Masonic University of Tennessee (1848–1855) Stewart College (1855–1875) Southwestern Presbyterian University (1875–1924) Southwestern, The College of the Mississippi Valley (1924–1945) Southwestern at Memphis (1945–1984)[1]
The early origins of Rhodes can be traced to the mid-1830s and the establishment of the all-male Montgomery Academy on the outskirts of Clarksville, Tennessee.[4] The city's flourishing tobacco market and profitable river port made Clarksville one of the fastest-growing cities in the then-western United States and quickly led to calls to turn the modest "log college" into a proper university.[4] In 1848, the Tennessee General Assembly authorized the conveyance of the academy's property for the establishment of the Masonic University of Tennessee.[4]
Southwestern Hall viewed from Oak Alley
In 1855, control of the university passed to the Presbyterian Church, and it was renamed Stewart College in honor of its president and benefactor, William M. Stewart.[4] The college's early growth halted during the American Civil War, during which its buildings served as a headquarters for the Union Army throughout the federal occupation of Clarksville.[5] The war was especially costly for the young institution, as the campus suffered extensive damage and looting.[5]
The sad condition of campus and the slow recovery of the Southern economy made getting the college back on its feet a slow and difficult process.[5] However, renewed support from the Presbyterian Church gave the college new life.[5] In 1875 the college was renamed Southwestern Presbyterian University after it added an undergraduate School of Theology under the leadership of Joseph Ruggles Wilson, father of President Woodrow Wilson; it closed in 1917.[5][6]
By the early 20th century, the college had still not fully recovered from the Civil War and faced dwindling financial support and inconsistent enrollment.[5] Hoping to reverse the institution's fortunes, the board of directors hired Charles E. Diehl, the pastor of Clarksville's First Presbyterian Church, to take over as president.[5]
In order to revive the college, Diehl implemented a number of reforms: the admission of women in 1917, an honor code for students in 1918, and the recruitment of Oxford-trained scholars to lead the implementation of an Oxford-Cambridge style of education.[7] Diehl's application of an Oxbridge-style tutorial system, in which students study subjects in individual sessions with their professors, allowed the college to join Harvard as the only two colleges in the United States then employing such a system.[7] During Diehl's tenure as president, he would add more than a dozen Oxford-educated scholars to the faculty, and their style of teaching would form the foundation of the modern Rhodes curriculum.[7]
Diehl's most significant change to the college came in 1925, when he orchestrated the movement of the campus from Clarksville to its present location in Memphis, Tennessee (the Clarksville campus now forms part of the grounds of Austin Peay State University).[5] The move provided an increase in financial contributions and student enrollment, and, despite the Great Depression and World War II, the college began to grow.[5] In 1945, the college adopted its penultimate name Southwestern at Memphis in order to distinguish itself from other colleges and universities containing the name "Southwestern."[5]
Diehl retired in 1948, and the board of trustees unanimously chose physics professor Peyton N. Rhodes as his successor.[5] During Rhodes' sixteen-year presidency the college admitted its first Black students; added ten new buildings, including Burrow Library, Mallory Gymnasium, and the emblematic Halliburton Tower; increased enrollment from 600 to 900; founded a campus chapter of the Phi Beta Kappa Society; and grew the endowment to over $14 million.[5] In 1984, the board of trustees decided the name "Southwestern" needed to be retired, and the college's name was changed to Rhodes College to honor the man who had served the institution for more than fifty years.[8]
Rhodes has grown into a nationally ranked liberal arts and sciences college.[9] Under the leadership of James H. Daughdrill, Jr. (president from 1973 to 1999) and William E. Troutt (president from 1999 to 2017), the college's physical expansion continued, and Rhodes now offers more than 50 majors, interdisciplinary majors, minors, and academic programs.[10] Additionally, the school has built partnerships with numerous Memphis institutions to provide students with a network of research, service, and internships opportunities.[11]
