Cornell College

Cornell College is a private liberal arts college in Mount Vernon, Iowa. Originally called the Iowa Conference Seminary, the school was founded in 1853 by Reverend Samuel M. Fellows. Four years later, in 1857, the name was changed to Cornell College, in honor of iron tycoon William Wesley Cornell, who was a distant relative of Ezra Cornell (founder of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York).

Overview
Cornell students study one course at a time (commonly referred to as "the block plan" or "OCAAT"). Since 1978, school years have been divided into "blocks" of three-and-a-half weeks each (usually followed by a four-day "block break" to round out to four weeks), during which students are enrolled in a single class; what would normally be covered in a full semester's worth of class at a typical university is covered in just seventeen-and-one-half Cornell class days. While schedules vary from class to class, most courses consist of around 30 hours of lecture, along with additional time spent in the laboratory, studying audio-visual media, or other activities. Colorado College in Colorado Springs, Colorado; Quest University in Squamish, British Columbia; Tusculum College in Tusculum, Tennessee; and The University of Montana - Western are the only other colleges operating under this academic calendar. Cornell formerly operated on a calendar of 9 blocks per year, but switched to 8 blocks per year beginning in the fall of 2012.

From its inception, Cornell has accepted women into all degree programs. In 1858, Cornell was host to Iowa's first female recipient of a baccalaureate degree, Mary Fellows, a member of the first graduating class from Cornell College. She received a bachelor's degree in mathematics. In 1871, Harriette J. Cooke became the first female college professor in the United States to become a full professor with a salary equal to that of her male colleagues.



Campus buildings
The most widely recognizable building on Cornell's campus is King Chapel. The chapel is the site of the annual convocation at the commencement of the school year as well as the baccalaureate service in the spring for graduating students. The chapel contains a large organ (over 3000 pipes) and is often the site of musical performances. Religious services are held in the nearby Allee Chapel.

Old Sem, for a short while the only building of the original college, now houses administrative offices of the college.

Cornell contains 9 academic buildings. College Hall (also sometimes called "Old Main"), the second-oldest building of the college, houses classrooms and offices of several social science and humanities departments. South Hall, originally a male dormitory, houses the Politics and English Departments. Prall House contains offices and classrooms of the Philosophy and Religion Departments. The Merle West Science Center houses the Physics, Biology, and Chemistry Departments. West Science contains the school's only stadium seating lecture-style classroom, with a capacity around 100. The Norton Geology Center contains both an extensive museum and classrooms for geological sciences. Law Hall includes the Math, Computer Science, and Psychology Departments, and also is the computing hub of the campus. McWethy Hall, formerly a gymnasium, was remodeled and now contains the studios and offices of the Art Department. Armstrong Hall and Youngker Hall are adjoining fine arts buildings. Armstrong Hall is the location of the Music Department, while Youngker Hall contains the Theatre Department, including Kimmel Theatre. In addition, the Small Sport Center and the Lytle House contain classrooms of the Kinesiology Department.

Cole Library serves both the college and the Mount Vernon community.

Cornell has several residence halls. Pfeiffer Hall, Tarr Hall, and Dows Hall together form the "Tri-Hall" area. Tarr was once an all-male residence hall, but now houses both males and females. Dows is an all-female residence hall, and Pfeiffer is co-ed for all years. Pfeiffer was extensively renovated in 2008. Bowman-Carter Hall is an all-female dorm for first-years and upperclassmen. Pauley-Rorem Hall is a combination of two residence halls that are joined in the middle by a common set of stairs. Until 2012-2013, female first-years resided in Pauley, and male first-years resided in Rorem. In the school year of 2012-2013, both residence halls became coed by floor. Olin Hall and Merner Hall are co-ed upper-class residence halls. New Hall and Russell Hall (formerly Clock Tower Hall) were opened in 2005 and 2007, respectively, and offer suite-style living. Students may choose more independent living options in apartments at 10th Avenue, Armstrong House, and Harlan House, and even at the Sleep Inn through an arrangement with Cornell. Nearly all Cornell students are required to live on-campus or in campus apartments, so most students do not rent non-college housing, and many students choose to live in the residence halls for all four years at Cornell.

