St. Olaf College
Encyclopedia
St. Olaf College is a coeducation
al, residential, four-year, private liberal arts college
in Northfield, Minnesota
, United States
. It was founded in 1874 by a group of Norwegian-American immigrant pastors and farmers, led by Pastor Bernt Julius Muus
. The college is named after Olaf II of Norway
, former king and patron saint of Norway.
An average of six St. Olaf students are awarded the Fulbright Scholarship each year. Additionally, the college has produced nine Rhodes Scholars since 1910, including two in 2007.
St. Olaf ranks as one of the top 20 small colleges for liberal arts education (those with 5,000 or fewer students) for the number of students who go on to serve in the Peace Corps
.
St. Olaf College is listed in Loren Pope
's Colleges That Change Lives
.
A St. Olaf ranks 8th overall among baccalaureate colleges in the number of graduates who go on to earn doctoral degrees, placing first in mathematics and statistics, second in education and religion/theology, third in art/music and physical sciences and fourth in chemistry and foreign languages.
, and the surrounding area in the late 19th century. With nearly all the immigrants being Lutheran Christians, they desired a non-secular post-secondary institution in the Lutheran tradition that offered classes in all subjects in both Norwegian
and English
. The catalyst for founding St. Olaf was the Reverend Bernt Julius Muus
, and he sought out the help of the Rev. N.A. Quammen and H. Thorson. Together they petitioned their parishes and others to raise money in order to buy a plot of land on which to build this new institution. The three men succeeded in receiving around $10,000 in pledges, and thus went on to form a corporation
and to buy a plot of land and four buildings (old Northfield
schoolhouses) for accommodations for the school.
St. Olaf, then called St. Olaf's School, opened on January 8, 1875 at its first site under the leadership of its first president, Thorbjorn Mohn
, a graduate of Luther College
. Herman Amberg Preus
, President of the Norwegian Synod, laid this foundation stone of the St. Olaf School on July 4, 1877. During 1887 the Manitou Messenger was founded as a campus magazine and has since evolved into the college's student newspaper.
Known as “The Hill,” St. Olaf College’s picturesque 300 acres (121.4 ha) campus is home to 17 academic and administrative buildings, 29 student residences and 10 athletic facilities. St. Olaf is a residential college; 96 percent of St. Olaf students reside in one of the 11 residence halls and 18 academic and special interest group houses. Adjacent to campus are 325 acres (131.5 ha) of restored wetlands, woodlands, and native tall grass prairie owned and maintained by St. Olaf, and a utility-grade wind turbine that supplies up to one-third of the college’s daily electrical needs.
Two buildings on the campus are listed on the National Register of Historic Places
: Old Main, designed by Long and Haglin (#76001073); and Steensland Library, designed by Omeyer and Thori (#82003020).
The average student-to-faculty ratio is 12.8:1. The average class size is 22 students.
St. Olaf College is recognized nationally for the quality of its international studies programs and the Open Doors 2009 Report on International Educational Exchange ranks St. Olaf No. 1 nationally out of bachelor-degree institutions in the number of students who study abroad. The college offers more than 120 international and U.S. off-campus study programs in Hong Kong
, Japan
, Costa Rica
, Vietnam
, the Czech Republic
, London
, Florence
, Oxford
, Aberdeen
, Manhattan
, Russia
, and many other locations. Unique faculty-led study-abroad programs offered by the college include "Global Semester," "Term in the Middle East," and "Term in Asia" that take students to a variety of countries within each program.
’s "Survey of Earned Doctorates", St. Olaf ranks eighth among bachelor degree colleges in the number of graduates who go on to earn doctoral degrees. (This represents the years 1995–2004.) St. Olaf was also first among baccalaureate colleges in mathematics, second in religion and theology, seventh in chemistry, third in foreign languages, third in art and music and fifth in life sciences as an undergraduate supplier of Ph.D.s.
U.S. News & World Report
's “America’s Best Colleges 2009” ranked St. Olaf among the nation’s top liberal arts colleges in graduation rate performance (33rd), academic reputation (35th), freshman retention (25th) and percentage of incoming students who graduated in the top 10 percent of their high school class (53rd). The school's overall US News ranking is 47.
SGA also maintains Oleville.com http://www.oleville.com.
in 1903. Its band
, choir
and orchestra tour the continental U.S. annually and have made many critically acclaimed international tours (that occur every three years). The St. Olaf Band
, currently under the direction of Timothy Mahr '78, was the first American college musical organization to conduct a concert tour abroad when it traveled to Norway
in 1906. In March 1997, the St. Olaf Band toured California for nine days. They were one of four college or university bands invited to perform at the prestigious American Bandmasters Association National Convention in San Diego.