In July 2017, Marjorie Hass began her tenure as the 20th president of Rhodes College, as the college's first female president.[12] She departed Rhodes in June 2021 after being named the president of the Council of Independent Colleges and was succeeded by Jennifer Collins.[13][14]
Academics and reputation
Burrow Hall
The academic environment at Rhodes centers around small classes, faculty mentorship, and an emphasis on student research and writing. The average class size is 14, and the college has a 10:1 student-to-faculty ratio.[15] In 2017, The Princeton Review ranked Rhodes #9 for Most Accessible Professors.[15] Rhodes is featured perennially on the US News and Forbes lists of the Top 55 Liberal Arts Universities and has been hailed by Forbes as one of the Top 20 Colleges in the South. In US News 2020 edition, Rhodes is ranked No. 53 on its National Liberal Arts College Ranking and 28th college in the south on Forbes 2019 edition.[16]
Through 18 academic departments and 13 interdisciplinary programs, Rhodes offers more than 50 majors, interdisciplinary majors, minors, and academic programs.[17] If students are unable to find a major that meets their specific interests, the college may allow them to design their own major that is better tailored to their goals.[17] Although the college is primarily focused on undergraduate education, Rhodes also offers graduate degrees in Accounting and Urban Education.[18]
Its most popular undergraduate majors, based on 2021 graduates, were:[19]
Business Administration & Management (63)
Biology/Biological Sciences (46)
Neuroscience (36)
English Language and Literature (29)
Chemistry (27)
Psychology (27)
Computer Science (24)
International Relations & Affairs (22)
At the core of the Rhodes academic experience is the Foundations Curriculum,[20] which gives students freedom to follow their academic interests and aspirations while developing the critical-thinking and communication skills that are fundamental to a liberal arts education. It also requires students to connect their classroom experience to the real world through an internship, research, and/or study abroad opportunities.[21] More than 400 different courses are offered to fulfill the Foundations course requirements.[20]
Graduate school placement & postgraduate scholarships
Rhodes College's Rankings in The Princeton Review's 2017 Edition of The Best 381 Colleges
Category
Ranking
Most Beautiful Campus
#1
Students Most Engaged In Community Service
#2
Town-Gown Relationships
#4
Best College Library
#6
Most Accessible Professors
#9
Best Quality of Life
#10
Best Career Services
#16
Happiest Students
#18
Community service
More than 80 percent of Rhodes students are involved in some form of community service,[26] and the college has the oldest collegiate chapter of Habitat for Humanity and the longest student-run soup kitchen in the country.[21] Rhodes' Kinney Program provides students with a direct connection to service and social-action opportunities in Memphis by cultivating relationships with about 100 local partners.[26] Additionally, the Bonner Scholars Program offers scholarships to up to 15 students per class who have a strong commitment to change-based service.[26] Rhodes also offers Summer Service Fellowships that award academic credit to students working full-time with Memphis community organizations and non-profits.[26]
The mission statement of the college reinforces community engagement, aspiring to "graduate students with ... a compassion for others and the ability to translate academic study and personal concern into effective leadership and action in their communities and the world".[27]
Internships and research
In 2017, The Princeton Review ranked Rhodes #16 for Best Schools for Internships and #16 for Best Career Services.[28] Students are encouraged to take advantage of Rhodes' metropolitan backdrop to participate in off-campus internships and "service learning". They are also given the opportunity to participate in a variety of research programs, such as the Summer Plus program at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital,[29] the Rhodes/UT Neuroscience Fellowship,[30] the Center for Outreach and Development of the Arts, the Mike Curb Institute for Music, the Shelby Foote Fellowship, and the Mayor's Urban Fellows Program.
