Bethany College (Bethany, West Virginia)

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Bethany College
Image:BethanyLogo.jpg
Motto: Truth gives the bow to knowledge.
Established: 1840
Type: Private
President: Dr. Scott D. Miller
Students: 900
Location: Bethany, West Virginia, USA
Campus: Rural 1,300 acres (5.3 km²)
Athletics: 20 NCAA Division III Athletic Teams
Mascot: Bison
For schools with the same or similar names, see Bethany College.
Images of Bethany College, 1904
Images of Bethany College, 1904

Bethany College, is a private liberal arts college nestled in the rolling foothills of Bethany, West Virginia. Founded in 1840, it remains West Virginia's oldest degree-granting institution.

Contents

[edit] History

Bethany College was founded by Alexander Campbell, one of the earliest leaders of the American Restoration Movement and the Christian Church, (Disciples of Christ). Campbell's home, the Alexander Campbell Mansion is preserved on the campus. Although sharing a long legacy and close ties with Disciples of Christ Church, the College has been independent since its founding and the denomination exercises no sectarian control.

The College's roots stem from the Buffalo Seminary founded in 1818 by Campbell and held in the Campbell Mansion, home of Alexander Campbell and Thomas Campbell, located less than a mile away from the College's present location. On March 5, 1840, Bethany was chartered by the Virginia legislature and given "all degree-granting powers" of the University of Virginia. West Virginia's secession from Virginia on June 22, 1863 recognized existing Virginia charters; Bethany College continues to operate under the Virginia charter today.

The College is the birthplace of Delta Tau Delta, an international social fraternity founded in 1858.

An early center of coeducation, Bethany has admitted women since the 1880s.

Bethany College's main campus is located approximately forty miles southwest of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and fifteen miles (24 km) north of Wheeling, West Virginia, in West Virginia's northern panhandle. The Bethany campus encompasses more than 1,600 acres (6.5 km²) of land.

[edit] Fields of study

Bethany College offers a wide array of studies, awarding bachelor of science and bachelor of arts degrees in more than 30 fields of study, many with options for emphasis in specializations. Students may also include one or more optional minors.

[edit] Major fields of study

Majors are offered in:

  • Accounting
  • Biology
  • Biochemistry
  • Chemistry
  • Communication, with an option for emphasis in
    • Advertising
    • Electronic Media
    • Graphics
    • Print Media
    • Public Relations
  • Computer Science
  • Cultural Studies
  • Economics, with options for emphasis in
    • Managerial Economics
    • International Economics
    • Financial Economics
  • Education
    • Elementary Education
    • Middle Childhood Education
    • Secondary Education
  • English
  • Environmental Science
  • Equine Studies
  • Fine Arts
  • French
  • German
  • History
  • Interdisciplinary Studies (Major programs initiated and developed by individual students to fulfill their personal education goals)
  • International Relations
  • Mathematics
  • Music
  • Physical Education and Sports Studies, with options for emphasis on
    • Sports Communication
    • Sports Management
    • Sports Services
    • Teaching Physical Education
  • Physics
  • Political Communication
  • Political Science
  • Psychology, with options for emphasis in
    • Scientific Psychology
    • Human Services
    • Pre-Physical Therapy
  • Psychology and Education
  • Religious Studies
  • Social Studies
  • Social Work
  • Spanish
  • Theatre Arts
  • Visual Art

[edit] Pre-professional fields of study

  • Pre-Dentistry
  • Pre-Engineering
  • Pre-Law
  • Pre-Medical
  • Pre-Ministry
  • Pre-Physical Therapy
  • Pre-Veterinary

[edit] Minor fields of study

Minors are offered in:

  • Accounting
  • American Government and Politics
  • American Literature
  • Botany
  • British Literature
  • Chemistry
  • Communication
  • Computer Science
  • Economics
  • Environmental Biology
  • Experimental Physics
  • Film Studies
  • French
  • German
  • History
  • International Relations
  • Management
  • Mathematics
  • Medieval and Renaissance Studies
  • Music
  • Multi-Category Special Education K-Adult
  • Philosophy
  • Public Policy
  • Religious Studies
  • Secondary Education
  • Spanish
  • Theatre
  • Theoretical Physics
  • Visual Art
  • Women's Studies
  • Writing and Language
  • Zoology

[edit] Student life

[edit] Athletics

Bethany is NCAA Division III recognized and is a member of the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) as well as the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC). Its mascot is the Bison, and its colors are kelly green and white.