The Cornell campus is centered around a modest hill, the feature noted in the moniker "Hilltop Campus." Several campus buildings are grouped on the hilltop, while the athletic facilities and some residential buildings are located farther downhill on the campus's northwest side.

Athletics
Cornell College fields 19 intercollegiate athletic teams, all of which compete in NCAA Division III sports. Formerly a member of the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC), Cornell joined the Midwest Conference (MWC) in the fall of 2012.

Cornell has achieved its greatest success in wrestling. Cornell wrestlers have won eight individual national titles, and in 1947, the wrestling team won the NCAA Division I and AAU national championships. Sixty-Two Cornell wrestlers have been named NCAA All-Americans, and seven have been elected to the National Wrestling Hall of Fame. Seven wrestlers have also been in the Olympics.

Another Cornell team has also met with success recently. In 2011, the women's volleyball team captured the IIAC title and went on to take part in the national tournament for the first time in school history.

Twenty-five Cornell students have earned NCAA Postgraduate Scholarships, awarded annually to students in their final year of eligibility who excel both athletically and academically. Cornell ranks in the top 15 Division III colleges in recipients of this award.

Cornell's football rivalry with Coe College dates to 1891, making it the oldest intercollegiate rivalry west of the Mississippi. Coe currently holds the lead in the series, 60-51-4.

Cornell's mascot is a Ram. In 1949 the Royal Purple, the school's yearbook, offered a $5 prize for someone who could come up with a new mascot to replace either the "Purples" or "Hilltoppers." A sophomore came up with the idea for the ram.

Intercollegiate Mock Trial
A very young program, having existed for only four years, the Cornell College Mock Trial team has been relatively successful, and is currently ranked 16th in the nation. Competing against over 700 teams in the nation, including Yale University, Princeton University, New York University and Washington and Lee University, the Cornell Mock Trial team finished sixth in the nation at the 2010 AMTA (American Mock Trial Association) Nationals.

The Cornell Team has seen success throughout the year seeing victories in Mac II hosted by Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota, the Bluejay Invitational hosted by Creighton University, the Fantastic Flyer Invitational hosted by Lewis University in Oak Brook, Illinois, and St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota and the AMTA Opening Round Championship held in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Cornell Mockers have received numerous individual awards including two All-American attorney awards at the Gold Round National competition in April 2010.

Greek life
Cornell College has 14 officially recognized unique non-national Fraternities and Sororities.


 * Mu Lambda Sigma "Milts"
 * Sigma Kappa Psi "Skys"
 * Beta Omicron "OWLS"
 * Alpha Chi Epsilon "AXEs"
 * Alpha Sigma Pi "ARROWs"
 * Delta Phi Delta "Delphis"
 * Delta Phi Rho "Delts"
 * Phi Kappa Nu "Newts"
 * Phi Lambda Xi "Phi-Lambs"
 * Phi Omega "Phi-Os"
 * Gamma Tau Pi "Gammas"
 * Kappa Theta "Thetas"
 * Rho Zeta Omicron "The Rhozes"
 * Beta Psi Eta "Betas"

Academic statistics

 * Student Faculty Ratio: 12:1
 * Most Popular Majors: Economics, History, Psychology
 * Most Frequent Class size: 10-19

Applicant statistics

 * Average GPA of applicants: 3.44
 * Middle 50% ACT: 23-29
 * Middle 50% SAT: 1070 - 1330 (on 1600 scale)
 * Percent of applicants admitted: 46%

Student statistics

 * Enrollment: 1,191
 * Male/Female: 45/55
 * In-state/Out-of-state: 20/80
 * International: 4.95%

