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�鶹��ý College President George Magoun (pictured center) is considered a “liberal” because he allows the teaching of evolution.

Today:

“Our programs … prepare students to ask and answer scientific questions that nobody has even thought of yet.”

— �鶹��ý College Science Division Mission

The Future in the Past:

�鶹��ý Science Project Means Family

On the evening of June 17, 1882, two tornadoes converge upon �鶹��ý, leaving wreckage where homes and businesses had been just a few minutes earlier. Thirty-nine people die, including two �鶹��ý College students. Both of �鶹��ý College’s major buildings are destroyed. Thanks in part to the leadership of J.B. �鶹��ý, community founder and prominent abolitionist, �鶹��ýians from both town and college come together to rebuild stronger than before.

Today:

“It’s been really awesome to watch what I always knew was here in �鶹��ý — the great community spirit and caring for each other.”

— , on the inspiring community response to the August 2020 derecho, which caused $2 million in damage to campus buildings and trees

The Future in the Past:

The Scarlet & Black, �鶹��ý’s student newspaper, begins printing semi-weekly with campus news, meeting notices, alumni notes, editorials, and a bit of local news.

Today:

“Since its first publication … The Scarlet & Black has served as a vital source of up-to-date news on campus, an important record of our institution, and a rich historical resource.”

—

The Future in the Past:

President John Hanson Thomas Main champions forward-looking ideals and encourages �鶹��ýians to focus on work that effectively contributes to the good of all. “If the end of life is service, as we believe, it is the duty of the College to do more than hold up an idea of service,” he said at his 1906 inauguration.

Today:

“This legacy of social justice and activism dates back more than 170 years, and with you involved, we can keep it going strong. … Step forward and be a part of the solution.”

— �鶹��ý College Office of Admission

The Future in the Past:

�鶹��ý Professor of Applied Christianity Edward A. Steiner had served on the faculty for 38 years and remains one of the College’s most published faculty members. In this essay, he writes that students “come to �鶹��ý not because it is a college, but because it is �鶹��ý College; not only because they want to learn how to make a living, but because they want to fit themselves for life.”

As a student at �鶹��ý, Frank Cooper ’26 fails his audition and is denied membership in the �鶹��ý Drama Club. Later, in Hollywood, Cooper changes his name to Gary and wins three Academy Awards during a remarkable 35-year career as an actor.

Edith Renfrow Smith ’37 becomes �鶹��ý College’s first Black woman graduate when she earns her degree in 1937.

Today:

“I would hope that we would always want to do things in the spirit of Edith Renfrow Smith — to lead with kindness, to lead with self-respect, to lead with a sense that you can be a part of a small town and still make a big impact.”

— Tamara Beauboeuf-Lafontant, Louise R. Noun Chair in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies

The Future in the Past:

In his inaugural address, President Howard Bowen tells �鶹��ýians that they bear a special responsibility to find new ways to work for the common good. “One of the special tasks of the small liberal arts colleges like �鶹��ý [is] to help keep this freedom alive.”

Today:

In 2021, �鶹��ý eliminated loans from its financial aid, reinforcing its long-held commitment to creating a diverse community. “The commitment to meet need ensures that access to �鶹��ý is met by the opportunity to walk into new student orientation and across the Commencement stage without the burden of looming educational indebtedness.”

— Joe Bagnoli, vice president for enrollment and dean of admission and financial aid

The Future in the Past:

�鶹��ýians Contribute to the Common Good during the Coronavirus Pandemic

A physicist and entrepreneur, Robert Noyce ’49 co-founded Intel Corp. and co-invented the integrated circuit, launching a high-tech revolution.

Legendary investor Warren Buffett, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway in Omaha, serves on the �鶹��ý Board of Trustees in the 1970s. His investment expertise helps build the College’s investments and endowment. 

Trustee Joe Rosenfield ’25 encourages the �鶹��ý Board of Trustees to purchase WDTN-TV in Dayton, Ohio. Although previously unheard-of investment for a college, the board’s trust in Rosenfield and Trustee Warren Buffett is such that they approve the purchase, with a price tag of $12.9 million. Less than a decade later, �鶹��ý will sell WDTN for $49 million.

Today:

“�鶹��ý was the first place where strangers were genuinely invested in my success. Nobody hides opportunities from anyone, and the College puts its endowment to good use.”

—

The Future in the Past:

Financial Aid Without Loans

Apple founder Steve Jobs joins the �鶹��ý Board of Trustees at age 25 at the urging of his friend Robert N. Noyce ’49. He will serve on the board for eight years, focusing on finances and improving the College’s computer systems.

At her inauguration on October 12, 1991, President Pamela Ferguson says, “Just as we would have a ‘global literacy,’ so we should have a ‘multi-ethnic literacy’ operating within the confines of our campuses. These two are components of what a multicultural education should mean.”

Today:

“�鶹��ý has always been on the right side of history. After all, we are a school founded by abolitionists. … This is a legacy and heritage we must hold onto so we can continue to fight to remain on the right side of history today, and tomorrow.”

— Lester Alemán ’07, former Alumni Council president

The Future in the Past:

Joseph F. Wall ’41, a �鶹��ý graduate, faculty member, and nationally recognized historian, publishes this engaging history of his alma mater in honor of the College’s sesquicentennial.

President Russell K. Osgood, who assumed the presidency in 1998, says he viewed his job as helping students, parents, faculty, and staff. “That’s the terrific part of my job,” he tells the �鶹��ý Herald-Register.

Today:

“The �鶹��ý sense of community extends beyond the cornfields. It is about the people, their mindset, and attitudes, about the shared lived experience.”

—&�Բ�����;

The Future in the Past:

In his inaugural address, President Raynard S. Kington — �鶹��ý’s first Black president and its first gay president — says that in the future, �鶹��ý College would likely be called upon to do more for the common good. “We may have an even greater obligation to find innovative ways to expand access to disadvantaged students, as public options become less accessible.”

The College posthumously published a history of �鶹��ý written by Beatrice Mills Wall ’40 and husband Joseph F. Wall ’41, with editor Terry Bisson ’64. The book explores the themes that were important to �鶹��ý College from 1900­–75.

“Part of what’s been exciting about the growth in grants over the past 10 years has been the nature of the grants themselves,” says Susan Ferrari, director of corporate, foundation, and government relations. “We’re not just getting more grants — we’re getting grants in areas that are new for the College.” A few of these have included the Guggenheim Fellowship, the National Endowment for the Humanities Grants, the NSF Early Faculty Development Award, and the Mellon New Directions Fellowship.