Former names | Allentown Seminary (1848–1864) Allentown Collegiate Institute and Military Academy (1864–1867) Allentown Collegiate Institute (1867) [1] |
---|---|
Type | Private liberal arts college |
Established | 1848 |
Religious affiliation | Evangelical Lutheran Church in America |
Academic affiliations | Annapolis Group CLAC LVAIC |
Endowment | $324.5 million (2024) [2] |
President | Kathleen E. Harring |
Academic staff | 171 FT 123 PT |
Students | 2,225 |
Undergraduates | 2,225 students (43% men, 57% women) |
Location | , United States 40°35′51″N75°30′36″W / 40.5976°N 75.5101°W |
Campus | Suburban, 51 acres (21 ha) |
Colors | Cardinal and Grey [3] |
Nickname | Mules |
Sporting affiliations | NCAA Division III Centennial Conference, ECAC |
Mascot | Marti The Mule |
Website | muhlenberg |
Muhlenberg College is a private liberal arts college in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1848, Muhlenberg College is affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and is named for Henry Muhlenberg, the German patriarch of Lutheranism in the United States.
Muhlenberg College was founded in 1848 in Allentown, Pennsylvania, as the Allentown Seminary by Samuel K. Brobst, a Reformed Lutheran minister. Christian Rudolph Kessler was the school's first teacher and administrator. [4]
The college operated as the Allentown Seminary from 1848 to 1864, as the Allentown Collegiate and Military Institute from 1864 to 1867, and briefly as the Allentown Collegiate Institute in 1867. [5]
In 1867, the college moved into Trout Hall, [6] the former mansion of William Allen's son, James Allen, and was renamed Muhlenberg College in honor of Henry Muhlenberg, the patriarch of the Lutheran church in the United States.
From 1867 to 1876, Muhlenberg's great-grandson, Frederick Augustus Muhlenberg, served as president of the college. [5]
In 1905, the college purchased and relocated to a 51-acre (21 ha) tract located in Allentown's West End, which continues to serve as the present-day campus. [6]
In 1910, seeing a need for evening study in the community, the college began offering courses through a "Saturday School for Teachers". [7] The offerings for adult education outside of the traditional baccalaureate track evolved over the years through various titles, including an "Extension" school.
In 2002, Muhlenberg College opened The W. Clarke Wescoe School of Professional Studies. [7] With the addition of graduate degree programs, the Muhlenberg graduate program was renamed as the School for Graduate and Continuing Studies.
In 2019, the college named Kathleen E. Harring, a social psychologist and the college's prior provost since 2017, as its 13th president and its first female president. She succeeded John I. Williams, Jr., the college's first black president, [8] who served as president from 2015 to 2019.
Muhlenberg was one of the first institution to fire a tenured professor over pro-Palestinian speech. During the 2024 pro-Palestinian campus protests, the college fired its Jewish anthropology professor, Maura Finkelstein, for sharing a social media post post by Palestinian poet Remi Kanazi which was critical of Zionists (he has written "Do not cower to Zionists. Shame them. .. Don’t normalize Zionism. Don’t normalize Zionists taking up space." (the college determined that she had violated its equal opportunity and nondiscrimination policies by sharing his words). [9] [10] A Title IX complaint letter concerning “a Jewish anti-Zionist professor on campus who has written articles praising Hamas .. The letter seeks the professor’s removal.” [9]
Muhlenberg's current 82-acre (33 ha) campus is located in a residential neighborhood in Allentown's West End. The campus includes buildings with distinctive traditional European and Protestant red doors laid out on several college quads. The central part of the park-like campus is the college green, which incorporates public art, including Victor's Lament by sculptor Mark di Suvero, which incorporates a red I-beam and is a tribute to the history of steelmaking in Allentown and the surrounding Lehigh Valley during the 20th century. [11]
The college's academic row runs the length of the main college quadrangle with Haas College Center, built between 1926 and 1929, in the center. Miller Tower, the dome and tower on top of Haas College Center, was inspired by Tom Tower at Christ Church College at the University of Oxford. It is named for David A. Miller (class of 1894), the first reporter for The Morning Call , an Allentown-based daily newspaper founded in 1883. [6] Muhlenberg's Polling Institute teams with the newspaper to periodically publish surveys of preferences and trends among Pennsylvanians, especially in the Lehigh Valley. [12]
In 1988, the college opened the Harry C. Trexler Library, [13] named for local industrialist Harry Clay Trexler; it was designed by architect Robert Geddes. [6] The library houses over 310,000 volumes and 360,000 microforms on campus, and has access to over 1.75 million books via interlibrary loan. The library is part of the Federal Depository Library Program. [14] Near Trexler Library is the Philip Johnson-designed Baker Center for the Arts. [15] It houses Martin Art Gallery, which has a permanent collection of over 3,000 works of art and also hosts exhibitions of pieces by student, regional, and international artists. [16]
In August 2004, the Life Sports Center was expanded by 39,000 square feet (3,600 m2), adding a new indoor field house, gymnasium, cafe, health classrooms, and a pool. In 2007, a new science building and additional residence halls were completed and opened.
