Washington College
Encyclopedia
Washington College is a private, independent liberal arts college
located on a 112 acres (45.3 ha) campus in Chestertown, Maryland
, on the Eastern Shore. Maryland
granted Washington College its charter in 1782. George Washington
supported the founding of the college by consenting to have the "College at Chester" named in his honor, through generous financial support, and through service on the college's Board of Visitors and Governors. Washington College is the 10th-oldest college
in the United States
and was the first college chartered after American independence. The school became coeducational in 1891.
The college’s first president, the Reverend William Smith, was a prominent figure in colonial affairs of letters and church, and he had a wide acquaintance among the great men of colonial days including Benjamin Franklin
. Joining General Washington on the Board of Visitors and Governors of the new college were such distinguished figures as U.S. Senator John Henry
, Congressman Joshua Seney
and his Excellency William Paca
, Governor of Maryland. The Maryland legislature granted its first college charter upon Washington College in April 1782. The following spring, on May 14, 1783, the college held its first commencement.
With his election as first President of the United States, General Washington retired from the Board of Visitors and Governors and accepted the honorary degree of doctor of laws, which a delegation from Chestertown presented to him on June 24, 1789, in New York, then the seat of Congress. Since Washington’s last visit to campus, Washington College has hosted five U.S. presidents: Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Harry S Truman, Dwight Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy
and George H. W. Bush
.
The original college building, opened in 1788, was destroyed by fire January 11, 1827. The oldest existing building — Middle Hall — was erected in 1844 on the site of the original college building. By 1860, Middle Hall was joined by East and West Halls. All three structures, known as the Hill Dorms, are on the Maryland Register of Historic Places.
and forty foreign nations. Approximately 8 percent of the American undergraduates are minority
students and approximately 8 percent are international citizens. Approximately 5 percent of the college's student body is "non-traditional" (25 years old or older). Approximately 80 percent of all students live in college residence halls; the rest commute either from off-campus housing or from home.
In the 2011 edition of U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges, Washington College rose 19 positions to 93rd in the nation in the National Liberal Arts Colleges category.
Each year, Washington College awards the nation's largest undergraduate literary prize. Since 1968, the Sophie Kerr Prize has been presented to one graduating senior who demonstrates the greatest literary promise. The endowment created by Sophie Kerr
, a writer who published 23 novels and dozens of short stories, has provided more than $1.4 million in prize money to young writers. At a ceremony held at The Poets House
in New York City on May 17, 2011, Lisa Jones was selected as the winner of the $61,000 Sophie Kerr Prize.
In 2005, Washington College inaugurated another literary prize, the George Washington Book Prize
, administered by the college's C.V. Starr Center for the Study of the American Experience
and awarded in partnership with the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History
and George Washington's Mount Vernon. The prize is awarded annually to the most significant new book about the founding era. At $50,000, the prize is one of the most generous book awards in the United States. Richard Beeman won the 2010 George Washington Book Prize for his work, Plain, Honest Men: The Making of the American Constitution. '
Tuition
for the 10-11 year is $36,078 and total expenses per annum (including room, board, and fees) are $44,572. Approximately 85 percent of the student body receives some form of need-based financial aid or merit-based scholarship
award. The cost of attendance has been rising in recent years, with the overall costs (including room and board) increasing by roughly $2,000 per year.
The school has over 90 student clubs. Freshmen
, unless local, are required to live on-campus. On-campus housing is available for approximately 900 students. Most students (70-75 percent) stay on-campus over the weekend to participate in various social and recreational activities. Approximately 30 percent of students attend graduate school in the first year following graduation and approximately 45 percent do so within five years. Student/faculty ratio: 12/1. Average class size is 17. The school confers the degrees of Bachelor of Arts
, Bachelor of Science
, and Master of Arts
(in English, Psychology & History).
Sustainability initiatives are branded George Goes Green and include a green pledge, recycling, composting, an annual energy reduction competition, and use of biofuels. Washington College has also joined American College & University Presidents Climate Commitment with a Campus Carbon Neutrality
goal. The Center for Environment & Society oversees the Chesapeake Semester program, four interdisciplinary courses that use the College's location in the Chesapeake Bay watershed to explore environmental issues and advocacy.
Washington College is host to the Harwood Series, which includes speeches by national politicians, and media pundits. In recent years, Haley Barbour
, Howard Dean
, John McCain
, James Carville
, Cokie Roberts
, Chris Matthews
, Ellen Sauerbrey
, Donna Shalala
, Eugene McCarthy
, Cornel West
, Birch Bayh
, Gary Hart
, Richard Lugar, John F. Kennedy Jr. and Karl Rove
have appeared on campus. Entertainers such as the Counting Crows
, Bruce Hornsby
, Eddy Arnold
, Wayne Brady
, Jason Mraz
, DJ Kool
, Guster
and Larry Hagman
have all appeared on campus in one capacity or another. Because of its reputation as a liberal arts school with creative writing being a strength, writers such as John Barth
, Ray Bradbury
, Bobbie Ann Mason
and Robert Pinsky
have given readings at the campus.
There are four fraternities and three sororities on campus: male Greek life includes Kappa Alpha Order
, Kappa Sigma
, Phi Delta Theta
and Theta Chi
. The Kappa Alpha, Kappa Sigma and Phi Delta Theta housing can be found in the specialty housing known as The Quad (three buildings found at the center of campus). The women's organizations are Alpha Chi Omega
, Alpha Omicron Pi
and Zeta Tau Alpha
. All four fraternities and all three sororities are recognized throughout the campus and community for their exemplary commitments to community service and campus enrichment activities. The campus newspaper of record is The Elm. Other campus publications include The Collegian (features) and The Medium (creative writing).
Washington College has had a regional reputation for excellence for some time, especially in Maryland. However, under the new President, Mitchell Reiss
, greater national recognition is the goal. The fruits of this effort are visible with Washington College's recent ranking among the top Liberal Arts institutions in the United States according to U.S. News rankings.
Among Washington College's notable alumni are:
Fourteen of Washington College's 17 varsity teams compete in the Centennial Conference
. The men's and women's rowing teams compete in the Mid-Atlantic Rowing Conference (MARC), while the sailing team competes in the Middle Atlantic Intercollegiate Sailing Association
(MAISA), a part of the Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association (ICSA). The college's 17 varsity teams are:
The college is known athletically for its men's lacrosse team. It won the 1998 NCAA Division III National Championship and a share of the 1954 USILA Laurie Cox Division National Championship. The men's lacrosse team has participated in the NCAA Division II or III Tournament 28 times since 1974 and the NCAA Division III Championship game eight times. Washington College Men's Lacrosse players have earned All-America honors 226 times.
The men's lacrosse team, along with the women's lacrosse, men's and women's soccer, and field hockey teams, competes on Kibler Field at Roy Kirby, Jr. Stadium. Completed in 2006, the stadium was named one of the top 10 venues for collegiate lacrosse by Lacrosse Magazine.
The college's men's tennis team emerged as a national power in the 1980s and won the 1994 and 1997 NCAA Division III National Championships. It has competed in 18 NCAA Division III Tournaments and won 20 conference championships since 1986. From 1985 until 2005, the team won 122 consecutive conference dual matches. Washington College men's tennis players have earned All-America honors 42 times, while their female counterparts have earned All-America honors 11 times. The women's tennis team competed in the 1992 NCAA Division III Tournament. Both tennis teams play their home matches outdoors at the Ellen Bordley Schottland Tennis Center. During inclement weather, matches are played indoors at the Johnson Lifetime Fitness Center.
