Houghton College

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Houghton College is a 4-year Christian liberal arts college, operated by the Wesleyan Church[1]. Houghton's main rural campus is in the Genesee Valley of southwestern New York (Houghton, New York), and a secondary suburban campus is in West Seneca, New York, a suburb of Buffalo, New York. It also has campus extensions in the Adirondacks State Park of New York, Australia, Tanzania, and London, England.

Houghton began as Houghton Seminary, offering high school-level work, in 1883, and began offering college level classes in 1899. The founder was Willard J. Houghton, a Wesleyan Methodist minister. It was chartered as a liberal arts college by New York State in 1923 and accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools in 1935.

The school offers baccalaureate degrees in 48 fields. A recent $15 million gift enabled the establishment of the Greatbach School of Music[2], and a wide range of graduate degree programs were added to an existing strong undergraduate program that includes general music, composition, conducting and performance. The student body is interdenominational, with recent demographics showing 10% of the students as a part of the Wesleyan church.

The sports teams are the Highlanders[3]. Houghton fields teams in men's and women's soccer, men's and women's basketball, women's field hockey and volleyball, and co-ed track and cross country. Most of the teams have enjoyed some degree of success, with the women's soccer team reaching the NAIA National Tournament six times since 1998, including three-straight trips.

Houghton College is a member of the Christian College Consortium and the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities.

[edit] History

Willard J. Houghton founded the school to provide an educational institution to young people that is founded on the strictest Christian principles and standards of community life. His ideals have been passed on through the generations and students, staff and faculty alike are required to sign a pledge of commitment to certain "standards of community life". Houghton College received a permanent charter as a four-year liberal arts college in 1927 and in 1935, the college gained full accreditation by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Secondary School. Houghton consistently receives high rankings by independent college ranking publications, as an excellent academic institution, as well as an affordable, "best value" school and as a school that promotes high standards of character virtues.

In 1969, Houghton College merged with the Buffalo Bible Institute, an institution that was established by Christian business people to provide training and education to bring glory to God. Houghton began offering offering courses at its suburban West Seneca campus and using the suburban location to provide a launching pad for student internship and ministry opportunities.

In 1991, the Program for Accelerating College Education (P.A.C.E.) was added for adult students to attain a college degree. This program allows Houghton College to offer a liberal arts education " . . . that combines the skills needed for a career with the doctrine and values of the Christian faith . . . ."[4]

[edit] Academics

Houghton College grants two-year and four-year degrees in forty-six majors. The college has fifteen academic departments: Art, Biology, Business and Economics, Chemistry, Education, English and Communication, Foreign Languages and Linguistics, History and Political Science, Integrative Studies, Mathematics and Computer Science, the Greatbatch School of Music, Physical Education/Exercise Studies and Recreation/Leisure, Physics and Earth Science, Psychology and Sociology, and Religion and Philosophy.

In 2003, the college began accepting students for a graduate program in music offering the Master of Music (MMus) and Master of Arts in Music (MA) degrees. Two additional graduate programs, in Religion/Theology and Education, are projected to begin in 2007. Also, in 2007 or 2008, a screenwriting program will also be added for a BA degree

[edit] First Year Honors

A distinctive Houghton academic program, the First Year Honors program provides opportunities for qualified entering first year Houghton students to study abroad in an interdisciplinary program of studies that is jointly taught by Houghton and other faculty. Students may choose either the Meaning of the West program, focusing on the history and significance of Western ideas and culture while living in London, England or they can choose to focus on the interaction of Western culture with Middle-Eastern and European ideas in the East Meets West Program, traveling to Eastern Europe during the college's Mayterm.

[edit] Campus Life

Taken from the fourth floor of Gillette Hall (formerly East Hall) showing the quad of Houghton College's main campus. Buildings pictured from left to right are the Library, Paine Science Center and the Luckey Building.

The majority of the College's students live in College-owned housing. There are two dormitories for female students, Gillette (formerly East Hall) and Lambein, while the men live in Rothenbuhler (formerly South Hall) and Shenawana. The college also owns numerous townhouses and a building of flats.

