Goshen College

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Goshen College
The Seal of Goshen College
Motto:	Culture For Service
Established:	1894
Type:	Private Liberal Arts
Religious affiliation:	Mennonite Church USA
Endowment:	$121 million[1]
President:	Dr. James Brenneman
Faculty:	70
Students:	951
Undergraduates:	936
Postgraduates:	15
Location:	Goshen, Indiana, USA (41.56570-85.82860)
Campus:	Large town: 135 acres (0.5 km²) 1,150 acre Merry Lea
Athletics:	14 Division II NAIA teams
Colors:	Purple and White
Nickname:	Maple Leafs
Mascot:	Maple Leaf
Website:	www.goshen.edu

Goshen College, (also known as Goshen or GC) is a private Mennonite liberal arts college in Goshen, Indiana, USA with an enrollment of around 1,000 students. The college is accredited by North Central Association of Colleges and Schools and is a member of the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities. Goshen College was founded in 1894 as the Elkhart Institute, and is owned by Mennonite Church USA. Goshen College maintains a distinctive Christian Mennonite environment, but admits students irrespective of race or religion. U.S. News and World Reports ranks Goshen as a third-tier liberal arts college.^[2]

Goshen's Study Service Term (SST), probably its best-known program, takes students overseas for three months. Their time is split between studying the nation's language and culture, and performing volunteer service. The program was pioneering when it was founded in 1968 before study abroad programs became widespread.

Goshen College is home to the Mennonite Quarterly Review and the Mennonite Historical Library, a 68,000 volume library compiling the most comprehensive collection of Anabaptist material in the United States.

Goshen tends to maintain a fairly steady 55/45 ratio of women to men. Goshen's student percentage of Mennonite students to other affiliations also is approximately 55/45.^[3]

Contents 1 History 2 Academics 2.1 Study-Service Term 3 Student life 3.1 Athletics 3.2 Clubs and organizations 3.3 Media 3.4 Nickname 3.5 Performing arts 3.6 Spiritual life 3.7 Volunteerism 4 Campus facilities 4.1 Small Group Housing 4.2 Satellite facilities 5 Core values 6 Important people 6.1 Past presidents 7 Center for Intercultural Learning and Teaching 8 Traditions 8.1 College seal 8.2 Alma Mater 8.3 College hymn 9 Gallery 10 References 11 External links

[edit] History

The history of Goshen College is a story that is intertwined with that of the Mennonite experience in America. Because both histories have been so important to each other, it is necessary to explain Goshen's stories as related to larger American and Mennonite society. Goshen College is the first Mennonite school of higher education in North America to confer a four year degree.^[4] "Old" Mennonites had traditionally been suspicious of higher education, however by the late 19th century, opinion started to change. Decades earlier US mainline church denominations had started on a spree of founding colleges across America with hopes of developing well trained clergy for their congregations. As more "Old" Mennonites sent their children to other Christian colleges, they realized that without a college of their own, many of their youth would leave the church. Thus, prompted in part as a reaction to mainline Christianity, the "Old" Mennonites started the Elkhart Institute in Elkhart, Indiana in August 1894 to prepare Mennonite youth for college. Because of this vision, even though Goshen is today open to everyone, its historical relationship with the Mennonite Church has had a lasting impact which is still very visible today: home to the Mennonite Quarterly Review, Mennonite Historical Library, Archives of Mennonite Church USA, including Mennonite Central Committee archives, offices of "The Mennonite" and numerous alumni connections with the broader Mennonite Church.

H.A. Mumaw, a practicing physician, first conducted the small operation. In 1894, a group of 15 "Old" Mennonite ministers and laymen started a corporation which they named the Elkhart Institute association.^[5] The first diploma was handed out in 1898. Lured by businessmen to relocate several miles away to Goshen, Indiana, the Institute moved in September 1903 and added a junior college course list, renaming itself Goshen College. By 1906, the Mennonite Board of Education took control of the college, dissolving the Elkhart Institute Association. A complete college course was established in 1908 and the first Bachelor of Arts degrees were conferred in 1910. The Academy program of Goshen College was discontinued in 1935, however after 1910, most of Goshen's students were enrolled in college courses. From 1914-1919, partly out of response to its constituents, Goshen College attempted a "School of Agriculture" which sought to prepare Mennonite young people to return to their rural communities. The hope was that such a program would spark a technological revolution among some of the farmers. Unfortunately the program was never a success, and after World War I the program was cut, five years after it began.

