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Bethel College (Kansas)
Encyclopedia
Bethel College is a private college affiliated with Mennonite Church USA
. The college is located on the edge of the Flint Hills
and the vast wheat
fields of south central Kansas
in the town of North Newton
. Enrollment at the college is approximately 500 students, earning degrees in 31 different majors in the fine arts and science
s.
Bethel College's academic program exposes students to three educational traditions: liberal arts, the church, and career preparation. General education courses give basic academic skills, providing a broad understanding of the social and natural world from the perspective of the liberal arts and sciences. Required Bible and religion classes encourage intellectual discussions of ethical perspectives and spiritual values. Focused study in a major field lays the groundwork for vocational success.
and model for the Christian
life and values a high level of commitment and free conviction; next an ethic of scholarship
, that believes academic achievement is a logical out-come of intellectual stewardship, valuing discipline and creativity; third, an ethic of service, that believes concern for the powerless is essential to the Christian gospel and emphasizes the importance of peacemaking and volunteering of services; and finally an ethic of integrity, that celebrates the connections between spirit
and mind, faith
and learning, individual and community, and fosters personal development through participation in a range of activities.
and a cross-cultural experience. The college offers majors in the traditional liberal arts disciplines and selected career areas and accredited professional programs in nursing
, social work
, and teacher education
. Academic development services are provided to enhance the skills of all students. By design, Bethel’s student profile reflects its church affiliation. At the same time, the college values diversity in its student body and seeks to enroll a variety of individuals desiring high-quality education for the whole person.
. The school was moved to Halstead, Kansas
, in 1883. A better site was found in North Newton, Kansas, and the cornerstone of the main building was laid on October 12, 1888. This structure, the current Administration Building, is on the National Register of Historic Places
.
, replacing Wadsworth Institute
which had closed in 1878.
, and library
of 600 volumes were located on the second floor. In those days, the students were up by five in the morning and in bed by ten at night. Each student worked two hours a day at a campus
job. Student conduct was strictly monitored. Men and women were not allowed to be in the library during the same evenings; they alternated each evening. Five men, including the president, made up the first faculty. They taught classes in the Bible, church history, German
, English
, mathematics
, science
, and music
. Bethel College was a bilingual college until early 1918, when the U.S. entered World War I
. German was removed from the curriculum, although it would later return. As of 2008, Bethel is the only Mennonite college to offer German as a major.
until 1925 when the Science Hall was completed. The cornerstone for Memorial Hall was laid in 1938, and the building was completed in 1942. The Art Center
is another building that has been present for many years. In 1952 the Mennonite Library and Archives was built. In 1979, the current student center/cafeteria was built. The newest building is the Thresher Stadium in the Thresher Sports Complex. Another newly-constructed academic building is the Krehbiel Science Center, completed in 2002.
There are three student residence halls located on campus. They are Haury Hall (completed in 1958 and expanded in 1963), Warkentin Court (completed in 1966), and the newer Voth Hall (completed in 2000).
Bethel College offers many sport
s, including basketball
, cross-country
, golf
, soccer, football
, tennis
, track
, and volleyball
. In the 2006-07 season, three of Bethel's coaches were named conference Coach of the Year. The Threshers have won more than 55 conference titles. During 1998-99 alone, six of the ten Thresher teams won conference championships (Sports). At Bethel College the athletes also compete academically; 89 student athletes have been named American
Scholar Athletes. Bethel College Athletic Director Diane Flickner said, “Intercollegiate athletics is an integral part of life at Bethel College. Thresher intercollegiate teams strive toward excellence in all of their goals. Success is not defined simply by a winning record but also by community involvement, the joy of playing, cooperation, friendships, skill improvement and the pride of representing Bethel College. Student-athletes develop life long skills of teamwork, self-discipline and leadership in an environment committed to Christian higher education”.
Bethel is a member of the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference
which is part of the NAIA
.
Historical
Mennonite Church USA
The Mennonite Church USA, or MCUSA, is an Anabaptist Christian denomination in the United States. Although the organization is a recent 2002 merger of the Mennonite Church and the General Conference Mennonite Church, the body has roots in the Radical Reformation of the 16th century...
. The college is located on the edge of the Flint Hills
Flint Hills
The Flint Hills, historically known as Bluestem Pastures or Blue Stem Hills, are a band of hills in eastern Kansas stretching into north-central Oklahoma, extending from Marshall County, Kansas and Washington County, Kansas in the north to Cowley County, Kansas and Osage County, Oklahoma in the south...
and the vast wheat
Wheat
Wheat is a cereal grain, originally from the Levant region of the Near East, but now cultivated worldwide. In 2007 world production of wheat was 607 million tons, making it the third most-produced cereal after maize and rice...
fields of south central Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
in the town of North Newton
North Newton, Kansas
North Newton is a city in Harvey County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 1,759. The city of Newton is located next to the city, but it not part of North Newton. North Newton is home of Bethel College, which has approximately 500 students.-Geography:North...