Washington College's women's rowing team qualified for the 2008 and 2009 NCAA Division III Championships as an at-large eight, while the men's rowing team won the 2010 Mid-Atlantic Rowing Conference Championship. The sailing team competed in the ICSA Co-Ed National Semifinals in 2008, 2009, and 2010 and advanced to the ICSA Co-Ed National Championship Finals in 2009. The rowing and sailing teams host regattas on the Chester River and call the college's Truslow Boat House and Lelia Hynson Boating Park home.
The swim teams have enjoyed a history of success sending individual swimmers to the NCAA Division III Championships. Female swimmers have earned All-America honors 21 times, while male swimmers have achieved that feat three times. Home swim meets are held inside Casey Swim Center.
Eight baseball players who played at Washington College have gone on to play in the Major Leagues, including two-time National League home run leader and four-time All-Star "Swish" Nicholson. Athey Baseball Park, renovated in 2009, is the home of the baseball team.
The men's basketball team has made four appearances in the NCAA Division III Tournament, most recently in 1990, when it advanced to the national semifinals. It also posted a perfect 20-0 record during the 1924-25 season. The men's and women's basketball teams and the women's volleyball team play their home games inside Cain Athletic Center.
The field hockey team advanced to the NCAA Division III Tournament in 1996 and 1997, while the men's soccer team played in the NCAA College Division Tournament in 1973.
While men have been playing varsity sports at Washington College for well over a century, varsity opportunities for women have been a more recent development. The first varsity sports for women – rowing, tennis, and volleyball – were added in the mid 1970s and were followed by the additions of softball, lacrosse, field hockey, and swimming by the mid 1980s. Varsity women's basketball began play during the 1993-94 season, while co-ed sailing was elevated to varsity status four years later. The women's soccer team is the college's newest varsity sport; it began play during the fall of 1998.
Washington College fielded a varsity football team through 1950, a men's track and field team through 1982, and a men's cross country team through 1989. The college has also previously sponsored varsity men's golf and varsity wrestling during its history.
A number of famous athletes and coaches have spoken at Washington College, including Super Bowl-winning head coach Brian Billick
, Hall of Fame third baseman Brooks Robinson
, and former Hall of Fame pitcher Tom Seaver
.
Club sports are student-run and funded by the Student Government Association.
Among Washington College's most successful club sports is its equestrian team. Founded in 2002, the team has been represented at collegiate national championships in both hunt seat and western riding competitions.
The Men's Rugby Club has also enjoyed a recent surge of success and has gained national attention in both 15's and 7's play.
The athletic department also offers a variety of intramural sports, open to the student body, faculty, and staff. Recent intramural sports have included co-ed soccer, co-ed dodgeball, co-ed flag football, co-ed basketball, co-ed volleyball, co-ed kickball, and co-ed ultimate.
Recreation trips are sponsored by the athletic department and student affairs and have included white water rafting, skiing, rock-fishing, rock climbing, crabbing, camping, cycling, and water skiing and wakeboarding.
After undergoing a $24 million renovation and expansion of the original structure, the Gibson Center for the Arts now accommodates a recital hall, an art gallery, a mainstage theatre and a small experimental theatre in addition to classrooms, practice rooms and faculty offices.
Hodson Hall Commons, another renovation/expansion project, reflects the historic features of adjoining Hodson Hall while accommodating the interests of today’s students. The Commons' first floor offers a central entertainment and performance space alongside café-style dining options and the Hodson Student Center. The main dining hall is located on the Common's second floor, providing scenic views of the surrounding campus.
They were listed on the National Register of Historic Places
in 1979.
They now function as follows:
Other residence halls include:
Men's fraternities
Sororities
The All Campus Picnic: A carnival held for the students and community members before the beginning of the academic year.
The Renaissance Christmas Dinner: Held before the beginning of Winter Break and features performances by the Early Music Consort and Vocal Consort of the College.
War on the Shore: The annual men's lacrosse game, held in late spring between Washington College and Salisbury University
, two of Maryland's Eastern Shore's undergraduate schools. Beginning in 2004, the winner of the game has been awarded the Charles B. Clark Cup.
May Day: Started in 1968 by Professor Bennett Lamond of the English Department, who retired in 2004. He brought a class out onto the green, where they read poetry and drank wine. Later that night some of the students returned, and Washington College's May Day celebration was born. Since then, May Day has become a two-day festival on April 30 and May 1, often involving public nudity by a percentage of the student body. The event draws many students as spectators.
Liberal arts colleges in the United States
Liberal arts colleges in the United States are certain undergraduate institutions of higher education in the United States. The Encyclopædia Britannica Concise offers a definition of the liberal arts as a "college or university curriculum aimed at imparting general knowledge and developing general...
located on a 112 acres (45.3 ha) campus in Chestertown, Maryland
Chestertown, Maryland
Chestertown is a town in Kent County, Maryland, United States. The population was 4,746 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Kent County. The ZIP code is 21620 and the area codes are 410 and 443...
, on the Eastern Shore. Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
granted Washington College its charter in 1782. George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
supported the founding of the college by consenting to have the "College at Chester" named in his honor, through generous financial support, and through service on the college's Board of Visitors and Governors. Washington College is the 10th-oldest college
Colonial colleges
The Colonial Colleges are nine institutions of higher education chartered in the American Colonies before the United States of America became a sovereign nation after the American Revolution. These nine have long been considered together, notably in the survey of their origins in the 1907 The...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and was the first college chartered after American independence. The school became coeducational in 1891.
History
Washington College evolved from the Kent County Free School, an institution of more than 60 years’ standing in “Chester Town,” which by the college’s founding date of 1782 had reached considerable strength and importance as a port city. George Washington consented to the fledgling college’s use of his name, pledged the sum of 50 guineas to its establishment, and extended his warm wishes for the “lasting and extensive usefulness” of the institution. He would later serve on Washington College’s Board of Visitors and Governors—his only such involvement with an institution of higher learning during his lifetime.The college’s first president, the Reverend William Smith, was a prominent figure in colonial affairs of letters and church, and he had a wide acquaintance among the great men of colonial days including Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin
Dr. Benjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat...
. Joining General Washington on the Board of Visitors and Governors of the new college were such distinguished figures as U.S. Senator John Henry
John Henry
The most notable use of the name John Henry is in a ballad, "John Henry", describing the folk figure John Henry as a "steel-driving man".John Henry may also refer to:-People:* John Flournoy Henry , U.S...
, Congressman Joshua Seney
Joshua Seney
Joshua Seney was an American farmer and lawyer from Queen Anne's County, Maryland. He represented the state of Maryland in the Continental Congress, and the second district of Maryland in the House of Representatives....
and his Excellency William Paca
William Paca
William Paca was a signatory to the United States Declaration of Independence as a representative of Maryland, and later Governor of Maryland and a United States federal judge.-Early life:...
, Governor of Maryland. The Maryland legislature granted its first college charter upon Washington College in April 1782. The following spring, on May 14, 1783, the college held its first commencement.
