- At Centre, the extraordinary happens
everyday. It might be as internationally extraordinary as when
the candidates for vice president of the United States debated
at our Norton Center for the Arts in the fall of 2000. Or it might
be as personal as the five Centre students—a record number—who
won Fulbright Awards to study abroad after graduation in 2002
 .
As it has since 1819, Centre opens doors for its students and
takes them to extraordinary destinations.
Many elements contribute to the extraordinary at Centre: outstanding
students; challenging and supportive teachers; excellent facilities;
financial strength; an alumni body known for national leadership,
achievement, and loyalty; a friendly, family-like environment;
a living sense of connection with the past; a vision of new levels
of achievement for the future.
Our combination of first-quality academics and an all-learning,
all-the-time environment that is stimulating, supportive, and
rich in opportunities to participate gives students the intellectual
and social skills they need to succeed—both in graduate and
professional school and in their careers. Our alumni have shown
their appreciation for the educational advantages they received
by supporting Centre financially over the years at the highest
rate of any college or university in the nation.
In this way the College continues to evolve as each generation
of students gives its support to further enhance Centre’s
extraordinary tradition.
Centre
People
Students. Centre students are an unusually talented, energetic,
and diverse group. They come from 32 different states and 12 foreign
countries. And they have far-ranging interests—from thermodynamics
to dance, from Frisbee golf to philosophy, from plays to computers.
They're enthusiastic and good at what they do. Almost 60 percent
were in the top 10 percent of their high school class. And they
like to win, from national academic awards such as the Rhodes,
Fulbright, and Goldwater to the football team's 500th victory
last season.
 Faculty.
Ninety-seven percent of Centre’s faculty members hold the
Ph.D. or other final degree. They received their graduate training
at the nation’s finest universities. In addition to top-notch
credentials, Centre’s faculty members are dedicated teachers
who are active in research in their particular areas of interest.
At Centre, there are no teaching assistants; classes are taught
by members of the faculty.
Graduates. Centre graduates are extremely successful in
gaining admission to graduate school, and approximately half pursue
advanced degrees, primarily in medicine, law, and business. Our
alumni have risen to positions of leadership in virtually every
field, and they're willing and eager to share their experience
and knowledge with current students. Alumni frequently come back
to campus to participate in “career conversations,”
“career days,” and other events designed to help students
identify and reach their goals.
Centre
Facilities
Centre offers outstanding facilities that reflect and reinforce
the quality of a Centre education. Old Centre, our main administration
building, was begun in 1819 and is one of the finest examples
of Greek Revival architecture (white columns and brick construction)
in the country. Our contemporary Norton Center for the Arts has
been widely acclaimed as one of America’s best performance
and exhibition centers. In addition, our residence halls are varied
and appealing, and our classroom buildings are convenient and
contain the latest equipment and instrumentation.
But Centre never stands still, and we continue to enhance our
115-acre campus. The College's master plan for building and renovation
guides a program of physical improvements into the coming decade.
Tops on that list are major improvements to the main athletic
building, academic building, and library. Called The College Centre,
the $22-million expansion and renovation project is scheduled
for completion by 2005.
The following list describes some of the major buildings on campus.
For more information on campus buildings and a campus map, go
to http://www.centre.edu/web/glance/map/campusmap.html.
For a printable walking tour of campus, go to http://www.centre.edu/web/admission/walkingtour.pdf.
 Old
Centre
The first building of the College, Old Centre is listed individually
in the National Register of Historic Places and included in the
Smithsonian Guide to Historic Places. The six-column Greek
Revival front portico and wings were added to the original Federal
building in 1841. During the Civil War, first Confederate and
then Union troops used the building as a hospital before and after
the nearby Battle of Perryville. Old Centre now houses the offices
of the president, vice president for academic affairs, and vice
president for college relations.
Horky House
Built as a private residence in the mid-19th century, Centre’s
admission and financial aid offices have occupied the Greek Revival
Horky House since 1992.
