Defiance College

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Defiance College


Motto:	"Defy the ordinary"
Established:	1850
Type:	Private not-for-profit
Endowment:	$15.4 million.^[1]
Faculty:	86
Students:	1,000
Undergraduates:	900
Postgraduates:	100
Location:	Defiance, Ohio, Ohio, U.S.A.
Campus:	small town/rural.
Colors:	Purple and Gold
Nickname:	Yellow Jackets, Lady Jackets
Affiliations:	United Church of Christ
Website:	http://www.defiance.edu

Defiance College is an independent, co-educational, four-year liberal arts college located on a 150-acre campus in a residential area of small town Defiance, Ohio, United States. The campus includes eighteen buildings and access to the 200-acre Thoreau Wildlife Sanctuary^[2].

The College's Mission Statement is:"We seek to inspire within our students a search for truth, a sensitivity to our world and the diverse cultures within it, the ability to lead in their chosen professions, and a spirit of service. We want them To Know, To Lead, To Serve, and To Understand."

Although a quiet small-town midwestern campus, the student body historically has drawn many students from the east coast and internationally. Although it is related to the United Church of Christ, and key administrative positions historically have been filled by trained clergy, the college does not prosetlyize, preferring to teach Christianity by example. The small-town atmosphere, student life, athletics, and the school's work in field of service learning, and pituresque campus helped the college to regognized as one of the best colleges for 2008 by U.S. News and World Report.^[3]

1 History
2 Student Life
3 Athletics
- 3.1 Men's
- 3.2 Women's
4 Financials
5 Noted Alumni
6 Accreditation
7 References
8 External links

[edit] History

The school was founded as Defiance Female Seminary in 1850 by the Christian Church to provide schooling for young women. William Curtis Holgate, a local businessman, donated most of the Defiance College campus. In 1903 the Defiance Female Seminary formally became Defiance College, making it one of only two religious-affiliated colleges to begin operation in Ohio during the twentieth century.

The Christian Church was one of four denominations that united in 1957 to become the United Church of Christ, with which Defiance College continues to be affiliated. Both men and women of all religious backgrounds are welcomed at the institution. Defiance College emphasizes service learning and requires all of its students to participate in community-service activities in order to graduate.^[4]

[edit] McCann Era

In the early 1950s President Dwight D. Eisenhower paid two visits to Defiance College. On October 15, 1953, he laid the cornerstone for Anthony Wayne Library[1] (more properly, the "Anthony Wayne Library of American Study". When he re-visited the campus on May 26, 1963 to deliver the commencement addressaddress, the college announced that one room in the library had been designated "the Eisenhower room", honoring the friendship between Eisenhower and Kevin C. McCann, the president of the college at the time.

[edit] Mysteries and Losses

Defiance College lost a number of buildings in the 1950s and 1960s to mysterious fires. The fire at Weston Hall was particularly devastating, as it contained many treasures.

On September 30th, 1963, when professor Erwin J. Urch failed to show up for classes, Dean Kurtz investigated to see if he was okay, as Urch lived alone. Urch was missing, as was his car and his car keys. The other objects one would normally find in a man's pockets--penknife, wallet, change--were lying openly on the table, and no signs of misadventure were present. His family was not close, and he had no known enemies. He did not communicate regularly with his family, and they claimed not to have heard from him. No withdrawals had been made from his bank savings. He was declared dead by the courts in 1970, but neither he, nor his car, were ever spotted again.

When enrollments bloomed in the mid-1960s, Defiance constructed five inexpensive one-story slab-construction dormitories called the Pilgrim Halls as honors housing. The buildings were built near a slope, and the ground underneath eroded, making the original use of the buildings unwise.

[edit] 1960's and 70's

In the mid-1960s, the college adopted a novel 4-1-4 academic schedule, whereby students took four courses for four months, with a one-month "Winter Term" in which students were totally immersed in one subject, full time, for the month of January. Some students went on an expedition to the Northwest to find the Yeti. Some students spent the month learning German by speaking nothing else, all day long, for a month. Two professors held a class in which students learned hot-air ballooning and became licensed aeronauts. Other students conducted an archaeological dig. The emphasis was on alternative learning, and students were encouraged to invent their own Winter Term program.

Enrollment swelled again during the late 1960s, with a record 1,200 students enrolled for the 1970-1971 school year. When student deferments to the draft ended in 1971, enrollment dropped again, more at Defiance than at other colleges, as many students from the east coast had apparently chosen Defiance as their second choice to an Ivy League college.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Recent History

The Schauffler College of Religious and Social Work in Cleveland had four-year students from more countries than any other, but they failed, and were merged into the graduate school of theology at Oberlin College. When Oberlin closed that school, the Schauffler endowment was moved to Defiance College, who created the Schauffler Center, and later built Schauffler Hall.

[edit] Student Life

Just over 1,000 total students are enrolled at Defiance College. Over 50% of all traditional students live on campus, although many Defiance students are older, with families and/or jobs. The school has 41 undergraduate majors and master's degrees. Major bachelor degree programs include: Business, education, protective services, computer/information sciences, communications ^[5]. 80% of first year students and about 40% of all undergraduates live on campus. 2006 saw a resurgence of both the college’s student newspaper The Defender and of student government, with the first general class elections in several years held in the spring of that year. DC has a Students to Faculty Ratio of 13:1 and an average class size of 15 students.^[6]

[edit] Athletics

The Defiance College Yellow Jackets and Lady Jackets compete in Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) as a NCAA Division III school.^[7]

[edit] Men's

[edit] Women's

[edit] Financials

Tuition: $20,120 per year
Room and board: $6,720 per year
Student Activity fee: $120 per year
Technology fee: $135 per semester
Under-graduates receiving need-based financial aid: 84%
Average indebtedness upon graduation: $17,359
Acceptance rate: 72% of all applications
89% of D.C. students find employment or enter graduate school within six months of graduation.

[edit] Noted Alumni

Dr. David Ruffer, President, Albright College
George Smart, President, Central Can
John Brennan Crutchley, serial killer.
Harold McMaster, Founder and C.E.O., Glass Tech.
Jimmie LeMaster, Chair person of American studies, Baylor University
Duggan Fry, General Manager, WOWO radio, Fort Wayne, Indiana
Dennis Hales, Assistant Superintendent, Four County Joint Vocational School
Ben Davis (professional football player), Cleveland Browns defensive back and kick-return specialist
Alberto Vilar, C.E.O., MetLife Mexico