Hubert B. Crouch

Hubert Branch Crouch (1906–1980) was an American zoologist and parasitologist. His efforts led to the founding of the National Institute of Science, an organization that supports research and science education at historically Black colleges and universities. He was a professor at Tennessee State University for 28 years, serving as the dean of the graduate school, heading the biology department, and directing the science division. He taught biology at Kentucky State College. He earned his PhD in parasitology from the Iowa State College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts.

Early life and education Hubert Branch Crouch was born on December 7, 1906, in Jacksonville, Texas, the fifth of seven children of Mary "Carrie" Ragsdale and George Crouch. He earned his MS in protozoology with a minor in soil bacteriology in 1930. He earned his PhD in parasitology, with minors in entomology and botany,

Academic career In February 1931, following the completion of his MS degree at Iowa State College, Crouch took a position as a professor of biology at Kentucky State College (now Kentucky State University). He taught all of the college's biology classes. He left in 1944 when he was hired as a biology professor at Tennessee State University. He headed the Department of Biology and directed the Division of Science. In 1950 he became the graduate school's first full dean. After 28 years at Tennessee State, he retired in 1972.

Crouch was an active researcher and was published in scientific journals.

In 1939, Crouch collected biological specimens along the Atlantic Seaboard and visited HBCUs. During his trip, he met Thomas Wyatt Turner at the Hampton Institute.

Crouch directed the Kentucky Syphilis Service from 1939 to 1943.

Personal life In 1935, Crouch married Mildred Shipp, the granddaughter of the Martins who Crouch had lived with in Iowa. They had several children. He died on October 17, 1980, in Nashville, Tennessee. Tennessee State University renamed its Graduate School Building to the Hubert B. Crouch Building in his honor.