Geneva College is located in the College Hill neighborhood of Beaver Falls, which sits above the more southerly parts of the city.
Stone marking the original campus in Northwood
Johnston Gym as seen from College Avenue
:'''Geneva College' was the original name of
Hobart College.
'Geneva College' is a small,
private,
liberal arts college located in
Beaver Falls,
Pennsylvania,
United States. Founded in 1848, it is affiliated with the
Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America (RPCNA).
History
Geneva College was founded in 1848 in
Northwood, Ohio, by John Black Johnston, a
minister of the
Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America (RPCNA). Originally called "Geneva Hall", the college was named after the
Swiss center of the
Reformed faith movement. After briefly closing during the
American Civil War, the college continued operating in Northwood until 1880. By that time, the college leadership had begun a search for alternate locations that were closer to urban areas. After considering several locations in the
Midwest, the denomination chose
Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania. The college constructed its current campus on land donated by the
Harmony Society. Old Main, the oldest building on campus, was completed in 1881.
The
United States Army took over the campus during
World War I for use as a training base. The college experienced significant growth after
World War II as many former servicemen took advantage of the educational provisions of the
G.I. Bill. The college also experienced another growth period in the 1990s. The most recent major campus construction project to be completed was the construction of Northwood Hall in the late 1990s. A major project to reroute
Pennsylvania Route 18, which is expected to take several years, was begun in May of 2007.
[1]
Administration
Two bodies oversee the administration of the college, the Board of Corporators and the Board of Trustees; while the Corporators are the official legal owners of the college, in practice most authority is delegated to the Trustees, who are elected by the Corporators. The RPCNA still takes an active sponsorship and oversight role in the college: the college president, chaplain, and chairman of the Department of Biblical Studies must be members of the RPCNA, and all members of the Board of Corporators and the majority of the Board of Trustees must be RPCNA members. All professors and lecturers in the Department of Biblical Studies must subscribe to the
Westminster Confession of Faith, and all full-time faulty and staff members must sign statements confessing faith in
Jesus Christ and the
Christian religion.
Academics
Geneva offers undergraduate degree programs in the arts and sciences, such as elementary education, business, engineering, student ministry, biology, and psychology. In 2006, the Educational Testing Service (ETS) rated the Business and Accounting undergraduates in the 95th percentile amongst American colleges.
Geneva offers a Degree Completion Program (DCP) for degrees in Human Resource Management, Community Ministry or Organizational Development for adult students mainly at off-campus locations. Geneva also established the Center for Urban Theological Studies in Philadelphia and has sister colleges in
Taiwan (
Christ College) and
Korea (
Chong Shin College and Theological Seminary).
Geneva also offers graduates studies in several fields. These include a Masters of Science in Organizational Leadership, Masters of Education in Reading, a Master of Business Administration, and Masters of Arts in Counseling and Higher Education.
Geneva established the Center for Technology Development (GCCTD) in 1986 for providing research, prototyping and technical support to local industries and entrepreneurs. The Center was awarded first prize in the Consolidated Natural Gas Company’s Annual Award of Excellence competition in 1990.
Affiliations and accreditations
Geneva College is a member of the
Council for Christian Colleges and Universities. Accreditations include the
Commission on Higher Education of the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools,
Accreditation Board of Engineering and Technology,
Association of Collegiate Business Schools and Programs and the
American Chemical Society.
The school's sports teams are called the Golden Tornadoes. Except for the
football team, the teams participate in the
NAIA and the
American Mideast Conference. The football team participates in the
Mid-States Football Association. In 2005, Geneva began participating in the
Presidents' Athletic Conference of
NCAA Division III as a provisional member. Geneva is expected to become a full member in 2011.
Culture and traditions
The majority of students come from
evangelical or conservative
Mainline Protestant backgrounds. Students must attend a designated number of weekly college-sponsored chapels to qualify for graduation.
Alcohol is banned from the campus, and
tobacco use is restricted to a purpose-built gazebo near Pearce Hall.
Greek letter fraternities and sororities are not permitted.
Geneva College bills itself the "Birthplace of College Basketball." The first recorded basketball game involving a college team occurred at Geneva College on
April 8,
1893 when the Geneva College Covenanters defeated the
New Brighton YMCA.
