Elizabethtown College (informally E-town) is a private college in

Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania Elizabethtown (Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Betzischteddel'') is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located southeast of Harrisburg, the state capital. Small factories existed at the turn of the 20th century when the popu ...

History

Founding and early years

Founded in 1899, Elizabethtown College is one of many higher learning institutions founded in the 19th century by churches or church members interested in the educational advancement of their denominational membership. The college was founded by interested members of the

Church of the Brethren The Church of the Brethren is an Anabaptist Christian denomination in the Schwarzenau Brethren (german: link=no, Schwarzenauer Neutäufer "Schwarzenau New Baptists") tradition that was organized in 1708 by Alexander Mack in Schwarzenau, Germ ...

in response to an initiative by the Reverend

Jacob G. Francis Jacob Gottwals Francis, also known as J.G. or Jay G. (January 13, 1870 in Oaks, Pennsylvania – August 27, 1958) was an American author, a historian, a photographer, and a Church of the Brethren minister. Francis was born in Oaks, Pennsylvan ...

. Francis advocated for Elizabethtown because of the proximity to the railways. First classes for the new college were held on November 13, 1900, in the Heisey Building in downtown Elizabethtown. During its first two decades, the college operated as an academy, offering a limited curriculum centering on four-year teaching degrees and high school type classes.

1920–1950

In 1921, the Pennsylvania Department of Public Instruction

accredited Accreditation is the independent, third-party evaluation of a conformity assessment body (such as certification body, inspection body or laboratory) against recognised standards, conveying formal demonstration of its impartiality and competence to ...

the College, and authorized its first baccalaureate degrees in arts and sciences. Later, in 1928, the college was approved by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court for

pre-law In the United States, pre-law refers to any course of study taken by an undergraduate in preparation for study at a law school. The American Bar Association requires law schools to admit only students with an accredited Bachelor's Degree or it ...

education. In 1948, Elizabethtown College became accredited by the

Middle States Association The Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools (Middle States Association or MSA) was a voluntary, peer-based, non-profit association that performed peer evaluation and regional accreditation of public and private schools in the Mid-Atla ...

and in 1949 it joined the American Council of Education.

Presidents

The college's presidents were referred to as principals prior to 1902. * Isaac Newton Harvey "I.N.H." Beahm, 1900–1901 & 1904–1909 *

George Ness Falkenstein ''George Ness Falkenstein (July 16, 1859 – August 17, 1949) is a former president of Elizabethtown College. Formative years Born in York County, Pennsylvania on July 16, 1859, George Ness Falkenstein was a son of David Falkenstein and Mary (N ...

, 1901–1902 *

Daniel Conrad Reber Daniel Conrad Reber (February 20, 1872 in Pennsylvania – July 1962 in Indiana) is a former President of Elizabethtown College Elizabethtown College (informally E-town) is a private college in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania. History Founding ...

, 1902–1904 & 1909–1918 *

Henry Kulp Ober Henry Kulp Ober is a former President of Elizabethtown College. Ober served as president from 1918 until 1921, when he left to study at Franklin and Marshall College Franklin & Marshall College (F&M) is a private liberal arts college in Lanca ...

, 1918–1921 & 1924–1928 *

Jacob Gibble Meyer Jacob Gibble Meyer is a former President of Elizabethtown College Elizabethtown College (informally E-town) is a private college in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania. History Founding and early years Founded in 1899, Elizabethtown College is one of ...

, 1921–1924 * Ralph Weist Schlosser, 1928–1929 & 1930–1941 * Harry Hess Nye, 1929–1930 * Charles Abba "A.C." Baugher, 1941–1961 *

Roy Edwin McAuley Roy Edwin McAuley is an American academic and former President of Elizabethtown College Elizabethtown College (informally E-town) is a private college in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania. History Founding and early years Founded in 1899, Elizabe ...

, 1961–1966 * Morley Josiah Mays, 1966–1977 * Mark Chester Ebersole, 1977–1985 * Gerhard Ernest Spiegler, 1985–1996 *

Theodore E. Long Theodore E. Long is the former president of Elizabethtown College. Long became president in 1996, and he retired in 2011. Prior to becoming president of Elizabethtown, Long served as provost and vice president for academic affairs at Merrimack Col ...

