Wesleyan College

For other universities with a similar name, see Wesleyan University (disambiguation).

Wesleyan College

Motto	First for Women
Type	Private Women's college
Established	Chartered 1836, Opened 1839
Endowment	$42,142,858
President	Ruth Austin Knox
Academic staff	52
Undergraduates	550 (full-time)
Postgraduates	95 (coed)
Location	Macon , Georgia , USA
Campus	suburban
Colors	Deep Purple and Lavender
Mascot	Pioneers
Website	wesleyancollege.edu

Wesleyan College is a private, liberal arts women's college located in Macon, Georgia.

History

The school was chartered on December 23, 1836 as the Georgia Female College, and opened its doors to students on January 7, 1839. It is the oldest (and the first) school which was established from inception (chartered in 1836) as a college for women. The school was renamed Wesleyan Female College in 1843 and later shortened to the present name Wesleyan College in 1917.

Wesleyan is also home to the world's oldest alumnae association, begun in 1859. Seniors are inducted into the association during a candle lighting ceremony at Alumnae Weekend. Wesleyan College was also the birthplace of the first sororities: the Adelphean Society in 1851, now known as Alpha Delta Pi, and the Philomathean Society (not associated with the Philomathean Society of the University of Pennsylvania) in 1852, now known as Phi Mu. The two sororities together are referred to as the "Macon Magnolias." The school no longer has sororities (as of 1914), and uses a class system. Incoming first years are assigned a class based on the outgoing seniors of the previous school year. The classes are the Green Knights, the Purple Knights, the Pirates (formerly the Tri-K pirates until the late 20th century), and the Golden Hearts. Further, each of these classes is paired with another in one of the most honored of traditions: the Green Knights and Purple Knights are sister classes, and the Golden Hearts and Pirates (whose color is red) are sister classes. The class of 2010 are Purple Knights.

Campus and students

Wesleyan College has an undergraduate student population of around 700. It has a student-faculty ratio of 8:1, and an average class size of 20 students. Students from more than 20 states and over 20 countries around the world attend the school each year. Wesleyan offers 35 majors, 29 minors, and pre-professional programs for its students. It is affiliated with the United Methodist Church. Wesleyan college was named among the Best 361 colleges in 2007, 2008, and 2009 by Princeton Review.

Wesleyan College has an arboreal 200 acre (800,000 m²) campus dotted with revivalist Georgian style brick buildings. It features a 6.3 acre (25,000 m²) lake, (the heart shaped) Foster Lake, as well as the Nancy Ellis Knox Equestrian Center, Porter Gymnasium, Anderson Cabin, Jones Hall, home of the Lane Center for Community Engagement and Service, and Matthews Athletic Complex. It also has five academic buildings, Tate Hall, Taylor Hall, Murphey Art Building, Porter Fine Arts Building, and the new Munroe Science Center which opened in the fall of 2007. It also has 5 dormitories for students. Banks and Wortham Hall house first year students. Persons, Jones and Hightower Halls house upperclasswomen. Corn North and South Apartments house juniors and seniors.

Wesleyan's athletic mascot is the Pioneers and they are in the NCAA Division III. The Pioneers have 6 varsity sports: basketball, cross-country, soccer, softball, tennis, and volleyball, and the IHSA equestrian team.

There are 4 Major Student Boards: CRC (Council on Religious Concerns), CJA (Council on Judicial Affairs), CAB (Campus Activities Board), SRC (Student Recreation Council) which are represented as a part of SGA (Student Government Association). Wesleyan boasts the Nu Omega chapter of Alpha Kappa Psi, the professional business fraternity. It also has over 25 special interest clubs, academic honor societies including the Phi Kappa Phi, Beta Beta Beta and Omicron Delta Epsilon, musical groups, service organizations, religious groups, and departmental leadership groups. It also three publications : The Veterropt (yearbook), The Wesleyan Word (newspaper), and the Visionary (creative arts magazine).

Wesleyan's campus hosts many diverse events each year. Midsummer Macon, a music and arts program for children and young adults, is held here every summer. The school also hosts several popular events of the Macon Cherry Blossom Festival every springtime, such as the annual hot air balloon launch. Porter Auditorium was once the home of the Macon Symphony Orchestra and it still hosts many musical and theatrical events and competitions. Wesleyan is also important to the community as it holds many award day programs for the public schools around Macon.

Although Wesleyan is the birthplace of the two oldest national sororities, Phi Mu and Alpha Delta Pi, it does not host Greek organizations currently. The school colors are deep purple and lavender.[1]

In 2009, Forbes ranked Wesleyan #15 on its list of best college buys.[2]

Notable alumnae

• The Soong sisters
• Neva Langley Fickling, Miss America 1953
• Sandra Deer, playwright
• Kathryn Stripling Byer, poet and recipient of the 2001 North Carolina Award
• Toni Jennings, Lieutenant Governor of Florida
• Catherine Brewer Benson, first woman to earn a college degree
• Mary Houston, wife of Young John Allen, the Methodist missionary who preached in China and first mentioning of Karl Marx in China

See also

• Women's Colleges in the Southern United States

External links

• Wesleyan College Website