Centre 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 in
Danville, Kentucky. It is an undergraduate college with an enrollment of approximately 1,400 students. Centre was officially chartered by the
Kentucky General Assembly
The Kentucky General Assembly, also called the Kentucky Legislature, is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Kentucky. It comprises the Kentucky Senate and the Kentucky House of Representatives.
The General Assembly meets annually in ...
in 1819. The college is a member of the
Associated Colleges of the South The Associated Colleges of the South (ACS) is a consortium of 16 liberal arts colleges in the southern United States. It was formed in 1991. Its mission is to champion and enhance residential liberal arts education through collaborative projects am ...
and the
Association of Presbyterian Colleges and Universities
The Association of Presbyterian Colleges and Universities is a private, not-for-profit organization of colleges and universities associated with the Presbyterian Church (USA), a Mainline Protestant, Mainline Protestant Christian denomination, Chris ...
.
History
The
Kentucky General Assembly
The Kentucky General Assembly, also called the Kentucky Legislature, is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Kentucky. It comprises the Kentucky Senate and the Kentucky House of Representatives.
The General Assembly meets annually in ...
established Centre College on January 21, 1819. The college was named for its proximate location in the geographic "centre" of the Commonwealth, using early nineteenth century America's contemporaneous spelling of the word. Auspiciously, the legislature placed many of Kentucky's most prominent citizens in charge of Centre College's Board of Trustees, with
Isaac Shelby
Isaac Shelby (December 11, 1750 – July 18, 1826) was the first and fifth Governor of Kentucky and served in the state legislatures of Virginia and North Carolina. He was also a soldier in Lord Dunmore's War, the American Revolutionary Wa ...
, the Commonwealth's first governor, serving as chair.
James G. Birney, at the time representing Danville in the
Kentucky House of Representatives, was a member.
Classes began in the fall of 1820 in Old Centre, the first building on campus and the oldest college administration building west of the Allegheny Mountains.
![Centre College Kentucky](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/06/Centre_College_Kentucky.jpg)
In its early years, Centre navigated financial hardships, disputes within and outside the Presbyterian Church, and six wars, including the occupation of Old Centre by both Confederate and Union troops during the Civil War. A Centre alumnus,
John Todd Stuart
John Todd Stuart (November 10, 1807 – November 28, 1885) was a lawyer and a U.S. Representative from Illinois.
Born near Lexington, Kentucky, Stuart graduated from Centre College, Danville, Kentucky, in 1826. He then studied law, was a ...
, played a formative role in American history by encouraging Abraham Lincoln to study for the bar, providing his first set of law books, and serving as Lincoln's professional and political mentor. From 1830 to 1857, President
John C. Young
John Chew Young (; June 16, 1912 – October 27, 1987), Chinese American, was born in San Jose, California. A key figure in the development of Chinatown, San Francisco, he was one of the original board members of the Chinese Historical Socie ...
oversaw a vast enlargement of the faculty and a five-fold increase in the student body. Following the Civil War, Centre affiliated itself with several other educational institutions. From 1894 until 1912,
J. Proctor Knott, a former Kentucky governor and U.S. congressman, operated a law school at Centre as its dean. The Centre College Board of Trustees controlled the
Kentucky School for the Deaf
The Kentucky School for the Deaf (KSD), located in Danville, Kentucky, United States, is a school that provides education to deaf and hard-of-hearing children from elementary through high school levels. Founded in 1823, it was the first school ...
, also in Danville, during its early years; consolidated the college with the Central University in
Richmond, Kentucky in 1901; from the time of the merger with
Central University in 1901 until 1918 Centre College went by the name Central University of Kentucky; and merged with Danville's Kentucky College for Women in 1926, although the women did not move onto Centre's campus until 1962.
In 1921, Centre upset
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...
's undefeated
football team
6–0, a feat which ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'' later dubbed "Football's Upset of the Century".
ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). Th ...
described Centre's victory as one of the biggest upsets in all sports during the twentieth century.
"
C6H0" remains a point of pride among students and alumni and is the answer to "What is the formula for a winning football team?" To this day, "C6HO" is painted in large white figures on the brick exterior of Centre's old post office.
![Centrecollegedebate](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0a/Centrecollegedebate.jpg)
During the 1960s the college's financial resources doubled. Eleven new buildings were added to the campus and enrollment increased from 450 to 800. In 1988, Centre set a national record when it achieved a 75.4% participation rate for alumni giving, a mark that remains unbroken to this day.
From the latter twentieth century to the present, strong levels of alumni giving and participation—often the highest in the nation—fueled the college's growth. Today, enrollment is around 1,300 with nearly 150 faculty members.
Milton C. Moreland, who took office in 2020, is the current president, Centre's 21st. In
2000
File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from S ...
, Centre became the smallest college ever to host a
national election debate.