Geneva was founded by
Scottish and
Scots-Irish immigrants. Many names of campus buildings and areas bear Scottish names:
★ The main meeting area of the Student Center is called ''Skye Lounge'' after the
Isle of Skye.
★ The restaurant-style eating area is called ''The Brig'', short for
Brigadoon, commemorating a play about a mythical
Highland village.
★ The guest dining room is referred to as the ''Clan Room'', after the
Scottish clans.
Geneva sports teams were nicknamed the ''Covenanters'' until the 1950s. Members of the RPCNA are sometimes referred to as Covenanters because the denomination traces its roots to the
Covenanting tradition of
Reformation era Scotland. The modern sports nickname of ''Golden Tornadoes'' commemorates the "Golden Tornado" of
May 11,
1914 when a major
tornado struck the college. Although the storm caused significant damage to the campus, there were no serious injuries. College students and faculty rejoiced at what they believed was a sign of God's mercy.
Geneva's traditional sports rivalry is with
Westminster College in nearby
New Wilmington, Pennsylvania. The rivalry was partially interrupted for several years around the turn of the 21st century when Westminster left the
NAIA for the
NCAA Division III. The rivalry will continue into the future, however, as both will be full football members of the Division III
Presidents' Athletic Conference by 2007.
Controversies
Catholic lecturer
The college was at the center of a controversy in the mid-1990s when the administration asked a member of the faculty to resign. The incident centered around a
non-tenured lecturer in the Department of Biblical Studies who had announced that he had converted to
Roman Catholicism. The administration explained that as a Catholic he could no longer subscribe to the Westminster Confession of Faith, a requirement for teaching theology at the college.
CareerLink
On
December 15,
2006, the college filed a federal lawsuit against the state of Pennsylvania, alleging that a decision by the state to block the college from participating in the state sponsored 'CareerLink' job service amounted to a violation of the college's
First Amendment rights. In response, the state argued that the college's requirement that faculty members subscribe to the Christian religion amounted to discrimination, to which the college responded that the faculty religious test constituted a
bona fide occupational qualification under existing federal employment law. The lawsuit was co-sponsored by the
Association of Faith-Based Organizations and argued by the
Christian Legal Society.
In April 2007, the college reached a settlement with 'CareerLink' in U.S. District Court in Pittsburgh. Geneva's right to access to 'CareerLink' will be restored and the college will retain the statement on its employment applications stating, "Compliance with Geneva's Christian views is considered a bona fide occupational qualification ... and will have a direct impact on employment consideration."
[1]
Facilities
McCartney Library
Old Main
Geneva's administration and faculty offices and classrooms are found largely in the following buildings:
★ Alexander Hall — Administrative offices (first floor) and main dining hall (second floor).
[2]
★ Alumni Hall — Primary music building, including music department offices.
[3]
★ Fern Cliffe — Faculty offices for political science, humanities, history and English departments.
[4]
★ Johnston Gym — Built in 1911, Johnston Gym is primarily used for music and band purposes. Originally, per its name, it was used as the college gymnasium.
[5]
★ McCartney Library — College library, built in 1930 and expanded in 1965, and named for
Clarence E. Macartney. Its collection includes over 371,000 items including a special section of RPCNA historical documents.
[6]
★ Northwood Hall — Classrooms and faculty offices for business and psychology departments, completed in 1998.
[7]
★ Old Main — Classrooms, administration offices (including the president's office), and faculty offices. When Geneva moved to Beaver Falls, Old Main was the first classroom structure, completed in 1881.
[8]
★ Rapp Technical Design Center — Technical classrooms and laboratories. Completed in 2002, it is the newest educational building on campus.
[9]
★ Science and Engineering (S&E) — Technical classrooms, laboratories, and faculty offices for engineering, chemistry, biology, physics and computer science departments.
[10]
Student life and sports facilities include the following:
★ Bagpiper Theatre — Theater hosting productions sponsored by the Communications Department.
[11]
★ Merriman Athletic Complex — Track and
soccer.
[12]
★ Metheney Fieldhouse —
Gyms,
locker rooms, sports faculty offices, and other sports-related facilities.
[13]
★
Reeves Field —
Football.
[14] The field is also used by the football team of Big Beaver Falls High School and was
Joe Namath's home field during his high school days.
★ Student Center — Lounges, Brigadoon restaurant, Riverview Cafe coffeeshop, student mail, fitness center and bookstore.
