Wikipedia

Lander University is a public university in Greenwood, South Carolina. It is the state's second-smallest publicly funded baccalaureate institution.

History

Lander University was founded by Methodist clergyman Samuel Lander in 1872 as Williamston Female College in Williamston, South Carolina. It remained a private institution for 26 years. In 1898 the College gained the support of the South Carolina Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South. The college moved to Greenwood in 1904 and was renamed Lander College in honor of its founder who died in the same year. It remained a women's college until 1943 when men were first admitted.

In 1948, when the Methodist Conference, pursuant to a policy of consolidation of its education efforts decided to end support of Lander College, interested citizens of Greenwood formed the Lander Foundation as a non-profit corporation and leased the college from the Church.

In 1951, the Greenwood County obtained the College name and property from the Methodist Conference. The South Carolina General Assembly created the Greenwood County Education Commission, known as the Lander Foundation, to serve as the board of control of the college. Lander thus became the only four-year liberal arts college in the United States to be controlled and financed by a county government.

In 1973, Lander College became a state-supported college and in 1992 its name was changed to Lander University. The institution is now completely co-educational.

Lander University has had twelve presidents serve since it has been founded. The presidents in order are: Samuel Lander (1872-1904); John O. Willson (1904-1923); B. Rhett Turnipseed (1923-1927); R. H. Bennett (1927-1932); John W. Speake (1932-1941); John Marvin Rast (1941-1948); Boyce M. Grier (1948-1966); E. Don Herd, Jr. (1966-1973); Larry A. Jackson (1973-1992); William C. Moran (1992-2000); Daniel W. Ball (2000-2015); and Richard E. Cosentino (2015–present).

Campus

Lander is situated on a wooded site near the middle of the City of Greenwood, of approximately 123 acres (50 ha). The Lander College Old Main Building consists of three distinct sections displaying an eclectic blending of elements of the Romanesque Revival and Georgian Revival styles. Two of the sections—Greenwood Hall and Laura Lander Hall—were built in 1903–04; Willson Hall was added in 1911. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.[3] In addition to six major buildings erected since 1973, campus improvements have included extensive renovations to a number of older facilities, new housing complexes, athletics fields and parking lots. Lander created a new 10-year Campus Master Plan in 2003. The first phase of the plan, the creation of a campus entrance, is complete, and a new residence hall (Centennial Hall) for 300 students opened in 2006. An expanded dining hall opened on January 2.

Academics

More than 60 areas of undergraduate study are offered, as well as a diverse selection of master's programs.[7] Three programs are offered completely online: the R.N. to B.S.N. completion option, the criminal justice management bachelor's degree, and the health care management certificate.

The academic structure consists of five colleges,[8] each home to teaching and learning in a wide-ranging variety of subject areas such as:

• College of Arts and Humanities
• Department of Art
• Department of English and Foreign Languages
• Department of Mass Communications and Media Studies
• Department of Music
• College of Behavioral and Social Sciences
• Department of Government, Criminology, and Sociology
• Department of History and Philosophy
• Department of Psychological Sciences
• Department of Military Science and ROTC
• College of Business
• College of Education
• Department of Teacher Education
• Department of Physical Education and Exercise Studies
• College of Science and Mathematics
• Department of Biology
• Department of Physical Sciences
• Department of Mathematics and Computing

Within the 5 colleges at Lander there are 5 graduate study programs. They are; MSN, Clinical Nurse Leader; MS Emergency Management; MSM, Management; MEd Montessori Education; and MEd, Teaching and Learning.

Athletics

Varsity athletic teams have reaped honors at district and national levels, including 12 national championships in men's tennis. A member of the NCAA Division II, Lander plays in the Peach Belt Conference and fields teams in men's and women's basketball, soccer and tennis; men's baseball and golf; and women's cross country, softball and volleyball. Lander also offers club sports that include equestrian, ultimate disc, rugby, bass-fishing, lacrosse, soccer, water skiing, running, Cross-Fit, baseball, women's volleyball and it has an intramural program open to all students, faculty and staff. In particular the men's soccer team is very successful. The men's soccer team holds the record for fewest goals conceded in the 2016 season in the NCAA. The men's soccer team also has two Southeast Regional titles, one was won in 1997 and the other in 2018. The baseball program was founded in 1998. The 2019–2020 academic year is the first year Lander will have Men's and Women's Lacrosse and Wrestling.

All sources and additional information about the institution are located on Wikipedia.