 Norton
Center for the Arts
Each year the Norton Center offers a breath-taking array of entertainment:
cellist Yo-Yo Ma, dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov, trumpeter Wynton
Marsalis, actress Lynn Redgrave, singers Willie Nelson and Art
Garfunkel, Broadway musicals My Fair Lady and Titanic,
and the Boston Pops, to name a few. In October 2000, vice presidential
candidates Dick Cheney and Joe Lieberman faced off in the Norton
Center for the year’s only vice presidential debate. Students
often work backstage during these events or help take important
visitors to and from the airport. In addition, some artists—actress
Lynn Redgrave, flutist James Galway, and trumpeter Wynton Marsalis,
to name just three—offer master classes for small groups
of interested students.
The 85,000-square-foot Norton Center complex was designed by the
Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation and includes the 1,500-seat Newlin
Hall. At the back of the complex is the more intimate 360-seat
Weisiger Theatre and Grant Hall, which includes classrooms, studios,
and faculty offices for drama and music faculty.
 Crounse
Academic Center and
Grace Doherty Library
Crounse Academic Center and Grace Doherty Library are part of
a major expansion and renovation project—called The College
Centre—that is scheduled for completion by 2005.
Crounse, which normally is entered from either end of the building,
includes offices for humanities and social science faculty members,
classrooms, and the Bijou, a small movie theater on the lower
level.
The front and main section of Crounse is occupied by Grace Doherty
Library. The library holds a strong academic collection of books,
journals, CDs, microforms, government documents, and more. The
library also offers online access to more than 10,000 electronic
journals, electronic newspapers, and scholarly, electronic databases.
The library's Web page (click on “Quicklinks” on the
Centre College home page (http://www.centre.edu) provides campus-wide
access to such online databases as Academic Search Premier, Biological
Sciences, Encyclopedia Britannica Online, Grove's Dictionary of
Art, Medline, and Lexis-Nexis among many others. To view a complete
list of databases available, click on “electronic databases,"
on the library's Web page. In addition, the library is one of
several campus buildings that have wireless capability.
All electronic resources are available via the campus network
24 hours per day, seven days a week. Students and faculty now
have complete access to all library databases from off campus
(a tremendous advantage when studying abroad, for example).
The library's traditional print resources represent one of the
oldest scholarly collections in the South. In addition to our
contemporary resources, Doherty also houses the College archives,
which includes college records, oral history interviews, rare
photographs, historical papers, and other materials from Centre's
long history.
As might be expected from one of Kentucky's oldest library collections,
the Grace Doherty Library is an outstanding combination of the
old, the rare, and the new.
 Franklin
W. Olin Hall
Olin Hall was built in 1988 with a $3.5-million grant from the
F.W. Olin Foundation of New York City. It houses the chemistry,
physics, mathematics, and computer science programs. In the foyer
is a two-story Foucault pendulum, which demonstrates the rotation
of the earth beneath the plane of the pendulum’s swing.
Young Hall
Named for two early Centre presidents—John C. Young and his
son William Young, Class of 1859—Young Hall houses the biology
and psychology programs. It also includes a small natural history
museum that features outstanding examples of dinosaur fossils
and unusual minerals.
Jones Visual Arts Center
The Jones Visual Arts Center houses the art and art history programs.
It includes a state-of-the-art hot glass studio and the Aegon
Gallery for exhibitions of work by student and visiting artists.
The drawing and painting studios offer outstanding natural light.
There are also studios for ceramics, sculpture, and other media,
as well as a slide library and classrooms.
Sutcliffe Hall
Originally built in 1915, the building was dramatically expanded
in 1962 and is currently undergoing substantial renovation as
part of the $22-million College Centre project, scheduled for
completion by 2005. Sutcliffe includes two gyms, a workout facility
with free-weight and exercise machines, athletic offices, and
the Athletic Hall of Fame room.
Old Carnegie
Built in 1913 as a library (the industrialist Andrew Carnegie
provided $30,000 toward its construction), Carnegie served that
purpose until the construction of Doherty Library in 1967. It
currently houses the offices of international study and career
services. The second floor will house some athletic offices during
The College Centre construction project. The building is listed
in the National Register of Historic Places.
Cowan Dinning Commons
The octagonal building is the main dining hall on campus. Since
Centre is a residential campus, most students eat at least one
meal a day in Cowan. Faculty and staff members often join students
in Cowan during lunch.
More casual dining opportunities are available at the House of
Brews in the Centre Shoppes and at the Grille in the Combs Center
(our student center, often called the Warehouse).