In 2010, Muhlenberg College expanded Seegers Student Union, adding expanded dining facilities that are often rated as having some of the best campus food of any college or university in the nation. [17]
In addition to its main campus in Allentown, Muhlenberg maintains a 60-acre (24 ha) Graver Arboretum, located 25 miles (40 km) away in Bushkill Township, and Raker Wildlife Preserve, a 40-acre (16 ha) wildlife sanctuary located 15 miles (24 km) away in Germansville. [18]
Muhlenberg College offers bachelor's degrees with academic focuses on liberal-arts education and pre-professional studies. Approximately 85% of the faculty have a PhD or other terminal degree in their respective fields. [19] The student to faculty ratio, as of 2018, was 11:1. The college maintains chapters of over 15 national Greek academic honor societies. Bachelor's degree programs for returning adult students are offered through the School of Continuing Education. Graduate degrees have also been offered since the 2020–21 academic year.
The college offers accelerated programs, cross-registration between disciplines, double majors, honors programs, independent study, internships, Army ROTC, student-designed majors, over 160 study-abroad programs, teacher certification, visiting and exchange student programs, and a Washington, D.C. semester.
Academic rankings | |
---|---|
Liberal arts | |
U.S. News & World Report [20] | 70 |
Washington Monthly [21] | 60 |
National | |
Forbes [22] | 350 |
WSJ/College Pulse [23] | 166 |
In the 2016–2017 academic year, about one-third (32%) of applicants were offered admission. In the 2013–2014 academic year, about 44% of students accepted for admission into the freshman class were in the top 10% of their high school or preparatory school graduating class, 69% in the top 20% of their graduating class, and 81% were in the top 30%. Three-quarters of the freshman class receive some form of financial aid. Muhlenberg is primarily a regional college, with 72% of incoming freshmen coming from Pennsylvania, New Jersey, or New York state. However, the school also receives applications from the West Coast, including students from Arizona, California, and Oregon. [24]
In its 2024 rankings, Best Colleges Ranking, U.S. News & World Report ranked Muhlenberg College 70th among the nation's liberal arts colleges, unchanged from its 2023 ranking. [25] Forbes ranked Muhlenberg 82nd on their list of the best liberal arts colleges in the United States. [26] The Princeton Review lists Muhlenberg as one of the best colleges in the U.S. Northeast out of a total number of 218 ranked colleges.
In 2016, the college's theatre program was ranked first in the nation by The Princeton Review, [27] and the college's food was ranked 16th-best among the nation's colleges and universities. [28] In 2013, Muhlenberg College was named as one of the Lehigh Valley's top workplaces. [29] In 2008, the college was included among the "Top 286 Green Colleges" developed in collaboration with the U.S. Green Building Council. [30]
Muhlenberg College athletic teams are the Muhlenberg Mules and compete in NCAA Division III. The college has 22 intercollegiate sports, which belong to either the Centennial Conference [31] or Eastern College Athletic Conference.
Both men's and women's teams exist for basketball, cross country, golf, lacrosse, soccer, tennis, track and field, and wrestling. Men's teams exist for baseball and football; women have teams for softball, field hockey, and volleyball.
In 2004, additional athletic facilities were built west of the field house. Updated tennis courts were built in 2003 and two fields were added in 1997 and 1998. The baseball and softball teams do not have on-campus facilities. The football, field hockey, and track and field teams each perform at Scotty Wood Stadium, at 3400 West Chew Street, on the Muhlenberg College campus.
