Timothy Dwight College
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Timothy Dwight College, commonly abbreviated and referred to as "TD", is a
residential college A residential college is a division of a university that places academic activity in a community setting of students and faculty, usually at a residence and with shared meals, the college having a degree of autonomy and a federated relationship wi ...
at
Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...
named after two presidents of Yale,
Timothy Dwight IV Timothy Dwight (May 14, 1752January 11, 1817) was an American academic and educator, a Congregationalist minister, theologian, and author. He was the eighth president of Yale College (1795–1817). Early life Timothy Dwight was born May 14, 17 ...
and his grandson,
Timothy Dwight V Timothy Dwight V (November 16, 1828 – May 26, 1916) was an American academic, educator, Congregational minister, and President of Yale University (1886–1898). During his years as the school's president, Yale's schools first organized as a uni ...
. The college was designed in 1935 by
James Gamble Rogers James Gamble Rogers (March 3, 1867 – October 1, 1947) was an American architect. A proponent of what came to be known as Collegiate Gothic architecture, he is best known for his academic commissions at Yale University, Columbia Univer ...
in the
Federal-style Federal-style architecture is the name for the classicizing architecture built in the newly founded United States between 1780 and 1830, and particularly from 1785 to 1815, which was heavily based on the works of Andrea Palladio with several inn ...
architecture popular during the elder Timothy Dwight's presidency and was most recently renovated in 2002. In 2021, TD won its Yale-leading 14th Tyng Cup, the championship prize for Yale's year-long intramural athletic competition among the fourteen residential colleges. The current Head of College is Mary Ting Yi Lui and the current Dean is Sarah Mahurin. Both are the first women to hold their respective positions.


History

Timothy Dwight College, Yale's ninth residential college, opened on September 23, 1935 at an over-budget cost of $2,000,000. At the time, the Yale Alumni Weekly called it "one of the most architecturally pleasing colleges." It was the farthest college from
Old Campus The Old Campus is the oldest area of the Yale University campus in New Haven, Connecticut. It is the principal residence of Yale College freshmen and also contains offices for the academic departments of Classics, English, History, Comparative Li ...
until the opening in 2017 of Franklin and Murray colleges several blocks to the north. The design of the college was meant to reference an early 19th-century
New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...
town hall, and the college's brick work with white trim, green shutters, and hand-hewn dining hall beams are all of Federal inspiration. In the college's inaugural year, a number of plaster ceilings collapsed in the college, leading the TD Social Activities Committee to sponsor a Plaster Dinner and Mr. Plaster dances, a tradition that continued until the 1970s. Under the Yale College policy that let incoming students express a residential college preference, Timothy Dwight developed a reputation for attracting engineers until the policy ended with the class of 1958. The students of Timothy Dwight were originally nicknamed "Prexies," a slang term for the college's presidential namesakes, but TD's current mascot is the Lion. The college's official motto, appearing on the college crest, is a quotation from the
Aeneid The ''Aeneid'' ( ; la, Aenē̆is or ) is a Latin Epic poetry, epic poem, written by Virgil between 29 and 19 BC, that tells the legendary story of Aeneas, a Troy, Trojan who fled the Trojan_War#Sack_of_Troy, fall of Troy and travelled to ...
(I, 203), when Aeneas seeks to comfort his men as they embark upon an arduous journey to Italy: ''Forsan et haec olim meminisse juvabit''. This is traditionally translated approximately to, "Someday, perhaps, it will be pleasant to remember even this." The college's popular but unofficial motto is "Àshe," which means "We make it happen" in
Yoruba The Yoruba people (, , ) are a West African ethnic group that mainly inhabit parts of Nigeria, Benin, and Togo. The areas of these countries primarily inhabited by Yoruba are often collectively referred to as Yorubaland. The Yoruba constitute ...
. Àshe was brought into usage by the former Master,
Robert Thompson Robert or Bob Thompson may refer to: Entertainment *Bobby Thompson (comedian) (1911–1988), English comedian *Bob Thompson (musician) (1924–2013), American orchestra leader, arranger, composer *Robert E. Thompson (screenwriter) (1924–2004), ...
, known to students as "Master T." The Timothy Dwight fight song, often sung ''en masse'' at The Game, is : "Ring the bell, ring the bell! God damn, fuck, hell! Horseshit, assbite! Nobody's better than Timothy Dwight!" Timothy Dwight has a sister college at
Harvard 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 higher le ...
called
Leverett House Leverett House is one of twelve undergraduate residential Houses at Harvard University. It is situated along the north bank of the Charles River in Cambridge and consists of McKinlock Hall, constructed in 1925; two 12-story towers completed in 1 ...
. At the annual Harvard-Yale football game, students from Timothy Dwight and Leverett will host each other depending on the site of that year's Game. Jeff Brenzel was appointed as the new master of Timothy Dwight College on April 25, 2010. Outgoing Master Robert F. Thompson welcomed Brenzel and his wife with a special rap: “The man who picks who gets into Yale / Now joyfully follow, their TD trail".


