Albion College is a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...

liberal arts college A liberal arts college or liberal arts institution of higher education is a college with an emphasis on undergraduate study in liberal arts and sciences. Such colleges aim to impart a broad general knowledge and develop general intellectual capac ...

in Albion, Michigan. The college was founded in 1835 and its undergraduate population was approximately 1,500 students in 2014. They participate in NCAA Division III and the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA). The college's athletic teams are nicknamed the Britons, and their colors are purple and gold.

History

On March 23, 1835, Methodist settlers in

Spring Arbor Township Spring Arbor Township is a civil township of Jackson County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 8,267 at the 2010 census, up from 7,577 at the 2000 census. Communities *Spring Arbor is an unincorporated community and census-desig ...

obtained a charter for a new seminary from the Michigan Territorial Legislature. Construction began in 1837 outside Spring Arbor but the

Panic of 1837 The Panic of 1837 was a financial crisis in the United States that touched off a major depression, which lasted until the mid-1840s. Profits, prices, and wages went down, westward expansion was stalled, unemployment went up, and pessimism abound ...

ended the project. A petition to move the seminary to Albion was approved by the legislature in 1839. Sixty acres (243,000 m²) of land were donated by

Jesse Crowell Jesse Crowell (November 19, 1797 Bridgewater, Oneida County, New York – September 28, 1872 Albion, Calhoun County, Michigan) was a pioneer settler in Michigan, who platted Albion, Michigan, in 1836, was its first postmaster, and played an im ...

to the renamed Wesleyan Seminary, and construction began in 1841. The first classes were held in 1843 in the local Methodist Church. In 1844, classes began in the newly constructed Central Building, rebuilt as the present Robinson Hall in 1907. The Albion Female Collegiate Institute, founded in 1850, merged in 1857 under the name The Wesleyan Seminary and Female College at Albion; the merger was finalized in 1861, under the name Albion College. The legislature authorized the college to confer full four-year college degrees upon both men and women that same year. A marker designating the college as a Michigan Historic Site was erected in 1960 by the

Michigan Historical Commission Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

. The inscription reads:

Methodists obtained a charter for Spring Arbor Seminary from the Territorial Council of Michigan in March, 1835. Later the institution was established in Albion on land donated by Jesse Crowell, a leading Albion pioneer and benefactor. In 1841 the cornerstone was laid for the first building, and in 1843, the institution opened as the Wesleyan Seminary. In 1861 the power to confer degrees was obtained and the school named Albion College. Support from the Methodist Church, a large endowment, and private sources have contributed to its growth as a strong liberal arts college.

Academics

The Whitehouse Nature Center plays an important role in classroom instruction at Albion College and offers its facilities and services as an environmental education area to public schools and the community. The Whitehouse Nature Center features six miles of trails, 400 plant species, almost 170 bird species, 25 acres of oak-hickory and flood-plain forest, a tall-grass prairie and spring in the Adele D. Whitehouse Wildflower Garden, an

arboretum An arboretum (plural: arboreta) in a general sense is a botanical collection composed exclusively of trees of a variety of species. Originally mostly created as a section in a larger garden or park for specimens of mostly non-local species, man ...

of Michigan trees and shrubs, 34 acres of farmland and research projects, and an interpretative building with classrooms, observation room, porch, and restrooms. A marker designating the college observatory as a Michigan Historic Site was erected in 1985 by the Bureau of History Michigan Department of State. The inscription reads:

The Albion College Astronomical Observatory was built in 1883-84 at the urging of Dr. Samuel Dickie, who later became president of the college. Dickie helped raise $10,000 to build and equip the facility. The observatory still harbors its original telescope, transit circle, sidereal clock and chronograph. The building has housed classrooms, a bookstore, faculty offices and the West Michigan Methodist Conference archives. In 1984, it was refurbished as the college Ethics Center.

Athletics

Albion College is a part of the MIAA Conference. Albion has overall won 173 men’s MIAA titles (tied for 2nd overall), as well as 26 women’s MIAA titles (5th overall). Albion won the NCAA Division III football championship in 1994. The Esports team started in the 2021-2022 academic year led by Director Karlo De Los Angeles.

Demographics

Prior to the 2010s the enrollment was heavily white and non-low income. The numbers of black and Hispanic students increased, along with those of first-time university students and lower income students, due to a drive to increase enrollment.

