Stephens College

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Stephens College
Established 1833
Type Private Women's college
President Dr. Wendy B. Libby
Location Columbia, Missouri, USA
Campus Urban, 86 acres
Website stephens.edu

Stephens College is a liberal arts women's college located in Columbia, Missouri, a city of about 90,000 residents. It is one of the oldest institutions of higher education for women in the United States.

It was founded on August 24, 1833 as the Columbia Female Academy. In 1856, David H. Hickman turned it into a college, The Columbia Female Baptist Academy. It was later renamed Stephens Female College.

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[edit] Location

Situated in the center of the state, Stephens is approximately 120 miles from both Kansas City and St. Louis. Although it is not located near any major cities, Columbia is known as "Collegetown, USA" due to the 26,000 college students attending Stephens, the University of Missouri - Columbia, and Columbia College, each situated within the city. The Stephens campus occupies 86 acres of land near downtown Columbia.[1]

Cottey College, a junior college in the rural town of Nevada, is the only other women's college in Missouri.

[edit] Academics

The three most popular majors at Stephens are dance, theatre, and fashion design.[2] 41% of all students major in the visual and performing arts.[3] According to one anonymous student quoted by the Princeton Review in the student's guide to Stephens, "It's all about theater, dance, fashion design, and marketing" at the college. [4]

In keeping with its most popular majors, Stephens is best known for its fine arts programs. Its theatre program is especially well regarded; it was ranked second in the country by U.S. News & World Report in the America's Best Colleges 2006 edition. The Princeton Review also placed it second on their "Best College Theater" list, directly behind Wagner College and ahead of the prestigious programs at schools such as Emerson College (#3), Yale Drama (#7) and Wesleyan University (#8).[5]

Aside from the arts programs, Stephens offers more than 40 majors and minors, including majors in traditional subjects such as English, business management, psychology, and biology. The college also has a popular equestrian program and its own stables. Minors are available in fields such as art history, women's studies, and history. The only foreign language concentration available at Stephens is a minor in Spanish.[6]

Upon completion of their undergraduate studies, Stephens students can receive either an Associate's degree or a Bachelor's degree. All Associate degrees offered are in the field of Liberal Arts & Studies. For graduate students, Master's programs in education and business administration are also available.[7]

[edit] Rankings

Aside from its theatre program, Stephens has been ranked overall by various other organizations. U.S. News places it in the fourth tier of all liberal arts colleges nationwide, but also considers it to be a "selective" school when it comes to admissions standards.[8]

The Princeton Review 's "Best 361 College Rankings" named Stephens 15th in their "Class Discussions Encouraged" category and 9th in their "Nobody Plays Intramural Sports" category. It was also on their list of "America's Best Value Colleges" and one of 158 colleges named a "Best Midwestern College."[9]

[edit] Campus life

Stephens is one of three women's colleges, along with Spelman College and Brenau University, to have sororities on its campus. Sigma Sigma Sigma and Kappa Delta, both of which are national sororities, have on-campus chapters. The sororities are governed by the Panhellenic Council and the Junior Panhellenic Council. Stephens students can also join social sororities at the nearby University of Missouri campus. 8% of students are members of on-campus sororities.[10] In addition to sororities, Stephens is also home to the Wood Hall(way) program - a self-governed, self-selecting residential group on campus which promotes ideals of diversity, feminism, and leadership.

Aside from the sororities, there are about 45 on-campus organizations Stephens students can join. These include affiliates of the College Democrats and College Republicans, religious groups like the Catholic Student Association, Finding Alternative Religions, Stephens Christian Fellowship, as well as (through neighbor MU) Hillel, and a Model United Nations.

There are also about a dozen academic honor societies students can join: Psi Chi, Alpha Lambda Delta, Sigma Tau Delta, Tri-Beta, Alpha Epilon Rho, Sigma Beta Delta, Chi Tau Epsilon, Kappa Delta Pi, Phi Alpha Delta, and Pi Phi Rho.

The student newspaper, Stephens Life, is released twice each month.[11]

[edit] Alumnae

The Stephens College Alumnae Association has more than 30,000 members internationally. Alumnae are found in every state, with Alaska, North Dakota, and South Dakota tying for the fewest at 29 each.

[edit] Notable alumnae

Many Stephens alumnae have gone on to excel in their respective fields. The most notable alumnae include:

[edit] Alumnae distribution

In March 2006, Stephens released an interactive alumnae map showing the distribution of living alumnae throughout the United States. The metropolitan areas with the highest numbers of Stephens alumnae include:

Florida also has a particularly high concentration of Stephens alumnae, with 1,237 found statewide, especially in the central, eastern, and southern parts of the state. The Washington, D.C.-to-Boston corridor contains a heavy concentration as well, including 184 alumnae living in Manhattan.[12]

[edit] External links

The City of Columbia
ColumbiaMOlogo

History · Government and Politics · Geography · Demographics · Transportation
Culture · Media · Sports · Education

Metropolitan Area - State of Missouri
UM System Headquarters · University of Missouri-Columbia · Stephens College · Columbia College
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