With his election as first President of the United States, General Washington retired from the Board of Visitors and Governors and accepted the honorary degree of doctor of laws, which a delegation from Chestertown presented to him on June 24, 1789, in New York, then the seat of Congress. Since Washington’s last visit to campus, Washington College has hosted five U.S. presidents: Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Harry S Truman, Dwight Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
and George H. W. Bush
George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to...
.
The original college building, opened in 1788, was destroyed by fire January 11, 1827. The oldest existing building — Middle Hall — was erected in 1844 on the site of the original college building. By 1860, Middle Hall was joined by East and West Halls. All three structures, known as the Hill Dorms, are on the Maryland Register of Historic Places.
Overview
Approximately 1,400 undergraduates and 100 graduate students attend Washington College, 47 percent from Maryland and the balance from 35 other statesU.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
and forty foreign nations. Approximately 8 percent of the American undergraduates are minority
Minority group
A minority is a sociological group within a demographic. The demographic could be based on many factors from ethnicity, gender, wealth, power, etc. The term extends to numerous situations, and civilizations within history, despite the misnomer of minorities associated with a numerical statistic...
students and approximately 8 percent are international citizens. Approximately 5 percent of the college's student body is "non-traditional" (25 years old or older). Approximately 80 percent of all students live in college residence halls; the rest commute either from off-campus housing or from home.
In the 2011 edition of U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges, Washington College rose 19 positions to 93rd in the nation in the National Liberal Arts Colleges category.
Each year, Washington College awards the nation's largest undergraduate literary prize. Since 1968, the Sophie Kerr Prize has been presented to one graduating senior who demonstrates the greatest literary promise. The endowment created by Sophie Kerr
Sophie Kerr
Sophie Kerr was a prolific writer of the early 20th century whose stories about smart, ambitious women mirrored her own evolution from small-town girl to successful career woman...
, a writer who published 23 novels and dozens of short stories, has provided more than $1.4 million in prize money to young writers. At a ceremony held at The Poets House
Poets House
Founded in 1985 by the late Stanley Kunitz, two-time poet laureate of the United States, and arts administrator Elizabeth Kray, Poets House is a national literary center and poetry library based in New York City. With more than 50,000 volumes of poetry, the library is the premier independent poetry...
in New York City on May 17, 2011, Lisa Jones was selected as the winner of the $61,000 Sophie Kerr Prize.
In 2005, Washington College inaugurated another literary prize, the George Washington Book Prize
George Washington Book Prize
The George Washington Book Prize was instituted in 2005 and is awarded annually to the best book on America's founding era, especially those that have the potential to advance broad public understanding of American history. It is administered by Washington College’s C.V...
, administered by the college's C.V. Starr Center for the Study of the American Experience
C.V. Starr Center for the Study of the American Experience
The C.V. Starr Center for the Study of the American Experience is an institute at Washington College, in Chestertown, Maryland, that promotes the research and study of American history and culture. Founded in 2000, the C.V. Starr Center at Washington College is one of many educational initiatives...
and awarded in partnership with the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History
Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History
The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, founded in New York by Richard Gilder and Lewis E. Lehrman in 1994, was set up to promote the study and love of American history.The Institute serves teachers, students, scholars, and the general public...
and George Washington's Mount Vernon. The prize is awarded annually to the most significant new book about the founding era. At $50,000, the prize is one of the most generous book awards in the United States. Richard Beeman won the 2010 George Washington Book Prize for his work, Plain, Honest Men: The Making of the American Constitution. '
Tuition
Tuition
Tuition payments, known primarily as tuition in American English and as tuition fees in British English, Canadian English, Australian English, New Zealand English and Indian English, refers to a fee charged for educational instruction during higher education.Tuition payments are charged by...
for the 10-11 year is $36,078 and total expenses per annum (including room, board, and fees) are $44,572. Approximately 85 percent of the student body receives some form of need-based financial aid or merit-based scholarship
Scholarship
A scholarship is an award of financial aid for a student to further education. Scholarships are awarded on various criteria usually reflecting the values and purposes of the donor or founder of the award.-Types:...
award. The cost of attendance has been rising in recent years, with the overall costs (including room and board) increasing by roughly $2,000 per year.
The school has over 90 student clubs. Freshmen
Freshman
A freshman or fresher is a first-year student in secondary school, high school, or college. The term first year can also be used as a noun, to describe the students themselves A freshman (US) or fresher (UK, India) (or sometimes fish, freshie, fresher; slang plural frosh or freshmeat) is a...
, unless local, are required to live on-campus. On-campus housing is available for approximately 900 students. Most students (70-75 percent) stay on-campus over the weekend to participate in various social and recreational activities. Approximately 30 percent of students attend graduate school in the first year following graduation and approximately 45 percent do so within five years. Student/faculty ratio: 12/1. Average class size is 17. The school confers the degrees of Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
, Bachelor of Science
Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...
, and Master of Arts
Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
(in English, Psychology & History).
Sustainability initiatives are branded George Goes Green and include a green pledge, recycling, composting, an annual energy reduction competition, and use of biofuels. Washington College has also joined American College & University Presidents Climate Commitment with a Campus Carbon Neutrality
Campus Carbon Neutrality
All across the world, colleges and universities are looking to a sustainable future by working to become carbon neutral. Universities are taking responsibility for their environmental impact and are working to neutralize those effects...
goal. The Center for Environment & Society oversees the Chesapeake Semester program, four interdisciplinary courses that use the College's location in the Chesapeake Bay watershed to explore environmental issues and advocacy.
Washington College is host to the Harwood Series, which includes speeches by national politicians, and media pundits. In recent years, Haley Barbour
Haley Barbour
Haley Reeves Barbour is an American Republican politician currently serving as the 63rd Governor of Mississippi. He gained a national spotlight in August 2005 after Mississippi was hit by Hurricane Katrina. Barbour won re-election as Governor in 2007...
, Howard Dean
Howard Dean
Howard Brush Dean III is an American politician and physician from Vermont. He served six terms as the 79th Governor of Vermont and ran unsuccessfully for the 2004 Democratic presidential nomination. He was chairman of the Democratic National Committee from 2005 to 2009. Although his U.S...
, John McCain
John McCain
John Sidney McCain III is the senior United States Senator from Arizona. He was the Republican nominee for president in the 2008 United States election....
, James Carville
James Carville
Chester James Carville, Jr. is an American political consultant, commentator, educator, actor, attorney, media personality, and prominent liberal pundit. Carville gained national attention for his work as the lead strategist of the successful presidential campaign of then-Arkansas governor Bill...
, Cokie Roberts
Cokie Roberts
Mary Martha Corinne Morrison Claiborne Roberts , best known as Cokie Roberts, is an American Emmy Award-winning journalist and bestselling author. She is a contributing senior news analyst for National Public Radio as well as a regular roundtable analyst for the current This Week with Christiane...
, Chris Matthews
Chris Matthews
Christopher John "Chris" Matthews is an American news anchor and political commentator, known for his nightly hour-long talk show, Hardball with Chris Matthews, which is televised on the American cable television channel MSNBC...
, Ellen Sauerbrey
Ellen Sauerbrey
Ellen Sauerbrey is an American politician from Maryland and the former head of the United States Department of State's Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration. She was nominated to the Bureau in September 2005 by President George W. Bush. On January 4, 2006, Bush placed her in office by way...
, Donna Shalala
Donna Shalala
Donna Edna Shalala served for eight years as Secretary of Health and Human Services under President Bill Clinton and has been president of the University of Miami, a private university in Coral Gables, Florida, since 2001. She was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest...