The school closed down during the 1923-1924 school year by the Mennonite Board of Education due to many problems, but reopened the following year. One of many factors in closing the college was due to denominational tension from larger modernist and fundamentalist Christian theologies of the 1920s, and their impact on Mennonite theology at the school.^[6] In response to this crisis, many of the Goshen's faculty and dozens of students, angry with the Mennonite Board of education's decision, relocated to Bluffton College. As part of the larger ongoing reaction against liberalism through the early twentieth century, Hesston College and Eastern Mennonite School were formed among "old" Mennonites, although staunch traditionalists realized that no higher education was particularly safe. When the institution was reopened, it was marked by the new leadership of president S.C.Yoder and dean Harold S. Bender, a man whose influence upon the "Old" Mennonites was significant for much of the 20th Century. Bender carefully piloted the stormy waters of theology by stating after Goshen College reopened that Mennonitism was not liberalism. Bender later went on to say that fundamentalism also contributed to problems with theology, and created the The Anabaptist Vision, a "third way" which sought to spell out the direction for the future Mennonite Church. More than arguing doctrine, Harold Bender and a younger group of intellectuals at Goshen College sought to shape the Mennonite faith that was more ideological than institutional. The goal was to articulate a faith that could stand the test of academic scrutiny in broader society while also carefully upholding traditional beliefs of the church. Out of this ideology, Bender started the Mennonite Quarterly Review. Throughout this time, Goshen remained the epicenter of "Old" Mennonite theology and higher education, and became known as the "Goshen Historical Renaissance".^[7]

During the 1940s, Goshen was one of Mennonite Central Committee's key places to form a "relief training school" that helped to train volunteers for Civilian Public Service, an alternative to conscription that many Mennonites did because of their beliefs regarding Biblical pacifism and nonresistance. In 1980, Goshen College was granted care of Merry Lea environmental Learning Center, a 1,150 acre nature preserve which now offers Goshen's Master's degree in Environmental Science. In 1993, Harold and Wilma Good, longtime friends of the college, left their estate to Goshen. the estate was estimated at roughly $28 million, the majority in stock of the J.M. Smucker Company because Wilma was a daughter of the company's founder. The college sold the stock and added the funds to its endowment, more than doubling it at the time.^[8] The campus experienced a building boom in the later half of the 1990s through the present, with an estimated $30 million dollars worth in new or renovated structures on campus. This time saw the addition of the Roman Gingerich Recreation-Fitness Center, the Music Center, the Connector, and the renovation of all dormitories. The college is currently in the midst of a new campus master plan and strategic plan which will define the college's priorities for the years ahead. Today, more than 20,000 Goshen College alumni have been counted, residing throughout the world in more than 85 countries, and the campus has flourished from less than 50 acres to 135 acres with 18 major buildings. The college now offers 32 majors and 35 minors of academic study, with quality professional programs and facilities.^[9]

[edit] Academics

Goshen College offers 32 different majors and 34 minors. Some of the most popular programs are nursing, biology, business, communication, education, American Sign Language and environmental science. Goshen College recently approved a Master of Arts in Environmental Education and a master's degree in nursing with two tracks: family nurse practitioner and clinical nurse leader.^[10]

Goshen College also offers a variety of pre-professional programs:

• Pre-Architecture
• Pre-Dentistry
• Pre-Engineering
• Pre-Law
• Pre-Medicine
• Pre-Pharmacy
• Pre-Physical Therapy
• Pre-Seminary
• Pre-Veterinary

The academic year is divided into two semester terms, and then an additional May term. The cost of May term is included with full tuition.