. Enrollment at the college is approximately 500 students, earning degrees in 31 different majors in the fine arts and science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
s.
Academics
Core values
The programs at Bethel College are grounded in four core values. These values are shown in daily routines at this institution. They include, first, an ethic of discipleship, that recognizes Jesus Christ is the MessiahMessiah
A messiah is a redeemer figure expected or foretold in one form or another by a religion. Slightly more widely, a messiah is any redeemer figure. Messianic beliefs or theories generally relate to eschatological improvement of the state of humanity or the world, in other words the World to...
and model for the Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
life and values a high level of commitment and free conviction; next an ethic of 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:...
, that believes academic achievement is a logical out-come of intellectual stewardship, valuing discipline and creativity; third, an ethic of service, that believes concern for the powerless is essential to the Christian gospel and emphasizes the importance of peacemaking and volunteering of services; and finally an ethic of integrity, that celebrates the connections between spirit
Spirit
The English word spirit has many differing meanings and connotations, most of them relating to a non-corporeal substance contrasted with the material body.The spirit of a living thing usually refers to or explains its consciousness.The notions of a person's "spirit" and "soul" often also overlap,...
and mind, faith
Faith
Faith is confidence or trust in a person or thing, or a belief that is not based on proof. In religion, faith is a belief in a transcendent reality, a religious teacher, a set of teachings or a Supreme Being. Generally speaking, it is offered as a means by which the truth of the proposition,...
and learning, individual and community, and fosters personal development through participation in a range of activities.
Curriculum
Bethel’s curriculum is founded on a general education program in the liberal arts and sciences and is geared toward students of moderate to high academic ability. Distinctive elements include requirements in the study of religionReligion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
and a cross-cultural experience. The college offers majors in the traditional liberal arts disciplines and selected career areas and accredited professional programs in nursing
Nursing
Nursing is a healthcare profession focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life from conception to death....
, social work
Social work
Social Work is a professional and academic discipline that seeks to improve the quality of life and wellbeing of an individual, group, or community by intervening through research, policy, community organizing, direct practice, and teaching on behalf of those afflicted with poverty or any real or...
, and teacher education
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
. Academic development services are provided to enhance the skills of all students. By design, Bethel’s student profile reflects its church affiliation. At the same time, the college values diversity in its student body and seeks to enroll a variety of individuals desiring high-quality education for the whole person.
Early years
Founded in 1887 and conferring its first four-year degrees in 1912, Bethel is the oldest Mennonite college in North America. Starting in 1874, thousands of Russian Mennonites began arriving in Kansas. In 1882, having a century of experience running their own schools, they opened Emmental, a training school for teachers, north of Newton, KansasNewton, Kansas
Newton is a city in and the county seat of Harvey County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 19,132. Newton is located north of Wichita and is included in the Wichita metropolitan statistical area...
. The school was moved to Halstead, Kansas
Halstead, Kansas
Halstead is a city in Harvey County, Kansas, United States. Halstead was named in honor of Murat Halstead, a respected Civil War correspondent and newspaper editor. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 2,085.-History:...
, in 1883. A better site was found in North Newton, Kansas, and the cornerstone of the main building was laid on October 12, 1888. This structure, the current Administration Building, is 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...
.
Campus relocation
The Halstead school was closed for the 1892–1893 school year while it was relocated to the new site and reopened as Bethel College in 1893. Bethel College became the second institution of higher learning associated with the General Conference Mennonite ChurchGeneral Conference Mennonite Church
The General Conference Mennonite Church was an association of Mennonite congregations based in North America from 1860 to 2002. The conference was formed in 1860 when congregations in Iowa invited North American Mennonites to join together in order to pursue common goals such as higher education...
, replacing Wadsworth Institute
Wadsworth Institute
Wadsworth Institute was a Mennonite seminary in Wadsworth, Ohio, from 1868 to 1878. Officially named Christian Educational Institution of the Mennonite Denomination, it accepted men aged 18 to 35 for a three-year program centering around biblical studies and other topics relevant to training...
which had closed in 1878.
