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Shenandoah University

Coordinates: 39°09′58″N 78°09′29″W / 39.166°N 78.158°W / 39.166; -78.158
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Shenandoah University
Presidential Seal
Former names
Shenandoah Seminary (1875–1925) |Shenandoah College and Conservatory of Music (1925–1991) Shenandoah Conservatory (separate institution 1937–1974)
MottoThe Big Little University Rising
TypePrivate
Established1875; 149 years ago (1875)
Religious affiliation
United Methodist Church
Endowment$85 million (2024)[1]
PresidentTracy Fitzsimmons
Students4,343 students (fall 2023) [2]
Undergraduates2,590 (fall 2023)[2]
Postgraduates1,753 (fall 2023) [2]
243 doctoral degrees conferred in 2022-2023 academic year [2]
Location
Winchester
,
Virginia
,
United States

39°09′58″N 78°09′29″W / 39.166°N 78.158°W / 39.166; -78.158
CampusSmall city
ColorsRed and blue    
NicknameHornets
Sporting affiliations
NCAA Division III
Websitesu.edu
Shenandoah University is located in Shenandoah Valley
Shenandoah University
Location in Shenandoah Valley
Shenandoah University is located in Virginia
Shenandoah University
Location in Virginia
Shenandoah University is located in the United States
Shenandoah University
Location in United States

Shenandoah University is a private university in Winchester, Virginia. It has an enrollment of approximately 4,000 students across more than 200 areas of study in six schools and colleges. Shenandoah University is one of five United Methodist Church-affiliated institutions of higher education in the Commonwealth of Virginia.[3]

History

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Founding and early history

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Abram Paul Funkhouser and John (Jay) Paul Fries founded the school as Shenandoah Seminary on February 12th, 1875.[4] At the time, it was located on a 10-acre campus in Dayton, Virginia, and classes were initially held in a two-room log cabin.[5][6] The school had 11 students enrolled in its first year.[6] Over the next 85 years, the institution changed names six times but always kept “Shenandoah” as part of its name.[7]

Shenandoah Seminary became a junior college in 1924, changing its name to Shenandoah College the following year. Shenandoah Conservatory became a separate corporation in 1937 and began granting four-year degrees.

Move to Winchester

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Intense competition from neighboring colleges and universities, along with increasing long-term operating deficits, created low morale. The college urgently required a solution to prevent its closure. On June 2nd, 1952 President L. P. Hill resigned, effective immediately. Eight days later Reverend Troy Brady[7] was elected as president by the Evangelical United Brethren (EUB)[8]

President Brady implemented various strategies such as student recruitment, expanding course options, fundraising, and slashing unnecessary expenses. Despite these efforts, the enrollment continued to decline and the possibility of closure was imminent.[9]

In a desperate move, Troy reached out to Washington and arranged a meeting with Democratic Senator Harry F. Byrd at his office in Washington, D.C. Byrd recommended that Troy contact his son in Winchester, who ran The Winchester Star Newspaper.[9]

Troy was then directed to the Winchester Chamber of Commerce, where he met with committee president and prominent local business leader, James R. Wilkins, Sr. James assisted Troy in the endeavor of relocating the school to Winchester. He regularly participated in board meetings with Brady to engage with EUB members. Through Wilkins' efforts he secured a plot of land from Winchester's Jim Barnett Park for the college, where the main campus is currently located.

On June 28, 1956, the EUB approved the school's move to Winchester. Two days later, Brady resigned, and Dr. Forrest Racey, Class of 1923, took over as president. Continuing Brady's work with the City of Winchester.

Shenandoah May 17th, 1959[8] Shenandoah College auctioned off its Dayton campus for $107,875[10] and construction began on the new campus on February 6th, 1958—opening in Winchester in September 1960,[6] with two academic buildings, Gregory and Armstrong Halls.[8]

The 360-acre Winchester campus[11] and began offering four-year degrees in 1974 (at which time the college and conservatory corporations were merged).

Shenandoah obtained university status on January 1, 1991. The university, as of fall 2023, had 265 full-time and 189 part-time faculty members. The student body represented 42 foreign countries as well as 48 states plus the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and Guam. Over 70 percent of full-time faculty had a doctorate in their fields or other terminal degree.

Name

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According to the university's official history, the name Shenandoah is derived from the Native American legend of Zynodoa, a brave warrior whose life of strength and courage and his appreciation of beauty resulted in having a river and a valley named for him. Popular myth further ascribes translation of the word "Shenandoah" to mean "daughter of the stars".[12]

Locations

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Photo of the front patio adjacent to the Brandt Student Center
The front patio of the Brandt Student Center

The university operates in five locations:

  • Winchester
  • Loudoun
  • Downtown Winchester
  • Health Professions Building on the campus of Winchester Medical Center
  • Shenandoah River Campus at Cool Spring Battlefield

The main location of campus is in Winchester near Interstate 81, and the Health Professions Building is located near the Winchester Medical Center. The Loudoun site in Ashburn, Virginia, is home to graduate programs in business, education, leadership studies, occupational therapy, physical therapy, and physician assistant studies, as well as the accelerated-second-degree Bachelor of Science in Nursing program. There are also satellite offices and facilities located throughout Winchester.

