Rust College is a private historically black college in Holly Springs, Mississippi. Founded in 1866, it is the second-oldest private college in the state. Affiliated with the United Methodist Church, it is one of ten historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) founded before 1868 that are still operating.

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One of the oldest colleges for African Americans in the United States, Rust was founded on November 24, 1866, by Northern missionaries with a group called the Freedman's Aid Society of the Methodist Episcopal Church. In 1870, the college was chartered as Shaw University in 1870, honoring the Reverend S. O. Shaw, who made a gift of $10,000 to the institution which, adjusted for inflation, is the equivalent of approximately $210,000 in 2021.

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In 1892, to avoid confusion with Shaw University in Raleigh, N.C., the institution changed its name to Rust University—a tribute to Rev. Richard S. Rust of Cincinnati, Ohio, a preacher, abolitionist, and the secretary of the Freedmen's Aid Society, who helped found the college. In 1915, the institution assumed the name Rust College. Rust College is the oldest of the 11 historically black colleges and universities associated with The United Methodist Church, the second oldest private college in Mississippi. ~ Wikipedia