Dick Cheney and Senator
Joe Lieberman
Joseph Isadore Lieberman (; born February 24, 1942) is an American politician, lobbyist, and attorney who served as a United States senator from Connecticut from 1989 to 2013. A former member of the Democratic Party, he was its nominee for ...
debated on October 5 at Centre's Norton Center for the Arts with CNN's
Bernard Shaw
George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence simply as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from ...
acting as moderator. In 2012, Centre again hosted a vice presidential debate in the Norton Center for the Arts, which featured Vice President
Joe Biden and Rep.
Paul Ryan.
The physical campus has changed substantially during the 21st century. In 2005, the college completed The College Centre,
a $22-million project to expand and renovate Suttcliffe Hall, the Crounse Academic Center and Grace Doherty Library, which was the largest construction project on campus since the Norton Center was built in 1973. Additionally, a new student residence, Pearl Hall, was completed in 2008; a new campus center opened in October 2009; and the construction of a new science wing in Young Hall was completed in the fall of 2010. In August 2011, Centre announced the construction of Brockman Residential Commons, a 125-bed facility offering apartment and townhouse living for upperclassmen. The residence facility was completed at the beginning of the 2012–13 school year. In 2021, the college completed renovations of the Austin E. Knowlton Center for Science and Mathematics in Olin Hall and the Centre Learning Commons in the Grace Doherty Library. Centre celebrated the opening of the new Gary Wright Baseball Field at Fishman Park in spring 2022.
Classes at Centre are held in spite of several federal holidays—including Presidents, Labor, Columbus, and Veterans Days—and rarely cancelled, which are points of pride among students, staff, and alumni. During the Confederate occupation of Old Centre in 1862, classes were held at Old Sayre library. However, the
Battle of Perryville
The Battle of Perryville, also known as the Battle of Chaplin Hills, was fought on October 8, 1862, in the Chaplin Hills west of Perryville, Kentucky, as the culmination of the Confederate Heartland Offensive (Kentucky Campaign) during the ...
eventually forced the faculty to suspend classes for 13 days, the college's only cancellation during the Civil War. Classes were cancelled one day due to the
Great Blizzard of 1978. In 1994 and 1998, when severe snow and ice storms shut down much of the Commonwealth, classes were delayed by half a day. In 2000, classes were officially cancelled prior to the Vice Presidential Debate and in the spring due to a hazardous chemical spill on the train tracks found at the end of Greek Row; the entire campus was evacuated. On March 7, 2006, classes were cut short to allow students and staff to attend a symposium honoring retiring dean, John Ward. Ironically, following a large snow storm in 1997, Ward told the college community, "Centre didn't cancel classes during parts of the Civil War; we're not cancelling them now." Yet classes were cancelled at Centre on March 3, 2014, due to weather conditions.
2000 vice presidential debate
On Thursday, October 5, 2000, Centre College hosted the vice presidential debate, becoming the smallest college in the smallest town ever to serve as a host site for a general election debate. Dubbed "The Thrill in the Ville," the debate between
Dick Cheney and
Joe Lieberman
Joseph Isadore Lieberman (; born February 24, 1942) is an American politician, lobbyist, and attorney who served as a United States senator from Connecticut from 1989 to 2013. A former member of the Democratic Party, he was its nominee for ...
took place in the college's
Norton Center for the Arts. The event was a tremendous success, being heralded by former CBS news anchor
Dan Rather
Daniel Irvin Rather Jr. (; born October 31, 1931) is an American journalist, commentator, and former national evening news anchor. Rather began his career in Texas, becoming a national name after his reporting saved thousands of lives during Hur ...
as "the best vice presidential debate ever held." After the 2000 debate concluded, Janet Brown, executive director of the Commission on Presidential Debates, said that "Centre has set the standard by which future debates will be judged."
2012 vice presidential debate
![Centre College VP debate flyer](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/54/Centre_College_VP_debate_flyer.jpg)
Twelve years after hosting its first debate, Centre College again hosted a vice presidential debate on October 11, 2012. The debate between vice presidential incumbent
Joe Biden and Congressman
Paul Ryan, with moderator Martha Raddatz, was called "one of the most engaging, enlightening, and entertaining debates of recent memory, one marked by dramatic contrasts in priorities, ideology, and personal style." Of Centre College's performance as a host site, Janet Brown, executive director of the Commission on Presidential Debates, said, "They aced it in 2000 and this year was even better."
2018 student protest and sit-in
Over 200 Centre College students took part in a protest and
sit-in at the campus administration building, Old Centre, on May 2, 2018. The students were protesting racial discrimination on campus. A group of black students drafted and presented a statement of intent and list of demands to the campus and school administration, demanding changes concerning the school's Department of Public Safety,
Title IX
Title IX is the most commonly used name for the federal civil rights law in the United States that was enacted as part (Title IX) of the Education Amendments of 1972. It prohibits sex-based discrimination in any school or any other educat ...
office, and the creation of a Diversity and Inclusion office, among other things. Over 400 students signed a petition supporting the movement. The protesters were present all day and night in Old Centre from May 2 to 4 while student leaders negotiated with President John Roush, sleeping in the building and in tents outside; they said they refused to leave until their demands were met. The sit-in ended on May 4, with school administration agreeing to many of the student demands.