, Eugene McCarthy
Eugene McCarthy
Eugene Joseph "Gene" McCarthy was an American politician, poet, and a long-time member of the United States Congress from Minnesota. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1949 to 1959 and the U.S. Senate from 1959 to 1971.In the 1968 presidential election, McCarthy was the first...
, Cornel West
Cornel West
Cornel Ronald West is an American philosopher, author, critic, actor, civil rights activist and prominent member of the Democratic Socialists of America....
, Birch Bayh
Birch Bayh
Birch Evans Bayh II is a former United States Senator from Indiana, having served from 1963 to 1981. He was a candidate for the Democratic nomination for president in the 1976 election, but lost to Jimmy Carter. He is the father of former Indiana Governor and former U.S. Senator Evan Bayh.-Life...
, Gary Hart
Gary Hart
Gary Hart is an American politician, lawyer, author, professor and commentator. He served as a Democratic Senator representing Colorado , and ran in the U.S...
, Richard Lugar, John F. Kennedy Jr. and Karl Rove
Karl Rove
Karl Christian Rove was Senior Advisor and Deputy Chief of Staff to former President George W. Bush until Rove's resignation on August 31, 2007. He has headed the Office of Political Affairs, the Office of Public Liaison, and the White House Office of Strategic Initiatives...
have appeared on campus. Entertainers such as the Counting Crows
Counting Crows
Counting Crows is an American rock band originating from Berkeley, California. Formed in 1991, the group gained popularity following the release of its debut album in 1993, August and Everything After, which featured the hit single "Mr. Jones"...
, Bruce Hornsby
Bruce Hornsby
Bruce Randall Hornsby is an American singer, pianist, accordion player, and songwriter. Known for the spontaneity and creativity of his live performances, Hornsby draws frequently from classical, jazz, bluegrass, folk, Motown, rock, blues, and jam band musical traditions with his songwriting and...
, Eddy Arnold
Eddy Arnold
Richard Edward Arnold , known professionally as Eddy Arnold, was an American country music singer who performed for six decades. He was a so-called Nashville sound innovator of the late 1950s, and scored 147 songs on the Billboard country music charts, second only to George Jones. He sold more...
, Wayne Brady
Wayne Brady
Wayne Alphonso Brady is an actor, singer, comedian and television personality, known for his work as a regular on the American version of the improvisational comedy television series Whose Line Is It Anyway?, and as the host of the daytime talk show The Wayne Brady Show...
, Jason Mraz
Jason Mraz
Jason Thomas Mraz , also known as Mr. AZ and Mr. Raz, is an American singer-songwriter. Mraz released his debut album, Waiting for My Rocket to Come, which contained the hit single "The Remedy ", in 2002, but it was not until the release of his second album, "Mr. A-Z", in 2005, that Mraz achieved...
, DJ Kool
DJ Kool
John W. Bowman, Jr., better known by his stage name DJ Kool is a rapper who, in the late 1990s, produced several popular rap singles. Born in 1959 in Washington, D.C., his influence from his years of working the go-go and rap circuits became apparent in his music...
, Guster
Guster
Guster is an American alternative rock band from Boston, Massachusetts. Formed in 1991, the group is known for its live performances and humor, founding members Adam Gardner, Ryan Miller, and Brian Rosenworcel came about to begin practice sessions while attending Tufts University in Medford,...
and Larry Hagman
Larry Hagman
Larry Martin Hagman is an American film and television actor, producer and director known for playing J.R. Ewing in the 1980s primetime television soap opera Dallas and Major Anthony "Tony" Nelson in the 1960s sitcom I Dream of Jeannie.-Early life and career:Hagman was born in Fort Worth, Texas...
have all appeared on campus in one capacity or another. Because of its reputation as a liberal arts school with creative writing being a strength, writers such as John Barth
John Barth
John Simmons Barth is an American novelist and short-story writer, known for the postmodernist and metafictive quality of his work.-Life:...
, Ray Bradbury
Ray Bradbury
Ray Douglas Bradbury is an American fantasy, horror, science fiction, and mystery writer. Best known for his dystopian novel Fahrenheit 451 and for the science fiction stories gathered together as The Martian Chronicles and The Illustrated Man , Bradbury is one of the most celebrated among 20th...
, Bobbie Ann Mason
Bobbie Ann Mason
Bobbie Ann Mason is an American novelist, short story writer, essayist, and literary critic from Kentucky.With four siblings Mason grew up on her family's dairy farm outside of Mayfield, Kentucky. As a child she loved to read, so her parents, Wilburn and Christina Mason, always made sure she had...
and Robert Pinsky
Robert Pinsky
Robert Pinsky is an American poet, essayist, literary critic, and translator. From 1997 to 2000, he served as Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress. Pinsky is the author of nineteen books, most of which are collections of his own poetry...
have given readings at the campus.
Kappa Alpha Order
Kappa Alpha Order is a social fraternity and fraternal order. Kappa Alpha Order has 124 active chapters, 3 provisional chapters, and 2 commissions...
, Kappa Sigma
Kappa Sigma
Kappa Sigma , commonly nicknamed Kappa Sig, is an international fraternity with currently 282 active chapters and colonies in North America. Kappa Sigma has initiated more than 240,000 men on college campuses throughout the United States and Canada. Today, the Fraternity has over 175,000 living...
, Phi Delta Theta
Phi Delta Theta
Phi Delta Theta , also known as Phi Delt, is an international fraternity founded at Miami University in 1848 and headquartered in Oxford, Ohio. Phi Delta Theta, Beta Theta Pi, and Sigma Chi form the Miami Triad. The fraternity has about 169 active chapters and colonies in over 43 U.S...
and Theta Chi
Theta Chi
Theta Chi Fraternity is an international college fraternity. It was founded on April 10, 1856 as the Theta Chi Society, at Norwich University, Norwich, Vermont, U.S., and was the 21st of the 71 North-American Interfraternity Conference men's fraternities.-Founding and early years at Norwich:Theta...
. The Kappa Alpha, Kappa Sigma and Phi Delta Theta housing can be found in the specialty housing known as The Quad (three buildings found at the center of campus). The women's organizations are Alpha Chi Omega
Alpha Chi Omega
Alpha Chi Omega is a women's fraternity founded on October 15, 1885. Currently, there are 135 chapters of Alpha Chi Omega at colleges and universities across the United States and more than 200,000 lifetime members...
, Alpha Omicron Pi
Alpha Omicron Pi
Alpha Omicron Pi is an international women's fraternity promoting friendship for a lifetime, inspiring academic excellence and lifelong learning, and developing leadership skills through service to the Fraternity and community. ΑΟΠ was founded on January 2, 1897 at Barnard College on the campus...
and Zeta Tau Alpha
Zeta Tau Alpha
Zeta Tau Alpha is a women's fraternity, founded October 15, 1898 at the State Female Normal School in Farmville, Virginia. The Executive office is located in Indianapolis, Indiana...
. All four fraternities and all three sororities are recognized throughout the campus and community for their exemplary commitments to community service and campus enrichment activities. The campus newspaper of record is The Elm. Other campus publications include The Collegian (features) and The Medium (creative writing).