A reading room in the Paul Barrett, Jr. Library
Rhodes also helps students obtain internships across the country and overseas. As a part of one of the oldest and largest international relations undergraduate programs in the United States, Rhodes' Mertie W. Buckman International Internship Program provides funding for outstanding students majoring in International Studies to work abroad during the summer months.[31] In addition to the work experience, Buckman interns are provided with a stipend to use for cultural enrichment while abroad.[31] Past students have worked for the U.S. Department of Commerce in France and Croatia, the German Marshall Fund in Belgium and Poland, taught English through nonprofit organizations in Cambodia, and helped a U.S. firm set up operations in China.[32] Additionally, the Political Science Department offers semester programs in Washington, D.C.[33]
Study abroad
The Institute of International Education's Open Doors Report, listed Rhodes as one of Top 35 Colleges in the United States for Students Who Study Abroad. Rhodes offers a number of its own study abroad programs, including European Studies, a fall semester program in which students travel to various locations in Europe while studying at the University of Oxford. Additionally, students can explore a variety of summer programs in locations such as Belgium, London, and Ecuador.[34]
In order to lower the financial obstacles to studying abroad, Rhodes allows students to use their federal and institutional aid on any one of more than 300 Rhodes-affiliated semester-long study abroad programs.[35] The college's Buckman Center for International Education maintains a list of affiliated programs that Rhodes students can attend for one semester with no additional tuition or fees.[35] Per their official policy "students pay tuition, room, and board as normal to Rhodes, including any federal and institutional aid they normally receive, which covers their tuition, room, and board while on the program."[35] Additionally, the college maintains a list of exceptional programs that are available via a petition process.[35]
Mike Curb Institute for Music
The Mike Curb Institute for Music was founded in 2006 to foster awareness and understanding of the distinct musical traditions of Memphis and the South and to study the effect music has had on the region's culture, history, and economy.[36] Through the areas of preservation, research, leadership, and civic responsibility, the Institute provides support and opportunities for students and faculty, in partnership with the community, to experience and celebrate what Mr. Curb calls the "Tennessee Music Miracle."[36]
1034 Audubon Drive: Elvis' first home in Memphis, now owned by Rhodes College and home to the school's student-produced concert series, The Audubon Sessions.
In addition to taking specially offered courses, students have the opportunity to work with the Curb Institute through its fellowships program. As Mike Curb Fellows, students can gain experience in public relations, marketing, video production, audio production, community engagement, and extensive research/writing projects.
The Audubon Sessions: An Evening at Elvis'
In March 1956, Elvis Presley purchased his first home—a four-bedroom ranch house at 1034 Audubon Drive in Memphis—with the money he earned off the royalties of "Heartbreak Hotel".[37] He lived there for thirteen months with his parents and grandmother before they moved to Graceland. During this time, Elvis would make his iconic appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show, record such hits as "Hound Dog" and "Don't Be Cruel," and begin his storied movie career.[38] In 2006, Mike Curb purchased the home for Rhodes, with the idea that it would be used by the college as an extension of the Curb Institute. Curb Fellows now use the house for interviews, recording, and projects like The Audubon Sessions.
The Audubon Sessions is a student-produced house concert series that takes place at 1034 Audubon Drive. Guest artists are invited to the house to perform and discuss their careers and thoughts about music and life, especially in the context of Memphis and the region.[37] Rhodes students produce, film, record, and edit the shows alongside professionals such as New School Media and producer/engineer Doug Easley, and partners such as the Levitt Shell and Stax Museum of American Soul Music.[38] After 4 years as a web series, the show has now evolved into a program that launches nationally to public arts television stations through a collaboration with NECAT.
Over the last couple years the house has hosted concerts by Mississippi bluesman Bobby Rush, singer-songwriter and Memphis native Rosanne Cash, Southern roots chanteuse Valerie June, guitar great Bill Frisell, jazz giant Charles Lloyd, Memphis alt band Star and Micey, and Memphis rapper PreauXX.
