Milligan College is a Christian liberal arts college founded in 1866 and located immediately outside of Elizabethton in Carter County, Tennessee. The school has a student population of roughly 1,000 students as well as a campus that is located just minutes from downtown Johnson City, Tennessee. Like many colleges and universities, it has its own zip code, 37682.

Milligan College is affiliated with the Christian Churches/Churches of Christ, the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), and the Churches of Christ (non-instrumental). The College offers 23 bachelors and 3 masters degrees in various fields of study.

History

The school began as an endeavor of the Rev. Wilson G. Barker, a Disciples of Christ minister, and the Buffalo Creek Christian Church, a congregation of the Disciples of Christ located on Buffalo Creek in Carter County, Tennessee. While it began as a private secondary school known as the Buffalo Male and Female Institute, the institution was elevated to the collegiate level in 1881 with the arrival of the Rev. Dr. Josephus Hopwood and his wife Sarah LaRue Hopwood. Hopwood, a Disciples of Christ minister and educator, came to the school with the understanding that it would become a liberal arts college to train leaders for the Disciples churches and the communities of Appalachia. The name was changed to Milligan College in 1885 in honor of the Rev. Dr. Robert Milligan, a professor of Biblical Studies at the College of the Bible of Transylvania University/Kentucky University (now Lexington Theological Seminary). Hopwood continued to serve the school as president until 1903 when he left to found Virginia Christian College (now Lynchburg College) in Lynchburg, Virginia. He returned for an interim presidency in 1915.

Dr. Henry Derthick's presidency is perhaps the most defining administration in the history of the college. He served from 1917 to 1940 and during this tenure the college grew and gained a reputation for excellence in the region. Derthick succeeded in bringing the college through the Great Depression.

In 1943, Milligan became the only college in the nation to completely turn its facilities over to the Naval training programs. The V-12 Navy College Training Program program utilized the college's campus from 1943 to 1945.

The school resumed its civilian education programs in 1945, though facing a significant financial crisis. The board of trustees called Dr. Dean E. Walker, a Disciples of Christ minister and educator, then professor at the seminary of Butler University (now Christian Theological Seminary), to become the college's president. Walker's administration was marked by rapid growth, securing financial stability for the college, and the realization of regional acceditation for the college's academic programs through the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. Walker left the presidency in 1968 to become the president of Emmanuel School of Religion, a graduate theological seminary located adjacent to the college's campus near Johnson City, and loosely associated with the College.

Since the 1960s Milligan has grown in stature in the region and has become one of the premiere private, church-related liberal arts colleges in the South^[1]. The college's education programs are among its most popular majors and degrees. Business and communications programs are also among the top choices of students.

Donald Jeanes (Milligan Class of 1968), an independent Christian Church minister and educator, became the fourteenth president of the college in 1997. He is a graduate of the college, holds a Master of Divinity (M.Div.) degree from neighboring Emmanuel School of Religion, and was granted an honorary doctoral degree by Milligan College. He continues to lead the school.

The college's vision is to change lives and shape culture through a commitment to servant leadership. The college's motto, found on its seal, is "Age Deo Fide Et Amore," meaning "Go with God in faith and love."

The core curriculum, based on an interdisciplinary humanities program and religion courses, educates students to view and engage the world in an open and constructive way, to lead and to serve. The college offers 23 academic majors and three master's degree programs.

Student Life

The college believes that a Christian liberal arts education is about more than just academic studies. The school's programs focus on developing the whole person ? intellectually, spiritually, socially, and physically. There are many opportunities to do just that through a range of activities such as concerts, theatre productions, banquets, pick-up hoops and Ultimate Frisbee, intramurals and athletic events, residence hall activities, and study groups.

As a church-related liberal arts college, Milligan remains closely aligned with the churches that support it. That support often leads to stricter polices governing life at the college. Alcohol and tobacco use are prohibited on campus. Students of opposite genders are not permitted in each other's dorm rooms except for certain hours of the day. All dorms are open on Friday and Saturday nights, on Wednesday nights the dorms alternate between male and female every other week, and upper class dorms are open on Thursday nights. During this time the door should remain open. Dancing was formerly prohibited on campus, but this was recently overturned in favor of hosting dances on and off campus. The Fall Formal and the Junior-Senior dances are among the most popular events among the student body.

Current Status

The Elizabeth Leitner Gregory Center for the Liberal Arts, a center for performing arts, opened in January 2008. It features a 300 seat theater, photography labs, and classrooms for use by the fine arts programs at the college. Milligan has also remodeled the cafeteria to create a more informal and aesthetically pleasing atmosphere. The dinning hall is now open all day to accommodate diverse student schedules.

Notable Alumni

Charles Buddy bolding, Class of 1973, is Head Baseball Coach at Longwood University in Farmville, Virginia.

U.S. Congressman David Davis, Class of 1991, of Tennessee District 1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Davis_%28Tennessee_politician%29

Del Harris is an NBA assistant coach with the Dallas Mavericks and the former head coach of the Houston Rockets, Milwaukee Bucks, and Los Angeles Lakers. http://www.nba.com/coachfile/del_harris/?nav=page

Francis "Frank" Gary Powers, Class of 1950,(August 17, 1929 ? August 1, 1977) was an American pilot whose U-2 spy plane was shot down while over the Soviet Union, causing the U-2 Crisis of 1960.

Eric Blackburn, Class of 2004, is now a television reporter in Southwest Florida. 2005-2007 WWSB-ABC7, 2007-2008 SNN News 6.

References

1. ↑ USNews.com: America's Best Colleges 2008