, 1996–2011 * Carl Strikwerda, 2011–2019 *

Cecilia McCormick Cecilia is a personal name originating in the name of Saint Cecilia, the patron saint of music. The name has been popularly used in Europe (particularly the United Kingdom and Italy, where in 2018 it was the 43rd most popular name for girls born ...

, 2019–2021 *Elizabeth “Betty” Rider, 2022–Present

Service to Others

Elizabethtown's motto is "Educate for Service." Over 600 students, alumni, faculty and administrators participate annually in the ''Into the Streets'' service program every October in the Elizabethtown community.

Academics

The College maintains 19 academic departments, offering 53 majors and 90+ minors and concentrations, with a core curriculum emphasizing the arts, humanities and sciences.

Continuing education

Over 50 years, the college's adult program evolved into what is known today as the School of Continuing and Professional Studies (SCPS). The school offers accelerated, undergraduate degree programs. Graduate programs include Master of Business Administration, Curriculum and Instruction, and Master of Music Education.

Honors program

Established in 1999, the Elizabethtown College Honors Program is a member of the National Collegiate Honors Council. The Honors Program was founded with an endowment gift from The Hershey Company and is supported in part through this endowment. The program has continued to grow and maintains an enrollment of approximately 10 percent of the student body. In the spring of 2005, the Hershey Foods Company changed its name and subsequently, the program was renamed to the Elizabethtown College Honors Program, sponsored by The Hershey Company.

Student life

The Office of Student Activities (OSA) serves as a co-curricular educator and facilitator in creating environments that call for participation and involvement in the campus community. Through the programming of student traditions, such as T.G.I.S. and Student Involvement Fairs, students are engaged in social experiences. Elizabethtown offers student-run media that include a

newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as p ...

—''The Etownian''; a literary magazine—''Fine Print''; a

television station A television station is a set of equipment managed by a business, organisation or other entity, such as an amateur television (ATV) operator, that transmits video content and audio content via radio waves directly from a transmitter on the eart ...

—ECTV-40; a

radio station Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radi ...

— WWEC 88.3 FM; and a yearbook—the ''Conestogan''. Etownian Website Logo (2012)

As a student newspaper for small schools, ''the Etownian'' was ranked First Place with Special Merit recognition from the American Scholastic Press Association in 2010. Elizabethtown is affiliated with the Brethren Colleges Abroad (BCA) program which allows students to study abroad for an academic semester. In addition to BCA, the college offers multiple internship and study abroad opportunities through other affiliates.

Athletics

Elizabethtown College is a member of NCAA Division III, and the

Landmark Conference The Landmark Conference is an intercollegiate athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA's Division III. Member institutions are located in the eastern United States in the states of Maryland, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, plus Washington, D.C. ...

. Although Elizabethtown College was founded in 1899, it was not until 1928 that the first officially sanctioned intercollegiate athletic contest was held. In April 2013, the College accepted the invitation to join the Landmark Conference effective July 1, 2014.

Men's Teams

* Baseball started in 1930 * Basketball started in 1928 :* NCAA Division III runner-up 2001-2002 * Cross Country started in 1956 * Golf started play in 1965. No seasons were held from 1978-1988, but it was reinstated in 1988. * Lacrosse started in 2002 * Soccer started in 1938 :*NAIA co-champion 1959 :*NAIA runner-up 1960 :*NCAA Division III champions 1989 *Swimming started in 1964 *Tennis started in 1948 *Track and Field started in 1929 *Wrestling started in 1954 :*Hosted 2015 NCAA Division III Championship

Women's Teams

* Basketball started play in 1928. :*NCAA Division III National Runner-Up: 1982-83, 1983-84 :*NCAA Division III National Champion: 1981-82, 1988-89 :*First Division III women's basketball team to 1,000 wins *Cross country started in 1956. *Field hockey started play in 1952. :*Hosted 1984 NCAA Division III Field Hockey Championship :*Fourth place finish in 1981 *Lacrosse started play in 2002. *Soccer started play in 1988. :*Hosted 1997 NCAA Division III Championship *Softball started play in 1979. *Swimming *Track and field was established in 1929, but disappeared quickly. It was reestablished in 1975, but the women's team ended because of a lack of participation in 1981. The team was brought back in 1998, but the College did not begin competing again until 2000. *Volleyball started in 1978

Former sports teams

*Football was played for one season in 1928. It was not sanctioned by the College, but did play a full intercollegiate schedule.