Washington College has had a regional reputation for excellence for some time, especially in Maryland. However, under the new President, Mitchell Reiss
Mitchell Reiss
Mitchell B. Reiss is a senior American diplomat who became the 27th president of Washington College in Chestertown, Maryland on July 1, 2010. He served as Director of Policy Planning at the United States Department of State under Colin Powell...
, greater national recognition is the goal. The fruits of this effort are visible with Washington College's recent ranking among the top Liberal Arts institutions in the United States according to U.S. News rankings.
Honorary societies
- Alpha Kappa DeltaAlpha Kappa DeltaAlpha Kappa Delta is an international sociology honor society.Founded in 1920 by Emory S. Bogardus, of the University of Southern California sociology department, the name is derived from the Greek anthrôpos meaning mankind, katamanthanô, meaning to examine closely or acquire knowledge, and...
- Sociology - Beta Beta Beta - Biology
- Society of Junior Fellows - undergraduate research colloquium
- Lambda AlphaLambda AlphaLambda Alpha is the National Collegiate Honors Society for Anthropology. As of 2011, there were 170 chapters of record. The organization offers annual scholarships to students of anthropology as well as an annual magazine, half of which is reserved for student publications that pass a peer review...
- Anthropology - Nu Delta Alpha - Dance
- Gamma Sigma Epsilon - Chemistry
- Omicron Delta EpsilonOmicron Delta EpsilonOmicron Delta Epsilon is an international honor society in the field of economics. Resulting from the merger of Omicron Delta Gamma and Omicron Chi Epsilon, ODE was founded in 1963 . Its board of trustees includes well-known economists such as Robert Lucas, Kenneth Arrow, and Robert Solow...
- Economics - Omicron Delta KappaOmicron Delta KappaOmicron Delta Kappa, or ΟΔΚ, also known as The Circle, or more commonly ODK, is a national leadership honor society. It was founded December 3, 1914, at Washington & Lee University in Lexington, Virginia, by 15 student and faculty leaders. Chapters, known as Circles, are located on over 300...
- Leadership - Order of OmegaOrder of OmegaThe Order of Omega is an undergraduate Greek society recognizing "fraternity men and women who have attained a high standard of leadership in inter-fraternity activities." It functions as an adjunct to traditional fraternal organizations, rather than a social or professional group in se...
- Leadership within Greek Life - Phi Alpha ThetaPhi Alpha ThetaPhi Alpha Theta is an American honor society for undergraduate and graduate students and professors of history.The society is a charter member of the Association of College Honor Societies and has over 350,000 members, with about 9,500 new members joining each year through 860 local chapters.-...
- History - Phi Beta Kappa- Liberal Arts and Sciences
- Phi Sigma TauPhi Sigma TauPhi Sigma Tau is an international honor society for philosophers. Its essential purpose is to promote ties among philosophy departments in accredited institutions and students in philosophy nationally...
- Philosophy - Pi Delta PhiPi Delta PhiPi Delta Phi is the French National Honor Society for undergraduate and graduate students at accredited public and private colleges and universities in the United States. The society was admitted to membership in the Association of College Honor Societies in 1967.Pi Delta Phi was founded as a...
- French Studies - Pi Lambda ThetaPi Lambda Theta- Basic information :Pi Lambda Theta is an honor society and professional association for educators. As an honor society, its purpose is to recognize persons of superior scholastic achievement and high potential for professional leadership...
- Education - Pi Sigma AlphaPi sigma alphaPi Sigma Alpha , the National Political Science Honor Society, is the only honor society for college and university students of political science in the United States. Its purpose is to recognize and promote high academic achievement in the field of political science...
- Political Science - Psi ChiPsi ChiPsi Chi is the International Honor Society in Psychology, founded in 1929 for the purposes of encouraging, stimulating, and maintaining excellence in scholarship, and advancing the science of psychology. With over 1,050 chapters, Psi Chi is one of the largest honor societies in the United States...
- Psychology - Sigma Beta Delta - Business
- Sigma Tau DeltaSigma Tau DeltaSigma Tau Delta is an international collegiate honor society for students of English. It presently has over 800 active chapters located in Europe, the Caribbean, the United States, and 1 chapter in the Middle East , with more than 1,000 faculty sponsors...
- English - Sigma XiSigma XiSigma Xi: The Scientific Research Society is a non-profit honor society which was founded in 1886 at Cornell University by a junior faculty member and a handful of graduate students. Members elect others on the basis of their research achievements or potential...
- Science/Engineering
Notable alumni and affiliates
The college boasts of a notable list of persons who served on the original Board of visitors and governors, including:- George WashingtonGeorge WashingtonGeorge Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
, U.S. PresidentPresident of the United StatesThe President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces.... - William PacaWilliam PacaWilliam Paca was a signatory to the United States Declaration of Independence as a representative of Maryland, and later Governor of Maryland and a United States federal judge.-Early life:...
, signer of the Declaration of IndependenceUnited States Declaration of IndependenceThe Declaration of Independence was a statement adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, which announced that the thirteen American colonies then at war with Great Britain regarded themselves as independent states, and no longer a part of the British Empire. John Adams put forth a...
, governor of MarylandGovernor of MarylandThe Governor of Maryland heads the executive branch of the government of Maryland, and he is the commander-in-chief of the state's National Guard units. The Governor is the highest-ranking official in the state, and he has a broad range of appointive powers in both the State and local governments,...
, and U.S. Representative - Samuel ChaseSamuel ChaseSamuel Chase was an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court and earlier was a signatory to the United States Declaration of Independence as a representative of Maryland. Early in life, Chase was a "firebrand" states-righter and revolutionary...
, signer of the Declaration of Independence, U.S. Representative, and Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United StatesAssociate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United StatesAssociate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States are the members of the Supreme Court of the United States other than the Chief Justice of the United States... - John Henry, U.S. Senator
- Joshua SeneyJoshua SeneyJoshua Seney was an American farmer and lawyer from Queen Anne's County, Maryland. He represented the state of Maryland in the Continental Congress, and the second district of Maryland in the House of Representatives....
, U.S. Representative - Robert GoldsboroughRobert GoldsboroughRobert Goldsborough was an American lawyer and statesman from Maryland. He served as a delegate to the Continental Congress....
, U.S. Representative - Joseph NicholsonJoseph NicholsonJoseph Nicholson was a public official from Maryland during the American Revolution. He was elected to the Second Continental Congress in 1777 but did not attend. He was married to Elizabeth Hopper; their son Joseph Hopper Nicholson became a U.S. congressman....
, U.S. Representative
Among Washington College's notable alumni are:
- John EmoryJohn EmoryJohn Emory was an American bishop of the Methodist Episcopal Church, elected in 1832.-Early life and family:John was born at Spaniard's Neck, Queen Anne's County, Maryland. His parents were Methodists, his father a jurist who designed him for the law. His mother, however, who had been converted...
, Class of 1805, educator, namesake of Emory University* - Benjamin H. VandervoortBenjamin H. VandervoortBenjamin Hayes "Vandy" Vandervoort was a Colonel in the United States Army, who fought in World War II. He was twice awarded the Distinguished Service Cross...
, Class of 1938, highly decorated WWII paratrooper. John WayneJohn WayneMarion Mitchell Morrison , better known by his stage name John Wayne, was an American film actor, director and producer. He epitomized rugged masculinity and became an enduring American icon. He is famous for his distinctive calm voice, walk, and height...
portrayed him in The Longest DayThe Longest DayThe Longest Day could refer to:*D day*The Longest Day , published in 1959 by Cornelius Ryan*The Longest Day , a 1962 war film based on Ryan's book*The Longest Day , a 1980 wargame by Avalon Hill...