[edit] Greek life

Fraternities and sororities constitute important social groups for upperclass men and women on campus. The six social fraternities and three sororities are nationally affiliated, and their members constitute approximately forty percent of the student body. Representatives from each serve on agencies which coordinate fraternal affairs and activities.

Social fraternities represented are Delta Tau Delta, Alpha Sigma Phi, Beta Theta Pi, Kappa Alpha Order, Phi Kappa Tau, and Sigma Nu. Sororities are Alpha Xi Delta, Phi Mu, and Zeta Tau Alpha and a local sorority, Delta Epsilon Pi, was founded at Bethany during the 2007-2008 academic year.

The co-ed national service fraternity Alpha Phi Omega was granted a charter at Bethany in 2004. Members of Alpha Phi Omega are permitted to join social fraternities or sororities.

[edit] Campus Buildings

[edit] Academics

Name Function Notes
Old Main (Bethany College) Old Main is the centerpiece of Bethany's academic buildings. Its tower dominates the campus and is the chief architectural feature noted as one approaches the College. Old Main is listed in the National Register of Historic Places and was designated as such in 1990. The building is one of the earliest examples of collegiate Gothic architecture in the United States.
David and Irene Steinman Fine Arts Center The Steinman Fine Arts Center provides excellent facilities for music and theatre. A fully equipped theatre occupies the central portion of the building. Teaching studios, studio-classrooms, a general rehearsal room for the larger vocal and instrumental groups, and individual practice rooms support instruction in music.
Grace Phillips Johnson Visual Arts Center This building offers facilities for computer graphics, television, painting, sculpture and design. The Grace Phillips Johnson Visual Arts Center was formerly known as the Irvin Gymnasium (built in the year 1919). Renovation to its current state was finished in 1984.
Kirkpatrick Hall of Life Sciences This hall accommodates laboratories, classrooms, and faculty for the biology and psychology departments. It also has a computer laboratory.
Morlan Hall Morlan Hall not only houses the communication, political science, history, economics, and language department offices, but also houses female students on the third and fourth floors. Its base floor contains a cafe where students can relax and study while enjoying a cup of coffee or accessing the internet through the local wireless service.
Richardson Hall of Science This hall provides facilities for the chemistry, physics, and mathematics departments, as well as the two primary computer laboratories. The Richardson Hall of Science is named for Robert Richardson, Bethany College's first science professor.
T.W. Phillips Memorial Library This facility serves as the hub of an academic information network that provides the campus with over 250,000 items locally (books, periodicals, newspapers, audiovisuals, archival materials) and access to information through online subscriptions to ProQuest Direct, Lexis-Nexis Universe, JSTOR, Britannica Online, and many other sources. The Center for Campbell Studies, housed in the Library, contains books, periodicals, letters, paintings, photographs, and museum pieces related to Bethany's founder and first President Alexander Campbell. The Upper Ohio Valley Collection, which includes books, magazines, maps, pictures, and ephemera focusing on the nine counties in West Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Ohio surrounding Bethany, is also located in the library.

[edit] Residence

Name Description/Living Arrangements Notes
Campbell Village Campbell Village is Bethany College's newest, co-ed student housing unit. Each suite within contains a common room as well as four private, individual occupancy rooms. "CV", as it is referred to by students, is a four-building complex, housing 380 students, and was completed during the 2000-2001 academic year.
Harlan Hall Harlan Hall is a traditional all male, double occupancy dormitory. On April 11th, 2007, a fire damaged the building and forced its residents to evacuate. The building was repaired over the summer and students were able to move back in for the 2007-2008 academic year.
Phillips Hall Phillips Hall is the only all-female residence hall, and is also considered to be the most beautiful of all the housing facilities. Its doors are always open, not only to its residents but to all Bethany students interested in visiting with Phillips residents, attending intimate scholarly lectures in the famous Phillips Hall Lounge, watching a series of interesting movies at Maxwell's, or dancing like a rock star in Renner Too. Phillips Hall is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Greek Hill [New Parkinson Place] Greek Hill is a hilltop complex with 6 social Greek houses, consisting of three fraternities: Delta Tau Delta, Alpha Sigma Phi and Phi Kappa Tau and three sororities: Alpha Xi Delta, Phi Mu, Zeta Tau Alpha.
Goodnight and Woolery Both Goodnight and Woolery are co-ed dormitories. Woolery was once the Delta Tau Delta house until 2002 when it then became an all-campus, co-educational housing unit akin to Goodnight.

[edit] Notable alumni

[edit] External links

v • d • e
Presidents' Athletic Conference
v • d • e
Colleges and Universities in West Virginia
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