The St. Olaf Orchestra is conducted by Steven Amundson. Under Amundson’s direction, the Orchestra has successfully performed demanding scores seldom attempted by amateur groups, including Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 (Resurrection), Stravinsky’s Petrouschka and Rite of Spring, Ravel’s La Valse, and tone poems by Richard Strauss. The orchestra has also premiered several new compositions in recent years.
The St. Olaf Choir
, conducted by Anton Armstrong '78
, was founded by Christiansen in 1907 as the St. John's Lutheran Church Choir in Northfield. It is recognized as one of the premier collegiate ensembles in the United States. It has toured Europe several times, as well as China
, Korea
, and Australia
, performing before heads of state and producing more than a dozen recordings. The choir performs in the nationally broadcast annual St. Olaf Christmas Festival, along with the St. Olaf Orchestra and four of the college's other choirs. In 2005 the St. Olaf Choir was invited to perform at the White House for President George W. Bush, First Lady Laura Bush and guests to commemorate The National Day of Prayer.
Other student musical ensembles include Chapel Choir, Cantorei, Manitou Singers, Viking Chorus, Collegiate Chorale, Philharmonia, Norseman Band and many smaller vocal and instrumental ensembles. There are also four student-run music ensembles at St. Olaf: Valhalla Band, Naknefeler Orchestra, and the men's and women's a capella groups: The Limestones and Agnes, respectively. These groups are not a part of the college's music program and operate independently.
In 2005 the St. Olaf Band, St. Olaf Orchestra, and St. Olaf Choir toured throughout Norway to celebrate its centennial of independence from Sweden.
A few ensembles that sprouted their roots at St. Olaf include the Minnesota Symphonic Winds and the a cappella choral groups Cantus
, Inpulse and Magnum Chorum
.
(MIAC). St. Olaf athletic teams and students are nicknamed the "Oles." St. Olaf's Swimming
and Diving
team is traditionally the strongest of its sports teams, having won a majority of its MIAC conference championships, and is strongly competitive at the national level, often finishing within the top ten NCAA Division III schools at nationals. St. Olaf competes in the following sports:
St. Olaf also has many student coached club and intramural teams that compete within the student body and also inter-college. Most notable are the St. Olaf Ultimate
teams, The Berzerkers and Durga, which make an annual trip to a national collegiate tournament (Spring Ultimax) in North Carolina
. This year Durga played at the Division III Nationals tournament in Buffalo, NY finishing at 7th place.
. Each year in American football
, Carleton and St. Olaf compete in a contest recently dubbed the "Cereal Bowl" in honor of the Malt-O-Meal
production facility that is located in Northfield. In this contest, the Oles had a winning streak 1995-2007 before losing in 2008 21-7. The annual winner receives the "Goat Trophy" (created by a St. Olaf carpenter in 1931) as well as the silver Cereal Bowl trophy.
The rivalry between St. Olaf and Carleton, which began with a Carleton victory over St. Olaf in 1919, is one of the oldest in all of college football, and the only to feature two colleges from the same ZIP code
.
A lesser known fact about the Cereal Bowl is that Northfield's Civil War Veterans' Memorial (located in Bridge Square) features an eagle that is turned to face the college that wins the annual football match between the two schools.
These football teams are also significant for constituting the only NCAA-sanctioned metric football game in history (which St. Olaf won).
in the United States to be in 3/4 (waltz) meter. It is also one of the few college songs to mention another college in its lyrics. Other fight songs that mention rival schools include those of Texas A&M University
, the University of California, Los Angeles
(UCLA), the University of Alabama
, the University of Texas, Georgetown University
, Williams College
, Georgia Institute of Technology
, and Boston University
(in the "unofficial" lyrics to the fight song).
The lyrics to the St. Olaf song include the unofficial St. Olaf "battle cry" - "Um Yah Yah!". The most common version uses the name of traditional cross-town rival, Carleton College
, but the current opposing institution's name is inserted when sung at athletic competitions. Traditionally, the men's team hold hands with each other as they proudly sing this fight song after victory, and end the final verse with a kiss to the teammate on their right.
are also year-long Kierkegaard Fellowships, and these Kierkegaard scholars live in the Kierkegaard House.
'50, Oscar-winning screenwriter Barry Morrow
'70, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Gretchen Morgenson
'76, and writers Ole Rolvaag 1905, Siri Hustvedt
'77, Kij Johnson
'82, and Traci Lambrecht '89 (of P.J. Tracy).
, whose character Jay Gatsby of The Great Gatsby
attended the college briefly and worked as a janitor. The college is also frequently mentioned in Garrison Keillor
's radio program A Prairie Home Companion
, which broadcast its show from St. Olaf Nov. 17, 2001.