Notable alumni

 * John Q. Tufts late 19th century — Congressman from Iowa's 2nd Congressional district (1875–1877)
 * Leslie M. Shaw 1874 — Governor of Iowa, U.S. Secretary of Treasury
 * Charles Atherton Cumming 1880 — American painter
 * Robert G. Cousins 1881 — U.S. Congressman from Iowa (1893–1909)
 * William Wallace McCredie 1885 — Judge, U.S. Congressman from Washington (1909–1911) and Baseball Executive
 * Edgar J. Helms 1889 — Founder of Goodwill Industries
 * Burton E. Sweet 1895 — U.S. Congressman from Iowa (1915–1923) and unsuccessful Senate Candidate (1922, 1924)
 * Lester J. Dickinson 1898 — U.S. Congressman (1919–1931) and Senator from Iowa (1931–1937)
 * Walter Thornton 1899 — Major League Baseball player
 * Erwin Kempton Mapes 1909 — renowned scholar of Spanish-American Literature
 * Lee Alvin DuBridge 1922 — President of the California Institute of Technology, science advisor to U.S. President Richard Nixon
 * Hubert Stanley Wall 1924 — mathematician
 * Orin D. Haugen 1925 - Colonel in the United States Army during World War II
 * Winifred Van Etten 1925 — Best selling novelist
 * Leo Beranek 1936 — Co-founder of Bolt, Beranek and Newman
 * James Daly 1941 — Emmy Award-winning actor
 * Maryann Mahaffey 1946 — Detroit City Council member
 * Nancy Price (author) 1946 — Author, Sleeping with the Enemy
 * Don E. Fehrenbacher 1948 — Pulitzer Prize for History winner
 * Dale O. Thomas 1948 — Wrestler and coach
 * Herbert L. Hoover, adopted nephew of the former President, retired businessman, and inventor of patented lace stitching technique (did not graduate).
 * Don Weiss 1949 — Sports writer and NFL executive known as Mr. Super Bowl
 * Richard Cross 1957 — opera singer
 * William Taylor 1961 — Chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
 * Mike Conklin 1969 — Feature writer and columnist, Chicago Tribune
 * Grimes Poznikov 1969 - street performer in San Francisco, California
 * David Hilmers 1972 — NASA Astronaut and medical doctor
 * Rob Ash 1973 — Head football coach at Montana State University
 * Michael J. Graham 1975 — President of Xavier University
 * Richard Kirkham 1977 — Philosopher
 * Felecia Epps 1980 - Associate Dean of Academic Affairs and Professor of Law. University of Arkansas at Little Rock
 * Chris Carney 1981 — Congressman from Pennsylvania's 10th Congressional district
 * Alan Krugman 1985 — CEO of Sprehe-feinkost, a German frozen food company.
 * Tanja Kozicky-Manrique 1988 — Hennepin County District Court Judge, Minneapolis, 1998–2010
 * Deb Mell 1990 — member of Illinois House of Representatives
 * Harper Reed 2001 — CTO of Obama for America 2012 campaign
 * Chad Hepperly 2006 — Iowa Fifth District Probation League, founding member of Des Moines Dreamers

Notable faculty

 * Joseph M. Bachelor — author
 * Charles Atherton Cumming — American Artist
 * Glenn Cunningham — Silver Medalist 1500 meters run, 1936 Olympics
 * Robert Dana — Poet Laureate of Iowa
 * Charles Wesley Flint, President (1915–1922), Methodist bishop
 * Bruce Frohnen — academic
 * Lynda Hakken - Internationally renowned organist
 * Leroy Lamis — American sculptor
 * Jim Leach — former Republican congressman, taught as a visiting professor.
 * David Loebsack — Congressman from Iowa's 2nd District
 * Todd Knoop — Economist, author of "Recessions and Depressions: Understanding Business Cycles"
 * Carol Enns — Psychologist, Theorist

Notable staff

 * Matt Hoover — Second season winner of NBC's "The Biggest Loser"
 * Lisa Stone — Head Coach, University of Wisconsin Women's Basketball