Campus
Centre's campus includes 67 buildings, 14 of which are included on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...
.
Old Centre
Completed in 1820, Old Centre is the college's first building, the oldest continuously operated academic building west of the Alleghenies, and the template for the
Greek Revival
The Greek Revival was an architectural movement which began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe and the United States and Canada, but a ...
style of the campus. Today it houses the offices of the president, vice president for academic affairs, and vice president for college relations, in addition to several classrooms and the college's Admissions Welcome Centre. At various times it has served as a library, dormitory, law school, faculty residence, and, during the Civil War, a hospital for both Confederate and Union soldiers. Old Centre is a Kentucky Landmark, listed in the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...
, and included in the ''Smithsonian Guide to Historic Places.''
Old Carnegie
Built in 1913 with a $30,000 grant from
Andrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie (, ; November 25, 1835August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist. Carnegie led the expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century and became one of the richest Americans i ...
,
Old Carnegie was the college library until 1966. It currently houses the Center for Career & Professional Development and the Center for Global Citizenship, as well as the special-occasion Evans-Lively dining room. Old Carnegie is listed in the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...
Norton Center for the Arts
![Norton Center for the Arts](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bd/Norton_Center_for_the_Arts.jpg)
Norton Center for the Arts has hosted performers such as violinist
Itzhak Perlman, dancers
Mikhail Baryshnikov and
Twyla Tharp
Twyla Tharp (; born July 1, 1941) is an American dancer, choreographer, and author who lives and works in New York City. In 1966 she formed the company Twyla Tharp Dance. Her work often uses classical music, jazz, and contemporary pop music.
Fr ...
, the
Boston Pops
The Boston Pops Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts, specializing in light classical and popular music. The orchestra's current music director is Keith Lockhart.
Founded in 1885 as an offshoot of the Boston Sym ...
, the
New York Philharmonic
The New York Philharmonic, officially the Philharmonic-Symphony Society of New York, Inc., globally known as New York Philharmonic Orchestra (NYPO) or New York Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra, is a symphony orchestra based in New York City. It is ...
,
Henry Mancini
Henry Mancini ( ; born Enrico Nicola Mancini, ; April 16, 1924 – June 14, 1994) was an American composer, conductor, arranger, pianist and flautist. Often cited as one of the greatest composers in the history of film, he won four Academy Award ...
, jazz vocalists
Pearl Bailey and
Sarah Vaughan, the
Orchestre de Paris
The Orchestre de Paris () is a French orchestra based in Paris. The orchestra currently performs most of its concerts at the Philharmonie de Paris.
History
In 1967, following the dissolution of the Orchestre de la Société des Concerts du ...
with
Daniel Barenboim, the
Preservation Hall Jazz Band
The Preservation Hall Jazz Band is a New Orleans jazz band founded in New Orleans by tuba player Allan Jaffe in the early 1960s. The band derives its name from Preservation Hall in the French Quarter. In 2005, the Hall's doors were closed for a p ...
,
Beach Boys
A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological sources, such as mollusc shell ...
,
Huey Lewis and the News,
Willie Nelson
Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American country musician. The critical success of the album '' Shotgun Willie'' (1973), combined with the critical and commercial success of '' Red Headed Stranger'' (1975) and '' Stardust'' (1 ...
,
Travis Tritt
James Travis Tritt (born February 9, 1963) is an American country music singer and songwriter. He signed to Warner Bros. Records in 1989, releasing seven studio albums and a greatest hits package for the label between then and 1999. In the 20 ...
,
LeAnn Rimes,
Lyle Lovett,
Aretha Franklin,
Smokey Robinson, crooner
Tony Bennett
Anthony Dominick Benedetto (born August 3, 1926), known professionally as Tony Bennett, is an American retired singer of traditional pop standards, big band, show tunes, and jazz. Bennett is also a painter, having created works under his birt ...
,
The Chieftains
The Chieftains are a traditional Irish folk band formed in Dublin in 1962, by Paddy Moloney, Seán Potts and Michael Tubridy. Their sound, which is almost entirely instrumental and largely built around uilleann pipes, has become synonymous wi ...
,
Three Dog Night
Three Dog Night is an American rock band formed in 1967, with founding members consisting of vocalists Danny Hutton, Cory Wells, and Chuck Negron. This lineup was soon augmented by Jimmy Greenspoon (keyboards), Joe Schermie (bass), Michael A ...