 Combs
Center (also known as the Warehouse)
The Combs Center student center is often called the Warehouse,
but it is officially named for Leslie L. Combs II, Class of 1925,
a Lexington horse breeder whose gift helped convert a turn-of-the-century
hemp warehouse into one of the nation's most distinctive student
centers. Original plank flooring, brick walls, and one-foot-square
oak columns remain from its warehouse days. There are also game
tables, video rentals, dance space, chairs for lounging, and other
amenities. The second floor features the Grille, a cybercafe that
offers light refreshments and meals, while the third floor has
offices for student organizations.
 Student
Residences
Most students live on campus in accommodations that vary from
traditional residence halls to townhouse-style apartments. Students
also live in the fraternity and sorority houses in Greek Park.
All campus rooms include voice mail and high-speed Internet connections
(Windows or Mac) via a DS3 circuit.
Centre Life
Our all-learning, all-the-time campus provides outstanding opportunities
for entertainment and participation. The College brings internationally
known performing artists to campus for the annual arts series
that features orchestras, operas, Broadway plays and musicals,
dance company performances, and ballets in Newlin Hall in the
Norton Center for the Arts. These world-class programs are available
to students at no additional cost above their annual general fee.
In addition, each year Centre’s Musica da Camera series sponsors
chamber and ensemble concerts by regional, national, and international
artists. Our convocation program regularly features speakers and
performers who present a wide range of interesting, informative
programs that are also free to students.
Along with these events, there are numerous opportunities for
participation in more than 100 campus clubs, societies, teams,
and other groups. These student groups focus on a variety of special
interests and include such organizations as the American Chemical
Society, Law Society, Outdoors Club, Photographic Society, and
CARE (Centre Action Reaches Everyone). Residence halls, fraternities,
and sororities organize many formal and informal events. Intercollegiate
teams—10 for women and nine for men—provide entertainment
for participants and spectators alike, as does our extensive intramural
program.
Five national men’s fraternities (Beta Theta Pi, Phi Delta
Theta, Phi Kappa Tau, Sigma Alpha Epsilon, and Sigma Chi) and
four national women’s sororities (Alpha Delta Pi, Delta Delta
Delta, Kappa Alpha Theta, and Kappa Kappa Gamma) contribute to
the total campus social program. These organizations encourage
academic achievement among their members, perform community service
projects, and organize parties and special events such as the
Greek Week/Carnival Week co-sponsored with the Student Activities
Council. Their contract with the College is spelled out in a "Statement
of Mutual Responsibility." The director of Greek life serves
as an advisor to the Greek organizations. The Student Life Office
encourages volunteer service through CARE, a student service organization
that supports such varied programs as adult literacy education,
food and clothing drives, projects to assist residents of the
Boyle County Senior Citizens Center, and tutoring for elementary
and middle-school children. Centre is also affiliated with several
national volunteer service organizations.
 Centre
College Statement of Community
As an academic community Centre encourages an atmosphere of diversity
and mutual respect. To promote these goals the College Council
approved the following Statement of Community: "We pledge
continuing efforts to build and strengthen a community enriched
by our differences and founded upon our common humanity. Centre
respects the right of all members of the community to express
their individuality in a manner that is consistent with the dignity
and welfare of others. Centre strives to create an environment
where differences are celebrated rather than discouraged, where
individuals have the opportunity to exchange ideas and share in
the richness of mutual experience. By valuing the individual’s
total character over any single characteristic, Centre will maintain
its unique community."
Clubs and Honoraries
We have many interest groups and honoraries that organize a wide
variety of events and activities on campus. Some groups, such
as the Pre-Med Society, the Law Society, the American Chemical
Society, the Economics Society, and language clubs are directly
related to academic life. They enhance classroom instruction through
field trips, guest lectures, and volunteer work.
Other organizations include the Diversity Student Union, the Student
Activities Council, the Outdoors Club, and several religious organizations.
Centre’s honorary societies recognize students for outstanding
leadership, character, and academic ability. These societies include
Phi Beta Kappa and Omicron Delta Kappa (for recognition of outstanding
scholars and leaders), Sigma Delta Pi, Phi Sigma Iota, Phi Sigma
Tau, Phi Alpha Theta, Omicron Delta Epsilon, Pi Sigma Alpha, and
Psi Chi (honoraries for students in Spanish, foreign languages,
philosophy, history, economics, political science, and psychology,
respectively), and Order of Omega (a Greek honorary/leadership
society).