[edit] Study-Service Term

Started in 1968, Goshen College's Study Service Term (SST) is a program that is unique to Goshen. Goshen was one of the forerunners of colleges in offering programs abroad, due in part to its Mennonite heritage of missions and foreign service, particularly Mennonite Central Committee. International education is a requirement for all students at Goshen College. From 70-80 percent of students complete the requirement by participating in SST. Students are required to spend one semester abroad in a country, where they study the language and culture for six weeks at a foreign university, and then do service for the remaining six weeks. Service can range from working at a hospital, nursing home, kindergarten, or missionary service. Countries Goshen College students can currently visit include Cambodia, Nicaragua,China,Tanzania, Germany, Jamaica (ASL majors), Peru and Senegal. Students from adult classes are offered an SST program to Mexico. Previous SST spots include Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Ethiopia, Nicaragua, Honduras, Belize, Cuba, Haiti, Poland, South Korea, Indonesia, Mali, and Ivory Coast. Over 7,000 students and 230 faculty members have journeyed to 20 different countries.^[11]

[edit] Student life

[edit] Athletics

Goshen maintains a variety of varsity sports. Goshen is a member of the NAIA and Indiana's Mid-Central Conference (MCC), one of the NAIA's most competitive basketball leagues. Because Goshen is part of the NAIA, it is eligible to award athletic scholarships. Men's sports include Baseball, Basketball, Cross Country, Golf, Soccer, Tennis, and Track & Field. Women's sports are Basketball, Cross Country, Soccer, Softball, Tennis, Track & Field, and Volleyball.

Intramurals are also an integral part of Goshen's campus. Throughout the year, students participate in Baseball, Soccer, Ping-Pong, Volleyball, Frisbee Football, Badminton, Softball, and Racquetball. Rugball is a popular sport among Goshen students. Introduced to Goshen College by a student in 2001,^{[citation needed]} the game is a combination of rugby, football, and soccer, and has gained popularity on several other campuses.^[12]

[edit] Clubs and organizations

Goshen College has no official fraternities or sororities. This is due in part to the college's philosophy of inclusiveness and contributing to a sense of community. Regardless, many different types of clubs and organizations exist to help facilitate campus life. Clubs that play a significant part in campus life include: Black Student Union (BSU), Latino Student Union (LSU), International Student Club (ISC), Association of Midwestern Ice and Street Hockey (AMISH), Fellowship of Rock Climbers (FORC), American Sign Language Club, Pre-Med Club, Goshen Student Women's Association (GSWA), Knitting Club, PAX and Eco-PAX.

Campus Activities Council, or CAC, is the primary extracurricular organization on campus that hosts a variety of weekend activities and events. CAC is responsible for Goshen's Saturday Night Live, as well as a "Kick Off", a talent show held at the beginning of each semester. CAC also hosts "Hour After" shows, where talented students on campus perform music, comedy, or dancing for the audience. Goshen has a vibrant extracurricular program, with many students and faculty being involved on campus.

[edit] Media

Goshen College has many different clubs and extracurriculars for students to be involved in on campus. For media outlets, Goshen has its own school newspaper, The Record, along with its own weekly news show, GC Journal, and its own radio station, WGCS, branded as 91.1 The Globe. GCTV also has been involved in several large projects, including the broadcast of the school's annual Festival of Carols on WNIT. In 2006, four students, part of Soluz Films, received a grant from the school's Peace and Justice Journalism program to make a documentary entitled Fuerza, on immigration in the Goshen area.

[edit] Nickname

Goshen College athletic teams are known as the "Maple Leafs," picked from the city of Goshen being referred to as "The Maple City."

[edit] Performing arts

Goshen College students have a variety of shows to attend in either the Music Center's Sauder Concert Hall or Reith Recital Hall, or the Umble Center, Goshen's theater. With the addition of the Music Center to campus, the college has offered a Performing Arts Series of nationally renowned artists from across the country. Previous guests include Nickel Creek, Colm Wilkinson, Chanticleer, Canadian Brass, Tokyo String Quartet, and Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis.