,
David Copperfield
''David Copperfield'' Dickens invented over 14 variations of the title for this work, see is a novel in the bildungsroman genre by Charles Dickens, narrated by the eponymous David Copperfield, detailing his adventures in his journey from inf ...
,
Dolly Parton
Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter, actress, philanthropist, and businesswoman, known primarily for her work in country music. After achieving success as a songwriter for others, Parton made her album d ...
,
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band is an American country rock band formed in 1966. The group has existed in various forms since its founding in Long Beach, California. Between 1976 and 1981, the band performed and recorded as the Dirt Band.
Constant ...
,
Ben Folds,
They Might Be Giants
They Might Be Giants (often abbreviated as TMBG) is an American alternative rock band formed in 1982 by John Flansburgh and John Linnell. During TMBG's early years, Flansburgh and Linnell frequently performed as a duo, often accompanied by a ...
, and musicals such as ''Rent, Titanic, Annie Get Your Gun, Thoroughly Modern Millie, Hairspray, My Fair Lady'' and ''Ain't Misbehavin featuring
Ruben Studdard
Ruben Studdard (born September 12, 1978) is an American singer and actor. He rose to fame as winner of the second season of ''American Idol'' and received a Grammy Award nomination in 2003 for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for his recording of ...
. In October 2000, the Norton Center hosted the vice presidential debate between
Dick Cheney and Senator
Joe Lieberman
Joseph Isadore Lieberman (; born February 24, 1942) is an American politician, lobbyist, and attorney who served as a United States senator from Connecticut from 1989 to 2013. A former member of the Democratic Party, he was its nominee for ...
. In September 2009, Centre garnered national attention by hosting the
Vienna Philharmonic
The Vienna Philharmonic (VPO; german: Wiener Philharmoniker, links=no) is an orchestra that was founded in 1842 and is considered to be one of the finest in the world.
The Vienna Philharmonic is based at the Musikverein in Vienna, Austria. It ...
, marking the only stop on the Philharmonic's American tour other than New York's
Carnegie Hall. In October 2012, the Norton Center hosted the vice presidential debate between
Joe Biden and
Paul Ryan.
Centre students can attend most of the Norton Center events at no extra cost.
The Norton Center for the Arts was built in 1973 and originally named the Regional Arts Center (RAC). The complex was designed by architect
William Wesley Peters
William Wesley Peters (June 12, 1912 – July 17, 1991) was an American architect and engineer, apprentice to and protégé of Frank Lloyd Wright.
Early life
Wes, as he was known to friends and associates, was born in Terre Haute, Indiana on Jun ...
of the
Frank Lloyd Wright
Frank Lloyd Wright (June 8, 1867 – April 9, 1959) was an American architect, designer, writer, and educator. He designed more than 1,000 structures over a creative period of 70 years. Wright played a key role in the architectural movements o ...
Foundation. It was later renamed for Jane Morton Norton, a former trustee of Centre College. The complex was refurbished in 2009.
The College Centre
![College Centre archway](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/43/College_Centre_archway.jpg)
The College Centre is composed of two buildings, Crounse Hall and Sutcliffe Hall, both of which received multimillion-dollar expansions and renovations completed in the spring of 2005. Crounse Hall houses an enlarged library, theater, and additional classrooms; Sutcliffe Hall houses over of athletic space, including several new gymnasiums and workout facilities.
The Old Bookstore (Stuart Hall)
The Old Bookstore was the first chapter house of any fraternity in Kentucky, housing the brothers of the Epsilon chapter of
Beta Theta Pi. Before Centre obtained the property, the structure functioned as a funeral home and as a shoe store. The college later converted it to the Campus Bookstore. In 2005 the bookstore moved to its current downtown Danville location, leaving the building empty. In 2008, Centre rededicated the building as Stuart Hall, an upperclassmen residential facility, naming it in honor of
John T. Stuart
John Todd Stuart (November 10, 1807 – November 28, 1885) was a lawyer and a U.S. Representative from Illinois.
Born near Lexington, Kentucky, Stuart graduated from Centre College, Danville, Kentucky, in 1826. He then studied law, was ...
, of the class of 1826. The building now serves as the Office of Diversity and Inclusion.
Craik House
Built in 1853 and renovated in 1958, Craik House is the president's home. Originally a private residence, Henry Craik bought the home in 1937 with a bequest in honor of his Centre Class of 1890. Robert L. McLeod, the 14th president of Centre, was the first president of the college to occupy the residence. The Craik House is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
Breckinridge Hall
Breckenridge Hall is a three-story residence hall that was originally built in 1892 as a dormitory for students of the Danville Theological Seminary. When the seminary consolidated with the Louisville Presbyterian Seminary in 1901, Centre took over Breckinridge as a residence hall for students.
Pearl Hall
Pearl Hall is the first
LEED GOLD residential hall in the Commonwealth of Kentucky.