Religious Life
Centre has always been dedicated to the development of the whole
student. From 1819, when the institution was founded by pioneer
Presbyterians, to the present time, the College has recognized
the importance of the full intellectual, social, physical, and
spiritual development of its students. As the College’s statement
of purpose affirms, "Centre’s highest priority is to
prepare its students for lives of learning, leadership, and service."
The religious programs on campus are a crucial component of the
College’s effort to achieve this goal.
Centre’s Office of Religious Life is located in Wiseman Hall
and staffed by the College chaplain. Ministers from local churches
also maintain ties with the College. The Office of Religious Life
works to 1) promote vital religious life and greater religious
understanding on campus; 2) encourage and coordinate the work
of campus religious groups; 3) strengthen students’ links
to their own religious traditions by facilitating the student
ministries of local congregations; 4) enhance the College’s
mission to educate its students as morally and socially responsible
citizens; 5) provide pastoral care and religious counseling for
the campus community; and 6) advise students considering religious
vocations and divinity school programs. In addition to retreats,
speakers, worship services, dinners, and discussion groups, the
Office of Religious Life sponsors events such as the Advent service
of Lessons and Carols, Lenten observances, Passover Seder, and
baccalaureate. Religious groups on campus include Baptist Student
Union, Centre Catholic Community, Centre Christian Fellowship,
Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Westminster Fellowship (Presbyterian),
Episcopal Fellowship, and Habitat for Humanity.
While the College is proud of its Presbyterian connection, Centre
is governed by an independent board of trustees and offers much
religious diversity. The religious denominations with the largest
representations on campus are Baptist, Catholic, Methodist, and
Presbyterian. In addition to these denominations, the following
faiths were represented in a recent freshman class: Assembly of
God, Buddhist, Christian, Church of Christ, Church of God, Disciples
of Christ, Episcopal, Jewish, Latter Day Saints, Lutheran, and
Muslim.
Student Publications
Students publish a biweekly newspaper, The Cento, covering
campus activities and opinions. The yearbook, Olde Centre,
offers students the opportunity to gain practical experience in
writing, photography, and graphic design. Vantage Point
is a publication of student creative writing, photography, and
artwork.
Shared Responsibility
Among the abundant opportunities for growth and experience that
Centre offers outside the classroom, perhaps the most significant
is shared responsibility in campus governance. At Centre, students,
faculty, and staff members work together to create a community
that brings freedom and responsibility into a healthy balance.
Through careful attention to the organization of a strong student
government and by making positions of significant responsibility
available to students, Centre gives concrete meaning to terms
such as democratic values and civic duty. Students take an active
part in College decision-making through their roles in student
government or—with faculty and staff—as members of the
College Council. Students serve with faculty on each academic
program committee, advising on curriculum and major requirements.
They also take the primary responsibility for regulating the conduct
of their peers through the Student Judiciary. Such shared decision-making
and responsibility is an essential part of the Centre education.
It is a liberal education in the true sense, educating the whole
person, building self-esteem and self-confidence, and teaching
concepts such as democracy and civic responsibility on a practical
level.
Campus Governance
The Council of the College. Although Centre is legally
governed by a self-perpetuating board of trustees, its academic
and community life is governed in large degree by the College
Council. The council consists of all full-time members of the
faculty, certain designated College administrators, and 20 students
who serve as undergraduate fellows. (It is highly unusual among
colleges and universities for students to be voting members of
such a decision-making body, but this reflects Centre's strong
commitment to student involvement in governance in positions of
significant responsibility and authority.) Each of the three academic
divisions nominates candidates for undergraduate fellows, who
are then elected by the student body at large; the president and
vice president of the Student Government Association also serve
as undergraduate fellows.
Three undergraduate fellows, elected by the council, serve on
the executive committee of the council. Undergraduate fellows
are appointed in reasonable proportion to all committees of the
council and carry equal responsibility with other members. The
one exception is that they do not participate in consideration
of matters involving the confidential records of other students.