Lecturers, speakers, and performers
Despite Cornell's small size and location in a small town, many nationally and internationally prominent speakers and performers have visited Cornell, including the following:
 * Walk off the Earth (2013)
 * Dee Dee Myers (2012)
 * Karl Rove (2012)
 * Robert J. Samuelson (2012)
 * Rick Santorum (2011)
 * Anita Perry (2011)
 * Danzy Senna (2011)
 * David Gergen (2010)
 * Amina Wadud (2010)
 * Tim Wise (2010)
 * Winona LaDuke (2010)
 * Terry E. Branstad (2010)
 * Asher Naim (2009)
 * Bob Vander Plaats(2009)
 * Danielle Ofri (2009)
 * Staceyann Chin(2009)
 * Women (2009)
 * Annie Sprinkle (2009)
 * Pierce Freelon (2009)
 * Yvonne Bynoe(2008)
 * Tim Roemer (2008)
 * Amity Shlaes (2008)
 * Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher (2008)
 * George Stephanopoulos (2008)
 * Rev. Dr. Raphael Gamail Warnock (2008)
 * Patch Adams (2008)
 * Scarlett Johansson (2008)
 * Amy Roloff (2008)
 * Mark E. Weston (2008)
 * Barack Obama (2007, 2008, 2012)
 * Bill Richardson (2007)
 * Madeleine Albright (2007)
 * Kevin Phillips (2007)
 * Mount Eerie (2007)
 * Dinesh D'Souza (2007)
 * Robert Solow (2006)
 * Sarah Weddington (2006)
 * Newt Gingrich (2005)
 * Fareed Zakaria (2005)
 * Bob Woodward (2004)
 * Dennis Kucinich (2004)
 * Howard Dean (2003)
 * Ari Hest (2003)
 * Joan Jett (2003)
 * Janeane Garofalo (2003)
 * Former U.S. Vice President Al Gore (2002)
 * Art Alexakis (2002)
 * Stephen Jay Gould (2001)
 * Sir Mix A Lot (2000)
 * Walter E. Williams (2000)
 * Cornel West (2000)
 * Stephen Carter (1999)
 * Incubus (1999)
 * Gloria Steinem (1999)
 * U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia (1999)
 * They Might Be Giants (1997)
 * Helen Thomas (1996)
 * The Romantics (1986)
 * BB King (1986)
 * Kate Millet (1986)
 * David C. Hilmers, NASA Astronaut, (1986)
 * Jane Elliott (1985)
 * Doc Severinson (1985)
 * Phyllis Bryn-Julson (1978)
 * Janos Starker (1978)
 * Joe Pass (1978)
 * Chuck Wayne (1978)
 * Jerry Jeff Walker (1978)
 * Lennox Hinds (1977)
 * Madeline Manning-Jackson (1977)
 * Haki R. Madhubuti (1977)
 * Sonny Rollins (1977)
 * The Rev. Albert Sampson (1977)
 * Stephen Spender (1977)
 * Oscar Brand (1976)
 * Vassar Clements (1976)
 * Betty Friedan (1976)
 * Roland Hanna (1976)
 * Frank Herbert (1976)
 * Eugene McCarthy (1976)
 * Dorian Wind Quintet (1975)
 * Daniel Ellsberg (1975)
 * Igor Kipnis (1975)
 * William Stafford (1975)
 * Keith Stroup (1975)
 * Paul Winter (1975)
 * Melissa Manchester (1974)
 * Bella Abzug (1974)
 * Julian Bond (1974)
 * Ravi Shankar (1970)
 * Ralph Nader (1970)
 * John Denver (1970)
 * François Mitterrand (1968)
 * Marilyn Horne (1966)
 * Milton Friedman (1965)
 * Martin Luther King, Jr. (1962)
 * The Dave Brubeck Quartet (1957)
 * Isaac Stern (1949)
 * Robert Frost (1940)
 * Marian Anderson (1937)
 * Frank Lloyd Wright (1934, 1946)
 * Grant Wood (1933) (Wood's first public lecture)
 * Amelia Earhart (1933)
 * Carl Sandburg (annually, 1920–1939)
 * Former U.S. President William Howard Taft (1916)
 * Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan (1916)
 * Ernestine Schumann-Heink (1912)
 * William Jennings Bryan (1907)
 * Chicago Symphony (annually, 1903–1963)
 * Booker T. Washington (1900)
 * Susan B. Anthony (1879)
 * Elizabeth Cady Stanton (1869)
 * Fredrick Douglass (1859)