The fictional Minnesota city of St. Olaf was the hometown of Rose Nylund
in the TV show The Golden Girls
. In the TV show the fictional city's sister city was St. Gustav, Minnesota, a nod to Gustavus Adolphus College
, located in nearby St. Peter, Minnesota
. Betty White, the actress who played Rose, visited the St. Olaf campus on one occasion and was given an honorary membership in St. Olaf's chapter of the theater honorary society.
The St. Olaf Choir can be heard performing Mozart's Requiem with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra in Nike's "Jordan XXII-Takeover" commercial. The St. Olaf Choir was also heard on the soundtrack of the 1972 film The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid
.
In October 2008 the Coen Brothers
shot scenes at St. Olaf for their film A Serious Man
.
After a long search of many campuses, the Coen brothers chose St. Olaf's old Science Center because it had the late 1960s look of the movie. St. Olaf has built a new science center and has remodeled the old building.
Coeducation
Mixed-sex education, also known as coeducation or co-education, is the integrated education of male and female persons in the same institution. It is the opposite of single-sex education...
al, residential, four-year, private liberal arts college
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...
in Northfield, Minnesota
Northfield, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 17,147 people, 4,909 households, and 3,210 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,452.2 people per square mile . There were 5,119 housing units at an average density of 732.1 per square mile...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It was founded in 1874 by a group of Norwegian-American immigrant pastors and farmers, led by Pastor Bernt Julius Muus
Bernt Julius Muus
Bernt Julius Muus was a Norwegian-American Lutheran minister and church leader. He helped found St. Olaf College.-Background:Muus was born in the parish Snaasen in Throndhjems Stift in Snåsa, Nord-Trøndelag, Norway...
. The college is named after Olaf II of Norway
Olaf II of Norway
Olaf II Haraldsson was King of Norway from 1015 to 1028. He was posthumously given the title Rex Perpetuus Norvegiae and canonised in Nidaros by Bishop Grimkell, one year after his death in the Battle of Stiklestad on 29 July 1030. Enshrined in Nidaros Cathedral...
, former king and patron saint of Norway.
An average of six St. Olaf students are awarded the Fulbright Scholarship each year. Additionally, the college has produced nine Rhodes Scholars since 1910, including two in 2007.
St. Olaf ranks as one of the top 20 small colleges for liberal arts education (those with 5,000 or fewer students) for the number of students who go on to serve in the Peace Corps
Peace Corps
The Peace Corps is an American volunteer program run by the United States Government, as well as a government agency of the same name. The mission of the Peace Corps includes three goals: providing technical assistance, helping people outside the United States to understand US culture, and helping...
.
St. Olaf College is listed in Loren Pope
Loren Pope
Loren Brooks Pope was an American writer and independent college placement counselor.In 1965, Pope, a former newspaperman and education editor of The New York Times, founded the College Placement Bureau, one of the first independent college placement counseling services in the United States...
's Colleges That Change Lives
Colleges That Change Lives
Colleges That Change Lives is a college educational guide by Loren Pope. It was originally published in 1996, with a second edition in 2000, and a third edition in 2006...
.
A St. Olaf ranks 8th overall among baccalaureate colleges in the number of graduates who go on to earn doctoral degrees, placing first in mathematics and statistics, second in education and religion/theology, third in art/music and physical sciences and fourth in chemistry and foreign languages.
Founding of the college
Many Norwegian immigrants arrived in Rice County, MinnesotaRice County, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 56,665 people, 18,888 households, and 13,353 families residing in the county. The population density was 114 people per square mile . There were 20,061 housing units at an average density of 40 per square mile...
, and the surrounding area in the late 19th century. With nearly all the immigrants being Lutheran Christians, they desired a non-secular post-secondary institution in the Lutheran tradition that offered classes in all subjects in both Norwegian
Norwegian language
Norwegian is a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Norway, where it is the official language. Together with Swedish and Danish, Norwegian forms a continuum of more or less mutually intelligible local and regional variants .These Scandinavian languages together with the Faroese language...
and English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
. The catalyst for founding St. Olaf was the Reverend Bernt Julius Muus
Bernt Julius Muus
Bernt Julius Muus was a Norwegian-American Lutheran minister and church leader. He helped found St. Olaf College.-Background:Muus was born in the parish Snaasen in Throndhjems Stift in Snåsa, Nord-Trøndelag, Norway...
, and he sought out the help of the Rev. N.A. Quammen and H. Thorson. Together they petitioned their parishes and others to raise money in order to buy a plot of land on which to build this new institution. The three men succeeded in receiving around $10,000 in pledges, and thus went on to form a corporation
Corporation
A corporation is created under the laws of a state as a separate legal entity that has privileges and liabilities that are distinct from those of its members. There are many different forms of corporations, most of which are used to conduct business. Early corporations were established by charter...
and to buy a plot of land and four buildings (old Northfield
Northfield, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 17,147 people, 4,909 households, and 3,210 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,452.2 people per square mile . There were 5,119 housing units at an average density of 732.1 per square mile...
schoolhouses) for accommodations for the school.
