Millikin University

Last updated
Millikin University
Millikin University seal.png
Former names
Decatur College and Industrial School of the James Millikin University (1901–1953)
MottoIn His Plenitudo Vis
(In These, the Fullness of Strength)
Type Private university
Established1901;123 years ago (1901)
Accreditation HLC
Religious affiliation
 Presbyterian
Endowment $94.3 million (2020) [1]
President Jim Reynolds
Administrative staff
1,393, full and part-time
Students1,807 (Fall 2022) [2]
Undergraduates 1,708 (Fall 2022)
Postgraduates 99 (Fall 2022)
Location
Decatur
,
Illinois
,
United States

39°50′33″N88°58′30″W / 39.8425°N 88.975°W / 39.8425; -88.975
Campus City, 75 acres (30.3 ha)
Colors Blue and white
  
Nickname Big Blue
Sporting affiliations
 NCAA Division III – CCIW
Website www.millikin.edu
Millikin University wordmark.png

Millikin University is a private college in Decatur, Illinois. It was founded in 1901 by prominent Decatur businessman James Millikin and is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA). [3]

Contents

History

The university was initially established on April 30, 1901, through a partnership with the then-Lincoln University, an existing college in Lincoln, Illinois also affiliated with the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. At this time, the charter for Lincoln University, which had been in existence since February 1865, was modified to create a new overarching university, the James Millikin University. This new university had two subsidiary units: Lincoln College, the newly renamed, Lincoln-based campus formerly known as Lincoln University, and the Decatur College and Industrial School, a new campus to be established in Decatur. This arrangement leveraged the existing resources of Lincoln University to establish a wholly new college in Decatur. The combined, two-campus university took the name of its primary advocate, James Millikin.

The university's campus in Decatur, however, would not officially open until September 15, 1903. All the while, the school's dedication was presided over by President Theodore Roosevelt.

James Millikin University maintained its two-campus model until 1952, when the two units separated to become two wholly independent institutions; the Decatur campus renamed as just Millikin University while the Lincoln campus remained known as Lincoln College. The charter of independent Millikin was approved by the state on July 23, 1953. [4]

Academics

Millikin confers graduate and post-graduate certificates and degrees. Its most popular undergraduate majors, based on number out of 403 graduates in 2022, were: [5]

Media

Millikin University.jpg

Decaturian

The Decaturian is the bi-weekly student newspaper. Its first issue appeared in 1903; issues up to 1951 are archived online. [6]

WJMU 89.5 The Quad

WJMU is Millikin University's student-operated freeform format radio station. In addition to its musical responsibilities, WJMU also creates its own public service announcements, liners, news, Millikin sports programming and promotional materials. [7]

In 1922, a license was issued for a new AM broadcasting station, operating on a wavelength of 360 meters (833 kHz). [8] [9] This station was randomly assigned the call letters WBAO, which came from a sequential roster of available call signs. It maintained a limited schedule of broadcasts. [10] [9] On May 25, 1928, the Federal Radio Commission (FRC) issued General Order 32, which notified 164 stations, including WBAO, that "From an examination of your application for future license it does not find that public interest, convenience, or necessity would be served by granting it." [11] On September 1, 1928, the FRC listed "Stations WJBL and WBAO" as one of the "consolidations which have been approved by the commission, or imposed on the stations by the commission". [12] WBAO was formally deleted on October 1, 1928, [9] [13] and it was announced that programs previously broadcast by that station would now be heard over WJBL. [14]

Rankings

In 2021, U.S. News & World Report ranked Millikin University #12 in "Regional Colleges Midwest", #11 in Best Undergraduate Teaching, and #29 in Best Value Schools, noting that the institution had selective admissions and a student-faculty ratio of 10:1. [15]

Athletics

Since their first year of athletics in the 1903–04 academic year and prior to joining the NCAA Division III and the CCIW in the 1946–47 season, Millikin primarily competed as an Independent of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). Millikin University teams have since participated in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division III. The Big Blue are a member of the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW). [16] Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, wrestling, soccer, swimming and diving, tennis, track and field, and volleyball; while women's sports include basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, softball, triathlon, swimming & diving, tennis, track & field and volleyball.

Notable alumni

Actors and musicians

Artists

Athletes and coaches

Millikin University was a member of the Illinois Intercollegiate Athletic Conference from 1910 to 1937.

Authors and media figures

Business figures

Higher Education leaders

Public Service

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carthage College</span> Lutheran college in Kenosha, Wisconsin, U.S.

