Oglethorpe University

Oglethorpe University is a private liberal arts college in Brookhaven, an inner suburb of Atlanta, in the U.S. state of Georgia. It was chartered in 1835 and named after James Edward Oglethorpe, the state's founder.

History
Oglethorpe University was chartered in 1835 in Midway, just south of the city of Milledgeville, then the state capital. The school was built and, at that time, governed by the Presbyterian Church, making it one of the South's earliest denominational institutions. The American Civil War led to the school's closing from 1862 to 1866.

The college followed the relocation of the capital to Atlanta. In 1870, it began holding classes at the present site of Atlanta City Hall. Plagued by financial difficulties, the school closed its doors two years later.

Oglethorpe College was re-chartered as a non-denominational institution in 1913. In 1915 the cornerstone to the new campus was laid at its present location on Peachtree Road in Brookhaven. The person behind rebuilding Oglethorpe was Dr. Thornwell Jacobs, whose grandfather, Professor Ferdinand Jacobs, had served on the faculty of Old Oglethorpe. Jacobs would serve as president for nearly three decades.

In the early 1940s Oglethorpe University had a medical school. Under the direction of Dr. John Bernard, the university was given several elephants for research, who had been poisoned by the Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus. After the students had finished dissecting the animals they were buried under what is known today as the Philip Weltner Library.

Oglethorpe University became Oglethorpe College in 1965, and reclaimed the designation "university" several years later. Many of Oglethorpe's campus buildings were built in a Gothic revival architecture style. This area of the 100 acre campus is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

Majors
Majors offered at Oglethorpe University include Accounting, American Studies, Art History, Studio Art, Behavioral Science & Human Resource Management, Biology, Biopsychology, Business Administration, Chemistry, Communication and Rhetoric Studies, Economics, Engineering, English, French, History, Individually Planned Majors, International Studies, Mathematics, Philosophy, Physics, Politics, Psychology, Sociology, Spanish, and Theatre.

Accreditation
In December 2009, The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) fully reaffirmed the University's accreditation.

Coat of arms
Oglethorpe's collegiate coat-of-arms is emblazoned with three boars' heads and the Latin inscription Nescit Cedere, meaning "He does not know how to give up."

Points of interest
The Conant Performing Arts Center, completed in 1997, serves as the seasonal home of Georgia Shakespeare.

The Oglethorpe University Museum of Art opened in 1984 and is located on the top floor of the Philip Weltner Library. The two galleries, the South and Skylight, and gift shop cover 7,000 square feet. Bringing in thousands of visitors each year, the museum has become an important point of interest in Atlanta's art community.

In 1994, Lupton Hall, Phoebe Hearst Hall, Lowry Hall and Hermance Stadium were added to the National Register of Historic Places. In addition, a historic district including part or all of the 100 acre campus was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Other academic buildings include Goslin Hall, primarily used for science courses, and J. Mack Robinson Hall, primarily used for Communication and Art classes.

Oglethorpe University is home to the Crypt of Civilization, the first and most complete time capsule ever created, according to the Guinness Book of World Records. Scheduled to be opened in 8113 AD, it is located in the basement of Phoebe Hearst Hall.

Oglethorpe University is home to the International Time Capsule Society, a repository of time capsule projects worldwide.

Goodman Cafe was added to the university in fall 2011, and is housed in Goodman Hall. The cafe serves hot and cold drinks and baked goods. It is student-funded by the Student Government Association.

In August 2012, the Emerson Student Center was torn down and a new student center is currently under construction in it place, and is estimated for completion by fall of 2013.

From its opening in 1990 until 2003, the Seigakuin Atlanta International School was located on the property of Oglethorpe University, in a former public school building.

Study abroad
Oglethorpe University promotes the concept of international education and travel as an essential component of an academic education. Oglethorpe University Students Abroad sponsors trips for-credit, short-term, partnerships and agreements. Oglethorpe University offers a selection of opportunities in four divisions: International Exchange Partnerships, Independent Study Abroad-Non Partnerships, Short Term Trips, and Associate Student Programs for Special Study Abroad.

For foreign students wishing to study in the Unites States, Education First], an International Study Abroad Organization, opened its Atlanta Language Center on the Oglethorpe University Campus in the fall 2012.

