Westminster College, Salt Lake City
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Westminster College |
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| Established | 1875 |
| Type | Private |
| President | Michael S. Bassis |
| Faculty | approximately 145 |
| Students | 2400 |
| Location | Sugar House, Salt Lake City, Utah, United States |
| Campus | Urban |
| Athletics | NAIA division 1 |
| Mascot | Griffin |
| Website | http://www.westminstercollege.edu/ |
Westminster College, Salt Lake City, or simply "Westminster College" is a four year accredited liberal arts college located in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA. It also offers four graduate programs. Its mascot is the griffin. It is the only nondenominational private liberal arts college in the state of Utah.
Westminster enrolls approximately 2,400 full and part time students from 29 states and 24 foreign nations.
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[edit] History
The school was founded in 1875 as the Salt Lake Collegiate Institute, a prep school under the supervision of the First Presbyterian church of Salt Lake City.
At that time, many Protestant denominations flocked to Salt Lake City in order to try to "save" people who belonged to what they considered a cult[citation needed]. Westminster is the only remaining vestige of a trend in the late 1800s in which the Protestants set up private primary and secondary schools and offer free tuition to children in order to try to convert them out of Mormonism.
College level classes were first offered in 1897 as Sheldon Jackson College. It was given that name after a Presbyterian minister and its primary benefactor, Sheldon Jackson. High school level classes ceased to be offered in 1945. Westminster severed its ties to the Presbyterian church in 1974.
The college changed its name to "Westminster College" in 1902 to better reflect a more general Protestant education. The name is derived from the Westminster Confession of Faith, a Presbyterian confession of faith, which, in turn, was named for a London suburb where it was devised. Today, students from all religious persuasions (or none) are welcome.
The college is also no longer antagonistic toward The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons). About 40 percent of its students are Latter-Day Saints, approximately the same percentage as for Salt Lake City. Many LDS students attending the school say they like the proximity to church activities but prefer the open, diverse and less restrictive attitude at Westminster over the parochialism they would find at a LDS school such as Brigham Young University. As a means of marketing the school to LDS students and others of non-Christian faith, the school abandoned the school mascot, the Parson, in favor of the more secular Griffin[citation needed]. The school also proposed abandoning its traditional crest emblem, a shield emblazoned with the term "Pro Christo et Libertate." However, students, including student body president, Jonathan Jemming, actively protested the administrative effort and the school crest was preserved[citation needed].
Westminster was the first accredited two year junior college in Utah. It then underwent changes to become a liberal arts institution in 1949.
Originally located in downtown Salt Lake City, the college moved to its present campus on 27 acres (109,000 m²) in the Sugar House neighborhood of the city.
The current president of Westminster College is Dr. Michael S. Bassis, appointed in 2002.
[edit] Programs
Westminster offers 37 undergraduate programs and majors. It offers graduate degrees in counseling psychology, aviation, nursing, communication, education, business administration, and technology management & commercialization.
[edit] Student activities
The Associated Students of Westminster College or ASWC is the student government and activity board on campus. They provide services such as activities, student advocacy, and over fifty different clubs and organizations.
[edit] School publications
The school newspaper is a weekly called the Forum. There is also a nationally recognized literary journal known as Ellipsis.
[edit] Athletics
Westminster is part of NAIA division one athletics. Its athletic offerings include men's and women's basketball, men's soccer, women's volleyball, men's and women's golf, men's and women's cross country, and summer basketball camps. In the 2006-2007 academic year, Westminster began fielding a men's lacrosse team at the club-intercollegic level, following the completion of a new athletic field on campus.
[edit] Notable alumni
- Wayne C. Cody '03 — on-air host of Native America Calling, a program airing from Albuquerque.
[edit] External links
- Official Westminster College Website
- Forum newspaper page
- Associated Students of Westminster College Website
| Colleges and universities of Utah |
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| BYU • CEU • Dixie State • LDS Business College • SLCC • Snow College • SUU • Stevens-Henager • U of U • USU • UVSC • WSU • Westminster |
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