Carthage College is a private college affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and located in Kenosha, Wisconsin. It enrolls 2,667 students.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin</span> Athletic conference in the NCAA

The College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) is a college athletic conference which competes in the Division III level of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Midwest Conference</span> NCAA Division III athletic conference

The Midwest Conference (MWC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA's Division III. Member institutions are located in the Midwestern United States in the states of Illinois, Iowa, and Wisconsin. The Midwest Conference was created in 1994 with the merger of the Midwest Collegiate Athletic Conference, which had been sponsoring men's sports since 1921, and the Midwest Athletic Conference for Women, which was formed in 1977.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Illinois Wesleyan University</span> Private college in Bloomington, Illinois, US

Illinois Wesleyan University is a private liberal arts college in Bloomington, Illinois. Founded in 1850, the central portion of the present campus was acquired in 1854 with the first building erected in 1856.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Park University</span> Private university in Chicago, Illinois, United States

North Park University is a private Christian university in Chicago, Illinois. It was founded in 1891 by the Evangelical Covenant Church. It is located on Chicago's north side and enrolls more than 2,600 undergraduate and graduate students.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Central College</span> Private college in Naperville, Illinois, US

North Central College is a private college in Naperville, Illinois. It is affiliated with the United Methodist Church and has nearly 70 areas of study in undergraduate majors, minors, and programs through 19 academic departments organized in three undergraduate colleges/schools and a masters program.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lincoln College (Illinois)</span> Private college in Lincoln, Illinois, US

Lincoln College was a private college in Lincoln, Illinois. The college offered associate, bachelor's, and master's programs. It maintained an extension site in Normal, Illinois that provided adults with Accelerated Bridge to Education bachelor's degree programs. The college closed on May 13, 2022.

WDZ is a commercial radio station, licensed to Decatur, Illinois. It broadcasts a sports radio format and calls itself "Fox Sports 1050." It is owned by the Neuhoff Corporation, which also owns four other local radio stations, WCZQ, WDZQ, WSOY and WSOY-FM. Studios and offices are located on North Water Street. It is one of the oldest radio stations in Illinois, and one of the few that still carry a three-letter call sign along with WGN and WLS Chicago.

Donald Gene Shroyer was an American football and baseball coach. He served as the head football coach at Millikin University in Decatur, Illinois from 1956 to 1961 and at Southern Illinois University Carbondale from 1964 to 1965, compiling a career college football coaching record of 32–35–1. Shroyer was also the head baseball coach at Millikin from 1957 to 1959, tallying a mark of 28–15. From 1962 to 1963, he was an assistant coach for St. Louis Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL).

Robert E. Brannan was an American football, basketball, and baseball player and coach. He was the first coach in Chicago Bears franchise history, running the team when they were known as the Decatur Staleys in 1919.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fred T. Long</span> American professional baseball player

Fred Thomas "Pop" "Pops" "Big" Long was an American professional baseball player in the Negro leagues and a college football coach. He was the head football coach at four historically black colleges and universities in Texas between 1921 and 1965, compiling a career record of 224–145–31. He was the head coach at Wiley College in Marshall, Texas, for 35 years from 1923 to 1947 and again from 1956 to 1965. He led the Wiley Wildcats football team to three black college football national championships, in 1928, 1932, and 1945.

Harry J. "Little" Long was an American college football coach and professor of biology and brother of Fred T. Long. He was born in Decatur, Illinois and graduated from Decatur High School in 1915. He enrolled at the James Millikin University in the fall of 1915 and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1919, having majored in biology and minored in mathematics. He completed his Master of Arts degree in biology at Columbia University in New York in 1928 and was working on completing his Doctorate at the University of Michigan before his untimely death in 1945.

The Interstate Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) was a college athletic conference that existed from 1908 to 1970 in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James N. Ashmore</span> American football, basketball and baseball coach and college athletics administrator

James Newton Ashmore was an American football, basketball and baseball coach and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at the Washington Agricultural College and School of Science—now known as Washington State University—(1903), Millikin University, Western Maryland College—now known as McDaniel College–(1907–1908), and DePauw University (1922–1924), compiling a career college football record of 61–46–9. Ashmore was also the head basketball coach at Washington Agricultural (1904–1905), Millikin, the University of Colorado at Boulder (1914–1917), the University of Iowa (1920–1922), DePauw (1923–1924) and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (1926–1931), tallying a career college basketball mark of 178–117. In addition, he was the head baseball coach at Washington Agricultural (1904), Millikin, Colorado, (1915–1917), Iowa (1920–1922), DePauw (1923–1924) and North Carolina (1927–1931).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WSOY (AM)</span> Radio station in Decatur, Illinois

WSOY is a commercial AM radio station broadcasting a Talk radio format. Licensed to Decatur, Illinois, the station is owned by Neuhoff Corp., through licensee Neuhoff Media Decatur, LLC. Neuhoff owns four other local radio stations, WCZQ, WDZ, WDZQ and WSOY-FM. Studios and offices are located on North Water Street and the transmitter site is near St. Louis Bridge Road, sharing the same tower as WDZ.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Millikin Big Blue</span> Athletic programs of Millikin University

The Millikin Big Blue are the intercollegiate athletic programs of Millikin University (MU) located in Decatur, Illinois, United States. The Big Blue athletic program is a member of the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) and competes at the NCAA Division III level.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Champaign-Decatur CSA</span> CSA in Illinois, United States

The Champaign-Decatur CSA, also known as East Central Illinois CSA, is a combined statistical area in the U.S. State of Illinois. It is the 104th largest combined statistical area in the U.S. It is composed of four counties, Champaign, Ford, Piatt and Macon.