Individual National Champions

*Kevin Clark - Indoor Track - NCAA Division III - Pole Vault - 2007 *Beckie Donecker - Tennis - NCAA Division III - Singles - 1982 and AIAW Doubles Champion - 1981 *Jen Haifley - Tennis - AIAW - Doubles - 1981 *Eric Mast - Wrestling - NCAA Division III - 118 pound weight - 1973-1974 and 1976-1977

Notable alumni

* Richard L. Bond '69, Former Chief Executive Officer,

Tyson Foods Tyson Foods, Inc. is an American multinational corporation, based in Springdale, Arkansas, that operates in the food industry. The company is the world's second-largest processor and marketer of chicken, beef, and pork after JBS S.A. It annually ...

* Carl Bowman '79, Sociologist / Author / Educator, Bridgewater College, Bridgewater, Virginia * Nelson Chittum,

MLB Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

player *

Nia Dinata Nurkurniati Aisyah Dewi (born 4 March 1970 in Jakarta, Indonesia), better known as Nia Dinata, is an Indonesian film director. Her movies are known for tackling subjects controversial or "risky" in Indonesia such as homosexuality, migrant workers ...

, film director * Mark C. Ebersole '43, former President of Elizabethtown College * Bill Foster '54, former head coach Duke men's basketball, and 1978 Coach of the Year *

Gene Garber Henry Eugene Garber (born November 13, 1947) is an American former professional baseball sidearm relief pitcher who played for four Major League Baseball (MLB) organizations from to . Playing career Garber was selected by the Pittsburgh Pirate ...

'69, former all-time saves leader for the Atlanta Braves (currently third behind

John Smoltz John Andrew Smoltz (born May 15, 1967), nicknamed "Smoltzie" and "Marmaduke", is an American former baseball pitcher who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball from 1988 to 2009, all but the last year with the Atlanta Braves. An eight-time A ...

and

Craig Kimbrel Craig Michael Kimbrel (born May 28, 1988) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the San Diego Padres, Boston Red Sox, Atlanta Braves, Chicag ...

). * Vera Hackman '25, faculty member (1944-1973) and Dean of Women (1944 - 1968); namesake of the Vera Hackman Apartments. * Mark A. Heckler '77, President, Valparaiso University (2007–present), Dean, University of Colorado School of Arts 1996–2007. * Lois Herr, progressive activist *

David Hickernell David S. "Dave" Hickernell (born January 2, 1959) is a Republican member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for the 98th District and was elected in 2002. He currently sits on the House Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Local Government, ...

'83, State Representative, Pennsylvania House of Representatives (2003–present) * S. Dale High, Chairman, High Industries Inc. * Dennis Hollinger, President of Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary * Daniel J. Jones '97, lead investigator for " The Committee Study of the Central Intelligence Agency's Detention and Interrogation Program," which is better known as "The Torture Report." Jones is portrayed by Adam Driver in the film '' The Report''. *

Cayla Kluver Cayla Kluver is an American author known for her young adult trilogy series ''Legacy'', which she began writing while she was fourteen. Kluver originally self-published the series before it was picked up by AmazonEncore and later, Harlequin Teen. ...

(attended 2011-2012), author * Ernest W. Lefever '42, Foreign affairs expert and founder of the

Ethics and Public Policy Center The Ethics and Public Policy Center (EPPC) is a conservative, Washington, D.C.-based think tank and advocacy group. Founded in 1976, the group describes itself as "dedicated to applying the Judeo-Christian moral tradition to critical issues of pu ...