St. Olaf, then called St. Olaf's School, opened on January 8, 1875 at its first site under the leadership of its first president, Thorbjorn Mohn
Thorbjorn N. Mohn
Thorbjorn N. Mohn was an American Lutheran church leader and the first president of St. Olaf College.-Background:...
, a graduate of Luther College
Luther College (Iowa)
Luther College is a four-year, residential liberal arts institution of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, located in Decorah, Iowa, USA...
. Herman Amberg Preus
Herman Amberg Preus
Herman Amberg Preus was an American Lutheran clergyman and church leader. He was a key figure in organizing the Norwegian Synod.-Background:Herman Amberg Preus was born in Kristiansand, Norway...
, President of the Norwegian Synod, laid this foundation stone of the St. Olaf School on July 4, 1877. During 1887 the Manitou Messenger was founded as a campus magazine and has since evolved into the college's student newspaper.
Overview of the campus
Two buildings on the campus are 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...
: Old Main, designed by Long and Haglin (#76001073); and Steensland Library, designed by Omeyer and Thori (#82003020).
Curriculum
Before graduating, St. Olaf students complete nearly 20 required courses in foundation studies (writing, a second language, oral communication, mathematical reasoning, physical well-being, as well as other courses required by community colleges) and core studies that include studies in Western culture, human behavior and society, biblical and theological studies, artistic and literary studies, and studies in natural science. Many of the courses are, by nature, interdisciplinary and very easy to pass. St. Olaf offers 39 major areas of study for the bachelor of arts degree, four for the bachelor of music degree and nineteen areas of concentration.The average student-to-faculty ratio is 12.8:1. The average class size is 22 students.
Study abroad
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, Costa Rica
Costa Rica
Costa Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....
, Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
, the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, Florence
Florence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
, Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
, Aberdeen
Aberdeen
Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....
, Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, and many other locations. Unique faculty-led study-abroad programs offered by the college include "Global Semester," "Term in the Middle East," and "Term in Asia" that take students to a variety of countries within each program.
Academic distinctions
According to the National Research CouncilUnited States National Research Council
The National Research Council of the USA is the working arm of the United States National Academies, carrying out most of the studies done in their names.The National Academies include:* National Academy of Sciences...
’s "Survey of Earned Doctorates", St. Olaf ranks eighth among bachelor degree colleges in the number of graduates who go on to earn doctoral degrees. (This represents the years 1995–2004.) St. Olaf was also first among baccalaureate colleges in mathematics, second in religion and theology, seventh in chemistry, third in foreign languages, third in art and music and fifth in life sciences as an undergraduate supplier of Ph.D.s.
U.S. News & World Report
U.S. News & World Report
U.S. News & World Report is an American news magazine published from Washington, D.C. Along with Time and Newsweek it was for many years a leading news weekly, focusing more than its counterparts on political, economic, health and education stories...
's “America’s Best Colleges 2009” ranked St. Olaf among the nation’s top liberal arts colleges in graduation rate performance (33rd), academic reputation (35th), freshman retention (25th) and percentage of incoming students who graduated in the top 10 percent of their high school class (53rd). The school's overall US News ranking is 47.
Student organizations
More than 180 registered student organizations are registered at St. Olaf, including academic, athletic, awareness, multicultural, political, religious, service, and other special interest groups. Club sports include men's and women's Ultimate Frisbee, men’s and women’s rugby, men’s and women’s lacrosse, badminton, cycling, judo, dance, fencing, rowing, and waterskiing. The Manitou Messenger is the student newspaper and KSTO 93.1 FM is the student-operated radio station. Other groups include an on-campus organic farm (STOGROW), an improv comedy troupe (Scared Scriptless), and an EMT (emergency medical technician) organization that is the first responder for campus emergencies.Student government
St. Olaf’s Student Government Association (SGA) finances many student activities and organizations on campus. It operates through 10 branches, each of which is managed by an elected executive: Diversity Celebrations Committee, Volunteer Network, Music Entertainment Committee, Student Activities Committee, Student Organizations Committee, Board of Regents Student Committee, Student Alumni Association, The Pause, After Dark Committee and Political Awareness Committee. Besides these committees, students can serve on Student Senate to vote on issues such as constitutional bylaws changes and dorm capital improvement funds and communicate with college administrators about campus issues.SGA also maintains Oleville.com http://www.oleville.com.
