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New HCC scholarship honors former Professor Hugh Beall

Hagerstown Community College alumnus John E. (Ed) Sneckenberger recently endowed an HCC scholarship as a tribute to the unique and outstanding scholarly achievements of Professor Emeritus R. Hugh Beall.

The R. Hugh Beall Academic Achievement Scholarship will be awarded to students each year who major in mathematics or engineering science. Recipients must have a GPA of 2.5 or higher, as well as demonstrated financial need.

Beall retired from what was then Hagerstown Junior College in 1973, as an associate professor and chairman of mathematics and engineering. Throughout his teaching career, he positively impacted hundreds of students. Sneckenberger explains, “I very much appreciate being one of those fortunate students.”

Beall began his career at HJC in 1947, just one year after the establishment of the college. He grew up in Hedgesville, W.V., and attended Shepherd College to earn his teacher’s certificate at the age of nineteen. His teaching career began in 1929 in a two-room school in Martinsburg.

During World War II, Beall taught airborne radar courses at the Army Air Force Technical Training Schools in St. Louis, Mo., and in Boca Raton, Fla. Hugh then came to Hagerstown to do flight test engineering for Fairchild Company. He began teaching at HJC in 1947 and quickly developed a reputation as an excellent instructor of advanced mathematics. Professor Beall eventually became the first chair of the Division of Mathematics and Engineering, a position he held until his retirement.

Professor Beall developed his career academic talent credentials at Shepherd College (Teacher’s Certificate, 1929), Duke University (graduate courses), and West Virginia University (bachelor’s degree in education, 1933; master’s degree in mathematics, 1951).

Sneckenberger graduated from HJC in 1962 and credits the guidance he received as a student from Beall in encouraging him to continue his education at West Virginia University. He received bachelor’s and master’s degrees in mechanical engineering, and a doctorate in engineering, from WVU, by 1969. Sneckenberger taught at WVU for 36 years and was awarded the title of Professor Emeritus in June 2004.

If you were positively impacted by Professor Beall and you would like to contribute to the R. Hugh Beall Academic Achievement Scholarship, contact the HCC College Advancement office at 240-500-2348, or visit www.hagerstowncc.edu/hcc-foundation.

(June, 27 2023)