[edit] Spiritual life

Because Goshen college is a Christian college, spirituality plays an important part of campus life. Although Goshen maintains that any people of different faiths are welcome to the college, the school operates around Judeo-Christian values in regard to operation, justice, and teaching. All faculty members at the school are Christian, with at least eighty percent adhering to Mennonite convictions. The College holds convocations every Monday, and chapels every Friday, with special events every so often, such as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. Students are required to attend thirteen of these services per semester.

Goshen College operates a campus ministries team, headed by the campus pastor. The team includes an assistant campus minister and student leaders who help guide and plan spiritual life on campus for the school year. Activities include managing the network of Goshen's small groups, spiritual friendship, leading campus worship, and planning chapels. Campus worship night is a voluntary praise and reflection time held every Wednesday night. Students also hold a Taizé prayer service every other Tuesday night. Because service is an important aspect of Christian faith, volunteerism ties in with spiritual life on campus.

[edit] Volunteerism

Every September, Goshen College participates in an activity called Celebrate Service Day (CSD). Students team with professors and administrative faculty and go out into the larger Goshen community for a day of service. First year students go with their colloquium advisers, while other students go with their dormitory floor or small group. Aside from CSD, many students donate their time to work at local kindergartens, elementary schools, hospitals, and nursing homes.

[edit] Campus facilities

Goshen College currently has three dormitories or residence halls for all students, two junior and senior dorms, apartment living, and several small group houses connected to the college.^[13] Four-year residency was typical until the mid-1970s, when a growing student enrollment prompted school officials to forgo building new dormitories and allow upperclassmen to live off campus. In 2005, Goshen College announced its plan to return to four-year residency. With more students on campus, the school has spent over $10 million over the past several years building and renovating dorms. As of 2007, Apartments, Kratz, Miller, and Yoder dorms have air conditioning.

The Roman Gingerich Recreation and Fitness Center is a $7 million facility constructed in 1994 with three full-sized basketball courts, four racquetball courts, a 200 meter indoor track, swimming pool,(for recreational swimming only) hot tub, climbing wall, and 2,800 ft² (260 m²) weight room. The fitness center is open to all students and staff, and is used by community members as well.

The $24 million, 68,000 ft² (6300 m²) Music Center, completed in October 2002, has become regionally renowned for its design and acoustics.^[14][15] The Music Center consists of several main sections: Sauder Concert Hall, Rieth Recital Hall, the Art Gallery, and various classrooms, practice rooms and offices. Several highlights are a central recording studio, MIDI labs, and Opus 41, a 1600-pipe tracker pipe organ, the first in the world with tempering based on alumnus Bradley Lehman's research of Johann Sebastian Bach's notation.^[16] The facility was designed by Mathes Brierre Architects (design architects), Schmidt Associates (architects of record), and TALASKE (acoustics and audio consultants).^[17]

[edit] Small Group Housing

Small Group Housing (SGH) is an option for juniors and seniors on Goshen's campus. Started in the 1970s, SGH offers students the opportunity to live in a house arrangement, with common kitchen and living spaces. The purpose of SGH is for students to develop another living experience alternative to dormitory life. This same idea was carried out with the construction of the Apartments. Goshen College maintains that SGH living is a privilege, and students must apply as a group to live in a residence. An application board consisting of resident directors, spiritual life, and physical plant review all potential candidates in the spring for the next school year. Each group must create a housing plan, division of responsibility, show examples of volunteerism, and a commitment to better the Goshen campus, as well as resolve conflict. Other factors considered in the application process include house cumulative GPA, extracurricular involvement, median age of the group, and personal faculty recommendations.^[18] Houses are then rewarded to applying groups who exemplify high academic, moral, and volunteer efforts, based on objective and subjective review. Goshen currently offers several Small Group Houses, including: Adelphian House, Aurora House, Avon House, Coffman 2 North, Coffman 2 South, Coffman 3 North, Coffman 3 South, Coffman 4 North, Coffman 4 South, East Hall, Hospital House, Howell House, Hymnal House, Kenwood, Kulp North, Kulp South, Kulp West, Valesco House, and Vita House. All these houses have a combined occupancy of approximately 150 students.