Music at St. Olaf
St. Olaf's world-renowned music program was founded by F. Melius ChristiansenF. Melius Christiansen
F. Melius Christiansen was a Norwegian-born violinist and choral conductor in the Lutheran choral tradition.-Background:...
in 1903. Its band
St. Olaf Band
The St. Olaf Band, an ensemble of approximately 90 musicians, is the touring concert band of St. Olaf College, Northfield, Minnesota. The band was founded in 1891, and holds the honor of being the first music organization established at St. Olaf. F. Melius Christiansen assumed leadership of the...
, choir
St. Olaf Choir
The St. Olaf Choir, a 75 voice mixed ensemble, is the touring a cappella choir of St. Olaf College, Northfield, Minnesota. Officially founded in 1912 by music faculty member F. Melius Christiansen as the St. Olaf Lutheran Choir, it began as an outgrowth of the local St. John's Lutheran Church,...
and orchestra tour the continental U.S. annually and have made many critically acclaimed international tours (that occur every three years). The St. Olaf Band
St. Olaf Band
The St. Olaf Band, an ensemble of approximately 90 musicians, is the touring concert band of St. Olaf College, Northfield, Minnesota. The band was founded in 1891, and holds the honor of being the first music organization established at St. Olaf. F. Melius Christiansen assumed leadership of the...
, currently under the direction of Timothy Mahr '78, was the first American college musical organization to conduct a concert tour abroad when it traveled to Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
in 1906. In March 1997, the St. Olaf Band toured California for nine days. They were one of four college or university bands invited to perform at the prestigious American Bandmasters Association National Convention in San Diego.
The St. Olaf Orchestra is conducted by Steven Amundson. Under Amundson’s direction, the Orchestra has successfully performed demanding scores seldom attempted by amateur groups, including Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 (Resurrection), Stravinsky’s Petrouschka and Rite of Spring, Ravel’s La Valse, and tone poems by Richard Strauss. The orchestra has also premiered several new compositions in recent years.
The St. Olaf Choir
St. Olaf Choir
The St. Olaf Choir, a 75 voice mixed ensemble, is the touring a cappella choir of St. Olaf College, Northfield, Minnesota. Officially founded in 1912 by music faculty member F. Melius Christiansen as the St. Olaf Lutheran Choir, it began as an outgrowth of the local St. John's Lutheran Church,...
, conducted by Anton Armstrong '78
Anton Armstrong
Dr. Anton Armstrong is the conductor of the St. Olaf Choir as well as the Harry R. and Thora H. Tosdal Professor of Music at St. Olaf College of Northfield, Minnesota in the USA. Armstrong became only the fourth director of the St. Olaf Choir in 1990, continuing the tradition begun by the choir's...
, was founded by Christiansen in 1907 as the St. John's Lutheran Church Choir in Northfield. It is recognized as one of the premier collegiate ensembles in the United States. It has toured Europe several times, as well as China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
, and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, performing before heads of state and producing more than a dozen recordings. The choir performs in the nationally broadcast annual St. Olaf Christmas Festival, along with the St. Olaf Orchestra and four of the college's other choirs. In 2005 the St. Olaf Choir was invited to perform at the White House for President George W. Bush, First Lady Laura Bush and guests to commemorate The National Day of Prayer.
Other student musical ensembles include Chapel Choir, Cantorei, Manitou Singers, Viking Chorus, Collegiate Chorale, Philharmonia, Norseman Band and many smaller vocal and instrumental ensembles. There are also four student-run music ensembles at St. Olaf: Valhalla Band, Naknefeler Orchestra, and the men's and women's a capella groups: The Limestones and Agnes, respectively. These groups are not a part of the college's music program and operate independently.
In 2005 the St. Olaf Band, St. Olaf Orchestra, and St. Olaf Choir toured throughout Norway to celebrate its centennial of independence from Sweden.
A few ensembles that sprouted their roots at St. Olaf include the Minnesota Symphonic Winds and the a cappella choral groups Cantus
Cantus (vocal ensemble)
Cantus is a nine-member male vocal a cappella ensemble based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA.-Biography:Cantus is a full-time, professional vocal chamber ensemble, made up of nine men singing in a TTBB , changed male voice arrangement. The artists are self-led, with programming and musical direction...
, Inpulse and Magnum Chorum
Magnum Chorum
Magnum Chorum is a chamber choir based in the Twin Cities of Minnesota. Magnum Chorum performs a cappella choral music in cathedrals, sanctuaries, and concert halls throughout the Midwest. The 48-voice auditioned choir presents concerts, commissions new sacred works, and provides music for worship....
.
Athletics
St. Olaf College is a member of the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic ConferenceMinnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
The Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference is a college athletic conference which competes in the NCAA's Division III. As the name implies, member schools are located in the state of Minnesota...