Robert William Appleby was an American football and baseball player and coach. He was a two-sport athlete at the Arkansas State Teachers College, playing guard for the football team and pitching for the baseball team. He also played professional baseball for parts of at least three seasons, including a stint at Jonesboro during which he pitched seven consecutive shutouts and 67 scoreless innings.

The 1928 Eastern Illinois Blue and Gray football team represented Eastern Illinois State Teachers College as a member of the Illinois Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) during the 1928 college football season. The team was led by seventeenth-year head coach Charles Lantz and played its home games at Schahrer Field. The Blue and Gray finished the season with a 7–0–1 record overall and a 5–0–1 record in conference play, making them conference co-champions with Millikin.

The 1961 Millikin Big Blue football team was an American football team that represented Millikin University as a member of the College Conference of Illinois during the 1961 NAIA football season. In their sixth and final year under head coach Don Shroyer, the Big Blue compiled a perfect 8–0 record, won the CCI championship, and outscored opponents by a total of 305 to 79. Millikin was ranked 14th in the final National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) poll. The 1961 campaign was one of only four undefeated seasons in Millikin football history.

References

  1. ↑ As of June 30, 2020. U.S. and Canadian Institutions Listed by Fiscal Year 2020 Endowment Market Value and Change in Endowment Market Value from FY19 to FY20 (Report). National Association of College and University Business Officers and TIAA. February 19, 2021. Retrieved February 20, 2021.
  2. ↑ "Millikin University" . Retrieved August 9, 2023.
  3. ↑ "Freedom of Access to Campus". Millikin University. 2015-08-02. Retrieved 2020-03-07.
  4. ↑ "Millikin History: A Brief History of Millikin University". millikin.edu. Millikin University. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
  5. ↑ "Millikin University". nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator. U.S. Dept of Education. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
  6. ↑ Digital-Decaturian Project
  7. ↑ "WJMU". Millikin University. 2015-08-25. Retrieved 2020-03-07.
  8. ↑ "New Stations", Radio Service Bulletin, May 1, 1922, page 2. Limited Commercial license, Serial #677, issued on April 25, 1922 for operation on 360 meters for a three month period.
  9. 1 2 3 James Millikin University entry, Educations Own Stations by S. E. Frost, Jr., 1937, pages 138-139.
  10. ↑ "Campus News to be broadcast by WBAO". The Decaturian. Decatur, Macon County, Illinois: Millikin University. 1927-11-18. Retrieved 15 March 2022.
  11. ↑ "Appendix F (2): Letter to and list of stations included in General Order No. 32, issued May 25, 1928", Second Annual Report of the Federal Radio Commission for the Year Ended June 30, 1928, Together With Supplemental Report for the Period From July 1, 1928 to September 30, 1928, pages 146, 148.
  12. ↑ Federal Radio Commission announcement (September 1, 1928), Second Annual Report of the Federal Radio Commission for the Year Ended June 30, 1928, Together With Supplemental Report for the Period From July 1, 1928 to September 30, 1928, pages 161-163.
  13. ↑ "Strike out all particulars", Radio Service Bulletin, November 30, 1928, page 12.
  14. ↑ "First University Broadcast Will Be on October 10", The Decaturian Weekly, October 4, 1928, page 1.
  15. ↑ "Millikin University". usnews.com. U.S. News & World Report . Retrieved 19 August 2021.
  16. ↑ "History". athletics.millikin.edu. Retrieved 2020-03-07.
  17. ↑ "Jodi Benson: The Industry, Motherhood & The Little Mermaid". TheatreArtLife. 2018-01-31. Retrieved 2020-03-07.
  18. ↑ ""Mermaid" star visits school that set her dreams afloat". The Denver Post. 2007-08-28. Retrieved 2020-03-07.
  19. ↑ "Tad Hilgenbrink". IMDb. Retrieved 2022-03-07.
  20. ↑ Ryman Arts. "Herbert D. Ryan biography" . Retrieved 2014-09-18.
  21. ↑ New York Times April 12, 1975, pp.31
  22. ↑ "Mike Rowland Stats". Baseball Almanac. Retrieved 2008-06-19.
  23. ↑ "Caterpillar Officers".[ permanent dead link ]
  24. ↑ Herald and Review (Decatur, Macon, Illinois) 02 Jun 1940, Sun. Page 3.
  25. ↑ https://www.wilmington.edu/people/trevor-m-bates-dhsc-at-atc/ Retrieved 2022-02-23
  26. ↑ Bailey, Jennifer (April 3, 2019). "Residents elect Williams as mayor". Commercial News . Williams, 41, and the other elected officials who won Tuesday night will be sworn in on May 7
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.