Calvin College
 Calvin College  (University)    | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Motto | "My heart I offer to you, Lord, promptly and sincerely." |
| Formation | 1876 |
| Headquarters | grand Rapids, Michigan, USA |
| Type | Private liberal arts college |
| Other name | Knights |
| A private Christian (Calvinist) university | |
Calvin University, formerly Calvin College, is a private Christian university in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Founded in 1876, Calvin University is an educational institution of the Christian Reformed Church and stands in the Reformed tradition of Protestantism. Known as Calvin College for most of its history, the school is named after John Calvin, the 16th-century Protestant Reformer.
History
During the latter decades of the 20th century, Calvin grew to around 4,200 students. In 1991, the seminary and the college established separate boards of trustees.
At the turn of the millennium, Calvin began several new construction projects. Among these were a new communications and political science building, a conference center and hotel. In 2006, Calvin announced an expansion of the Fieldhouse which was completed in the spring of 2009.[1] Shortly after, in 2010, Calvin completed an extensive renovation and expansion of the Fine Arts Center, thereafter rededicated as the Covenant Fine Arts Center.[2]
The curriculum has expanded to include professional training in a variety of fields, but the college maintains a strong commitment to a liberal arts curriculum, which the college views as a means to develop students' understanding of God's world and their place in it.
The school made national headlines in 2005 when US President George W. Bush was commencement speaker. Reactions among students and faculty were mixed. According to The Washington Post, more than 800 faculty members, alumni, students and friends of the school signed a full-page ad in the Grand Rapids Press, saying that Bush's policies "...violate many deeply held principles of Calvin College."[3]
In August 2009, the college's Board of Trustees issued a controversial memo to all employees that said that faculty were prohibited from teaching, writing about, or advocating on behalf of homosexuality or homosexual issues such as same-sex marriage. Many faculty members were critical of the policy and of the way it was adopted without consultation by the board.[4] The Faculty Senate, by a vote of 36-4, asked the Board to withdraw the memo.[5] The official policy of the college continues to be that the "proper place" for sexual relations is a "marriage relationship between a man and a woman".[6]
In June 2012, the Synod of the Christian Reformed Church of North America voted to appoint Michael K. Le Roy as the president of Calvin College,[7] succeeding President Gaylen J. Byker.
Within months of assuming office, President Le Roy disclosed that Calvin faced a financial crisis, with $117 million in debt at the time.[8] As part of the debt reduction plan, Calvin successfully raised $25 million in eight months to reduce its long-term debt to $90 million and continues to implement cost-cutting measures.[9] In September 2015, four lightly enrolled majors were reduced to minors and one minor eliminated, marking the final step in academic division prioritization.[10]
Calvin University implemented a "one button" campus lockdown system in 2017. The new Lenel system can lockdown every exterior door on the college campus with the push of a single button. The college has also offered active shooting training to some staff and students.[11]
Notable people
Alumni
- Dave Agema, 1971, Republican National Committeeman
- Jon Vander Ark, president of Republic Services
- William Brashler, author of The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars and Motor Kings
- Meindert DeJong, a Dutch-born American writer of children's books who won the Hans Christian Andersen Award.
- Betsy DeVos, former chair of the Republican party in Michigan and former Secretary of Education
- Keith DeRose, Allison Foundation Professor of Philosophy at Yale University
- Richard DeVos, founder of Amway and Orlando Magic CEO
- William K. Frankena 1930, moral philosopher, Chairman UofM philosophy department, Distinguished Alumnus
- Hans Halvorson, Stuart Professor of Philosophy at Princeton University
- Wayne Huizenga, businessman (attended)
- Bill Huizenga, U.S. Congressman
- Rose Ibiama 2005, member of Academy Award-winning DreamWorks Animation teams
- M.I Abaga, Nigerian Musician
- Peter Kreeft, Professor of Philosophy and Theology at Boston College
- Marc Evan Jackson 1992, actor and comedian
- Todd Martinez 1989, theoretical chemist and professor
- Jeannine Oppewall 1968, Academy Award-nominated production designer
- Alvin Plantinga, prominent (theistic) contemporary philosopher of religion
- Patricia Rozema 1981, filmmaker
- Paul Schrader 1968, Academy Award-nominated screenwriter and filmmaker
- Carl Strikwerda, President of Elizabethtown College
- Jay Van Andel Businessman, co-founder of Amway
- John Van Engen 1969, Professor of History and Haskins Medal winner
- John Witte Jr. 1982, Robert W. Woodruff Professor at Emory University School of Law
Faculty
- Lionel Basney, Professor of English, poet, author, critic
- Johannes Broene, 1908-1925 teaching primarily in Philosophy and Education but also classes in History, Civics, Government, Chemistry, and Psychology
- Brian Diemer, 1986–Present, Head Cross Country Coach
- Vern Ehlers, 1966–1982, Professor of Physics, was U.S. Representative from Grand Rapids
- John E. Hare, 1989–2003, Professor of Philosophy
- Paul B. Henry, 1970–1978, Professor of Political Science
- William Harry Jellema, 1920–1936, 1948-1963 founder of Calvin's Philosophy Department
- George Marsden, 1965–1986, 2010–present, Professor of History
- Richard Mouw, 1968–1985, Professor of Philosophy
- Alvin Plantinga, 1963–1981, Professor of Philosophy
- H. Evan Runner, 1951–1981, Professor of Philosophy
- Gary Schmidt, 1986–present, Professor of English, awarded two Newbery Honor awards for his young-adult fiction
- James K.A. Smith, 2002–present, Professor of Philosophy
- William Spoelhof, 1946–1951, Professor of History and Political Science
- Ralph Stob, 1915–1964, Professor of Classics
- Howard J. Van Till, Emeritus Professor of Physics
- Nicholas Wolterstorff, 1959–1989, Professor of Philosophy
Alumni on Wikispooks
| Person | Born | Nationality |
|---|---|---|
| Betsy DeVos | 8 January 1958 | US |
| Faisal bin Turki Al Saud (born 1975) | 27 March 1975 | Saudi Arabia |
References
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20110608130957/http://www.calvin.edu/news/2008-09/SFC-dedication/
- ↑ \https://web.archive.org/web/20130531232749/http://www.calvin.edu/campaign/priorities/fac/
- ↑ https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/05/21/AR2005052100719.html
- ↑ http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2009/08/calvin_college_professors_call.html
- ↑ http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2009/10/calvin_college_faculty_senate.html
- ↑ https://calvin.edu/events/sexuality-series/lgbt-homosexuality-faq.html?dotcmsredir=1
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20120903013000/http://www.calvin.edu/admin/president/inauguration/
- ↑ http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2013/03/calvin_college_financial_troub.html
- ↑ {http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2014/05/how_calvin_college_convinced_d.html
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20151010084929/http://www.calvin.edu/admin/president/finances/
- ↑ https://calvinchimes.org/2017/10/13/calvin-prepared-for-active-shooter/