(MIAC). St. Olaf athletic teams and students are nicknamed the "Oles." St. Olaf's 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...
and Diving
Diving
Diving is the sport of jumping or falling into water from a platform or springboard, sometimes while performing acrobatics. Diving is an internationally-recognized sport that is part of the Olympic Games. In addition, unstructured and non-competitive diving is a recreational pastime.Diving is one...
team is traditionally the strongest of its sports teams, having won a majority of its MIAC conference championships, and is strongly competitive at the national level, often finishing within the top ten NCAA Division III schools at nationals. St. Olaf competes in the following sports:
Fall Sports:
|
Winter Sports:
|
Spring Sports:
|
St. Olaf also has many student coached club and intramural teams that compete within the student body and also inter-college. Most notable are the St. Olaf Ultimate
Ultimate (sport)
Ultimate is a sport played with a 175 gram flying disc. The object of the game is to score points by passing the disc to a player in the opposing end zone, similar to an end zone in American football or rugby...
teams, The Berzerkers and Durga, which make an annual trip to a national collegiate tournament (Spring Ultimax) in North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
. This year Durga played at the Division III Nationals tournament in Buffalo, NY finishing at 7th place.
Rivalry with Carleton College
St. Olaf is a traditional athletic rival of its crosstown neighbor Carleton CollegeCarleton College
Carleton College is an independent non-sectarian, coeducational, liberal arts college in Northfield, Minnesota, USA. The college enrolls 1,958 undergraduate students, and employs 198 full-time faculty members. In 2012 U.S...
. Each year in American 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...
, Carleton and St. Olaf compete in a contest recently dubbed the "Cereal Bowl" in honor of the Malt-O-Meal
Malt-O-Meal
The Malt-O-Meal Company is a privately owned American corporation that produces breakfast cereals. Its corporate headquarters are in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It employs 1,400 people and had estimated sales in 2008 of $548 million.-History:...
production facility that is located in Northfield. In this contest, the Oles had a winning streak 1995-2007 before losing in 2008 21-7. The annual winner receives the "Goat Trophy" (created by a St. Olaf carpenter in 1931) as well as the silver Cereal Bowl trophy.
The rivalry between St. Olaf and Carleton, which began with a Carleton victory over St. Olaf in 1919, is one of the oldest in all of college football, and the only to feature two colleges from the same ZIP code
ZIP Code
ZIP codes are a system of postal codes used by the United States Postal Service since 1963. The term ZIP, an acronym for Zone Improvement Plan, is properly written in capital letters and was chosen to suggest that the mail travels more efficiently, and therefore more quickly, when senders use the...
.
A lesser known fact about the Cereal Bowl is that Northfield's Civil War Veterans' Memorial (located in Bridge Square) features an eagle that is turned to face the college that wins the annual football match between the two schools.
These football teams are also significant for constituting the only NCAA-sanctioned metric football game in history (which St. Olaf won).
College fight song
Based on a Norwegian folk tune, the college song, Um Yah Yah, is the only college fight songFight song
A fight song is primarily an American and Canadian sports term, referring to a song associated with a team. In both professional and amateur sports, fight songs are a popular way for fans to cheer for their team...
in the United States to be in 3/4 (waltz) meter. It is also one of the few college songs to mention another college in its lyrics. Other fight songs that mention rival schools include those of Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University is a coeducational public research university located in College Station, Texas . It is the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System. The sixth-largest university in the United States, A&M's enrollment for Fall 2011 was over 50,000 for the first time in school...
, the University of California, Los Angeles
University of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles is a public research university located in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, USA. It was founded in 1919 as the "Southern Branch" of the University of California and is the second oldest of the ten campuses...
(UCLA), the University of Alabama
University of Alabama
The University of Alabama is a public coeducational university located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States....
, the University of Texas, Georgetown University
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States...
, Williams College
Williams College
Williams College is a private liberal arts college located in Williamstown, Massachusetts, United States. It was established in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim Williams. Originally a men's college, Williams became co-educational in 1970. Fraternities were also phased out during this...
, Georgia Institute of Technology
Georgia Institute of Technology
The Georgia Institute of Technology is a public research university in Atlanta, Georgia, in the United States...
, and Boston University
Boston University
Boston University is a private research university located in Boston, Massachusetts. With more than 4,000 faculty members and more than 31,000 students, Boston University is one of the largest private universities in the United States and one of Boston's largest employers...
(in the "unofficial" lyrics to the fight song).
The lyrics to the St. Olaf song include the unofficial St. Olaf "battle cry" - "Um Yah Yah!". The most common version uses the name of traditional cross-town rival, Carleton College
Carleton College
Carleton College is an independent non-sectarian, coeducational, liberal arts college in Northfield, Minnesota, USA. The college enrolls 1,958 undergraduate students, and employs 198 full-time faculty members. In 2012 U.S...