The "Search" course
First required for entering freshman in 1945, The Search for Values in the Light of Western History and Religion, known affectionately as "Search," is a two-year, intensive study of the literature, philosophy, religion, and history of the West from Gilgamesh to modern times.[7] The course is a central facet of Rhodes' Foundations Curriculum and can be seen as the college's take on the Great Books Program. Although Search has evolved over its history, the course remains a rite of passage for all Rhodes students and is seen as "the defining academic experience at Rhodes" and "the soul of the college."[7] The success of the program has inspired similar efforts at other colleges and universities, such as Davidson, LSU, and Sewanee.[39]
The 2016 Rhodes College Course Catalogue offers this description the Search course:
Throughout its sixty-six year history, Search has embodied the College's guiding concern for helping students to become men and women of purpose, to think critically and intelligently about their own moral views, and to approach the challenges of social and moral life sensitively and deliberately. Students are encouraged to engage texts directly and to confront the questions and issues they encounter through discussions with their peers, exploratory writing assignments, and ongoing personal reflection. Special emphasis is given to the development and cultivation of critical thinking and writing skills under the tutelage of a diverse faculty drawn from academic disciplines across the Humanities, Fine Arts, Natural Sciences, and Social Sciences.[40]
Rhodes students are required to take one class from either the Search course or the Life: Then and Now course ("Life") during each of their first three semesters at Rhodes (4 hours each for a total of 12 credit hours). As such, the course constitutes more than 10% of a student's total credits toward graduation.[7]
Campus
The campus covers a 123-acre tract in Midtown, Memphis across from Overton Park and the Memphis Zoo. Often cited for its beauty,[41] the campus design is notable for its stone Collegiate Gothic buildings, thirteen of which are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[42] Additionally, Rhodes is a certified Class IV Arboretum, the highest designation granted by the Tennessee Urban Forestry Council, and contains over 120 tree species and more than 1,500 individual trees.[43] In 2017, The Princeton Review named Rhodes the #1 Most Beautiful College Campus in America in its edition of The Best 381 Colleges.
Catherine Burrow Refectory
The architecture of Rhodes College is the legacy of President Charles Diehl. The original buildings, including Southwestern Hall (1925), Kennedy Hall (1925), and Robb and White dormitories (1925), were designed by Henry Hibbs in consultation with Charles Klauder, the architect of many buildings at Princeton University. Palmer Hall was renamed Southwestern Hall in April 2019 after the board of trustees unanimously accepted the recommendation of the Palmer Hall Discernment Committee.
Every building on the Rhodes campus is built from three types of stone: the walls are sandstone from Arkansas, the roofs are slate from Vermont, and the door/window frames and decorative carvings are crafted from Indiana limestone.[5] Additionally, each slate roof is built at a precise 52 degree angle and every structure (except for the visual arts building) has leaded stained-glass windows. The visual arts building was designed with standard clear glass windows at the request of the arts faculty and students, who wished to preserve the uncolored natural light to better create and evaluate their work.[5]
Frazier Jelke (FJ) Amphitheatre and Southwestern Hall (back)
President Diehl was particularly concerned about ensuring unity and consistency of design.[44] When the first buildings were being planned in the early 1920s, architect Henry Hibbs chose for the walls a uniquely colorful sandstone with a range of reds, yellows, and browns from a quarry near Bald Knob, Arkansas.[5] To ensure a continuous supply, Rhodes purchased the quarry. After the state decided to build a highway through the quarry in the 1960s, Rhodes was forced to sell the property.[5] Since then, the college has been able to continue the uniformity of its buildings by sourcing the sandstone for the college's new buildings from other quarries within a five-mile range of the original source.[5]
Keen-eyed visitors to the Rhodes campus may also spot four limestone gargoyles hidden among the stones of the college's buildings. These likenesses of former college presidents Peyton Rhodes, James Daughdrill, and Bill Troutt, in addition to a tribute to former college first lady Carole Troutt, are tokens of gratitude added by the generations stonecutters who enjoyed employment from the college.[5]
Central to the life of the college is its Honor Code, administered by students through the Honor Council. Every student is required to sign the Code, which reads, "As a member of the Rhodes College community, I pledge my full and steadfast support to the Honor System and agree neither to lie, cheat, nor steal and to report any such violation that I may witness." Because of this, students enjoy a campus-wide community of trust and mutual respect.[21]
The Seal of Rhodes College is located in the Cloister of Southwestern Hall. Tradition holds that students stepping on the seal will not graduate on time, if at all. The senior class finally gets a chance to cross the seal during their procession to Fisher Garden during Commencement.[49]
Rites of Spring is Rhodes' annual three-day music festival in early April that typically attracts several major bands from around the country. Past performers include The Black Keys, Coolio, Old Crow Medicine Show, Grace Potter, and G-Easy. Rhodes' Rites to Play has in recent years brought elementary-school-age children to the campus. Rhodes students plan, organize, and execute a carnival for the children, who are sponsored by community agencies and schools that partner with Rhodes.