Greek life
Fraternities
 * Chi Phi
 * Sigma Alpha Epsilon
 * Kappa Sigma

Sororities
 * Alpha Sigma Tau
 * Chi Omega
 * Sigma Sigma Sigma
 * Epsilon Iota Psi
 * Alpha Kappa Alpha

Events and traditions
Oglethorpe Day
 * Early February. Campus events celebrate the anniversary of James Oglethorpe's founding of the colony of Georgia. The annual "Petrels of Fire" race, an homage to Trinity College's Great Court Run portrayed in the movie Chariots of Fire, features students attempting to run the 270 yd perimeter of the Academic Quad before the Lupton Hall belltower finishes its noon chimes.

Boar's Head
 * Further information: Boar's Head Feast
 * First Friday of December. Modeled after the Boar's Head Gaudy of Queen's College, Oxford, Boar's Head is the traditional start to the Christmas season at Oglethorpe. Festivities include a concert featuring the University Singers, student organizations and performers from the community, as well as the lighting of the University's Christmas tree. Newly initiated members of Omicron Delta Kappa receive recognition and, as a rite of initiation, kiss the ceremonial boar's head.

Battle of Bloody Marsh
 * The "battle" is a tug-of-war between a student team and a faculty–staff team, organized by the student government's programming board, that takes place in the fall on the Academic Quad. The name refers to the 1742 battle in which the forces of General Oglethorpe defeated the Spanish troops in South Georgia.

Eggs AM Breakfast
 * Occurs both fall and spring semesters on the Tuesday Dead Day before finals start the next day. Faculty members cook up a breakfast of eggs, pancakes, bacon and hash-browns for the students. The students attend at 9, enjoy their faculty-cooked free meal, and take a little time off between study sessions.

Carillon Ceremony
 * In the week before graduation, seniors are invited to climb the Lupton Hall belltower to ring a carillon bell in celebration of their academic achievements in an event sponsored by the alumni office.

Athletics
Oglethorpe University teams participate as a member of the NCAA Division III, and competes as a member of the Southern Athletic Association. The Stormy Petrels were a member of the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC). Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, golf, lacrosse, soccer, tennis and track & field; while women's sports include basketball, cross country, golf, lacrosse, soccer, tennis, track & field and volleyball.

The school's most successful athletic program is its men's golf team. Oglethorpe won the national NCAA title in 2009 and again in 2012. Oglethorpe's historic Hermance Stadium is used by the St. Pius X baseball team.

Mascot
Thornwell Jacobs chose an unusual mascot to represent Oglethorpe's athletic teams: the Stormy Petrel, a seabird said to have been admired by James Oglethorpe for its hardiness and courage. In March 2002, ESPN's David Lloyd named the Stormy Petrel as one of the most memorable college mascot names of all time, second only to the Banana Slugs of UC Santa Cruz.

Student media

 * The Carillon, alumni magazine
 * The Stormy Petrel, student newspaper.
 * The Yamacraw, yearbook. Its name comes from Yamacraw Bluff, the landing site of James Oglethorpe's 1733 colonial expedition. Now defunct.
 * The Tower, literary magazine
 * The Nightcap, evening degree student newsletter

Notable alumni

 * Luke Appling, member of the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame; class of 1932.
 * David-Matthew Barnes, class of 2006; novelist, playwright, poet, and filmmaker.
 * Jazz musician John G. Blowers, Jr.; former drummer for Frank Sinatra, Louis Armstrong, and the Harlem Blues & Jazz Band.
 * Josh Caray, class of 2004; play-by-play announcer for South Atlantic League Rome Braves.
 * Sidney Lanier, class of 1860; poet of post-Civil War era.
 * Benjamin M. Palmer, class of 1852; first national moderator of Presbyterian Church, based in New Orleans.
 * Vincent Sherman, class of 1925; Hollywood film director with more than 30 movies to his credit, including Mr. Skeffington (1944) and The Young Philadelphians (1959).
 * Charles Weltner, class of 1948; former U.S. representative, Georgia Supreme Court Justice and recipient of the Profiles in Courage Award.

References in popular culture

 * The character "Oglethorpe" from the cartoon series Aqua Teen Hunger Force was named after Oglethorpe University. His fellow Plutonian Emory was also named after Emory University, located in nearby Atlanta community of Druid Hills, Georgia
 * Portions of the Richard Pryor film The Three Muscatels were filmed on the campus.
 * The recording artist Lil Wayne filmed a music video for his song "Fireman" on Oglethorpe's campus.
 * Bubba Sparxxx filmed portions of his "Ms. New Booty" music video on Oglethorpe's campus.
 * Portions of 96 Minutes, a thriller starring Brittany Snow and Twilight's Christian Serratos, have been filmed on the campus.
 * The opening sequence of Cartoon Network's live-action series Tower Prep was filmed on campus in September 2010.