Motto | "Defy the ordinary" |
---|---|
Type |
Private liberal arts college Not-for-profit |
Established | 1850 |
Religious affiliation
|
United Church of Christ |
Endowment | $16.8 million (2016) |
Academic staff
|
86 |
Students | 1,000 |
Undergraduates | 900 |
Postgraduates | 100 |
Location | Defiance, Ohio, U.S. |
Campus | small town/rural |
Colors | Purple and Gold |
Athletics | NCAA Division III – HCAC |
Nickname | Yellow Jackets, Lady Jackets |
Affiliations | CIC |
Website | www |
Defiance College is a very small, highly residential college located in Defiance, Ohio, United States. It is an independent, co-educational liberal arts college affiliated with the United Church of Christ. The campus includes eighteen buildings and access to the 200-acre (80.9 ha) Thoreau Wildlife Sanctuary.
Defiance College advertises its national recognition for its programs of service and engagement. Defiance College is also in Colleges With a Conscience from Princeton Review and Campus Compact. In 2013 was a President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll Finalist.
Its mission statement emphasizes "experience of engagement". It hosts the McMaster School for Advancing Humanity, which permits students to participate in projects "to improve the human condition". It also has a campus/community initiative, its "Service Leadership Program" and an honors curriculum, the Carolyn M. Small Honors Program and the Hench Autism Studies Program, which focuses on late adolescence and early adulthood. In 2014 Defiance College introduced the ASD Affinity Program to offer college students with ASD the environmental and professional support services needed to overcome barriers and provide for avenues of academic success in the traditional college setting.
The college began as Defiance Female Seminary in 1850 and was opened by the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) to provide schooling for young women. William Curtis Holgate, a local businessman, donated most of the 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 20th century. Much of the institution’s early growth occurred under Peter McReynolds who was named president in 1902. The following years saw growth in students, endowment, and facilities with the addition of most of the original campus buildings.
Defiance College grew and flourished under President Kevin McCann's leadership (1951–1964). Academic programs expanded, and enrollment grew. The physical appearance of the campus changed significantly. The campus increased in size to 140 acres (56.7 ha); the library, student union, and Pilgrim halls were built; and old buildings were renovated. President Dwight D. Eisenhower paid two visits to Defiance College. On October 15, 1953, he laid the cornerstone for Anthony Wayne Library of American Study [1]. He re-visited the campus on May 26, 1963 to deliver the commencement address, at which time the college announced that one room in the library had been designated "the Eisenhower Room," honoring the friendship between Eisenhower and Kevin C. McCann.