Student life

Timothy Dwight is one of the four residential colleges at Yale whose freshmen live within the college rather than on
Old Campus The Old Campus is the oldest area of the Yale University campus in New Haven, Connecticut. It is the principal residence of Yale College freshmen and also contains offices for the academic departments of Classics, English, History, Comparative Li ...
. The living arrangements plus the small size of the college foster a strong community within the college, and Timothy Dwight was recognized as "The Most Spirited College" in a
Yale Daily News The ''Yale Daily News'' is an independent student newspaper published by Yale University students in New Haven, Connecticut since January 28, 1878. It is the oldest college daily newspaper in the United States. The ''Yale Daily News'' has consis ...
poll from 2010. Freshmen in the college are treated every September to a retreat at a
residential fellow In American higher education, a residential fellow usually refers to a paid administrator who supervises a given "area" of a campus residential system. The RF is responsible for, among other things, the residence assistants under his or her juri ...
's estate, complete with athletic fields and a pool. TD students also celebrate their residential college with an annual TD Weekend, comprising TD Day (affectionately referred to by TD students as TDDDTDD), where students enjoy a barbecue, music, and inflatable games on Friday, and the Timothy Dwight Crawfish Boil on Saturday. The college's strong sense of spirit carries over into an annual high-budget tailgate, easily the most decadent and well-attended of all the university's unofficial pregames, on the morning of the Yale-Harvard football game in November. Sunday to Thursday nights, from 10pm to 1am, the buttery of Timothy Dwight college is open to all Yale undergraduate students and guests. Cleverly named the TD Butt, this student-run diner sells snacks and desserts, including quesadillas, cookie dough, popcorn chicken, and chocolate candy bars. The Timothy Dwight buttery is so acclaimed by the Yale College community that it has its ow
Yelp page
Students in Timothy Dwight have excelled at intramural sports since the college's founding in 1935. In 1937, TD captured its first of its 13 Tyng Cups, Yale's intramural sports competition between the twelve residential colleges. TD has won the Tyng Cup more than any other college, including four more times than its rival,
Silliman College Silliman College is a residential college at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, named for scientist and Yale professor Benjamin Silliman. It opened in September 1940 as the last of the original ten residential colleges, and contains buil ...
. In the basement of the college, there are activity rooms to which students may gain swipe access; namely, the Selin Lounge, the art room, the music room, and the photography darkroom. The weight-lifting room and cardio rooms, as well as the student kitchen and games room, are open to all the students of the residential college. Some Timothy Dwight students also choose to live in Rosenfeld Hall, located at 109 Grove Street. Often referred to as "RH" by TD students, the building is used as residential annex housing for TD upperclassmen and previously belonged to St. Elmo Society. The building also contains a classroom space which is open to most students at Yale.


Coat of arms

In heraldic language, the coat of arms may be described as ''Argent, a lion passant above a cross crosslet fitchy gules; in a chief gules a crescent silver''. The arms were likely invented by Jacob Hurd, a
Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
silversmith, who engraved them on a tankard which he made in 1725 for the grandparents of the elder Timothy Dwight.


