Cedar Crest College
Encyclopedia
Cedar Crest College is a private
liberal arts
women's college
in Allentown
, Pennsylvania
, in the United States
. During the 2006-2007 academic year
, the college had 1,000 full-time and 800 part-time undergraduates and 85 graduate students. It also amdits male students for evening classes.
Founded in 1867, the college is historically tied to the United Church of Christ
, though it remains academically independent.
Cedar Crest is one of two four-year colleges located in Allentown. Muhlenberg College
, a liberal arts college loosely affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
, like Cedar Crest, is located in Allentown's West End.
The college's bachelor of arts
and science
programs span more than fifty majors, from Fine Arts and Environmental Biology to Nursing Science and Business Administration. The curriculum also includes programs in Pre-Law, Pre-Dentistry, Pre-Medicine and Pre-Veterinary Medicine. In addition, Cedar Crest offers master's degrees in Nursing
, Education
, and Forensic Science. Undergraduate and graduate programs are also offered to adult students through the college's Center for Lifelong Learning.
Campus buildings include Blaney Hall administration building, Cressman Library, Tompkins College Center, Dorothy Rider Pool Science Center, Donald P. Miller Family Building for art, science and peace, Harold and Miriam Oberkotter Center for Health and Wellness, Alumnae Hall for art and performing arts, Rodale Aquatic Center for Civic Health and Lees Hall gymnasium and fitness center. Additional classroom and faculty buildings include Hartzel Hall, Curtis Hall and Hamilton Boulevard Building. The college also has four residence halls: Butz Hall, Moore Hall, Steinbright Hall and the upper level of Curtis Hall.
Cedar Crest's collection of 140 species of trees is designated as the William F. Curtis Arboretum, which is registered with the American Association of Botanical Gardens and Arboreta. The arboretum is named for the college's seventh president, who after purchasing the property in 1915, beautified the campus by planting flowers, shrubs and trees from all over the world.
The campus is also the site of the Da Vinci Discovery Center, an independent science demonstration facility that opened in 2005.
Division III athletics and has teams in basketball
, cross country running
, equestrian
, field hockey
, lacrosse
, soccer
, softball
, tennis
and volleyball
. In addition, the Rodale Aquatic Center on campus is home to the college's non-competitive swimming
club.
During the 2007 season, the Cedar Crest Falcons tennis team placed 4th in the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference (PAC). The team also broke two school records, one for the most wins in a season (12) and one for the most PAC wins (7). The team's record was 12-3. Coach
Lynn Pigliacampi is two games away from becoming Cedar Crest's winningest tennis coach. Pigliacampi played both at local Easton Area High School (class of 1999), where she was undefeated, and at Division I Drexel University
. Her father, Jules Pigliacampi, is an assistant coach. The United States Tennis Association
named her Coach of the Year
in 2008.
Cedar Crest's Falcons basketball team finished the 2008-09 season at 13-11 overall and 8-8 in the Colonial States Athletic Conference. The team posted more conference victories than in the previous nine seasons combined, earning a CSAC playoff berth for the first time in a decade. Head coach Valerie Donohue (Cedar Crest, '95) led the Falcons in tying the school record of 13 season wins set in 1998-99, the last time the team made the playoffs. The 6th-seeded Falcons beat Centenary College
's women in the 2009 tournament's opening round. Donohue was subsequently named Colonial States Athletic Conference Women's Basketball Coach of the Year.
Private school
Private schools, also known as independent schools or nonstate schools, are not administered by local, state or national governments; thus, they retain the right to select their students and are funded in whole or in part by charging their students' tuition, rather than relying on mandatory...
liberal arts
Liberal arts college
A liberal arts college is one with a primary emphasis on undergraduate study in the liberal arts and sciences.Students in the liberal arts generally major in a particular discipline while receiving exposure to a wide range of academic subjects, including sciences as well as the traditional...
women's college
Women's colleges in the United States
Women's colleges in the United States are single-sex U.S. institutions of higher education that exclude or limit males from admission. They are often liberal arts colleges...
in Allentown
Allentown, Pennsylvania
Allentown is a city located in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is Pennsylvania's third most populous city, after Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, and the 215th largest city in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 118,032 and is currently...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. During the 2006-2007 academic year
Academic term
An academic term is a division of an academic year, the time during which a school, college or university holds classes. These divisions may be called terms...