[15]
Geneva's residence halls including the following buildings:
★ Clarke Hall — traditional freshmen women's dorm with three floors of two-person rooms.
[16]
★ Geneva Arms — four floors of upperclassmen apartment-style dorms, with apartment capacities ranging from three to six persons. The Arms is divided into men's and women's buildings.
[17]
★ McKee Hall — traditional upperclassmen women's dorm with three floors of two-person suite-style rooms.
[18]
★ Memorial Hall - traditional upperclassmen men's dorm with four floors of two-person rooms.
[19]
★ Pearce Hall - traditional freshmen men's dorm with four floors of two-person rooms.
[20]
★ Young Hall - four floors of freshmen apartment-style dorms, with apartment capacities ranging from three to six persons. Young Hall is divided into men's and women's buildings.
[21]
Geneva also operates several smaller houses, primarily for upperclassmen. These include:
[22]
★ Barbato House
★ Kerr House
★ Patterson House
★ Schoolhouse
★ Swanson House
The college also places some restrictions on out-of-town students living off-campus.
[23]
Notable alumni or attendees
Politics
★
Charles R. Eckert (1868-1959), US Congressman from
Pennsylvania
★
John R. Goodin (1836-1885), US Congressman from
Kansas
★
Robert P. Kennedy (1840-1918), US Congressman from
Ohio
★
J. Howard Swick (1879-1952), US Congressman from
Pennsylvania
★
Henry Wilson Temple (1864-1955), US Congressman from
Pennsylvania
★
Joseph P. Kolter (1926- ), US Congressman from
Pennsylvania
★
Gerald LaValle (1932- ),
Pennsylvania State Senator
Sports
★
Cal Hubbard (1900-1977), National Football League and Major League Baseball Hall of Fame
★
Joe Beggs (1910-1983), Major League Baseball player
[24]
★
Casey Hageman (1887-1964), Major League Baseball Player
Arts
★
W.D. Snodgrass, American poet and a 1960
Pulitzer Prize for Poetry winner
Other
★
Norman Clyde, mountaineer
References
1. Route 18 Improvements Begin Monday in Beaver Falls, PennDOT, 2007-05-16. Accessed 2007-08-20.
2. Alexander Hall, Geneva College. Accessed 2007-09-08.
3. Alumni Music Hall, Geneva College. Accessed 2007-09-08.
4. Fern Cliffe, Geneva College. Accessed 2007-09-08.
5. Johnston Gymnasium, Geneva College. Accessed 2007-09-08.
6. Geneva College - About the Library, Geneva College. Accessed 2007-09-08.
7. Northwood Hall, Geneva College. Accessed 2007-09-08.
8. Old Main, Geneva College. Accessed 2007-09-08.
9. Rapp Technical Design Center, Geneva College. Accessed 2007-09-08.
10. The Science & Engineering Building, Geneva College. Accessed 2007-09-08.
11. The Bagpiper Theatre, Geneva College. Accessed 2007-09-08.
12. The Merriman Athletic Field Complex, Geneva College. Accessed 2007-09-08.
13. Metheny Field house, Geneva College. Accessed 2007-09-08.
14. Reeves Field, Geneva College. Accessed 2007-09-08.
15. The Student Center, Geneva College. Accessed 2007-09-08.
16. Clarke Hall, Geneva College. Accessed 2007-09-08.
17. Young Hall & Geneva Arms, Geneva College. Accessed 2007-09-08.
18. McKee Hall, Geneva College. Accessed 2007-09-08.
19. Memorial Hall, Geneva College. Accessed 2007-09-08.
20. Pearce Hall, Geneva College. Accessed 2007-09-08.
21. Young Hall & Geneva Arms, Geneva College. Accessed 2007-09-08.
22. Geneva College. ''Geneva College 2007-2008 Student Handbook''. Beaver Falls: Geneva College, 2007, pp. 191-193.
23. Geneva College. ''Geneva College 2007-2008 Student Handbook''. Beaver Falls: Geneva College, 2007, pp. 168-169.
24. Joe Beggs Statistics, Baseballreference.com. Accessed 25 March 2007.
External links
★
Geneva College website
★
''The Cabinet'' Geneva College newspaper
★
WGEV Geneva College radio station
العربية
中国
Français
Deutsch
Ελληνική
हिन्दी
Italiano
日本語
Português
Русский
Español
