Juniata College

Juniata College

Former names	Huntingdon Normal School (1876–1877) Brethren Normal School (1877–1896)
Motto	Veritas Liberat (Latin)
Motto in English	Truth Sets Free
Type	Private liberal arts college
Established	April 17, 1876 (1876-04-17)
Affiliation	Church of the Brethren
Endowment	$114.8 million (2020)
President	James Troha
Administrative staff	403
Undergraduates	1,573
Location	Huntingdon , Pennsylvania , United States
Campus	Rural, 800 acres (3.2 km2)
Colors	Old Gold and Yale Blue
Mascot	Eagles
Website	www.juniata.edu

Juniata College is a private liberal arts college in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1876 as a co-educational normal school, it was the first college started by members of the Church of the Brethren as a center for vocational learning for those who could not afford formal education. As of 2015, Juniata College has about 1,600 students from 42 states and territories and 45 countries.

History

19th century

In 1895, Martin Grove Brumbaugh became Juniata College's first president, serving until 1910

Huntingdon Normal School, a normal school, was established by a spry young Huntingdon physician, Dr. Andrew B. Brumbaugh, and his two cousins, Henry and John Brumbaugh. Henry provided a second-story room over his local print shop for classes, while John lodged and fed the college's first teacher, Jacob M. Zuck. Andrew was to "provide students and furniture". Juniata's first classes were held on April 17, 1876, with Zuck teaching Rebecca Cornelius, Maggie D. Miller, and Gaius M. Brumbaugh, the only son of Andrew Brumbaugh.

In 1877, the school changed its name to Brethren Normal School. At this time Zuck also discussed adding a "Scientific Course" and issuing "Certificates of Graduation". In 1879, classes moved into Founder's Hall, the school's first permanent building on the present-day campus then only known as "The Building". On May 11 of same year, Jacob Zuck died from pneumonia at age 32 when he insisted on sleeping in the then unfinished Founders Hall without a heater. James Quinter was then chosen to lead the school as the school's first president.

In 1894, due to a ruling at the Brethren Church's Annual Meeting against using the term "Brethren" in naming a school, the college was renamed Juniata College for the nearby Juniata River, one of the principal tributaries of the Susquehanna River. The name Juniata College was made the school's legal name in 1896.

In 1895, Dr. Martin Grove Brumbaugh, an 1881 graduate from Brethren Normal (Huntingdon Normal), took over the active presidency of Juniata College until 1910.

20th century

During and after his tenure, Brumbaugh remained intimately connected to the college and reacquired the college's presidency in 1924, after having served as governor of Pennsylvania from 1915 to 1919 and as commissioner of education to Puerto Rico in 1900. M. G. Brumbaugh died unexpectedly in 1930 while on vacation in Pinehurst, North Carolina, and was succeeded in his presidency by a former pupil at Juniata, Dr. Charles Calvert Ellis.

Presidents

• James Quinter (1879–1888)
• H.B. Brumbaugh (1888–1893)
• M.G. Brumbaugh (1893–1910)
• I. Harvey Brumbaugh (1910–1924)
• M. G. Brumbaugh (1924–1930)
• C.C. Ellis (1930–1943)
• Calvert N. Ellis (1943–1968)
• John N. Stauffer (1968–1975)
• Frederick M. Binder (1975–1986)
• Robert W. Neff (1986–1998)
• Thomas R. Kepple, Jr. (1998–2013)
• Jim Troha (2013–present)

Campus

Founders Hall, the first building on campus

Nathan Hall

The main campus area is 110 acres (0.45 km²), and the college manages a 315-acre (1.27 km²) Baker-Henry Nature Preserve. Two new buildings since 2000 include the von Liebig Center for Science and the Suzanne von Liebig Theatre. Founders Hall, the first building on campus, has also been renovated recently. Construction was finished in the summer of 2009 and uses underground geothermal energy to heat and cool the building. This building is recognized as a LEED Gold building.

Other off-campus sites include the Baker Peace Chapel, designed by Maya Lin, and the cliffs, which have views of the Juniata River. The college also owns the Raystown Field Station, a 365-acre (1.48 km2) reserve on Raystown Lake, which includes an LEED Gold building and two lodges for semester-long residential programs, often focused on environmental topics.

Athletics

Memorial Gymnasium inside the Kennedy Sports and Recreation Center

Juniata is a Division III collegiate sports institution. It is a charter member of the Landmark Conference, where it competes in all sports except football and volleyball. The athletic teams are known as the Juniata Eagles.

Football

The Juniata College football program is a member of the Centennial Conference. The Goal Post Trophy goes to the winner of the annual football game with rival Susquehanna University. It is a section of the goal post that was torn down after the 1952 Juniata-Susquehanna game. The visiting Indians (now Eagles) upset the Crusaders in Selinsgrove, and Juniata fans tore down the goal post after the game.

Volleyball

Juniata College is known for its both its men's and women's volleyball program. The men's volleyball team competes in the Continental Volleyball Conference; it previously competed in the Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association, where it won several titles, even while under Division I and Division III sanctions.

Notable people

Notable alumni

Main article: List of Juniata College people

Notable alumni include:

• Ronald R. Blanck, former Surgeon General of the United States Army and chairman of the board of regents at Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences
• Heidi Cullen, chief scientist for climate central and leads, World Weather Attribution program, and former first on-air climate expert at The Weather Channel
• Francis Harvey Green, former English Department chairman, West Chester University, and Pennington School headmaster
• Janet Kauffman, novelist
• Chuck Knox, former professional football head coach, Buffalo Bills, Los Angeles Rams, and Seattle Seahawks
• John Kuriyan, 2005 Richard Lounsbery Award winner and professor, biochemistry and molecular biology at the University of California, Berkeley
• Pat Malone, former professional baseball player, Chicago Cubs and New York Yankees
• Morley J. Mays, former Elizabethtown College president
• Wayne M. Meyers, president, International Leprosy Association, and physician, researcher, medical missionary, author of medical articles, books, and book chapters
• William Daniel Phillips, atomic physicist, National Institute of Standards and Technology, jointly awarded Nobel Prize in Physics in 1997 for his contributions to laser cooling
• Michael Trim, producer and cinematographer for the Showtime original series Weeds and executive producer and director of photography for the Netflix series Orange Is the New Black
• Carrie Schofield-Broadbent, Episcopal priest
• Frank Vogel, NBA coach, Indiana Pacers, Los Angeles Lakers, Orlando Magic, and Phoenix Suns
• Harriet Smith Windsor, former Delaware Secretary of State

Notable faculty and coaches

• Donald Deskey, art instructor who designed the interior of Radio City Music Hall and various Procter & Gamble products
• Regina Lamendella, biological sciences professor recognized for contributions to omics and microbiology
• Fayette Avery McKenzie, sociology professor during the Progressive Era who promoted adult education and aided Native Americans and Black people
• Jerry Sandusky, former Penn State defensive coordinator convicted of 45 charges of sexual abuse of young boys over 15 years
• Frank Vogel, former Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball player

External links

• Official website
• Official athletics website
• A History of the Juniata Valley, vol. 1, National Historical Association, Harrisburg, PA, 1936