[edit] Satellite facilities

In addition to the 135 acre (½ km²) main campus, Goshen College maintains several other facilities. Merry Lea is the college's fully endowed 1,150 acre (4.6 km²) nature preserve located at Wolf Lake in Noble County, Indiana, about 30 miles (50 km) southeast of Goshen. In 2006, Merry Lea completed construction of a two-million dollar facility with classroom and living space. The construction was platinum LEED certified, representing the highest quality of environmental construction process currently available.^[19] Merry Lea hosts various schools and organizations throughout the year, and offers a Masters program in environmental education.

Goshen's Florida Keys Marine Lab, located on Long Key, FL (Layton), provides learning space for the marine biology class during May term. Long Key, vacation home to Zane Grey offers an opportunity for students to discover the ecosystems that create the Florida Keys.

Other properties maintained by Goshen College include Brunk's Cabin in Cass County, Michigan.

[edit] Core values

In 2002 the college approved five core values that would become the vision of the college.^[20][21] These five values: Christ-centered, passionate learners, global citizens, compassionate peacemakers, and servant leaders continue to define the college's future. These values were selected by Goshen College's board of directors because they identify the college's understanding of what it means to be a disciple of Christ.

Christ-centered

based on 1 Corinthians 3:11, this is the main value with which the college seeks to identify. The remaining four branch from this value.

Passionate learners

Goshen College believes that its faith is supported and sustained by knowledge. As a center of learning, its goals are to educate and renew the minds of its students through a spirit of academic excellence. (II Peter 1:5-8)

Servant leaders

In a world searching for future leaders, Goshen seeks to produce servant leaders, embodied by the example Jesus has shown. By following Christ's example, Goshen seeks to create a culture of joyful service. (Matthew 20:26-28)

Compassionate peacemakers

Goshen College embraces biblical shalom, the peace that God intends to build for humanity. Goshen seeks to renounce the violent and oppressive powers of this world while living lives that are examples of God's peace. (Matthew 5:9)

Global citizens

Goshen College teaches its students to go forth into the world offering their talents and gifts. Goshen seeks to respect the differences of others, while at the same time seeking common ground. (II Corinthians 5:18-20)

[edit] Important people

A number of famous people have either taught or attended Goshen Gollege throughout the years, from a world renowned professor and astronomer and award winning author, to the inventor of the weedless watermelon and prestigious business leaders and musicians. Goshen's motto "Culture for service" is evident in many graduates and faculty who have contributed to larger society. Below is a list of several important people who have been associated with the College.

• List of Goshen College people

[edit] Past presidents

• John D. Yordy (Interim President), 2004-06
• Shirley H. Showalter, 1997-2004
• Henry D. Weaver, (Interim President), 1996
• Victor S. Stoltzfus, 1984-96
• J. Lawrence Burkholder, 1971-84
• Paul E. Mininger, 1954-70
• Carl Kreider (Acting President), 1950-51, 1970-71
• Ernest E. Miller, 1940-54
• Sanford C. Yoder, 1923-40
• Daniel Kauffman, 1922-23
• Irvin R. Detweiler (Acting President), 1920-22
• Henry Frank Reist, 1919-20
• George J. Lapp, 1918-19
• John E. Hartzler, 1913-18
• Noah E. Byers, 1901-13

Principals of the Elkhart Institute

• Noah E. Byers, 1898-1903
• Willis E. Tower, 1895-98
• Rev. F.A. Hosmer, 1894-95^[22]

[edit] Center for Intercultural Learning and Teaching

On October 25, 2006, Goshen College announced that it was the recipient of a $12.5 million Lilly grant to create the Center for Intercultural Learning and Teaching (CITL).^[23][24] The purpose of this grant is to research challenges that come with changing demographics in rural towns with small colleges, hopefully putting Goshen College at the forefront of the study. Goshen received this money in part because of its heritage with SST, and priding itself on being a good "global citizen", one of the school's core values. Goshen College's location in Elkhart County is optimal for such a study because of the community's large and rapidly growing Latino population (12.6 percent of the population in 2006).^[24] The grant will also provide a venue for growing and retaining minority (particularly Latino) students. Despite growing minority populations, Indiana's minority enrollment in its colleges and universities has only increased two percent.^[24]

[edit] Traditions

• Goshen's motto, "Culture for Service" was coined by president Noah E. Byers in 1903.