Pearl Hall was built with a gift from Centre trustee
Robert Brockman, '63. The residence hall is named in memory of Brockman's mother and grandmother, both of whom were named Pearl. Construction of the three-floor facility located on Main Street began in May 2007 after commencement and was finished in time for students to move into in August 2008. Dedication of the building took place during homecoming in October 2008. It houses 146 students.
Roush Campus Center
The Campus Center, a
LEED Silver Certified multi-purpose facility, houses the Cowan Dining Commons, the Everyday Cafe, the Student Life Office, several meeting rooms, and a gaming area. The two-story, 50,000 square foot (4,650 m
2), $15 million facility replaced the original Cowan Dining Commons in Fall 2009. In 2021, the building was renamed to the Roush Campus Center in honor of President John Roush, who had served the college from 1998 to 2020.
Rankings
In its 2020 edition, ''
U.S. News & World Report'' ranked Centre No. 53 among national liberal arts colleges. U.S. News also ranked Centre College No. 16 for Best Undergraduate Teaching, No. 43 for Most Innovative Schools, No. 132 for Top Performers on Social Mobility, No. 26 for Study Abroad and No. 38 for Best Value Schools among all liberal arts colleges in 2019.
In 2019, ''
Forbes
''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also r ...
'' magazine ranked Centre 209th in the nation among all colleges and universities and 41st among all colleges and universities in the South.
Consistent with its strong tradition of alumni giving, Centre was named in 2011 by ''U.S. News & World Report'' as the No. 7 most loved school based on a two-year average of annual alumni giving. ''U.S. News & World Report 2020 edition ''ranked Centre 26th in study abroad, For the class of 2013, No. 4 among all colleges and universities for the percentage of students who studied abroad at least once prior to graduation.
In 2014, the Institute for International Education ranked Centre No. 1 for study abroad participation among baccalaureate institutions. In his book
Colleges That Change Lives
''Colleges That Change Lives'' began as a college educational guide first published in 1996 by Loren Pope. Colleges That Change Lives (CTCL) was founded in 1998 is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) based on Pope's book.
The book
''Colleges That Change Live ...
,
Loren Pope
Loren Brooks Pope (July 13, 1910 – September 23, 2008) was an American writer and educational consultant, best known for his book, ''Colleges That Change Lives''. He was also the education editor of ''The New York Times.''
Background
Bo ...
says, "No university faculty compares with Centre's in the impact it has on the growth of young minds and personalities. Its faculty is earnestly committed to and excels at the art of teaching."
Academics
Centre offers a liberal arts education, requiring the completion of a general education curriculum and a major area of study. The college hosts active chapters of
Phi Beta Kappa
The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States, and the most prestigious, due in part to its long history and academic selectivity. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal ...
and
Omicron Delta Kappa, and has produced over 70% of Kentucky's
Rhodes Scholars in the last 50 years. Centre produces
Fulbright,
Goldwater
Barry Morris Goldwater (January 2, 1909 – May 29, 1998) was an American politician and United States Air Force officer who was a five-term U.S. Senator from Arizona (1953–1965, 1969–1987) and the Republican Party nominee for president ...
,
Rotary, and other major fellowship winners on a consistent basis, especially relative to the small size of its student body. From 2001 to 2011 the college produced 24 Fulbright winners, six Goldwater Scholars, 11 Rotary International Ambassadorial Scholars, three
National Science Foundation
The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent agency of the United States government that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National ...
Graduate Research Fellows, an
Udall Scholar, a
Rhodes Scholar, and a
Mitchell Scholar. Centre's consistent four-year graduation rate of more than 80 percent is in the top 50 nationally and the highest of any Kentucky college or university.
Admission to Centre is competitive. For the class of 2018, incoming first-years had a midrange
ACT score of 26–31, with an average ACT score of 29. Fifty-four percent of incoming students ranked in the top 10 percent of their high school graduating class.
Classes operate on a 4-1-4 schedule. Students take four courses each during the fall and spring semesters and one course during CentreTerm, which is a three-week period of intensive study during January. CentreTerm offers students an opportunity to study abroad, pursue an internship, or take unique, atypical courses. For instance, "The Art of Walking," a course involving the exploration of Immanuel Kant's "Critique of Judgment" while hiking through the Central Kentucky landscape, has garnered national attention as a signature class at Centre.
Degrees offered
In addition to 27 majors and 28 minors, Centre offers double majors, which about 25% of graduates complete, self-designed majors, and dual-degree engineering programs with
Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
,
University of Kentucky
The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a public land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentucky, the university is one of the state ...
,
Vanderbilt University
Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...
, and
Washington University in St. Louis
Washington University in St. Louis (WashU or WUSTL) is a private research university with its main campus in St. Louis County, and Clayton, Missouri. Founded in 1853, the university is named after George Washington. Washington University is r ...
. Centre is one of only a few colleges to offer a glassblowing program through its art department.