Students also have the opportunity to apply to live in approved off-campus housing, called Community Living Opportunities (CLOs). This option is generally open only to Juniors, Seniors and Super Seniors, and a limited number of spots in the program are available. Super Seniors (those students with over 120 credits) automatically qualify for CLO housing.

Numerous student groups are active on the campus in all areas of interest. Some of these include: Allegany County Outreach, the Boulder, the Star, the Intercultural Student Association, Clown Ministry, College Republicans, Habitat for Humanity[5], Gadfly Society (the Houghton Philosophy Student club), Equestrian Club, Evangelicals for Social Action[6], Dayspring, Swim Club, Climbing Club, Global Christian Fellowship, and Youth for Christ[7]. The college also provides both interscholastic and intramural athletics.

[edit] Athletics

The Houghton Highlanders field 10 varsity teams. The women are able to participate in soccer, basketball, field hockey, volleyball, track, and cross country. The teams provided for the men are soccer, basketball, track, and cross country. The Houghton Highlanders are members of the NAIA and American Mideast Conference. Houghton is a member of the "Champions of Character" program of the NAIA. It is a "program [that] is designed to instill an understanding of character values in sport and provide practical tools for student-athletes, coaches and parents to use in modeling exemplary character traits."

[edit] Historical Personages

Stephen W. Paine served as president of the college for thirty-five years. He taught classical languages in addition to his duties as president. When he became president in 1937 he was twenty-eight years old, making him the youngest head of a college in the U.S. at the time. Paine was a well known Greek and Biblical scholar in his time, and served on the translation committee of the New International Version[8] of the Bible as well as numerous other important evangelical national organizations, including the International Bible Institute[9].

The Ortlip family is responsible for most of the artistic heritage of the college. H. Willard Ortlip was a benefactor of the college, and together with his wife Aimée was responsible for the historic mural in the foyer of the campus chapel. Several Ortlip family members have taught art and painting at the college over the years, and the new art gallery on campus is named for the Ortlips. The Ortlip Art Gallery[10], an all-purpose exhibition space, located in the College's Center for the Arts was named for H. Willard and Aimee Ortlip and their family.

[edit] Notable Alumni

• Ronald Enroth, prolific author and Professor of Sociology, Westmont College.
• Kenneth (K.J.) Hill, former professional soccer player of the Charlotte Eagles.
• Diane M. Komp, author and Professor Emeritus of Pediatrics, Yale University.
• Neil MacBride, Vice President of Legal Affairs of the Business Software Alliance, formerly counsel on the Senate Judiciary Committee and Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Criminal Division of the U.S. Department of Justicelink.
• Richard J. Mouw, prominent Christian educator, leader, author and president of Fuller Theological Seminary.
• Paul Pang, General Director, Schools for Christ Foundation, Hong Kong.
• Sanjeev Parmar, former professional soccer player with Charlotte Eagles, an American soccer team, and the Wizards, a Canadian soccer team.
• Barbara Pinto, ABC's Chicago-based news correspondent. (See also [11]).
• Audrey Stallsmith, author of gardening-themed mystery series, Thyme Will Tell.link.
• Bruce Walke, author and renowned scholar in Old Testament studies, Professor of Old Testament at Reformed Theological Seminary and Professor Emeritus of Old Testament Studies, Regent College.
• Anthony C. Yu, comparative literature and religion scholar and Carl Darling Buck Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus at the University of Chicago.
• Dr Robert Beckford, leading UK theologian, academic, and film-maker based at the University of Birmingham and Oxford Brooks University. Dr Robert Beckford has done groundbreaking research and documentary films on theology, religion, history, and other socio-political issues. He is a leading authority on Black Theology. He has also contributed positively to the study of Islam and Muslims.

[edit] Presidents of the College

• James S. Luckey, 1908-1937
• Stephen W. Paine, 1937-1972
• Wilber Dayton, 1972-1976
• Daniel R. Chamberlain, 1976-2006
• Shirley Mullen, 2006-present

[edit] External links

• http://www.houghton.edu/
• Houghton offers ballet classes through Pointe by Pointe Dance Studio