove, who earned his doctorate in philosophy from Florida State (1972), was named acting president of the college after the sudden death of then president E.T. Vines in November of 1967. He was officially named president of the college, which was then called Westark Junior College, in May of 1968. He served in that capacity until his death on Sept. 14, 1974. During his tenure as president, FSJC transitioned to Westark Community College and received North Central Association of College and Secondary Schools accreditation.