In 2013, Shenandoah University accepted stewardship of 195 acres of land along the Shenandoah River, now known as the Shenandoah River Campus at Cool Spring Battlefield. Purchased by the Civil War Trust in 2012, stewardship of the property transferred to the university in spring 2013 to protect and preserve the former battlefield site. The property now serves as an outdoor classroom and living laboratory for the university community and the general public.

Academics

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The Ohrstrom-Bryant Theatre (Winchester location), 1998
Photos of SU graduates at commencement.
Graduates at commencement in 2022

Shenandoah offers more than 200 areas of study at the bachelor's, master's, and doctoral-degree levels, as well as through undergraduate and graduate certificates, across six schools. Its programming includes Virginia's first bachelor's degrees in virtual reality design and esports management, as well as the state's oldest music therapy program (offered at the undergraduate and graduate levels).

  • College of Arts & Sciences
  • School of Business
  • Shenandoah Conservatory
  • Bernard J. Dunn School of Pharmacy
  • Eleanor Wade Custer School of Nursing
  • School of Health Professions

Shenandoah University no longer offers a tenure track for new faculty members. Instead, new faculty members undergo a 5-year probationary period, after which they are eligible for 3-year, renewable "career faculty contracts".[13]

Athletics

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Main article: Shenandoah Hornets
Photo of Sarah's Glen which includes the gazebo and grass area.
Sarah's Glen where students can relax and study on campus

The Shenandoah athletic teams are called the Hornets. The university is a member of the NCAA Division III ranks, primarily competing in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) since the 2012–13 academic year. The Hornets previously competed in the USA South Athletic Conference (USA South) from 1992–93 to 2011–12.

Shenandoah competes in 22 intercollegiate varsity sports: Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, lacrosse, soccer, tennis, track & field (indoor and outdoor) and wrestling; while women's sports include basketball, cross country, field hockey, golf, lacrosse, soccer, softball, tennis, track & field (indoor and outdoor) and volleyball.

The university announced the creation of a Marching Band in June 2021, which debuted during the fall 2022 semester.[14]

In fall 2023, football safety Haley Van Voorhis became one of the first women to play a position other than kicker in an NCAA football game, at any level.

Notable alumni

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References

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  1. ^ As of January 1, 2024. Wilkins, James R., et al. “My Family and Shenandoah University.” Man on the Move: A Memoir, by James R. Wilkins Jr, James R. Wilkins Jr, Winchester, VA, 2022, p. 160, Accessed 2024.
  2. ^ a b c d "Quick Statistics". Shenandoah University.
  3. ^ "About Us – Shenandoah University". Retrieved March 21, 2018.
  4. ^ Walker, James A. “VA Senate Bill 107.” Richmond: Virginia, April 2, 1879.
  5. ^ "Shenandoah College Will Sell Old Campus". Associated Press. The Times Dispatch (Richmond, Virginia). May 15, 1960. p. 2D.
  6. ^ a b c "A College Moves 70 Miles". The Daily News Leader (Staunton, Virginia). November 17, 1960. p. 4.
  7. ^ a b "History". Shenandoah University. Retrieved September 10, 2024.
  8. ^ a b c Wilkins, James Richard. “Chapter 3 - Shenandoah’s Problem Years - 1921-1954.” The Impossible Task: A History of Shenandoah University, 1875 to 1995. Winchester, Va., VA: J.R. Wilkins, 1995.
  9. ^ a b Brady, Robert M. “Elkins and Shenandoah College.” Essay. In Pop Troy’s Anthology 2, 2:40–44, 1992. https://sites.rootsweb.com/~bradytrilogy/anthology/elkins-shenandoah.html.
  10. ^ "College Campus, Buildings Sold for $107,875". Associated Press. The Bee (Danville, Virginia). p. 1-D.
  11. ^ "SU Quick Statistics". September 17, 2024.
  12. ^ Julia Davis, "The Shenandoah", Rivers of America, New York: Farrar & Rinehart, Inc., 1945, pp. 20–21
  13. ^ "Section 4: Contractual Statement". Retrieved August 6, 2023.
  14. ^ "Marching Band". Shenandoah University. Retrieved August 3, 2022.
  15. ^ "Draper, Stanley Carlisle | The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture". Oklahoma Historical Society | OHS. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  16. ^ "One on One with Kate Flannery – HoboTrashcan". www.hobotrashcan.com. Retrieved August 6, 2023.
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