, the college had 1,000 full-time and 800 part-time undergraduates and 85 graduate students. It also amdits male students for evening classes.
Founded in 1867, the college is historically tied to the United Church of Christ
United Church of Christ
The United Church of Christ is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination primarily in the Reformed tradition but also historically influenced by Lutheranism. The Evangelical and Reformed Church and the Congregational Christian Churches united in 1957 to form the UCC...
, though it remains academically independent.
Cedar Crest is one of two four-year colleges located in Allentown. Muhlenberg College
Muhlenberg College
Muhlenberg College is a private liberal arts college located in Allentown, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1848, Muhlenberg is affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and is named for Henry Melchior Muhlenberg, the patriarch of the Lutheran Church in America.- History...
, a liberal arts college loosely affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is a mainline Protestant denomination headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. The ELCA officially came into existence on January 1, 1988, by the merging of three churches. As of December 31, 2009, it had 4,543,037 baptized members, with 2,527,941 of them...
, like Cedar Crest, is located in Allentown's West End.
Academics
For the past two decades, Cedar Crest has been ranked among the nation's top liberal arts colleges in U.S News & World Reports annual "America's Best Colleges" survey.The college's 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...
and 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...
programs span more than fifty majors, from Fine Arts and Environmental Biology to Nursing Science and Business Administration. The curriculum also includes programs in Pre-Law, Pre-Dentistry, Pre-Medicine and Pre-Veterinary Medicine. In addition, Cedar Crest offers master's degrees 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....
, 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...
, and Forensic Science. Undergraduate and graduate programs are also offered to adult students through the college's Center for Lifelong Learning.
Campus
Cedar Crest is located off Cedar Crest Boulevard at 100 College Drive on the western edge of Allentown. The 84 acres (34 ha) campus is adjacent to the city's Cedar Beach Park.Campus buildings include Blaney Hall administration building, Cressman Library, Tompkins College Center, Dorothy Rider Pool Science Center, Donald P. Miller Family Building for art, science and peace, Harold and Miriam Oberkotter Center for Health and Wellness, Alumnae Hall for art and performing arts, Rodale Aquatic Center for Civic Health and Lees Hall gymnasium and fitness center. Additional classroom and faculty buildings include Hartzel Hall, Curtis Hall and Hamilton Boulevard Building. The college also has four residence halls: Butz Hall, Moore Hall, Steinbright Hall and the upper level of Curtis Hall.
Cedar Crest's collection of 140 species of trees is designated as the William F. Curtis Arboretum, which is registered with the American Association of Botanical Gardens and Arboreta. The arboretum is named for the college's seventh president, who after purchasing the property in 1915, beautified the campus by planting flowers, shrubs and trees from all over the world.
The campus is also the site of the Da Vinci Discovery Center, an independent science demonstration facility that opened in 2005.
Athletics
Cedar Crest competes in NCAANational Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...
Division III athletics and has teams in 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 running
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...
, equestrian
Equestrianism
Equestrianism more often known as riding, horseback riding or horse riding refers to the skill of riding, driving, or vaulting with horses...
, field hockey
Field hockey
Field Hockey, or Hockey, is a team sport in which a team of players attempts to score goals by hitting, pushing or flicking a ball into an opposing team's goal using sticks...
, lacrosse
Lacrosse
Lacrosse is a team sport of Native American origin played using a small rubber ball and a long-handled stick called a crosse or lacrosse stick, mainly played in the United States and Canada. It is a contact sport which requires padding. The head of the lacrosse stick is strung with loose mesh...
, soccer
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
, softball
Softball
Softball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of 10 to 14 players. It is a direct descendant of baseball although there are some key differences: softballs are larger than baseballs, and the pitches are thrown underhand rather than overhand...
, 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...
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 addition, the Rodale Aquatic Center on campus is home to the college's non-competitive swimming
Swimming (sport)
Swimming is a sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation .-History: Competitive swimming in Europe began around 1800 BCE, mostly in the form of the freestyle. In 1873 Steve Bowyer introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native...
club.
During the 2007 season, the Cedar Crest Falcons tennis team placed 4th in the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference (PAC). The team also broke two school records, one for the most wins in a season (12) and one for the most PAC wins (7). The team's record was 12-3. Coach
Coach (sport)
In sports, a coach is an individual involved in the direction, instruction and training of the operations of a sports team or of individual sportspeople.-Staff:...