North Newton
During the 1880s, Kansas cities and towns competed with one another to create, build, and construct many institutions and buildings including colleges. On May 11, 1887, representatives of the Newton community and the Kansas Conference of Mennonites signed a charter for Bethel College to be built on a plot of about 120 acre (0.4856232 km²). Over a year later on October 12, 1888, around 2,500 people gathered on the property to lay the cornerstone of what is today the Administration Building of Bethel College. The dedication sermon was based on the Corinthians motto, which was placed on the seal, which now stands for Bethel College and its values. The building project took around five years to fully complete. The fund-raising to create the institution was slow, but on September 20, 1893 there was a service of dedication held for the building to be opened, and classes began.First college president
Cornelius H. Wedel, a young teacher, was made Bethel College’s first president. There were 98 students – 77 men and 21 women ages 13 to mid-30s – living on the west end of the main floor and the ground floor of the Administration Building. Wedel and his family lived on the east end of the Administration Building’s main floor. The classrooms, chapelChapel
A chapel is a building used by Christians as a place of fellowship and worship. It may be part of a larger structure or complex, such as a church, college, hospital, palace, prison or funeral home, located on board a military or commercial ship, or it may be an entirely free-standing building,...
, and library
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
of 600 volumes were located on the second floor. In those days, the students were up by five in the morning and in bed by ten at night. Each student worked two hours a day at a campus
Campus
A campus is traditionally the land on which a college or university and related institutional buildings are situated. Usually a campus includes libraries, lecture halls, residence halls and park-like settings...
job. Student conduct was strictly monitored. Men and women were not allowed to be in the library during the same evenings; they alternated each evening. Five men, including the president, made up the first faculty. They taught classes in the Bible, church history, German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, English
English studies
English studies is an academic discipline that includes the study of literatures written in the English language , English linguistics English studies is an academic discipline that includes the study of literatures written in the English language (including literatures from the U.K., U.S.,...
, mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
, science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
, and music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
. Bethel College was a bilingual college until early 1918, when the U.S. entered World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. German was removed from the curriculum, although it would later return. As of 2008, Bethel is the only Mennonite college to offer German as a major.
Campus facilities
The Administration Building was the main campus structureStructure
Structure is a fundamental, tangible or intangible notion referring to the recognition, observation, nature, and permanence of patterns and relationships of entities. This notion may itself be an object, such as a built structure, or an attribute, such as the structure of society...
until 1925 when the Science Hall was completed. The cornerstone for Memorial Hall was laid in 1938, and the building was completed in 1942. The Art Center
Art Center
Art Center may refer to:*Arts centre, a type of community centre that focuses on the arts*Art Center College of Design, a college in Pasadena, California...
is another building that has been present for many years. In 1952 the Mennonite Library and Archives was built. In 1979, the current student center/cafeteria was built. The newest building is the Thresher Stadium in the Thresher Sports Complex. Another newly-constructed academic building is the Krehbiel Science Center, completed in 2002.
There are three student residence halls located on campus. They are Haury Hall (completed in 1958 and expanded in 1963), Warkentin Court (completed in 1966), and the newer Voth Hall (completed in 2000).
Athletics
- See Bethel College ThreshersBethel College ThreshersBethel College athletic teams are known as the Threshers. They participate in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics and the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference.-Cross country and track & field:...
Bethel College offers many sport
Sport
A Sport is all forms of physical activity which, through casual or organised participation, aim to use, maintain or improve physical fitness and provide entertainment to participants. Sport may be competitive, where a winner or winners can be identified by objective means, and may require a degree...
s, including basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
, cross-country
Cross country running
Cross country running is a sport in which people run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open country, and include hills, flat ground and sometimes gravel road...
, golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
, soccer, football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
, tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
, track
Track and field
Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...
, and volleyball
Volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
. In the 2006-07 season, three of Bethel's coaches were named conference Coach of the Year. The Threshers have won more than 55 conference titles. During 1998-99 alone, six of the ten Thresher teams won conference championships (Sports). At Bethel College the athletes also compete academically; 89 student athletes have been named American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Scholar Athletes. Bethel College Athletic Director Diane Flickner said, “Intercollegiate athletics is an integral part of life at Bethel College. Thresher intercollegiate teams strive toward excellence in all of their goals. Success is not defined simply by a winning record but also by community involvement, the joy of playing, cooperation, friendships, skill improvement and the pride of representing Bethel College. Student-athletes develop life long skills of teamwork, self-discipline and leadership in an environment committed to Christian higher education”.
Bethel is a member of the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference
Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference
The Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference is an intercollegiate athletic conference affiliated with the NAIA. It is commonly called "The Kansas Conference", and as the name implies, all members are located in Kansas...
which is part of the NAIA
National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics
The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics is an athletic association that organizes college and university-level athletic programs. Membership in the NAIA consists of smaller colleges and universities across the United States. The NAIA allows colleges and universities outside the USA...
.
External links
- Official web site
- Bethel College in Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online
- City Town Info on Bethel College
Historical