. - Col. Hiram Staunton Brown, Class of 1900, president of RKO Movie Studios
- Mary Adele France, Class of 1900, established junior college now known as St. Mary's College of Maryland
- James M. CainJames M. CainJames Mallahan Cain was an American author and journalist. Although Cain himself vehemently opposed labeling, he is usually associated with the hardboiled school of American crime fiction and seen as one of the creators of the roman noir...
, Class of 1910, journalist, screenwriter and novelist - Louis L. GoldsteinLouis L. GoldsteinLouis Lazarus Goldstein served as Comptroller, or chief financial officer, of Maryland from 1959 to 1998. He was born to a storekeeper in the small town of Prince Frederick, Maryland, and also died there. As a legislator in the Maryland General Assembly, he was known for his 11th-hour strong...
, Class of 1935, Comptroller of Maryland; the state's longest-serving elected official - William O. BakerWilliam O. BakerWilliam Oliver Baker was a former President of Bell Labs who had advised five Presidents on scientific matters. He received his degree from Washington College and went on to get a doctorate from Princeton University, studying under Charles Phelps Smyth...
, Class of 1935, President of Bell LabsBell LabsBell Laboratories is the research and development subsidiary of the French-owned Alcatel-Lucent and previously of the American Telephone & Telegraph Company , half-owned through its Western Electric manufacturing subsidiary.Bell Laboratories operates its... - Ralph SnydermanRalph SnydermanRalph Snyderman, M.D., is Chancellor Emeritus at Duke University and James B. Duke Professor of Medicine. He served as Chancellor for Health Affairs and Dean of the School of Medicine from 1989 to July 2004...
, Class of 1961, Chancellor Emeritus, Duke UniversityDuke UniversityDuke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...
and James B. Duke Professor of Medicine - Terumi Kohwi-Shigematsu, Class of 1971, Molecular Biologist, University of California - Berkeley Laboratory, Life Sciences Division
- Thomas Bortmes, Class of 1973, USN, Director of the Office of Naval Intelligence
- Kenneth Merz, Class of 1981, computational chemist, University of Florida - Quantum Theory Project
- Peter Turchi, Class of 1982, Writer, teacher, Arizona State University
- Victoria Hagan, Class of 1983, Interior Designer
- H. Lawrence Culp, Class of 1985, President and CEO of DanaherDanaherDanaher may refer to:* Declan Danaher, English Rugby union player* Kevin Danaher , , author and prominent Irish folklorist* Kevin Danaher, Ph.D. in sociology, author of several books on Green Economy...
Varsity sports
Washington College has competed in intercollegiate athletics since the 19th century. Its oldest current varsity sports are the baseball team, which dates back to at least the early 1870s, and the men's basketball team, which plays its 100th season in 2011-12. Men's teams are known as the Shoremen; women's teams are known as the Shorewomen.Fourteen of Washington College's 17 varsity teams compete in the Centennial Conference
Centennial Conference
The Centennial Conference is an athletic conference which competes in the NCAA's Division III. Member teams are located in Maryland and Pennsylvania....
. The men's and women's rowing teams compete in the Mid-Atlantic Rowing Conference (MARC), while the sailing team competes in the Middle Atlantic Intercollegiate Sailing Association
Middle Atlantic Intercollegiate Sailing Association
Middle Atlantic Intercollegiate Sailing Association organizes and regulates intercollegiate sailing in Ontario, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, the eastern part of West Virginia, and the District of Columbia. Hundreds of sailors participate from 43 colleges and...
(MAISA), a part of the Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association (ICSA). The college's 17 varsity teams are:
- Baseball (M)
- Basketball (M, W)
- Field Hockey (W)
- Lacrosse (M, W)
- Rowing (M, W)
- Sailing (Co-ed)
- Soccer (M, W)
- Softball (W)
- Swimming (M, W)
- Tennis (M, W)
- Volleyball (W)
The college is known athletically for its men's lacrosse team. It won the 1998 NCAA Division III National Championship and a share of the 1954 USILA Laurie Cox Division National Championship. The men's lacrosse team has participated in the NCAA Division II or III Tournament 28 times since 1974 and the NCAA Division III Championship game eight times. Washington College Men's Lacrosse players have earned All-America honors 226 times.
The men's lacrosse team, along with the women's lacrosse, men's and women's soccer, and field hockey teams, competes on Kibler Field at Roy Kirby, Jr. Stadium. Completed in 2006, the stadium was named one of the top 10 venues for collegiate lacrosse by Lacrosse Magazine.
The college's men's tennis team emerged as a national power in the 1980s and won the 1994 and 1997 NCAA Division III National Championships. It has competed in 18 NCAA Division III Tournaments and won 20 conference championships since 1986. From 1985 until 2005, the team won 122 consecutive conference dual matches. Washington College men's tennis players have earned All-America honors 42 times, while their female counterparts have earned All-America honors 11 times. The women's tennis team competed in the 1992 NCAA Division III Tournament. Both tennis teams play their home matches outdoors at the Ellen Bordley Schottland Tennis Center. During inclement weather, matches are played indoors at the Johnson Lifetime Fitness Center.
Washington College's women's rowing team qualified for the 2008 and 2009 NCAA Division III Championships as an at-large eight, while the men's rowing team won the 2010 Mid-Atlantic Rowing Conference Championship. The sailing team competed in the ICSA Co-Ed National Semifinals in 2008, 2009, and 2010 and advanced to the ICSA Co-Ed National Championship Finals in 2009. The rowing and sailing teams host regattas on the Chester River and call the college's Truslow Boat House and Lelia Hynson Boating Park home.
The swim teams have enjoyed a history of success sending individual swimmers to the NCAA Division III Championships. Female swimmers have earned All-America honors 21 times, while male swimmers have achieved that feat three times. Home swim meets are held inside Casey Swim Center.
Eight baseball players who played at Washington College have gone on to play in the Major Leagues, including two-time National League home run leader and four-time All-Star "Swish" Nicholson. Athey Baseball Park, renovated in 2009, is the home of the baseball team.
The men's basketball team has made four appearances in the NCAA Division III Tournament, most recently in 1990, when it advanced to the national semifinals. It also posted a perfect 20-0 record during the 1924-25 season. The men's and women's basketball teams and the women's volleyball team play their home games inside Cain Athletic Center.
The field hockey team advanced to the NCAA Division III Tournament in 1996 and 1997, while the men's soccer team played in the NCAA College Division Tournament in 1973.
While men have been playing varsity sports at Washington College for well over a century, varsity opportunities for women have been a more recent development. The first varsity sports for women – rowing, tennis, and volleyball – were added in the mid 1970s and were followed by the additions of softball, lacrosse, field hockey, and swimming by the mid 1980s. Varsity women's basketball began play during the 1993-94 season, while co-ed sailing was elevated to varsity status four years later. The women's soccer team is the college's newest varsity sport; it began play during the fall of 1998.
Washington College fielded a varsity football team through 1950, a men's track and field team through 1982, and a men's cross country team through 1989. The college has also previously sponsored varsity men's golf and varsity wrestling during its history.