Lynn Pigliacampi is two games away from becoming Cedar Crest's winningest tennis coach. Pigliacampi played both at local Easton Area High School (class of 1999), where she was undefeated, and at Division I Drexel University
Drexel University
Drexel University is a private research university with the main campus located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. It was founded in 1891 by Anthony J. Drexel, a noted financier and philanthropist. Drexel offers 70 full-time undergraduate programs and accelerated degrees...
. Her father, Jules Pigliacampi, is an assistant coach. The United States Tennis Association
United States Tennis Association
The United States Tennis Association is the national governing body for the sport of tennis in the United States. A not-for-profit organization with more than 700,000 members, it invests 100% of its proceeds to promote and develop the growth of tennis, from the grass-roots to the professional levels...
named her Coach of the Year
Coach of the Year
Many sports leagues, sportswriting associations, and other organizations confer "Coach of the Year" awards.Some of these are:*AFCA Coach of the Year *Annis Stukus Trophy...
in 2008.
Cedar Crest's Falcons basketball team finished the 2008-09 season at 13-11 overall and 8-8 in the Colonial States Athletic Conference. The team posted more conference victories than in the previous nine seasons combined, earning a CSAC playoff berth for the first time in a decade. Head coach Valerie Donohue (Cedar Crest, '95) led the Falcons in tying the school record of 13 season wins set in 1998-99, the last time the team made the playoffs. The 6th-seeded Falcons beat Centenary College
Centenary College of New Jersey
Centenary College was founded in 1867 by the Newark Conference of the United Methodist Church. Centenary has evolved from a coeducational preparatory school to a girls' preparatory school , to a Junior college for women , to a four-year women's college , to a coeducational...
's women in the 2009 tournament's opening round. Donohue was subsequently named Colonial States Athletic Conference Women's Basketball Coach of the Year.
Traditions
- Under the college's "Big Sis, Little Sis" program, each freshwoman is assigned a "Big Sister," who serves as her mentor.
- A strawberry festival is held in the fall for all incoming students. The entire campus enjoys strawberries and whipped cream, chocolate covered strawberries, strawberry lemonade, and related refreshments. The event is held on the front lawn of the President's home.
- Incoming students introduce themselves on the steps of Blaney Hall, where they are welcomed by the entire Cedar Crest community.
- Each year, juniors receive their class rings at a special ceremony. The design of the rings has not changed in decades. As a result, many students have rings identical to those of their mothers, and aunts' grandmothers.
- Free Road Trips are offered to students to the neighboring cities of Philadelphia and New York CityNew York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, as well as to college sporting events.
Notable faculty
- Fred Benjamin GernerdFred Benjamin GernerdFred Benjamin Gernerd was a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania.Fred B. Gernerd was born in Allentown, Pennsylvania...
, former Congressman and former Cedar Crest trustee - Frank Reed HortonFrank Reed HortonFrank Reed Horton , was a United States educator. He is best known as the founder and first national president of Alpha Phi Omega, an international service fraternity....
, first national president of Alpha Phi OmegaAlpha Phi OmegaAlpha Phi Omega is the largest collegiate fraternity in the United States, with chapters at over 350 campuses, an active membership of approximately 17,000 students, and over 350,000 alumni members...
and former professor - Diane MoyerDiane MoyerDiane Marie Moyer, Ph.D. is a former field hockey player for the United States women's team that won the bronze medal at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California....
, former OlympicOlympic GamesThe Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
field hockeyField hockeyField Hockey, or Hockey, is a team sport in which a team of players attempts to score goals by hitting, pushing or flicking a ball into an opposing team's goal using sticks...
player, current chair of the psychology department - Barton C. ShawBarton C. ShawBarton C. Shaw is an American historian.He graduated from Emory University, with a Ph.D.He teaches at Cedar Crest College.-Awards:* 1985 Frederick Jackson Turner Award* Ford Foundation Fellow...
, historian - Pauline TompkinsPauline TompkinsPauline "Polly" Tompkins was the first woman President of Cedar Crest College in Allentown, Pennsylvania, in the United States and a pioneer in American education and women's education....
, first female president of Cedar Crest College