Greek life

Fraternities

Albion College is home to six social fraternities: * Tau Kappa Epsilon * Delta Sigma Phi * Delta Tau Delta *

Sigma Nu Sigma Nu () is an undergraduate Fraternities and sororities in North America, college fraternity founded at the Virginia Military Institute on January 1, 1869. The fraternity was founded by James Frank Hopkins, Greenfield Quarles and James McIlva ...

* Sigma Chi *

Alpha Tau Omega Alpha Tau Omega (), commonly known as ATO, is an American social fraternity founded at the Virginia Military Institute in 1865 by Otis Allan Glazebrook. The fraternity has around 250 active and inactive chapters and colonies in the United Stat ...

All six fraternities on campus are all members of the North American Interfraternity Conference and all comprise Albion College's InterFraternity Council (IFC). IFC governs and coordinates the activities of the fraternal chapters on campus. Approximately 46.6% of the male population on campus belongs to one of the six fraternities. Each of the fraternities leases a fraternity house from the college where the members of the fraternity are required to live. The song " Sweetheart of Sigma Chi" was written in 1911 by Byron D. Stokes (Albion, 1913) and F. Dudleigh Vernor (Albion, 1914), and first performed by Harry Clifford (Albion, 1911) while undergraduates at Albion College. A marker designating the college as a Michigan Historic Site for the origin of "Sweetheart of Sigma Chi" was erected in 1960 by the Michigan Historical Commission. The inscription reads:

It was in the spring of 1911 that two freshmen at Albion College, Byron D. Stokes and F. Dudleigh Vernor, wrote the words and music for a song they called "The Sweetheart of Sigma Chi." The song made a hit with their fraternity brothers, and requests for copies came in from other chapters. Within a few years the melody and lyrics of "The Sweetheart of Sigma Chi" had become familiar to people around the world.

Sororities

There are six general purpose social sororities. Of those six, five are members of the

National Panhellenic Conference The National Panhellenic Conference (NPC) is an umbrella organization for 26 (inter)national women's Fraternities and sororities, sororities throughout the United States and Canada. Each member group is autonomous as a social, Greek alphabet#Use ...

: * Kappa Delta * Alpha Chi Omega * Alpha Xi Delta * Delta Gamma * Kappa Alpha Theta One of the six is a member of the National Pan-Hellenic Council: *

Alpha Kappa Alpha Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. () is the first intercollegiate historically African American sorority. The sorority was founded on January 15, 1908, at the historically black Howard University in Washington, D.C., by a group of sixteen stud ...

The members of the six social sororities at Albion College do not live in their lodges, but rather hold meetings and other events there. All six of the sorority chapters are members of the Albion College Panhellenic Council, which governs and coordinates the activities of sorority chapters on campus. Approximately 42% of the female population on campus belongs to one of the six sororities.

Professional and honorary fraternities

Albion College is also home to fifteen honorary, professional, service, and special interest fraternities, including: * Alpha Lambda Delta *

Alpha Phi Omega Alpha Phi Omega (), commonly known as APO, but also A-Phi-O and A-Phi-Q, is a coeducational service fraternity. It is the largest collegiate fraternity in the United States, with chapters at over 350 campuses, an active membership of over 25,0 ...

* Beta Beta Beta *

Delta Sigma Pi Delta Sigma Pi () (officially the International Fraternity of Delta Sigma Pi, Inc.) is a coeducational professional business fraternity and one of the largest in the United States. Delta Sigma Pi was founded on November 7, 1907, at the School ...

* Sigma Xi * Theta Phi Alpha * Kappa Kappa Psi *

Omicron Delta Kappa Omicron Delta Kappa (), also known as The Circle and ODK, is one of the most prestigious honor societies in the United States with chapters at more than 300 college campuses. It was founded December 3, 1914, at Washington and Lee University in ...

* The Order of Omega * Phi Beta Kappa established as the Michigan Beta chapter in 1940, the second chapter in Michigan, following the University of Michigan's Alpha chapter. * Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia * Pi Sigma Alpha * Psi Chi * Sigma Alpha Iota *

Sigma Gamma Epsilon The Society of Sigma Gamma Epsilon () is a national honor society to recognize scholarship in the earth sciences founded in 1915 at the University of Kansas. It has chartered more than 200 chapters at colleges and universities across the United ...

Notable alumni and faculty

References

External links

*
Official athletics website
{{authority control Education in Calhoun County, Michigan Liberal arts colleges in Michigan Educational institutions established in 1835 Buildings and structures in Calhoun County, Michigan Tourist attractions in Calhoun County, Michigan 1835 establishments in Michigan Territory Universities and colleges affiliated with the Methodist Episcopal Church Private universities and colleges in Michigan