Defiance College

Defiance College
Motto	"Defy the ordinary"
Established	1850
Type	Private not-for-profit
Endowment	$12.5 million.[1]
Academic staff	86
Students	1,000
Undergraduates	900
Postgraduates	100
Location	Defiance, Ohio, Ohio, U.S.A.
Campus	small town/rural.
Colors	Purple and Gold
Nickname	Yellow Jackets, Lady Jackets
Affiliations	United Church of Christ
Website	http://www.defiance.edu

Defiance College, located in Defiance, Ohio, USA, is an independent, co-educational liberal arts college affiliated with the United Church of Christ. The campus includes eighteen buildings and access to the 200-acre (80.9 ha) Thoreau Wildlife Sanctuary.^[2]

In recent years, Defiance College has gained national recognition for its programs of service and engagement. Defiance College has been named as one of 81 colleges and universities around the country to the Colleges With a Conscience national guidebook published by Princeton Review and Campus Compact. For the past three years, the College has been named to the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll. Defiance is also included in the John Templeton Foundation’s Honor Roll for Character-Building Colleges.

Defiance College’s vision calls for an educational experience of engagement - civic, cultural, and learning - for all students. Defiance College is home to the McMaster School for Advancing Humanity, a unique research program serving as a focal point for teaching, service, scholarship, and action to improve the human condition. The Bonner Leader Program offers students intensive service and leadership experience in the community. The Citizen Leader Program is an intensive campus/community initiative designed to develop citizenship and leadership skills. The Carolyn M. Small Honors Program provides exciting research opportunities and the opportunity for students to participate in an honors curriculum.

Defiance College is also home of the Hench Autism Studies Program, an innovative, multi-faceted program designed to specifically address the late adolescent years and the transition of individuals with autism to adulthood.

Recognizing the fundamental responsibility of colleges and universities to educate students committed to the public good, all Defiance College students are provided opportunities to link their academic learning in the classroom with meaningful work in communities locally, regionally, nationally, and internationally.

History

The college began as Defiance Female Seminary in 1850 and was opened by the Christian Church to provide schooling for young women. William Curtis Holgate, a local businessman, donated most of the campus. In 1903 the Defiance Female Seminary formally became Defiance College, making it one of only two religious-affiliated colleges to begin operation in Ohio during the 20th century.

The Christian Church was one of four denominations that united in 1957 to become the United Church of Christ, which Defiance College continues to be affiliated with. Both men and women of all religious backgrounds are welcomed.

Much of the institution’s early growth occurred under Peter McReynolds who was named president in 1902. The following years saw growth in students, endowment, and facilities with the addition of most of the original campus buildings.

McCann era

Defiance College grew and flourished under President Kevin McCann’s leadership (1951–1964). Academic programs expanded, and enrollment grew. The physical appearance of the campus changed significantly. The campus increased in size to 140 acres (56.7 ha); the library, student union, and Pilgrim halls were built; and old buildings were renovated.

President Dwight D. Eisenhower paid two visits to Defiance College. On October 15, 1953, he laid the cornerstone for Anthony Wayne Library of American Study [1]. He re-visited the campus on May 26, 1963 to deliver the commencement address, at which time the college announced that one room in the library had been designated "the Eisenhower Room," honoring the friendship between Eisenhower and Kevin C. McCann.

1960s and 1970s - Winter Term

In the mid-1960s, the college adopted a novel 4-1-4 academic schedule, whereby students took four courses for four months, with a one-month "Winter Term" in which students were totally immersed in one subject full time for the month of January. Some students went on an expedition to the Northwest to seek the Sasquatch. Others spent the month learning German by speaking nothing else, all day long, for a month. Two professors held a class in which students learned hot-air ballooning and became licensed aeronauts. Another group conducted an archaeological dig. The college's emphasis was on alternative learning, and students were encouraged to create their own Winter Term program.

Schauffler moves to Defiance

The Schauffler College of Religious and Social Work in Cleveland had four-year students from more countries than any other, but it failed financially and merged with the graduate school of theology at Oberlin College. When Oberlin closed that school in 1967, the Schauffler endowment was moved to Defiance College, which created the Schauffler Center and later built Schauffler Hall.

Student life

About 1,000 students are enrolled at Defiance College. Over 50% of all traditional students live on campus. The college has more than 40 undergraduate majors with two graduate programs in education and business. Bachelor degree majors range from the long-standing programs in education, business, natural sciences, and behavioral sciences, to programs that address the needs of a 21st century, such as digital forensic science, forensic science, nursing, international studies and restoration ecology. Eighty percent of first year students and about 40% of all undergraduates live on campus. The year 2006 saw a resurgence of both the college’s student newspaper The Defender and of student government, with the first general class elections in several years held in the spring of that year. DC has a Students to Faculty Ratio of 13:1 and an average class size of 15 students.^[3]

Athletics

The Defiance College Yellow Jackets and Lady Jackets compete in Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) as a NCAA Division III school.^[4]

Men's Baseball Basketball Cross Country Football Golf Soccer Tennis Track and Field

Women's Basketball Cross Country Golf Soccer Softball Tennis Track and Field Volleyball

Financials

• Tuition: $26,375 per year
• Room and board: $7,750 per year
• Student Activity fee: $240 per year
• Technology fee: $280 per year
• Acceptance rate: 72% of all applications
• 89% of D.C. students find employment or enter graduate school within six months of graduation.

Noted Alumni

• Bruce Shingledecker, Alaskan wildlife painter
• Dr. David Ruffer, President, Albright College
• George Smart, President, Central Can Company
• Jimmie LeMaster, Chairman of American Studies, Baylor University
• Duggan Fry, General Manager, WOWO radio, Fort Wayne, Indiana
• Ben Davis (American football), Cleveland Browns defensive back and kick-return specialist
• Alberto Vilar, C.E.O., MetLife Mexico
• Richard Mourdock, Treasurer of State, Indiana
• Don Martindale, Defensive Coordinator, Denver Broncos
• Pam Borton, Head Women's Basketball Coach, University of Minnesota Golden Gophers [2]

Accreditation

• North Central Association of Colleges and Schools
• Ohio Board of Regents
• National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education
• Council on Social Work Education
• Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs

References

1. ^ As of June 30, 2009. "U.S. and Canadian Institutions Listed by Fiscal Year 2009 Endowment Market Value and Percentage Change in Endowment Market Value from FY 2008 to FY 2009" (PDF). 2009 NACUBO-Commonfund Study of Endowments. National Association of College and University Business Officers. http://www.nacubo.org/Documents/research/2009_NCSE_Public_Tables_Endowment_Market_Values.pdf. Retrieved February 5, 2010. 
2. ^ Natural Sciences and Mathematics - Majors - Restoration Ecology
3. ^ Defiance College
4. ^ Defiance College Yellow Jackets - The Hive is Buzzin'

External links

• Defiance College official site
• Defiance College Athletics