Benedictine College
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Benedictine College |
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| Established | 1858 as St. Benedict's College 1971 renamed to current |
| Type | Private, Undergraduate |
| President | Stephen D. Minnis |
| Location | Atchison, KS, USA |
| Campus | Urban |
| Colors | Black █, and Red █ |
| Mascot | Ravens |
| Website | www.benedictine.edu |
Benedictine College is a small university in Atchison, Kansas. It is a dynamic Roman Catholic, Benedictine, liberal arts, and residential college located on bluffs overlooking the Missouri River about forty-five minutes northwest of Kansas City, Kansas. One of a number of U.S. Benedictine colleges, it is sponsored by St. Benedict's Abbey and Mount St. Scholastica. The abbey has a current population of some thirty-five monks.
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[edit] Beginnings
The predecessors for the modern university were Mount St. Scholastica College, an all-women's campus, and St. Benedict's College, an all-men's campus. The universities merged on July 1, 1971 to form the current Benedictine College.
[edit] Education
Undergraduate programs include Art, Astronomy,Business, Finance, Mass Communications, Theatre, Philosophy, Religious Studies, Music, Biology, Computer Science, Education, History, English, Sociology (including Criminology), Math and Physics. Masters degree programs include Education and Business.
In a recent survey of approximately 162,000 students at 472 four-year colleges and universities (National Survey of Student Engagement), Benedictine College scored in the top 5 percent nationally for student-faculty interaction, supportive campus environment, and enriching educational experiences. [1] The university staff to student ratio is 16:1.
[edit] Athletics
The school's athletic teams, the Ravens, wear black, red and white uniforms. St. Benedict is usually pictured with a raven.
The Ravens compete in fifteen varsity intercollegiate sports (NAIA and Heart of America Athletic Conference), with men’s teams in baseball, basketball, cross country, football, soccer, tennis, and track and field. Women’s athletics, "The Lady Ravens", include teams in basketball, cross-country, soccer, softball, tennis, track, and volleyball. Benedictine’s cheerleading and spirit squads have been recognized nationally.
[edit] Faith life
Mass is offered to students four times daily in several chapels including St. Martin's Chapel and St. Benedict's Abbey. There are many opportunities for retreats, Bible study, evangelization, mission trips, service projects, youth ministry, music ministry, and pro-life work. The Fellowship of Catholic University Students (FOCUS), a collegiate leadership apostolate, was founded at Benedictine College by Curtis Martin.
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas, is the home of the college.
[edit] Notable alumni
- Terrance W. Gainer, Sergeant-at-Arms of the U.S. Senate for the 110th United States Congress (January 4, 2007 – present)
- Wangari Maathai, 2004 Nobel Peace Prize laurete, earned her bachelors degree in biology at the Mount St. Scholastica College from 1960 to 1964.
- Jamie Mueller, Former professional NFL running back of the Buffalo Bills (1987-1990).
[edit] Notable facts
- Benedictine College is one of the few colleges to continue the tradition of making incoming freshmen wear a beanie atop their heads for the first week of orientation. If an upperclassman or alumni spots a freshman without the beanie, they are required to "caw like a raven" on top of the highest point in the area.