In 1900, the Muhlenberg Mules football program was founded as Muhlenberg College's first official varsity sport. Doggie Julian was its head coach at from 1936 to 1944; his career record was 56–49–2. Julian was also Muhlenberg's head basketball coach during this time and the head baseball coach from 1942 to 1944. [32]
In 1946, Ben Schwartzwalder was named head football coach. [33] In his first season, he guided the Mules to a 9–1 record [34] and a national championship with Muhlenberg defeating St. Bonaventure University in the Tobacco Bowl. [34] The following year, in the 1947 season, Schwartzwalder again led the Mules to a 9–1 record; the season's only loss came by one point, in a 7–6 loss at Temple. The Mules declined an invitation that season to appear in the Tangerine Bowl. [35] In 1949, Schwartzwalder departed to coach Syracuse.
After Schwartzwalder departed for Syracuse in 1949, the Mules fell off the national radar until the hiring of Mike Donnelly in 1997. Despite a rough 1–9 inaugural campaign, Donnelly turned the team around. From 2000 to 2004, the Mules won five straight Centennial Conference championships [36] and earned five straight postseason berths. In 2007, the Mules again won the Centennial Conference and received another berth in the NCAA playoffs, winning their first-round game before falling in the second round. Donnelly's team won the Centennial Conference again in 2008 and earned a playoff berth, but fell in the first round. In 2010, they returned to the playoffs with the same result.
In the 20th century, at least three Muhlenberg players went on to play in the National Football League: Sisto Averno (with the Baltimore Colts, Dallas Texans, and New York Yanks between 1950 and 1954), Charlie Copley (with the Akron Pros and Milwaukee Badgers between 1920 and 1922), and Tony Zuzzio (with the Detroit Lions in 1942).
Since the 2000 season, Muhlenberg has compiled a 66–28 overall record in the Centennial Conference, second-best among all active and former members behind only Johns Hopkins University. The Muhlenberg football team has won the Centennial Conference championship seven times in the 2000s. [37]
Nate Milne was named Muhlenberg's head football coach in 2018. He has since compiled a 35–5 record over his first three seasons. [38] In 2019, Milne was named AFCA Coach of the Year Award for NCAA Division III. [39]
In addition to its 22 NCAA teams, Muhlenberg College has sports club teams in ultimate frisbee and women's rugby.
More than 100 clubs and organizations are on campus. In addition, the Muhlenberg Activity Council is responsible for bringing events and activities to campus. The college arranges off-campus community service opportunities and intramural and club sports for students.
The college's official student-run print publication is The Muhlenberg Weekly. Established in 1883, the paper is published every week while school is in session. The student-run radio station, WMUH, which broadcasts at 91.7FM, is operated year-round by both students and volunteers from the surrounding Lehigh Valley community. It is also available online by live stream. [40]
There are four sororities and four fraternities affiliated with the college. [41]
Despite its Lutheran affiliation, Muhlenberg has attracted a large number of Jewish students, estimated in 2024 to be around 30% of the student body. [42] [43] Muhlenberg is one of only a few American liberal arts colleges to offer a Jewish studies major and minor; the Muhlenberg College Hillel is the largest student organization on campus. [44] [42]
Lehigh University (LU) is a private research university in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, United States. The university was established in 1865 by businessman Asa Packer. Lehigh University's undergraduate programs have been coeducational since the 1971–72 academic year. As of 2022, the university had 5,911 undergraduate students and 1,781 graduate students.
Allentown is the county seat of Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is the third-most populous city in Pennsylvania with a population of 125,845 as of the 2020 census and the most populous city in the Lehigh Valley metropolitan area, which had a population of 861,899 and was the 68th-most populous metropolitan area in the nation as of 2020.
Dickinson College is a private liberal arts college in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1773 as Carlisle Grammar School, Dickinson was chartered on September 9, 1783, making it the first college to be founded after the formation of the United States. Dickinson was founded by Benjamin Rush, a Founding Father and signer of the Declaration of Independence. The college is named in honor of John Dickinson, a Founding Father who voted to ratify the Constitution and later served as governor of Pennsylvania, and his wife Mary Norris Dickinson, who donated much of their extensive personal libraries to the new college.
Hillel: The Foundation for Jewish Campus Life, alternatively Hillel International or simply Hillel, is the largest Jewish student organization in the world. Founded in 1923 and headquartered in the United States, it is represented at more than 850 higher education institutions and communities throughout Eurasia and the Americas, including 30 communities in the former Soviet Union, nine in Israel, and five in South America.
Susquehanna University is a private liberal arts college in Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania, United States. Its name is derived from the original Susquehannock settlers of the region. Founded in 1858 as a missionary institute, it became a four-year liberal arts college in 1895. It is affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Susquehanna is classified among "Baccalaureate Colleges: Arts & Sciences Focus", though it also has a business school, master's degrees in education and joint-degree programs in engineering and for a Master of Business Administration. It also offers the only bachelor's degree in luxury brand marketing and management in the U.S.