The Centre Commitment
The Centre Commitment guarantees students who meet the college's academic and social expectations an internship or collaborative research experience, study abroad experience, and graduation in four years. If a student is unable to secure the components of the Centre Commitment within four consecutive years of enrollment, the college will provide up to an additional year of study tuition-free.
Study abroad
Approximately 85 percent of all students study abroad at least once before graduating, making international study a hallmark of a Centre education.
For the class of 2013, Centre ranked No. 1 in the nation among all colleges and universities for participation in study abroad.
As part of its effort to promote global citizenship, in 2010 Centre began providing passports free of charge for all entering students who do not already possess one.
The college maintains permanent residential programs operated by Centre faculty in England (London), France (
Strasbourg, across the
Rhine River
), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland
, source1_coordinates=
, source1_elevation =
, source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein
, source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland
, source2_coordinates=
, source ...
from Germany), and Mexico (
Mérida, located on the
Yucatán Peninsula
The Yucatán Peninsula (, also , ; es, Península de Yucatán ) is a large peninsula in southeastern Mexico and adjacent portions of Belize and Guatemala. The peninsula extends towards the northeast, separating the Gulf of Mexico to the north ...
). Additionally, the college maintains well-utilized exchange programs in China (with
Tongji University
Tongji University () is a comprehensive public research university located in Shanghai. Established in 1907 by the German government together with German physicians in Shanghai, Tongji is one of the longest-standing, most selective, and most pr ...
), Japan (with
Yamaguchi Prefectural University
is a public university in Yamaguchi, Yamaguchi, Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of ...
), Scotland (
University of Glasgow
, image = UofG Coat of Arms.png
, image_size = 150px
, caption = Coat of arms
Flag
, latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis
, motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita
, ...
), and Northern Ireland (with
Queen's University Belfast). Students also study abroad during the fall term at the
University of Reading
The University of Reading is a public university in Reading, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1892 as University College, Reading, a University of Oxford extension college. The institution received the power to grant its own degrees in 192 ...
in England.
Supplementing the semester and yearlong programs, Centre offers a wide variety of study abroad options during the three-week Centre Term held in January.
These options have included
Bali,
Barbados
Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estimate) ...
,
Cameroon
Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the C ...
, Costa Rica, Greece, India, Israel, Peru, New Zealand, and Vietnam.
Student life
About 96 percent of centre's students live on campus and participate in athletics, academic organizations, student government, and volunteer work. There are about 100 clubs, societies, teams and other formal and informal groups and more than 2,000 campus events each year. In 2016 the ethnic diversity of the student body was 3.3% Asian or Asian American, 4.6% Black or African American, 2.3% Hispanic or Latino, 3% Two or more races, and 80% White.
Greek life
Centre has an active
Greek life, with the following chapters:
![Centrecollege-greek](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b0/Centrecollege-greek.JPG)
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Beta Theta Pi (fraternity; chapter founded 1848)
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Delta Kappa Epsilon
Delta Kappa Epsilon (), commonly known as ''DKE'' or ''Deke'', is one of the oldest fraternities in the United States, with fifty-six active chapters and five active colonies across North America. It was founded at Yale College in 1844 by fiftee ...
(fraternity; chapter founded 1854)
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Phi Delta Theta (fraternity; chapter founded 1850)
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Phi Kappa Tau
Phi Kappa Tau (), commonly known as Phi Tau (), is a collegiate fraternity located in the United States. The fraternity was founded in 1906. As of November 2022, the fraternity has 161 chartered chapters, 79 active chapters, 6 Associate chapte ...
(fraternity; chapter founded 1914; inactive 1933–1948)
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Sigma Alpha Epsilon
Sigma Alpha Epsilon (), commonly known as SAE, is a North American Greek-letter social college fraternity. It was founded at the University of Alabama on March 9, 1856. Of all existing national social fraternities today, Sigma Alpha Epsilon is t ...
(fraternity; chapter founded 1882)
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Sigma Chi
Sigma Chi () International Fraternity is one of the largest North American fraternal literary societies. The fraternity has 244 active (undergraduate) chapters and 152 alumni chapters across the United States and Canada and has initiated more t ...
(fraternity; chapter founded 1876)
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Alpha Delta Pi
Alpha Delta Pi (), commonly known as ADPi (pronounced "ay-dee-pye"), is an International Panhellenic sorority founded on May 15, 1851, at Wesleyan College in Macon, Georgia. It is the oldest secret society for women.
Alpha Delta Pi is a memb ...
(sorority; chapter founded 2000)
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Delta Delta Delta
Delta Delta Delta (), also known as Tri Delta, is an international women's fraternity founded on November 27, 1888 at Boston University by Sarah Ida Shaw, Eleanor Dorcas Pond, Isabel Morgan Breed, and Florence Isabelle Stewart.
Tri Delta part ...