• Goshen's school colors, purple and white, were modeled after Northwestern University, where President Byers attended and after which he wanted to model Goshen.

• One of the college's many traditions is "sampling" sap from the city of Goshen's official Maple Tree, located on campus, and "testing" how many more weeks of winter there will be. Professors from the science department bring out their equipment with much fanfare to determine the official length of winter. In 2006, the maple tree was removed because of disease rotting the hardwood and was replaced by a new tree, now the official maple tree of Goshen. In 2007, new president Jim Brenneman replaced this tradition (which probably resulted in the early death of the maple) with "Weather or Not Day"; a day celebrating Northern Indiana's fickle weather.

• Early (1925) advertisements for the college were refreshingly direct. One said “Goshen [is] not the best college in the United States. But it is better than the rest for Mennonite young people.”^[25]

[edit] College seal

Goshen College seal signifies the book which all alumni have signed since graduation, and the lamp signifies the enlightenment that comes with education. As a Christian school, the book also signifies the importance of word, as well as God's call for his people to be "light to the world."[1]

[edit] Alma Mater

There's a spot in Indiana, where the leafy Maple grows
It's the dear and glorious parkside, where the Elkhart River flows
'Tis a spot we love most dearly, 'Tis a spot we'll cherish long
After youth and strength have faded, and this world has heard our song

Chorus:
Goshen College, Ever Singing
To our motto we'll be true
Honor to our Master bringing
Alma Mater, we love you

Here we learn life's duties doing, in our sacred college halls
Freshman, Sophomore, Junior, Senior, answer high, when duty calls'
Though our times may be slender, may our hearts be warm and true
Ever lead us onward, upward, ever shall the strength renew

Chorus:
Goshen College, Ever Singing
To our motto we'll be true
Honor to our Master bringing
Alma Mater, we love you

And the lasting ties of friendship, growing through the hopes and fears
May they ne'er be brung assunder in the distant, coming years
Though our future paths may lead us, to unite humanity
Alma Mater e'er we leave you, loyalty we pledge to thee

Chorus:
Goshen College, Ever Singing
To our motto we'll be true
Honor to our Master bringing
Alma Mater, we love you

[edit] College hymn

Teach me thy truth, O mighty One,
From sin, O make me free.
Prepare my life to fill its place
In service, Lord, for thee.

Accept my talents, great or small,
Choose thou the path for me,
Where I shall labor joyously,
In service, Lord, for thee.

Help me to show thy glorious way
That leads in hope to thee,
Till other souls their joy shall find,
In service, Lord, for thee.

Grant me thy grace for ev'ry task
Until thy face I see,
Then ever new shall be that joy
In service, Lord, for thee.

[edit] Gallery

Kulp dormitory and Adelphian fountain	Roman Gingerich Recreation and Fitness Center	The connector connecting Kratz, Miller, and Yoder underclassmen dorms	Goshen College in late summer
Goshen College's Quadrangle in early morning fog	Schrock Plaza and Harold and Wilma Good Library	Kratz and Miller dormitories	Coffman dormitory

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Official website
• Official athletics website
• Campus map
• Merry Lea Environmental Learning Center
• FM 91.1 The Globe, WGCS website
• [2]

• Goshen College is at coordinates 41°33′54″N 85°49′40″W / 41.564958, -85.827733 (Goshen College)Coordinates: 41°33′54″N 85°49′40″W / 41.564958, -85.827733 (Goshen College)

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