Notable alumni

*
Kingman Brewster, Jr. Kingman Brewster Jr. (June 17, 1919 – November 8, 1988) was an American educator, academic and diplomat. He served as the 17th President of Yale University and as List of ambassadors of the United States to the United Kingdom, United States Amb ...
, 1941: educator, President of
Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...
and American diplomat. *
Guido Calabresi Guido Calabresi (born October 18, 1932) is an Italian-born American legal scholar and Senior United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. He is a former Dean of Yale Law School, where he has been a pr ...
, 1953: currently a
judge A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a panel of judges. A judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the barristers or solicitors of the case, assesses the credibility an ...
on the
United States Court of Appeals United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two fi ...
for the
Second Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (in case citations, 2d Cir.) is one of the thirteen United States Courts of Appeals. Its territory comprises the states of Connecticut, New York and Vermont. The court has appellate juris ...
, and
Sterling Professor Sterling Professor, the highest academic rank at Yale University, is awarded to a tenured faculty member considered the best in his or her field. It is akin to the rank of university professor at other universities. The appointment, made by the ...
at
Yale Law School Yale Law School (Yale Law or YLS) is the law school of Yale University, a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was established in 1824 and has been ranked as the best law school in the United States by ''U ...
. Also a former Dean of the
Yale Law School Yale Law School (Yale Law or YLS) is the law school of Yale University, a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was established in 1824 and has been ranked as the best law school in the United States by ''U ...
. *
Lowell Weicker Lowell Palmer Weicker Jr. (; born May 16, 1931) is an American politician who served as a U.S. Representative, U.S. Senator, and the 85th Governor of Connecticut. He unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination for president in 1980. He wa ...
, 1953: the 85th
Governor of Connecticut The governor of Connecticut is the head of government of Connecticut, and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor has a duty to enforce state laws, and the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Connecticu ...
. *
Porter Goss Porter Johnston Goss (; born November 26, 1938) is an American politician and government official who served as a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1989 until 2004, when he became the last Director of Central Intelligen ...
, 1960: director of the
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in 2004–2006. *
Ron Rivest Ronald Linn Rivest (; born May 6, 1947) is a cryptographer and an Institute Professor at MIT. He is a member of MIT's Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EECS) and a member of MIT's Computer Science and Artificial Intell ...
, 1969: founder of
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and technology guru. *
Benjamin Sommer Benjamin D. Sommer (Hebrew: בנימין זומר; born July 6, 1964) is an American biblical scholar and Jewish theologian. He is a Professor of Bible at The Jewish Theological Seminary of America and a Senior Fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institu ...
, 1964: biblical scholar and Jewish theologian * Gilbert F. Casellas, 1974: Chairman of the
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is a federal agency that was established via the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to administer and enforce civil rights laws against workplace discrimination. The EEOC investigates discrimination ...
under
President Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and again f ...
. *
Oren Patashnik Oren Patashnik (born 1954) is an American computer scientist. He is notable for co-creating BibTeX, and co-writing '' Concrete Mathematics: A Foundation for Computer Science''. He is a researcher at the Center for Communications Research, La Jol ...
, 1976: well-known computer scientist who created
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. *
Nathaniel Kahn Nathaniel Kahn (born November 9, 1962, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) is an American filmmaker. His documentaries '' My Architect'' (2003) – about his father, the architect Louis Kahn – and '' Two Hands'' (2006) were nominated for Academy A ...
, 1985: Academy Award-nominated for his documentary "
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," about his father,
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. *
Jay Carney James Ferguson 'Jay' Carney (born May 22, 1965) is an American public relations officer, political advisor and journalist who has served as Amazon's Senior Vice President of Global Corporate Affairs from 2015 to 2022, and the United States Whit ...
, 1987: The 29th White House Press Secretary, 2011–2014. *
Chris Dudley Christen Guilford Dudley (born February 22, 1965) is an American former professional basketball player and politician. He played 886 games across 16 seasons in the NBA for the Cleveland Cavaliers, New Jersey Nets, Portland Trail Blazers, New ...
, 1987: professional
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basketball player. *
Shawn Levy Shawn Adam Levy (born July 23, 1968) is a Canadian film director, film producer, actor, and founder of 21 Laps Entertainment. He has worked across genres and is perhaps best known as the director of the ''Night at the Museum'' film franchise an ...
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, 2008: Olympic gold medal-winning figure skater.


Footnotes


Further reading

*


External links


Timothy Dwight College
{{Yale Residential colleges of Yale University University and college dormitories in the United States