Athletics
Rhodes' mascot is the lynx, and the school colors are cardinal and black.
The Lynx compete in NCAADivision III in the Southern Athletic Association. Prior to joining the SAA, Rhodes was a founding member of the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference. Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, lacrosse, soccer, swimming & diving, tennis, and track & field; while women's sports include basketball, cross country, field hockey, golf, lacrosse, soccer, softball, swimming & diving, tennis, track & field and volleyball.
Rhodes has four team athletic national championships to its credit, with the baseball team earning a title in 1961 and the women's golf team earning three from 2014 to 2017.[50][51]
The Edmund Orgill Trophy
Rivalry with Sewanee
A 2016 field hockey matchup between Rhodes and Sewanee
The longest consecutively played college football game below the Mason-Dixon line (since 1899) has the manners and traditions of the South without all the excesses of big-time conferences.[52]
The exchange of the Edmund Orgill Trophy was added to the series in 1954, and the prize takes the form of a large silver bowl that is engraved with the result of each year's game.[5] The name honors the Memphis mayor that served on the boards of both colleges.[53]
Rhodes currently leads the trophy series 32–28–1, and is one game behind Sewanee in the overall series, with Rhodes winning thirteen of the last sixteen meetings.
Mock trial
Rhodes College provides an undergraduate mock trial program that has won four national championships and participated in ten national final rounds. The program was founded in 1986 by Professor Marcus Pohlmann. Rhodes qualified to the American Mock Trial Association's National Championship tournament every year since its inception (a national record) until 2021, with thirty-two top ten or Honorable Mention finishes and over one hundred and thirty All-American attorney and witness awards.
The Marcus D. Pohlmann Mock Trial Courtroom
Buckman Hall houses a replica courtroom used by the teams for practicing. Every spring, Rhodes hosts one of the nine AMTA Opening Round Championship tournaments in the Shelby County Courthouse in downtown Memphis. The program also hosts an informal invitational scrimmage tournament in Buckman Hall every autumn.[54][55]
President Charles Diehl prescribed certain rules regarding the design of the fraternity and sorority lodges.[44] Each features the same Arkansas sandstone walls, Vermont slate roofs, Indiana limestone trim, and stained glass windows as the rest of campus. As a result, Rhodes' fraternity and sorority rows are composed of domestic-scale Gothic lodges featuring variations on the college's distinctive architecture.[44]
Notable people
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Gwen Robinson Awsumb, 1937 – American politician and social activist who became the first woman to be elected to the Memphis City Council in 1968; Chair of Memphis City Council 1970–1975
John Farris, '58 – prolific writer of popular fiction and suspense novels, and stage and screen plays
Hilton McConnico – artist, designer, and film director; the first American to have work permanently inducted into the Louvre's Decorative Arts collection
Cary Fowler, 2011 – American agriculturalist and the former executive director of the Global Crop Diversity Trust, attended the school 1967–1969 before transferring
^ abcdCooper, W. Raymond (1949). Southwestern at Memphis 1848–1948. Richmond, VA: John Knox Press.
^ abcdefghijklmnopqrsWood, Bennett (1998). Rhodes 150: A Sesquicentennial Yearbook. Little Rock, Arkansas: August House Publishers, Inc. pp. 28, 41–42. ISBN0-87483-538-0.
^ abcdefghNelson, Michael (1996). Celebrating the Humanities: A Half-Century of the Search Course at Rhodes College. Vanderbilt University Press. p. 10. ISBN0-8265-1282-8.
^clasm-17 (2015-07-26). "Majors & Minors". Rhodes College. Archived from the original on 2017-12-26. Retrieved 2017-12-26.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
^ abcMorgan, William (1989). Collegiate Gothic: The Architecture of Rhodes College. Columbia, Missouri: University of Missouri Press. pp. 88–89. ISBN0-82620699-9.
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