MacMurray College
| Type | Private |
|---|---|
| Established | 1846 |
| President | Dr. Colleen Hester |
| Undergraduates | 518 |
| Postgraduates | 0 |
| Location | , , |
| Campus | Rural |
| Colors | Scarlet and navy |
| Mascot | Highlander |
| Website | mac.edu |
MacMurray College is a career-directed[1] liberal arts college located in Jacksonville, Illinois. It is situated 30 miles (48 km) from Springfield and 235 miles (378 km) from Chicago. The campus covers 60 acres (240,000 m2), and includes the administration building Kathryn Hall, the McClelland Dining Hall, the Annie Merner Chapel, the Henry Pfieffer Library, the educational buildings of MacMurray Hall, Julian Chemistry, the Putnam Center for the Arts, the William H. Springer Center for Music, the Education Complex, the Gordon Facilities building which has been closed for several years due to asbestos contamination[citation needed], and the six residence halls of Kendall, Blackstock, Norris, Michalson, Rutledge and Jane[2]. Three residence halls, Blackstock, Kendall and Norris, were unoccupied during the 2009-2010 school year, with Kendall and Norris undergoing renovations that included sprinkler and security systems. Those two halls will be re-opened in the fall of 2010. Blackstock is currently awaiting approval for demolition in lieu of progressive rebuilding.[3][4]
History
Although founded in 1846 by a group of Methodist clergymen as the Illinois Conference Female Academy, the first class was not held until 1848. Since its beginnings, the college has been affiliated with the United Methodist Church. It is one of the oldest institutions of higher education originally for women in the United States.
The school was renamed the Illinois Conference Female College in 1851, with the name changed again to Illinois Female College in 1863 and Illinois Woman's College in 1899. The name was changed to MacMurray College for Women in 1930 to honor James E. MacMurray, who was an Illinois state senator, president of Acme Steel Corporation in Chicago, and college trustee whose commitment led to a substantial increase in the college's facilities and endowment in the late 1920s and 1930s.[5]
The institution remained an exclusively women's college until 1955, when the trustees established MacMurray College for Men as a coordinate institution. In 1969, the colleges were reorganized into a single co-educational institution.[5]
Academics
In the 2009-2010 academic year MacMurray offered a 32-major[6] liberal arts curriculum with both Associates and Bachelors degrees. The school reinforces liberal arts with an emphasis on career preparation. Some of the college's top majors include nursing, education of the deaf and hard-of-hearing, criminal justice, social work and the interpreter training program. Announcement, recognition, or acknowledgment by the MacMurray College Academic Affairs office that, starting in the fall of 2010, the English, Spanish, Art and Religion and Philosophy majors will be converted to minor offerings only is pending. The Julian Chemistry building underwent renovation in the 2009-2010 school year that included masonry work. The building may reopen in the fall of 2010. Proposals are in place to re-institute the Chemistry major pending enrollment growth.[7] Social Work majors at MacMurray benefit from the school's advanced program. Several students are able to forgo up to one year of Graduate School after graduation and receive a Masters degree from top Social Work schools. The deaf education and interpreter programs benefit from living in proximity to the Illinois School for the Deaf.[7][8]
Athletics
MacMurray's athletics teams are known as the Highlanders. Teams compete in the NCAA's Division III as part of the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.[9] MacMurray is the only Division III school to have received the NCAA's so-called "death penalty", in 2005, banning the men's tennis team from competition for two years for self-reported infractions (financial assistance to ten foreign-born players over the course of four years)[10].
Notable alumni
- Elaine Alquist — California State Senator
- Christine Ebersole — actress
- R. Thomas Flynn — college administrator: dean at Rutgers University; president of Monroe Community College
- Nina Burleigh — writer
- Al Lewis— Columnist, Dow Jones Newswires
- Rick Hall — actor
- Hon. Larry McKinney — Federal Judge
See more at http://www.mac.edu/alumni_success_stories/main.asp
References
- ^ http://www.mac.edu/campus/index.asp
- ^ http://www.mac.edu/campus/map.asp
- ^ USNews.com: America's Best Colleges 2008: MacMurray College: Campus Life
- ^ College Search - MacMurray College - Mac - At a Glance
- ^ a b "MacMurray's Hester Holds Inaugural Media Forum" (Press release). Jacksonville, Illinois: MacMurray College. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-01-26. Retrieved 2009-01-26.
- ^ http://www.mac.edu/academics/pdf/catalog/2009_2010/majors_minors.pdf
- ^ a b "MacMurray College". U.S. News and World Report. 2008. Retrieved 2009-01-26.
- ^ Illinois Universities - Macmurray College
- ^ http://www.gomachighlanders.com/sportsinformation.asp
- ^ Doug Lederman, "Unlikely 'Death Penalty' for a Tennis Team, Inside Higher Education May 5, 2005. online edition accessed 11/23/09]
External links