Franklin & Marshall College (F&M) is a private liberal arts college in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1787 as Franklin College and later merged with Marshall College in 1853, it is one of the oldest colleges in the United States. F&M is named after Benjamin Franklin, who gave the college its first endowment, and John Marshall.
DeSales University (DSU) is a private Catholic university in Center Valley, Pennsylvania. The university offers traditional, online, and hybrid courses and programs at the undergraduate and graduate levels. Named for St. Francis de Sales, the university was founded in 1964 as Allentown College of Saint Francis de Sales by the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales.
Cedar Crest College is a private liberal arts women's college in Allentown, Pennsylvania. At the start of the 2022-2023 academic year, the college had 953 undergraduate and 371 graduate students. Men may pursue various degrees at the college, but are sometimes limited to evening or weekend programs.
Cedar Crest Boulevard, colloquially known as Cedar Crest and The Boulevard, is a major north-south highway in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania in the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania. South of Interstate 78 (I-78), the road is part of Pennsylvania Route 29. North of it, the road becomes State Route 1019.
Floyd Burdette Schwartzwalder was a Hall of Fame football coach at Syracuse University, where he trained future National Football League (NFL) stars such as Jim Brown, Larry Csonka, Floyd Little and Ernie Davis, the first African American to win the Heisman Trophy.
WMUH is a college radio station, supported through Muhlenberg College, located in Allentown, Pennsylvania, in the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania.
The Allentown School District is a large, urban public school district located in Allentown, Pennsylvania in the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania. The district is the fourth-largest school district in Pennsylvania as of the 2016-17 school year. The district includes almost all of Allentown, the third-largest city in Pennsylvania.
Sports in Allentown, Pennsylvania has a rich tradition at all levels, including professional sports, the Olympics, and high school levels. While most Allentown residents support professional sports teams in New York City or Philadelphia, Allentown itself also is home to two major professional sports teams, the Lehigh Valley IronPigs, the Triple A team of the Philadelphia Phillies of Major League Baseball, and the Lehigh Valley Phantoms of the American Hockey League, the primary development team of the Philadelphia Flyers.
The Muhlenberg Mules football team represents Muhlenberg College in college football at the NCAA Division III level. The team, known as the Muhlenberg Mules, have been members of the Centennial Conference since 1983. The Mules play their home games at Scotty Wood Stadium in Allentown, Pennsylvania. The Muhlenberg Mules football program was founded in 1900.
The Muhlenberg Mules are the collegiate athletic teams of Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pennsylvania. The college competes in NCAA Division III of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Muhlenberg has 2- intercollegiate sports, including ten for women and ten for men. Each team competes in either the Centennial Conference or Eastern College Athletic Conference.
The 1947 Muhlenberg Mules football team was an American football team represented Muhlenberg College during the 1947 college football season. In its second season under head coach Ben Schwartzwalder, the team compiled a 9–1 record and outscored opponents by a total of 368 to 49. The team's only loss was to Temple by a 7–6 score. The team was invited to play in the 1948 Tangerine Bowl, but the school's athletic committee declined the invitation.
The 1969 Lehigh Engineers football team was an American football team that represented Lehigh University during the 1969 NCAA College Division football season, and completed the 86th season of Engineers football. Lehigh finished fourth in the Middle Atlantic Conference, University Division, and won the Middle Three Conference championship.
The 1946 Muhlenberg Mules football team was an American football team that represented Muhlenberg College during the 1946 college football season. In its first season under head coach Ben Schwartzwalder, Muhlenberg compiled a 9–1 record, defeated St. Bonaventure in the Tobacco Bowl, and outscored opponents by a total of 307 to 99. The team's only loss was to Delaware by a 20–12 score. The team played its home games at Muhlenberg Field in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
The 1951 Lehigh Engineers football team was an American football team that represented Lehigh University as an independent during the 1951 college football season. Lehigh won the Middle Three Conference championship for the second year in a row. In their sixth year under head coach Bill Leckonby, the Engineers compiled a 7–2 record, winning both games against their conference opponents. John Bergman and Richard Pradetto were the team captains. Lehigh played home games at Taylor Stadium on the university's main campus in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
Scotty Wood Stadium is the college football, field hockey, and track and field stadium of Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pennsylvania. The college's athletics teams are known as the Muhlenberg Mules.