Student Government Association. The Student Government
Association is the official executive and legislative body for
student discussion, decision, and action. It is composed of elected
student representatives and the undergraduate fellows. A major
responsibility of the SGA is to allocate funds to student activities
and service groups. The College allots a part of each student’s
general fee to the SGA, which in turn reviews funding requests
from campus organizations. The SGA president serves as a nonvoting
representative to the board of trustees. The SGA represents the
student body primarily in matters relating to the standards and
practices of nonacademic student activities and services.
The Student Judicial System. The judicial powers of the
student government are exercised by the student judicial system.
The student judicial system consists of the Student Judiciary,
which hears cases involving violations of College regulations;
the Interfraternity Judiciary, which hears cases involving violations
of Interfraternity Council regulations; and the Panhellenic Association
executive committee, which hears cases involving violations of
Panhellenic Association regulations.
The Fraternity and Sorority Systems. By its approval of
the Interfraternity Council constitution, the College has granted
a substantial degree of self-governance to the campus fraternity
system, of which the Interfraternity Council (IFC) is the executive
and legislative body. The IFC regulates and coordinates the affairs
and activities of the five social fraternities on campus in conformance
with the published campus and residence regulations of the College.
Both the IFC and the College subscribe to the policies and positions
of the Association of Fraternity Advisors, National Interfraternity
Conference, and Fraternity Executives Association.
The Panhellenic Association regulates and coordinates the affairs
and activities of the four social sororities on campus in conformity
with the published campus regulations of the College. The Panhellenic
Association subscribes to the National Panhellenic Conference
guidelines.
A special contract between the men’s and women’s Greek
organizations and Centre is spelled out in the "Statement
of Mutual Responsibility."
Athletics
At Centre, we believe athletic participation is important because
it contributes to the education of the whole student. Athletics
serve as a learning experience, as a healthy activity, and as
just plain fun. Our program offers athletic competition for the
novice, the expert, and everyone in between.
Intramurals. An extensive intramural sports program with
15 activities gives the Centre student a chance to meet fellow
students on the playing field, as well as a large number of faculty
 and
staff members who participate in the program.
Intercollegiate Competition.
Centre is a member of the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference
(SCAC) and the National Collegiate Athletic Association, Division
III. SCAC members in addition to Centre are DePauw University
(Greencastle, Ind.), Hendrix College (Conway, Ark.), Millsaps
College (Jackson, Miss.), Oglethorpe University (Atlanta, Ga.),
Rhodes College (Memphis, Tenn.), Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology
(Terre Haute, Ind.), University of the South (Sewanee, Tenn.),
Southwestern University (Georgetown, Texas), and Trinity University
(San Antonio, Texas).
Centre is a member of the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference
(SCAC) and the National Collegiate Athletic Association, Division
III. SCAC members with Centre are Millsaps College, Southwestern
University, Hendrix College, Oglethorpe University, Rhodes College,
Trinity University, University of the South, DePauw University,
and Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology.
All SCAC member institutions adhere to a policy of not awarding
financial aid to a student for participation in athletics.
Residence Life
To promote the atmosphere of closeness and community that is an
important part of Centre, the College requires that students live
in College residences and take their meals in Cowan Dining Commons
or the Combs Center Grille. (For exceptions, see the "College
Regulations" section.) Cowan serves three meals Monday through
Friday and two meals on Saturday and Sunday. Saturday night is
a special meal (steak or shrimp, for example). Vegetarian selections
are available at all meals. Students may choose a 16-, 13-, or
10-meal-per-week plan. All meal plans include Flex Dollars that
can be used at Cowan or the Combs Center Grille.
Health Services
We make on-campus health services available in the Parsons Wellness
Center, which provides medical care for acute common illnesses
and minor injuries. The Wellness Center can also provide continuing
maintenance of medication for routine chronic ailments. We also
give assistance in securing the care of specialists in the community
for illnesses that require special examinations or more extensive
treatment than can be provided through the Wellness Center or
the College’s physicians.
The Wellness Center makes available certain routine medications
at minimal expense in order to save students both time and money.
Also, team medical coverage, including physical examinations for
new athletes and treatment of injuries, is provided by certified
athletic trainers. Students requiring emergency care of serious
injuries or illnesses of a medical or surgical nature not provided
by the Wellness Center and not covered under the College’s
athletic program are financially responsible to the physician
providing the service.
Catalog Home
|
|
|