(sorority; chapter founded 1980)
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Kappa Alpha Theta
Kappa Alpha Theta (), also known simply as Theta, is an international women’s fraternity founded on January 27, 1870, at DePauw University, formerly Indiana Asbury. It was the first Greek-letter fraternity established for women. The main arc ...
(sorority; chapter founded 1980)
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Kappa Delta
Kappa Delta (, also known as KD or Kaydee) was the first sorority founded at the State Female Normal School (now Longwood University), in Farmville, Virginia.
Kappa Delta is one of the "Farmville Four" sororities founded at the university, whic ...
(sorority; chapter founded 2016)
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Kappa Kappa Gamma (sorority; chapter founded 1980)
Academic and leadership honorary societies
Centre has a variety of academic and leadership honorary societies including:
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Beta Beta Beta
Beta Beta Beta ( or TriBeta), is a collegiate honor society and academic fraternity for students of the biological sciences. It was founded in 1922 at Oklahoma City University by Dr. Frank G. Brooks and a group of his students. As of 2012, it has ...
– biology
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Gamma Sigma Alpha – Greek scholarship
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Omicron Delta Epsilon
Omicron Delta Epsilon ( or ODE) is an international honor society in the field of economics, formed from the merger of Omicron Delta Gamma and Omicron Chi Epsilon, in 1963. Its board of trustees includes well-known economists such as Robert Luc ...
– economics
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Omicron Delta Kappa – leadership
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Order of Omega
The Order of Omega is an undergraduate Greek society recognizing "fraternity men and women who have attained a high standard of leadership in inter-fraternity activities." It functions as an adjunct to traditional fraternal organizations, rather ...
– Greek leadership
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Phi Alpha Theta – history
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Phi Beta Kappa
The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States, and the most prestigious, due in part to its long history and academic selectivity. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal ...
– overall scholarship
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Phi Sigma Iota
Phi Sigma Iota () is an honor society whose members are elected from among outstanding advanced (juniors and seniors) and graduate students of foreign languages and literatures including Classics, comparative literature, philology, bilingual edu ...
– languages
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Pi Mu Epsilon
Pi Mu Epsilon ( or ) is the U.S. honorary national mathematics society.
The society was founded at Syracuse University on , by Professor Edward Drake Roe, Jr,
and currently has chapters at 371 institutions across the US.
Goals
Pi Mu Epsilon is ...
– mathematics
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Pi Sigma Alpha
Pi Sigma Alpha ( or PSA), the National Political Science Honor Society, is the only honor society for college and university students of political and social sciences in the United States. Its purpose is to recognize and promote high academic ...
– government
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Psi Chi
Psi Chi () is a college student honor society in psychology with international outreach founded in 1929 at the University of Kansas in the United States.
Psi Chi is one of the largest honor societies in the United States, with more than 1,150 cha ...
– psychology
*Rho Lambda - Panhellenic leadership and scholarship
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Sigma Delta Pi Sigma Delta Pi () is the National Collegiate Hispanic Honor Society (La Sociedad Nacional Honoraria Hispánica). It was established on November 14, 1919, at the University of California at Berkeley.
History
Sigma Delta Pi, the National Collegi ...
– Spanish
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Sigma Pi Sigma
Sigma Pi Sigma (), founded at Davidson College on December 11, 1921, is the oldest and only American honor society for physics and astronomy. It is an organization within the Society of Physics Students and the American Institute of Physics and ...
– physics
Student government
The Student Government Association of Centre College (SGA) represents Centre students as their voice on academic, extracurricular, and social issues. SGA consists of an Executive Council of officers and committee chairs, a Student Senate that handles academic issues, and a House of Representatives that oversees all clubs and organizations on campus. Each class elects representatives, who serve on committees that deal with specific aspects of campus and who approve all club funding, establishment of new student organizations, and other pieces of legislation that impact campus life. Centre also has a Student Judiciary that hears cases that are referred to it by the Dean's Office or brought voluntarily by students themselves. Students who have been accused of a violation of academic or social policy have a right to have their case heard by a jury of their peers.
Traditions
Running the Flame
In 1969, Centre celebrated the college's sesquicentennial year by dedicating and installing, at the center of campus, the Flame—a large sculpture which symbolically represents the torch of knowledge that appears on Centre's official seal. A plaque at the base of the statue quotes Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe: "Where the light is brightest, the shadows are deepest." The statue quickly became an ode to the liberation of the body as well as the mind. By the early 1970s, students began spontaneously running naked to and from dorms and Greek houses while passing the Flame. "Running the Flame" is now enshrined as a tradition that some Centre students complete prior to graduation.
Kissing on the Seal
College tradition holds that two students will marry at some point following graduation if, at the stroke of midnight, they kiss over the brass college seal embedded in the walkway in front of Old Centre.
