ANTIOCH UNIVERSITY

'Antioch University' is a six-campus American university with campuses in four states. An outgrowth of Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio, each of Antioch's campuses has its own distinct academic programs, community life, and regional identity. Antioch has developed a new Ph.D. program and a growing number of on-line courses. It is founded on principles of rigorous liberal arts education, innovative experiential learning and socially engaged citizenship.

Contents

History of Antioch College

Beginnings

1960s Antioch College Expansion

Campuses

Closure

Notable alumni

References

External links

History of Antioch College

Beginnings

Antioch College is the result of American educator Horace Mann's dream to establish a college comparable to Harvard but with some notable differences. This college was to be completely non-sectarian and co-educational, and with a curriculum that would not only include the traditional treatment of the classics, but would emphasize science and the scientific method, history and modern literature. Students would not compete for grades, but would be encouraged to pursue issues of interest to them, read what they consider worthwhile, and present papers on topics of their own choosing. Founded in 1852 as Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio, Horace Mann was the first president of the College in 1852.
From its inception, racial and sexual equality, independent study and independent thinking were integral parts of Antioch College. Six students were accepted for the first quarter: four men and two women who came to share the same college classrooms for the first time in the U.S. The notion of sexual equality extended also to the faculty. Antioch was the first U.S. college to designate a woman as full professor, and the original faculty included seven men and two women. Then, in 1863, the college instituted the policy that no applicant was to be rejected on the basis of race.
Antioch College has always attracted faculty who were concerned with innovations in education. In the early 1850's, Rebecca Pennel offered a course on teaching methods which was the first of its kind, while John Burns Weston, class of 1857, established a long-standing precedent by being both student and faculty simultaneously. He taught Greek language and literature for 20 years and remained a life long student.
While Antioch College has never diverged from the philosophy of Horace Mann, the present form of an Antioch education traces its roots to the election of Arthur Morgan as President of the college in 1920. Morgan, like Mann, believed in the development of the individual as a whole. Having seen the difficulty encountered by ivory-tower academicians attempting to participate in the business world, he resolved to change the cloistered educational experience by providing students with work experience in their field. This was the beginning of Antioch's unique program of work and study.
Morgan initiated the practice of student government. He also changed the nature of the admissions procedure. Rather than relying on entrance examinations, Morgan opted for more personal information on prospective students. In addition, senior exams were graded "honors" or "pass" and students who failed could retake the exam. Morgan remained at Antioch until 1933, when President Roosevelt requested that he assume directorship of the Tennessee Valley Authority Project.

1960s Antioch College Expansion

In the early 1960's, Antioch College extended its special curriculum to students in new settings, by taking over the Putney School of Education in Vermont (now Antioch University New England in Keene, New Hampshire). During the next decade, other adult learning programs were instituted: among them, Antioch Seattle; Antioch Southern California with campuses in Los Angeles and Santa Barbara; and the Antioch Education Abroad Program (with centers in London, Germany and other locations).
In 1975, Juarez-Lincoln University in Austin, Texas became an affiliate of Antioch, through the Antioch Graduate School of Education. Antioch withdrew its support in 1979, however, at which point Juarez-Lincoln closed. ^[2]
1978 saw the first formation of the Antioch College centers into a University system. From 1978-1994 the President of Antioch College also served as the Chancellor of Antioch University. ^[3]
The Santa Barbara campus has grown from a handful of students in 1977 to a current enrollment of over 270. Antioch University Santa Barbara serves adult students; the average student's age is 36. It offers seven degree programs: a B.A. in Liberal Studies, an M.A. in Clinical Psychology, the MA in Psychology - Individualized Concentration, a PsyD, an M.A. in Organizational Management, which trains leaders in business, government and service organizations, a Teacher Credential program with an M.A. in Education, and an MAEx.
The B.A. Program offers students a core curriculum of required courses and flexibility in slanting their elective studies to meet their personal and career goals. Academic studies revolve around certain liberal arts emphases, such as psychology, social services administration, communication and business management. Students can, in certain circumstances, create their own "emphasis". Antioch encourages independent thinking, practical application of theory, and the study of ethical and social issues.

Campuses

★ Antioch College, Yellow Springs, Ohio

★ Antioch University Los Angeles, California

★ Antioch University McGregor, Yellow Springs, Ohio

★ Antioch University New England

★ Antioch University Santa Barbara

★ Antioch University Seattle

Closure

It was recently announced that Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio will close in July of 2008 due to a lack of fundraising support from the University's Board of Trustees. Alumni, many angry at the perceived mismanagement of the college, have spearheaded fundraising efforts to keep the college open past 2008.

Notable alumni

★ writer Canyon Adams

★ actor Cliff Robertson Antioch College

★ writer and producer Rod Serling Antioch College

★ musician Jorma Kaukonen

★ politician Eleanor Holmes Norton Antioch College

★ Coretta Scott King, wife of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Antioch College

★ scientist and writer Stephen Jay Gould Antioch College

★ actress Marcia Cross

★ East Timorese president José Ramos Horta

References

1. http://antiochiana.edu/PresidentsList.htm
2. http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/articles/JJ/kcj3_print.html
3. http://antiochiana.edu/PresidentsList.htm

External links

★ Antioch College website

★ Antioch College alumni website

★ Antioch University McGregor website

★ Integral Knowledge Systems at Antioch University McGregor website

★ Antioch University Seattle website

★ Antioch University New England website

★ Antioch University Los Angeles website

★ Antioch University Santa Barbara website

★ website for The Bridge Program - educational outreach through Antioch University Los Angeles

★ Why Antioch failed according to an alumnus