, but the current opposing institution's name is inserted when sung at athletic competitions. Traditionally, the men's team hold hands with each other as they proudly sing this fight song after victory, and end the final verse with a kiss to the teammate on their right.
We come from St. Olaf, we sure are the real stuff.
Our team is the cream of the colleges great.
We fight fast and furious, our team is injurious.
Tonight Carleton College will sure meet its fate.
Um Yah Yah! Um Yah Yah!
Um Yah Yah! Um Yah Yah!
Um Yah Yah! Um Yah Yah!
Um Yah Yah YAH!
Um Yah Yah! Um Yah Yah!
Um Yah Yah! Um Yah Yah!
Um Yah Yah! Um Yah Yah!
Um Yah Yah YAH!
Presidents of the college
St. Olaf has had 11 presidents since its founding:- Thorbjorn N. MohnThorbjorn N. MohnThorbjorn N. Mohn was an American Lutheran church leader and the first president of St. Olaf College.-Background:...
1874-1899 - John N. KildahlJohn N. KildahlJohn Nathan Kildahl was an American Lutheran church minister, author and educator.-Background:Kildahl was born in Beitstaden parish , Nord-Trøndelag, Norway. Kildahl emigrated as a boy from Norway to rural Goodhue County, Minnesota. He was educated at Luther College in Decorah, Iowa...
1899-1914 - Lauritz A. Vigness 1914-1918
- Lars W. Boe 1918-1942
- Clemens M. Granskou 1943-1963
- Sidney A. Rand 1963-1980
- Harlan F. Foss, Ph.D. 1980-1985
- Melvin D. George, Ph.D. 1985-1994
- Mark U. Edwards Jr., Ph.D. 1994-2000
- Christopher M. Thomforde, D.Min. 2001-2006
- David R. Anderson, Ph.D. 2006 to
Church affiliation
- 1874-1887 Norwegian Synod
- 1887-1890 Anti-Missourian BrotherhoodAnti-Missourian BrotherhoodAnti-Missourian Brotherhood was the name of a group of Lutheran pastors and churches in the United States that left the Norwegian Synod. In 1872, the Norwegian Synod had been a co-founder of the Evangelical Lutheran Synodical Conference of North America, along with the Missouri, Wisconsin, and...
- 1890-1917 United Norwegian Lutheran Church of AmericaUnited Norwegian Lutheran Church of AmericaThe United Norwegian Lutheran Church of America was the result of the union formed in 1890 between the Norwegian Augustana Synod , the Conference of the Norwegian-Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church of America , and the Anti-Missourian Brotherhood .In 1897, a group of churches left the UNLC and...
- 1917-1960 Evangelical Lutheran ChurchEvangelical Lutheran Church (United States)The Evangelical Lutheran Church or ELC was formed in 1917 as the Norwegian Lutheran Church of America .-Background:The Norwegian Lutheran Church of America was formed by merger of the Hauge Synod , the Norwegian Synod , and the United Norwegian Lutheran Church of America...
- 1960-1987 The American Lutheran ChurchAmerican Lutheran ChurchThe American Lutheran Church was a Christian Protestant denomination in the United States that existed from 1960 to 1987. Its headquarters was in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Upon its formation in 1960, the ALC designated Augsburg Publishing House , also located in Minneapolis, as the church publisher...
- 1988–present Evangelical Lutheran Church in AmericaEvangelical Lutheran Church in AmericaThe 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...
Kierkegaard Library
Inside the campus, this library was established with funds from St. Olaf College and Kierkegaard scholars Howard and Edna Hong. As curator, Howard Hong acquired books actually owned by Kierkegaard, books that are the same edition of those owned by him, Kierkegaard's complete works in many languages, and secondary bibliography about Kierkegaard. Subsequent curators of the library have also been renowned scholars; they include theologian Stephen C. Evans and philosopher Gordon Marino. Each year there is a summer fellowship program where St. Olaf College provides housing in campus dormitories or student honor houses; the Library provides a small stipend to cover living expenditures. Activities in the summer include Danish courses and a symposium every other year. Thereare also year-long Kierkegaard Fellowships, and these Kierkegaard scholars live in the Kierkegaard House.
Notable alumni
Notable St. Olaf alumni include Minnesota Gov. Al QuieAl Quie
Albert Harold Quie is an American politician who served as the 35th Governor of Minnesota from January 4, 1979, to January 3, 1983.-State and national government service:...
'50, Oscar-winning screenwriter Barry Morrow
Barry Morrow
Barry Morrow is an Academy Award-winning American screenwriter and producer. He wrote the story and co-wrote the screenplay for Rain Man....