A number of famous athletes and coaches have spoken at Washington College, including Super Bowl-winning head coach Brian Billick
Brian Billick
Brian Harold Billick is a National Football League game analyst for Fox, and is also an analyst for the network's Bowl Championship Series coverage. He was previously an NFL coach, most recently with the Baltimore Ravens from January 19, 1999 to December 31, 2007...
, Hall of Fame third baseman Brooks Robinson
Brooks Robinson
Brooks Calbert Robinson, Jr. is a former American professional baseball player. He played his entire 23-year major league career for the Baltimore Orioles . Nicknamed "The Human Vacuum Cleaner", he is generally acclaimed as the greatest defensive third-basemen in major league history...
, and former Hall of Fame pitcher Tom Seaver
Tom Seaver
George Thomas "Tom" Seaver , nicknamed "Tom Terrific" and "The Franchise", is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. He pitched from 1967-1986 for four different teams in his career, but is noted primarily for his time with the New York Mets...
.
Club, intramural, and recreational sports
Recent club sports offerings at Washington College have included:- Men & Women's Crew
- Dance Club & Team
- Equestrian Club & Team
- Men's Lacrosse
- Men's Rugby
- Running Club
- Skeet and Trap Club
- Wakeboard and Waterski Club
- Wilderness and Adventure Club
- Women's Lacrosse
- Women's Rugby
Club sports are student-run and funded by the Student Government Association.
Among Washington College's most successful club sports is its equestrian team. Founded in 2002, the team has been represented at collegiate national championships in both hunt seat and western riding competitions.
The Men's Rugby Club has also enjoyed a recent surge of success and has gained national attention in both 15's and 7's play.
The athletic department also offers a variety of intramural sports, open to the student body, faculty, and staff. Recent intramural sports have included co-ed soccer, co-ed dodgeball, co-ed flag football, co-ed basketball, co-ed volleyball, co-ed kickball, and co-ed ultimate.
Recreation trips are sponsored by the athletic department and student affairs and have included white water rafting, skiing, rock-fishing, rock climbing, crabbing, camping, cycling, and water skiing and wakeboarding.
Facilities
Despite the economic downturn, Washington College recently invested $70 million in its physical plant. In Fall 2009, the College opened two major new facilities: The Gibson Center for the Arts and the Hodson Hall Commons.After undergoing a $24 million renovation and expansion of the original structure, the Gibson Center for the Arts now accommodates a recital hall, an art gallery, a mainstage theatre and a small experimental theatre in addition to classrooms, practice rooms and faculty offices.
Hodson Hall Commons, another renovation/expansion project, reflects the historic features of adjoining Hodson Hall while accommodating the interests of today’s students. The Commons' first floor offers a central entertainment and performance space alongside café-style dining options and the Hodson Student Center. The main dining hall is located on the Common's second floor, providing scenic views of the surrounding campus.
Residence halls
Middle, East and West Halls stand on the crest of a low hill (the terrace) at the center of campus. Middle Hall (built 1844) and East and West Halls (built 1854) hold a special place in the history of Washington College in that they are the oldest surviving campus buildings. They serve as monuments to the original Common Building (completed in 1789), whose site they occupy. They are all three story buildings constructed of brick.They were listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1979.
They now function as follows:
- East Hall—The International House is a three-floor coed building that serves as a home for students interested in international relation and foreign language study. This theme house has a faculty advisor and has limited housing available for new students.
- Middle Hall—The Creative Arts House is a coed building for students interested in drama, music, visual art, literature, and the creative arts in general. Limited housing available for new students.
- West Hall—The Science House is a three-floor coed building that serves as a home for students interested in the natural sciences. This theme house has a faculty advisor and is limited to upperclassmen.
Other residence halls include:
- Caroline House—This three-floor coed building houses men on the first floor, and women on the second and third floors.
- Cecil House—This building is configured to accommodate four three-student suites and two six-student suites. Phi Delta Theta Fraternity resides here.
- Chester Hall—This is a three-floor coed building housing students of all years. It contains both full suites (with common room) and partial suites (with out common room). All suites have a double and two singles. There is a lounge and kitchenette on each floor with a full kitchen on the first floor.
- Dorchester House—This building is configured to accommodate four three-man suites and two six-man suites.
- Harford House—This three-floor building is configured to accommodate four seven-person suites per floor.
- Kent House—This is a two-floor building, co-ed by hallway.
- Minta Martin—This single-sex building houses women only; residents include but are not limited to members of the Alpha Chi Omega and Zeta Tau Alpha sororities.
- North Campus/Western Shore Residence Halls (Allegany, Anne Arundel, Calvert, Carroll, Charles, Frederick, Garrett, Howard, Montgomery, Prince George's, St. Mary's) -- These eleven buildings contain four apartment-style suites. Each suite contains four single bedrooms, two baths, a common area, and kitchenetteKitchenetteA kitchenette is a small cooking area.In motel and hotel rooms, small apartments, college dormitories, or office buildings a kitchenette usually consists of a small refrigerator, a microwave oven or hotplate, and, less frequently, a sink...
. These halls are limited to upperclassmen. Two new apartment-style suite buildings, Sassafras and Chester, will open in the Fall semester of 2008. - Queen Anne House—This two-floor, co-ed building is home to the substance-free program. Alcohol and tobacco products are prohibited in this building.
- Reid Hall—This three-floor building is for women only.
- Sassafras Hall—This is a three-floor coed building housing students of all years. It contains both full suites (with common room) and partial suites (with out common room). All suites have a double and two singles. There is a lounge and kitchenette on each floor with a full kitchen on the first floor. This building also houses a small exercise room and snack bar open to all residential students.
- Somerset House—This four-floor building houses only men. The fourth floor is occupied by Theta Chi Fraternity.
- Talbot House—This building is configured to accommodate four three-student suites and two six-student suites. Kappa Alpha Order resides here.
- Wicomico House—This is a two-floor men's building. Men are housed on both floors. Until recently, it was a coed dorm with men housed on the first floor, and women on the second floor.
- Worcester House—This is a two-floor coed building, housing men on the first floor and women on the second floor.
- Kent Crossing (Fall 2011-onward)- In order to accommodate the increasing size of the student population, the department of Residence Life has leased out apartments at the nearby Kent Crossing apartment complex. This housing is available to juniors and seniors in good academic standing.
Greek Life
Greek life at Washington College comprises of four men's fraternities and 3 women's sororities, fraternities are mainly housed in the "quad" dorms, the three sororities are housed in western shore houses.Men's fraternities
- Theta ChiTheta ChiTheta Chi Fraternity is an international college fraternity. It was founded on April 10, 1856 as the Theta Chi Society, at Norwich University, Norwich, Vermont, U.S., and was the 21st of the 71 North-American Interfraternity Conference men's fraternities.-Founding and early years at Norwich:Theta...
Beta Eta (Nonresidential) - Kappa Alpha OrderKappa Alpha OrderKappa Alpha Order is a social fraternity and fraternal order. Kappa Alpha Order has 124 active chapters, 3 provisional chapters, and 2 commissions...
Beta Omega (Talbot House) - Phi Delta ThetaPhi Delta ThetaPhi Delta Theta , also known as Phi Delt, is an international fraternity founded at Miami University in 1848 and headquartered in Oxford, Ohio. Phi Delta Theta, Beta Theta Pi, and Sigma Chi form the Miami Triad. The fraternity has about 169 active chapters and colonies in over 43 U.S...
