HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Hobart and William Smith Colleges are
private Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...
liberal arts college A liberal arts college or liberal arts institution of higher education is a college with an emphasis on undergraduate study in liberal arts and sciences. Such colleges aim to impart a broad general knowledge and develop general intellectual ca ...
s in
Geneva, New York Geneva is a city in Ontario and Seneca counties in the U.S. state of New York. It is at the northern end of Seneca Lake; all land portions of the city are within Ontario County; the water portions are in Seneca County. The population was 13, ...
. They trace their origins to Geneva Academy established in 1797. Students can choose from 45 majors and 68 minors with degrees in
Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...
,
Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University o ...
, Master of Arts in Teaching, Master of Science in Management, and Master of Arts in Higher Education Leadership. It is associated with 35
Fulbright Scholars The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people o ...
, 3
Rhodes Scholars The Rhodes Scholarship is an international postgraduate award for students to study at the University of Oxford, in the United Kingdom. Established in 1902, it is the oldest graduate scholarship in the world. It is considered among the world' ...
, and numerous
Marshall Scholars The Marshall Scholarship is a postgraduate scholarship for "intellectually distinguished young Americans ndtheir country's future leaders" to study at any university in the United Kingdom. It is widely considered one of the most prestigious sc ...
, Rangel Fellows, Truman Scholars,
Emmy The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...
, and Pulitzer awardees as well as United States senators, House representatives, and a
United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...
justice. Hobart and William Smith Colleges is a member of the New York Six Liberal Arts Consortium, an association of highly selective liberal arts colleges. It is frequently ranked among the top 100 liberal arts colleges in the United States. The colleges were originally separate institutions – Hobart College for men and William Smith College for women – that shared close bonds and a contiguous campus. Founded as Geneva College in 1822, Hobart College was renamed in honor of its founder John Henry Hobart, bishop of
Episcopal Diocese of New York The Episcopal Diocese of New York is a diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America, encompassing three New York City boroughs and seven New York state counties.
in 1852. William Smith College was founded in 1908 by Geneva philanthropist and nurseryman William Smith at the suggestion of numerous suffragettes and activists including
Elizabeth Smith Miller Elizabeth Smith Miller ( Smith; September 20, 1822 – May 23, 1911), known as "Libby", was an American advocate and financial supporter of the women's rights movement.NY History Net (April 21, 2011). Biography Elizabeth Smith was born Septembe ...
and her daughter Anne Fitzhugh Miller. In 1943, William Smith College was elevated from its original status as a department of Hobart College to an independent college and the two colleges established a joint corporate identity. They are officially chartered as "Hobart and William Smith Colleges" and informally referred to as "HWS" or "the Colleges." Although united in one corporation with many shared resources and overlapping organization, they have each retained their own traditions. Today, students are free to participate in each of the colleges' customs and traditions based on their preferred gender identities. Students can graduate with diplomas issued by Hobart College, William Smith College, or Hobart and William Smith Colleges.


History

Hobart and William Smith Colleges, private colleges in Geneva, New York, began on the western frontier as the Geneva Academy. After some setbacks and disagreement among trustees, the academy suspended operations in 1817. By the time Bishop John Henry Hobart, of the
Episcopal Diocese of New York The Episcopal Diocese of New York is a diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America, encompassing three New York City boroughs and seven New York state counties.
, first visited the city of Geneva in 1818, the doors of Geneva Academy had just closed. Yet, Geneva was a bustling
Upstate New York Upstate New York is a geographic region consisting of the area of New York (state), New York State that lies north and northwest of the New York metropolitan area, New York City metropolitan area. Although the precise boundary is debated, Upsta ...
city on the main land and stage coach route to the West. Bishop Hobart had a plan to reopen the academy at a new location, raise a public subscription for the construction of a stone building, and elevate the school to college status. Roughly following this plan, Geneva Academy reopened as Geneva College in 1822 with conditional grant funds made available from Trinity Church in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
. Geneva College was renamed Hobart College in 1852 in honor of its founder, Bishop Hobart. William Smith College was founded in 1908, originally as William Smith College for Women. Its namesake and founder was a wealthy local nurseryman, benefactor of the arts and sciences, and philanthropist. The school arose from negotiations between William Smith, who sought to establish a women's college, and Hobart College President Langdon C. Stewardson, who sought to redirect Smith's philanthropy towards Hobart College. Smith, however, was intent on establishing a coordinate, nonsectarian women's college, which, when realized, coincidentally gave Hobart access to new facilities and professors. The two student bodies were educated separately in the early years, even though William Smith College was a department of Hobart College for organizational purposes until 1943. That year, after a gradual relaxation of academic separation, William Smith College was formally recognized as an independent college, co-equal with Hobart. Both colleges were reflected in a new, joint corporate identity.