'70, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Gretchen Morgenson
Gretchen Morgenson
Gretchen C. Morgenson is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist who writes the Market Watch column for the Sunday "Money & Business" section of the New York Times.-Life:...
'76, and writers Ole Rolvaag 1905, Siri Hustvedt
Siri Hustvedt
Siri Hustvedt is an American novelist and essayist. Hustvedt is the author of a book of poetry, five novels, two books of essays, and a work of non-fiction...
'77, Kij Johnson
Kij Johnson
Kij Johnson is an American writer of fantasy. She has worked extensively in publishing: managing editor for Tor Books and Wizards of the Coast/TSR, collections editor for Dark Horse Comics, and content manager working on the Microsoft Reader...
'82, and Traci Lambrecht '89 (of P.J. Tracy).
St. Olaf College in popular culture
St. Olaf is mentioned in the works of Minnesota author F. Scott FitzgeraldF. Scott Fitzgerald
Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald was an American author of novels and short stories, whose works are the paradigm writings of the Jazz Age, a term he coined himself. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest American writers of the 20th century. Fitzgerald is considered a member of the "Lost...
, whose character Jay Gatsby of The Great Gatsby
The Great Gatsby
The Great Gatsby is a novel by the American author F. Scott Fitzgerald. First published in1925, it is set on Long Island's North Shore and in New York City from spring to autumn of 1922....
attended the college briefly and worked as a janitor. The college is also frequently mentioned in Garrison Keillor
Garrison Keillor
Gary Edward "Garrison" Keillor is an American author, storyteller, humorist, and radio personality. He is known as host of the Minnesota Public Radio show A Prairie Home Companion Gary Edward "Garrison" Keillor (born August 7, 1942) is an American author, storyteller, humorist, and radio...
's radio program A Prairie Home Companion
A Prairie Home Companion
A Prairie Home Companion is a live radio variety show created and hosted by Garrison Keillor. The show runs on Saturdays from 5 to 7 p.m. Central Time, and usually originates from the Fitzgerald Theater in Saint Paul, Minnesota, although it is frequently taken on the road...
, which broadcast its show from St. Olaf Nov. 17, 2001.
The fictional Minnesota city of St. Olaf was the hometown of Rose Nylund
Rose Nylund
Rose Nylund was born May 1930 in St. Olaf, Minnesota. She is a fictional character featured on the popular 1980s situation comedy The Golden Girls, and its spin-off The Golden Palace. She was portrayed by Betty White for 8 years and 208 episodes.Rose was comically portrayed as naïve and simple,...
in the TV show The Golden Girls
The Golden Girls
The Golden Girls is an American sitcom created by Susan Harris, which originally aired on NBC from September 14, 1985, to May 9, 1992. Starring Bea Arthur, Betty White, Rue McClanahan and Estelle Getty, the show centers on four older women sharing a home in Miami, Florida...
. In the TV show the fictional city's sister city was St. Gustav, Minnesota, a nod to Gustavus Adolphus College
Gustavus Adolphus College
Gustavus Adolphus College is a private liberal arts college affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America located in St. Peter, Minnesota, United States. A coeducational, four-year, residential institution, it was founded in 1862 by Swedish Americans. To this day the school is firmly...
, located in nearby St. Peter, Minnesota
St. Peter, Minnesota
St. Peter is a city in Nicollet County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 11,196 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Nicollet County.St...
. Betty White, the actress who played Rose, visited the St. Olaf campus on one occasion and was given an honorary membership in St. Olaf's chapter of the theater honorary society.
The St. Olaf Choir can be heard performing Mozart's Requiem with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra in Nike's "Jordan XXII-Takeover" commercial. The St. Olaf Choir was also heard on the soundtrack of the 1972 film The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid
The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid
The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid is a 1972 Technicolor Western film about the James-Younger Gang distributed by Universal Pictures. It was directed by Philip Kaufman in a cinéma vérité style and starred Cliff Robertson as Cole Younger, Robert Duvall as Jesse James, Luke Askew as Jim Younger, R....
.
In October 2008 the Coen Brothers
Coen Brothers
Joel David Coen and Ethan Jesse Coen known together professionally as the Coen brothers, are American filmmakers...
shot scenes at St. Olaf for their film A Serious Man
A Serious Man
A Serious Man is a 2009 dark comedy written, produced, and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. The film stars Michael Stuhlbarg as a Minnesota Jewish man whose life crumbles both professionally and personally, leading to questions about his faith...
.
After a long search of many campuses, the Coen brothers chose St. Olaf's old Science Center because it had the late 1960s look of the movie. St. Olaf has built a new science center and has remodeled the old building.