MD Gamma (Cecil House) - Kappa SigmaKappa SigmaKappa Sigma , commonly nicknamed Kappa Sig, is an international fraternity with currently 282 active chapters and colonies in North America. Kappa Sigma has initiated more than 240,000 men on college campuses throughout the United States and Canada. Today, the Fraternity has over 175,000 living...
Omicron Phi (Dorchester House)
Sororities
- Zeta Tau AlphaZeta Tau AlphaZeta Tau Alpha is a women's fraternity, founded October 15, 1898 at the State Female Normal School in Farmville, Virginia. The Executive office is located in Indianapolis, Indiana...
Gamma Beta - Alpha Chi OmegaAlpha Chi OmegaAlpha Chi Omega is a women's fraternity founded on October 15, 1885. Currently, there are 135 chapters of Alpha Chi Omega at colleges and universities across the United States and more than 200,000 lifetime members...
Beta Pi - Alpha Omicron PiAlpha Omicron PiAlpha Omicron Pi is an international women's fraternity promoting friendship for a lifetime, inspiring academic excellence and lifelong learning, and developing leadership skills through service to the Fraternity and community. ΑΟΠ was founded on January 2, 1897 at Barnard College on the campus...
Sigma Tau
Academic buildings
- Casey Academic Center
- Daly Hall
- Daniel Z. Gibson Center for the Arts
- The Constance Stuart Larrabee Arts Center
- Louis GoldsteinLouis L. GoldsteinLouis Lazarus Goldstein served as Comptroller, or chief financial officer, of Maryland from 1959 to 1998. He was born to a storekeeper in the small town of Prince Frederick, Maryland, and also died there. As a legislator in the Maryland General Assembly, he was known for his 11th-hour strong...
Hall - Clifton M. Miller Library
- Rose O'Neill Literary HouseRose O'Neill Literary HouseThe Rose O'Neill Literary House is one of three "Centers of Excellence" at Washington College in Chestertown, Maryland. With Director Mark Nowak and Assistant Director Kathryn Bursick, the house helps brainstorm and coordinate literature-centered programming as well as providing a place for...
- Sears House
- The John S. Toll Science Center
- Dunning Hall and the Alonzo G. Decker Jr. Laboratory Center
- Joseph H. McLain '37 Atrium
- William SmithWilliam Smith (Anglican priest)William Smith was the first provost of the University of Pennsylvania.thumb|300px|right|Dr William Smith's residence as it appeared circa 1919-Biography:...
Hall
Athletic facilities
- Athey Field
- Benjamin Johnson Lifetime Fitness Center
- Cain Athletic Center
- The Eugene B. Casey Swim Center
- KiblerTom KiblerJohn Thomas "Tom" Kibler was a coach at Washington College, in various capacities, for over half a century. His duties included coaching the baseball, basketball and football teams....
Field at Roy Kirby Jr. Stadium - The Ellen Bordley Schottland Tennis Center
- The Lelia Hynson Boating Park (off-campus on the Chester River)
- Truslow Boat House (off-campus on the Chester River)
- Athey Baseball Park
- Shriver Field (named in memory of Eleanor Ringgold and Samuel Shriver, Sr., grandparents of Eleanor Shriver Magee '93 and Pam ShriverPam ShriverPamela Howard Shriver Lazenby , is a former professional tennis player and is currently a sports broadcaster from the United States for ESPN2. During the 1980s and 1990s, she won 133 top-level titles, including 21 women's doubles titles and one mixed doubles title at Grand Slam tournaments...
)
Other
- Brown Cottage
- Hodson Hall (Dining Hall, Cafe, Quick Shop Eatery, Hynson Study Lounge)
- Hynson Pavilion (off-campus near Chester River)
- Hynson-Ringgold House (President's House)
- Nussbaum House
- White Cottage
Traditions
George Washington Birthday Ball: A college-wide dance where students, faculty, staff, alumni, and friends of the college come together to celebrate George Washington's birthday. The event usually takes place on, or around, the actual date of George Washington's birth. Formal dress is required for all in attendance.The All Campus Picnic: A carnival held for the students and community members before the beginning of the academic year.
The Renaissance Christmas Dinner: Held before the beginning of Winter Break and features performances by the Early Music Consort and Vocal Consort of the College.
War on the Shore: The annual men's lacrosse game, held in late spring between Washington College and Salisbury University
Salisbury University
Salisbury University is a public university in Salisbury, Maryland.According to U.S. News and World Report's 2009 America's Best Colleges index, "In guidebooks and surveys by U.S...
, two of Maryland's Eastern Shore's undergraduate schools. Beginning in 2004, the winner of the game has been awarded the Charles B. Clark Cup.
May Day: Started in 1968 by Professor Bennett Lamond of the English Department, who retired in 2004. He brought a class out onto the green, where they read poetry and drank wine. Later that night some of the students returned, and Washington College's May Day celebration was born. Since then, May Day has become a two-day festival on April 30 and May 1, often involving public nudity by a percentage of the student body. The event draws many students as spectators.
Past Washington College presidents
- William SmithWilliam Smith (Anglican priest)William Smith was the first provost of the University of Pennsylvania.thumb|300px|right|Dr William Smith's residence as it appeared circa 1919-Biography:...
1782-1789 - Colin Ferguson 1793-1805
- Hugh McGuire 1813-1815
- Joab G. Cooper 1816-1817
- Gerard E. Stack 1817-1818
- Francis WatersFrancis WatersFrancis G. Waters, D.D., LL.D., was a methodist minister from Baltimore, Maryland, U.S., and a founding member of the Methodist Protestant Church. He was elected as the first president of the church on November 2, 1830, and presided over the general convention, in which the church's constitution...
1818-1823 - Timothy Clowes 1823-1829
- Peter Clark 1829-1832
- Richard W. Ringgold 1832-1854
- Francis Waters 1854-1860
- Andrew J. Sutton 1860-1867
- Robert C. Berkeley 1867-1873
- William J. Rivers 1873-1887
- Thomas N. Williams 1887-1889
- Charles W. Reid 1889-1903
- James W. Cain 1903-1918
- Clarence P. Gould 1919-1923
- Paul E. Titsworth 1923-1933
- Gilbert W. Mead 1933-1949
- Daniel Z. Gibson 1950-1970
- Charles J. Merdinger 1970-1973
- Joseph H. McLain 1973-1981
- Garry E. Clarke (acting), 1981–1982
- Douglass Cater 1982-1990
- Charles H. Trout 1990-1995
- John S. TollJohn S. TollJohn Sampson Toll was an American physicist and educational administrator.Toll received his bachelor's degree in physics from Yale in 1944, after which he served in the Navy in World War II. He finished his Ph.D...
1995-2004 - Baird TipsonBaird TipsonL. Baird Tipson is an American academic and college administrator. He holds an A.B. degree from Princeton and a Ph.D in religious studies from Yale University . After an initial career as a professor of religion at Virginia and Central Michigan University, Tipson entered academic administration...
2004-2010 - Mitchell ReissMitchell ReissMitchell B. Reiss is a senior American diplomat who became the 27th president of Washington College in Chestertown, Maryland on July 1, 2010. He served as Director of Policy Planning at the United States Department of State under Colin Powell...
2010-