Early history and growth


Geneva Academy

Geneva Academy was founded in 1796 when Geneva was just a small frontier settlement. It is believed to be the first school formed in Geneva. The area was considered "the gateway to Genesee County" and was in the early stages of development from the wilderness. In 1809, the trustees of the academy appointed Rev. Andrew Wilson, formerly of the
University of Glasgow , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...
in Scotland as head of the school. He remained until 1812 when Ransom Hubell, a graduate of
Union College Union College is a private liberal arts college in Schenectady, New York. Founded in 1795, it was the first institution of higher learning chartered by the New York State Board of Regents, and second in the state of New York, after Columbia Co ...
, was made principal.


Geneva College

The Regents granted the full charter on February 8, 1825, and at that time, Geneva Academy officially changed its name to Geneva College. Rev. J. Adams was president of the college as of 1827. The "English Course," as it was known, was a radical departure from long established educational usage and represented the beginning of the college work pattern found today.


Geneva Medical College

Geneva Medical College was founded on September 15, 1834, as a separate department of Geneva College. The medical school was founded by
Edward Cutbush Edward Cutbush (1772 – July 23, 1843) was born in Philadelphia. He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 1794, where he was resident physician of the Pennsylvania Hospital from 1790 to 1794. Cutbush was surgeon general of the Penns ...
, who also served as the first dean for the school.


Elizabeth Blackwell

In an era when the prevailing conventional wisdom was no woman could withstand the intellectual and emotional rigors of a medical education,
Elizabeth Blackwell Elizabeth Blackwell (3 February 182131 May 1910) was a British physician, notable as the first woman to receive a medical degree in the United States, and the first woman on the Medical Register of the General Medical Council for the United Ki ...
, (1821–1910) applied to and was rejected – or simply ignored – by 29 medical schools before being admitted in 1847 to the Medical Institution of Geneva College. The medical faculty, largely opposed to her admission but seemingly unwilling to take responsibility for the decision, decided to submit the matter to a vote of the students. The men of the college voted to admit her. Blackwell graduated two years later, on January 23, 1849, at the top of her class to become the first woman doctor in the Northern hemisphere. "The occasion marked the culmination of years of trial and disappointment for Miss Blackwell, and was a key event in the struggle for the emancipation of women in the nineteenth century in America." Blackwell went on to found the New York Infirmary for Women and Children and had a role in the creation of its medical college. She then returned to her native England and helped found the National Health Society and taught at the first college of medicine for women to be established there.


