Albion State Normal School was a public institution of higher learning in Albion, Idaho. It was established by the Idaho Legislature in 1893, as one of two Normal schools in the state. (The other, in Lewiston, is now Lewis-Clark State College.) Citizens of Albion had actively lobbied for the school's establishment, and donated land and labor for the new campus.The school remained a small institution throughout its history, focusing on the training of teachers and drawing its student body primarily from south-central Idaho. Albion Normal offered a two-year teacher training program until 1947, when it was renamed "Southern Idaho College of Education" (SICE) and authorized to confer baccalaureate degrees. The school remained troubled by low enrollment and a lack of funding, however, and was finally closed by the state in 1951, as was Lewiston's NICE. The academic programs at Albion were transferred to Idaho State College (now Idaho State University) in Pocatello.Swanger HallSwanger Hall, on the campus of Albion State Normal School in Albion, Idaho, was built in 1893. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.DegreesDuring its existence, Albion Normal awarded some 6,460 degrees. Perhaps its most notable alumnus was Terrel Bell (1921 - 96), the Secretary of Education (1981 - 84) in President Reagan's original Cabinet.
