Kentucky Wesleyan College
Kentucky Wesleyan College is a private Methodist college in Owensboro, Kentucky. The college is known for its liberal arts programs. Fall 2018 enrollment was 830 students.
History
Kentucky Wesleyan College was founded in 1858 by the Kentucky Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church. It was originally located in Millersburg. Classes began in 1866 and the first commencement took place in 1868. At first, it was a training school for preachers but soon business and liberal arts classes were added to the curriculum. In 1890 the school was moved to Winchester and soon after women began to be admitted for the first time. In 1951, the school moved to its present location in Kentucky's fourth largest city, Owensboro.Presidents
College presidents include:1. Rev. Charles Taylor
Interim A.G. Murphy
2. Rev. Benjamin Arbogast
3. John Darby
4. Rev. Thomas J. Dodd
5. Rev. William H. Anderson
6. David W. Batson
7. Rev. Alexander Redd
8. David W. Batson
9. Benjamin T. Spencer
10. Rev. Eugene H. Pearce
11. Rev. John L. Weber
12. Henry K. Taylor
13. John J. Tigert
14. Rev. James L. Clark
15. William B. Campbell
16. U. V. W. Darlington
17. David C. Hull
Interim Walter V. Cropper
18. Clarence M. Dannelly
19. Reginald V. Bennett
20. Rev. Paul S. Powell
21. John F. Baggett
22. Dr. Oscar W. Lever
23. Dr. Harold P. Hamilton
24. Dr. William E. James
25. Dr. Luther W. White
26. Dr. Paul W. Hartman
Interim Dr. Ray C. Purdom
27. Dr. Wesley H. Poling
28. Dr. Anne C. Federlein
Interim Dr. M. Michael Fagan
29. Dr. Cheryl D. King
30. Dr. W. Craig Turner
31. Barton D. Darrell
Interim Dr. Gene Tice
32. Dr. Thomas Mitzel
Academics
Kentucky Wesleyan offers 29 majors and 13 pre-professional programs and has a student-to-faculty ratio of 13:1. Academics are divided into four divisions: Fine Arts & Humanities, Natural Sciences & Mathematics, Professional Studies, and Social Sciences.Campus
Kentucky Wesleyan is located on 55 acres of land. Their campus includes buildings for academics, administration, student residence halls, and athletic facilities.Academic and administrative buildings
- Barnard-Jones Administration building, which houses the Office of Admissions and includes Tapscott Chapel and the Snyder Faculty Office building.
- Winchester Campus Community Center, a student space that has meeting spaces, student organization offices, and the campus security office.
- Hocker Family Dining Center/Greenwell Library and Learning Center, a large building that includes the dining hall, library, computer labs, student work spaces, and group and individual study spaces. This building connects to the Winchester Center for student ease of access.
- Ralph Center for Fine Arts and Communication Arts, an academic building housing the majority of the Fine Arts and Humanities degree programs and the auditorium.
- Yu Hak Hahn Center for the Sciences, an academic building that includes the majority of the Natural Sciences & Mathematics and some Social Sciences degree program classes.
Residence halls
- Massie Residence Hall, a suite-style residence hall featuring double and single rooms, semi-private bathrooms and community spaces.
- Peeples Residence Hall, which houses 140 people.
- Kendall Residence Hall, which houses 150 people. This is a newly renovated residence hall.
- Deacon Residence Hall, which houses ninety people.
- Stadium Drive Apartments, an apartment style residence hall featuring double and single rooms, living room, and semi-private bathrooms.
Athletic facilities
- Jones Gymnasium/Woodward Health and Recreation Center, home to the practice facilities for the university's basketball teams and student health resources.
- Panther Hitting Facility, where university baseball and softball teams practice.
- Panther Park and Foster Field, where the baseball and softball teams compete.
- Panther Field, where the soccer teams practice and compete.
- Bullet Wilson Field at Steele Stadium, where the university's football teams practice and compete.
Student life
Governing organizations
- Student Government Association, the self-governing body on campus that provides the student body with a voice in college affairs, ranging from administrative to social matters. SGA consists of an elected executive council and senate. Two senators represent each class. Elections are open to any interested student.
- Panhellenic Council, the governing body for the national sororities on campus. It fosters cooperation, good will and harmony among the sororities, plans activities and administers policies and regulations governing Recruitment activities.
- Interfraternity Council, which regulates the affairs of the social fraternities, administers rules governing rush and pledging and encourages cooperation and harmony among its members.
Media and publications
- The Panogram — weekly student newspaper
- 90.3 WKWC — 5,000 watt FM radio station run by students and volunteers
Greek life
Fraternities
- Sigma Alpha Mu
- Sigma Nu
- Sigma Phi Epsilon
Sororities
- Kappa Delta
- Alpha Omicron Pi
Campus ministries
Athletics
The Kentucky Wesleyan Panthers compete in NCAA Division II and was a charter member of the Great Lakes Valley Conference. KWC is currently a charter member of the Great Midwest Athletic Conference joining in the 2013-14 season. The 2014 KWC football team currently competes as an Independent NCAA Division II team after leaving the Great Lakes Valley Conference, as an associate member, after the 2013 season.Intercollegiate men's teams include: baseball, basketball, cross country, golf, football, soccer, and implemented modern era indoor and outdoor track and field teams beginning in the 2012-2013 academic season. Women compete in basketball, bowling, cross country, golf, soccer, softball, tennis, volleyball, and also implemented modern era indoor and outdoor track and field teams in the 2012-2013 academic season.
The men's basketball team advanced to the Division II championship game six consecutive years, winning in 1999 and 2001 under the direction of Ray Harper. In addition to these successes, they won six other championships and were runners-up in 1957. Overall, Kentucky Wesleyan has won eight NCAA Division II National Men's Basketball Championships, which is the most by any NCAA Division II School.
Notable alumni
- Urban Valentine Williams Darlington - former bishop of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South
- G. Lindsey Davis - bishop of the United Methodist Church
- Ray Harper - Former head men's basketball coach, current head coach at Jacksonville State University
- John Wesley Hughes - founder of Asbury University and Kingswood College
- Doug Moseley - former Kentucky state senator and retired United Methodist minister
- Paul A. Porter - former Federal Communications Commission chairman
- Stanley Forman Reed - former justice of the United States Supreme Court
- Jody Richards - former Speaker of the House, Kentucky House of Representatives
- Roy Hunter Short - former Bishop of The Methodist Church and the United Methodist Church
- A. J. Smith - Executive Vice President and General Manager of the San Diego Chargers
- Benjamin T. Spencer
- Edward Lewis Tullis - former bishop of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South and the United Methodist Church
- Cory Wade - pitcher for the New York Yankees
- Mark Patton - CFO Colony Hardware
- Keelan Cole - current wide receiver for Jacksonville Jaguars of the NFL