Dead Fred
A portrait of
Fred M. Vinson (1909, 1911 Law), former
Chief Justice of the United States, hangs in the hallway of the chapter house of the Kentucky Alpha-Delta chapter of
Phi Delta Theta. Vinson was a member of the chapter and a three-sport athlete in baseball, basketball, and football while studying at Centre. Members of the chapter take the portrait, affectionately known as Dead Fred, to the sidelines of Centre football and basketball games and to other significant college events. The portrait has not missed a football home game since Vinson's death in 1953.
When Centre hosted the 2000 and 2012 vice presidential debates, Dead Fred was granted a special seat overlooking the proceedings on both occasions.
Body spelling
When on trips away from campus, including studying abroad, groups of Centre students seek out photo opportunities in which they use their bodies to spell "CENTRE" in unique locations. In 2019, the
University of Glasgow
, image = UofG Coat of Arms.png
, image_size = 150px
, caption = Coat of arms
Flag
, latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis
, motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita
, ...
, one of Centre's overseas study partners, highlighted this tradition in the newsletter of its U.S. study program.
Athletics
The Centre athletic teams are called the Colonels. The college is a member of the
Division III
In sport, the Third Division, also called Division 3, Division Three, or Division III, is often the third-highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below.
Association football
*Belgian Thir ...
level of the
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges ...
(NCAA), primarily competing in the Southern Athletic Association (SAA) since the 2012–13 academic year. The Colonels previously competed in the D-III Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) from 1962–63 to 2011–12; in the River States Conference, Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (KIAC; now currently known as the River States Conference (RSC) since the 2016–17 school year) of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) from 1916–17 to 1961–62; and in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association (SIAA) from 1910–11 to 1940–41.
Centre competes in 25 intercollegiate varsity sports: men's teams in baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, lacrosse, soccer, swimming & diving, tennis and track & field. Intercollegiate women's teams include basketball, cross country, field hockey, golf, lacrosse, soccer, softball, swimming & diving, tennis, track & field and volleyball; and co-ed sports include cheerleading and Esports. 40 percent of the student body participates in intercollegiate athletics. Centre offers fifteen intramural sports, in which 80 percent of the student body participates.
Football
![centrecollegec6h0](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/85/Centrecollegec6h0.jpg)
Competing since 1880, the Centre Colonels football team, also historically known as the "Praying Colonels", ranked as the 12th winningest program in NCAA Division III history with a 509–374–37 all-time record as of 2008. On January 1, 1921, the Colonels defeated TCU Horned Frogs football, Texas Christian University 63–7 in the Fort Worth Classic, a postseason college football bowl game in Fort Worth, Texas played only once. On January 2, 1922, Centre College made the postseason trip to Texas again, this time taking on Texas A&M Aggies football, Texas A&M in the Dixie Classic (bowl game), Dixie Classic, the forerunner of the Cotton Bowl Classic, Cotton Bowl. Even though the Colonels were outscored 22–14, they played their part in the birth of one of college football's greatest traditions, the 12th man (football), 12th Man.
At the beginning of the Roaring '20s, Harvard Crimson football, Harvard University, the nation's dominant American football, football power, was riding a two-year undefeated streak whose last loss was to Brown in 1918. Then the Crimson invited Centre (enrollment at that time: 264) to Cambridge, Massachusetts, Cambridge for what they thought would be a "warm-up" game, a light workout before facing Princeton Tigers football, Princeton the following week.
In the 1921 Centre vs. Harvard football game, the Colonels (under coach Charley Moran) shocked
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...
and became the first school from outside the East to ever beat one of the Ivy League's "Big Three" of Harvard, Yale Bulldogs football, Yale, and Princeton. Star player Bo McMillin rushed for the lone touchdown of the game early in the third quarter, and the Praying Colonels' defense held off the Crimson's powerful offense from there for a 6–0 victory. The Centre College official website claims the 1921 national championship, apparently on this basis. 29 years later, in 1950, the Associated Press chose the Centre win as the greatest sports upset of the first half of the 20th century.
On four consecutive Saturdays in 1924 Centre Praying Colonels football team, 1924, the Colonels defeated Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, and Georgia.
The Colonels have played home games at Farris Stadium since 1923.
Basketball
The Centre Colonels basketball team used to have a heated Centre College–Kentucky rivalry, rivalry with Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball, Kentucky, and beat the Wildcats 87–17 in 1910.
Alumni
Centre alumni include two Vice President of the United States, U.S. Vice Presidents, one
Chief Justice of the United States, an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, Supreme Court, 13 United States Senate, U.S. Senators, 43 United States House of Representatives, U.S. Representatives, 10 moderators of the General Assemblies of the Presbyterian Church, and 11 governors.
Referring to Centre, President Woodrow Wilson gave an annual speech to Princeton alumni in which he stated: "There is a little college down in Kentucky which in sixty years has graduated more men who have acquired prominence and fame than has Princeton in her 150 years."
References
External links
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Official athletics website
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Centre College,
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