, Washington, D.C. * Mark S. McNaughton '85, Former State Representative, Pennsylvania House of Representatives (1997-2007) *

Daniel C. Miller Daniel C. Miller (born 1956, in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania) was the Harrisburg City Comptroller, Controller and was a member of the Harrisburg City Council (Pennsylvania), Harrisburg City Council. Both positions are elected at large.Jeffrey B. Miller Jeffrey B. Miller is a law enforcement official who served as the 18th police commissioner, commissioner of the Pennsylvania State Police. Miller is vice president for security for the Kansas City Chiefs. Miller, a native of Harrisburg, Pennsylv ...

, former Pennsylvania state police commissioner * Kim Powers, Contestant, Survivor: Africa (finished in sixth place) * Skip Roderick '74, former professional soccer player. *Eric Schubert, genealogist * Bruce I. Smith '56, Former State Representative, Pennsylvania House of Representatives (1981-2007) * David Starr (dropped out), original name Max Barsky professional wrestler * Jim Tennant, former

player. * Jim Testerman, labor leader * Mike Tobash, State Representative, Pennsylvania House of Representatives (2011–present). * Charles Walker, nonviolence trainer and civil rights and peace activist. *

Dan Washburn Daniel Christopher Washburn (born October 31, 1973, Danville, Pennsylvania) is an American List of American writers, writer and List of American print journalists, journalist. He is the List of American authors, author of ''The Forbidden Game (non- ...

'96, award-winning Shanghai-based writer and journalist. * Martina White '10, State Representative, Pennsylvania House of Representatives.

Notable faculty and staff

* Kimberly van Esveld Adams: Scholar of Victorian literature and author of ''Our Lady of Victorian Feminism: The Madonna in the Work of Anna Jameson, Margaret Fuller, and George Eliot''. * David S. Brown: Professor of History, author of biographies including ''The Last American Aristocrat (Scribner, 2020), Paradise Lost: A Life of F. Scott Fitzgerald (Harvard, 2017), and Richard Hofstadter: An Intellectual Biography (Chicago, 2006)''. *

Christina Bucher Christina may refer to: People * Christina (given name), shared by several people * Christina (surname), shared by several people Places * Christina, Montana, unincorporated community, United States * Christina, British Columbia, Canada * Christ ...

: Biblical scholar and former Elizabethtown College Dean of Faculty, 1975 graduate of Elizabethtown College. * David Cullen: Grammy award-winning guitarist * Oya Dursun-Özkanca: Expert on Turkish foreign policy and the European Union. * Paul Gottfried: Political writer * Mark Harman:

Kafka Franz Kafka (3 July 1883 – 3 June 1924) was a German-speaking Bohemian novelist and short-story writer, widely regarded as one of the major figures of 20th-century literature. His work fuses elements of realism and the fantastic. It typi ...

scholar and translator *

Yvonne Kauffman Yvonne is a female given name. It is the feminine form of Yvon, which is derived from the French name Yves and Yvette. It is from the French word ''iv'', meaning "yew" (or tree). Since yew wood was used for bows, Ivo may have been an occupatio ...

: Award-winning coach for the college's women's tennis, basketball, and field hockey teams in the 1980s. *

Donald Kraybill Donald B. Kraybill (born 1945) is an American author, lecturer, and educator on Anabaptist faiths and culture. Kraybill is widely recognized for his studies on Anabaptist groups and in particular the Amish. He has researched and written extensivel ...

: Scholar of Amish studies * Jeffery D. Long: Professor of Religious Studies, Hindu expert and author of '' A Vision for Hinduism: Beyond Hindu Nationalism and Explorations in Indic Traditions''. * Michael G. Long: Author of '' First Class Citizenship: The Civil Rights Letters of Jackie Robinson'' * W. Wesley McDonald: Author of '' Russell Kirk and the Age of Ideology''. * Elizabeth Myer: One of the original faculty members of the college and the first female professor, namesake of Myer Residence Hall. * Susan Traverso: Former Provost of Elizabethtown College, current President of Thiel College

References

External links

Official website
{{authority control Elizabethtown College, Liberal arts colleges in Pennsylvania Universities and colleges affiliated with the Church of the Brethren Educational institutions established in 1899 Sports in Lancaster, Pennsylvania Universities and colleges in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania 1899 establishments in Pennsylvania Private universities and colleges in Pennsylvania