Hobart College

The school was known as Geneva College until 1852, when it was renamed in memory of its most forceful advocate and founder, Bishop Hobart, to Hobart Free College. In 1860, the name was shortened to Hobart College. Hobart College of the 19th century was the first American institution of higher learning to establish a three-year "English Course" of study to educate young men destined for such practical occupations as "journalism, agriculture, merchandise, mechanism, and manufacturing", while at the same time maintaining a traditional four-year "classical course" for those intending to enter "the learned professions." It also was the first college in America to have a dean of the college. Notable 19th-century alumni included
Albert James Myer Albert James Myer (September 20, 1828 – August 24, 1880) was a surgeon and United States Army general. He is known as the father of the U.S. Army Signal Corps, as its first chief signal officer just prior to the American Civil War, the invento ...
, Class of 1847, a military officer assigned to run the
United States Weather Bureau The National Weather Service (NWS) is an agency of the United States federal government that is tasked with providing weather forecasts, warnings of hazardous weather, and other weather-related products to organizations and the public for the ...
at its inception, was a founding member of the International Meteorological Organization, and helped birth the U.S. Signal Corps, and for whom
Fort Myer, Virginia Fort Myer is the previous name used for a U.S. Army post next to Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington County, Virginia, and across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C. Founded during the American Civil War as Fort Cass and Fort Whipple, ...
, is named; General E. S. Bragg of the Class of 1848, colonel of the Sixth Wisconsin Regiment and a brigadier general in command of the
Iron Brigade The Iron Brigade, also known as The Black Hats, Black Hat Brigade, Iron Brigade of the West, and originally King's Wisconsin Brigade was an infantry brigade in the Union Army of the Potomac during the American Civil War. Although it fought ent ...
who served one term in Congress and later was ambassador to Mexico and consul general of the U.S. in Cuba; two other 1848 graduates, Clarence A. Seward and Thomas M. Griffith, who were assistant secretary of state and builder of the first national railroad across the
Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the List of longest rivers of the United States (by main stem), second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest Drainage system (geomorphology), drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson B ...
, respectively; and
Charles J. Folger Charles James Folger (April 16, 1818 – September 4, 1884) was an American lawyer and politician. A member of the Republican Party, he was a State Senator in New York from 1862 to 1869 and served as the 34th U.S. Secretary of the Treasury from ...
, Class of 1836, a
United States Secretary of the Treasury The United States secretary of the treasury is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury, and is the chief financial officer of the federal government of the United States. The secretary of the treasury serves as the principal a ...
in the 1880s. Until the mid-20th century, Hobart was strongly affiliated with the Episcopal Church and produced many of its clergy. While this affiliation continues to the present, the last Episcopal clergyman to serve as President of Hobart (1956–1966) was Louis Melbourne Hirshson. Since then, the president of the colleges has been a layperson. During
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
, Hobart College was one of 131 colleges and universities nationally that took part in the
V-12 Navy College Training Program The V-12 Navy College Training Program was designed to supplement the force of commissioned officers in the United States Navy during World War II. Between July 1, 1943, and June 30, 1946, more than 125,000 participants were enrolled in 131 colleg ...
which offered students a path to a Navy commission.


Founding of William Smith College

Toward the end of the 19th century, Hobart College was on the brink of bankruptcy. It was through the presidency of Langdon Stewardson the college obtained a new donor, nurseryman William Smith. Smith had built the Smith Opera House in downtown Geneva and the Smith Observatory on his property when he became interested in founding a college for women, a plan he pursued to the point of breaking ground before realizing it was beyond his means. As publicized in The College Signal on October 7, 1903, "William Smith, a millionaire nurseryman, will found and endow a college for women at Geneva, N. Y., to be known as the William Smith College for Women The institution will be in the most beautiful section. One building is to cost $150,000. Mr. Smith maintains the Smith observatory there." In 1903, Hobart College President Langdon C. Stewardson learned of Smith's interest and, for two years, attempted to convince him to make Hobart College the object of his philanthropy. With enrollments down and its resources strained, Hobart's future depended upon an infusion of new funds. Unable to convince Smith to provide direct assistance to Hobart, President Stewardson redirected the negotiations toward founding a coordinate institution for women, a plan that appealed to the
philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...
. On December 13, 1906, he formalized his intentions; two years later William Smith School for Women – a coordinate, nonsectarian women's college – enrolled its first class of 18 students. That charter class grew to 20 members before its graduation in 1912. In addition, Smith's gift made possible construction of the Smith Hall of Science, to be used by both colleges, and permitted the hiring, also in 1908, of three new faculty members who would teach in areas previously unavailable in the curriculum: biology, sociology, and psychology.


World War II

Between 1943 and 1945, Hobart College trained almost 1,000 men in the U.S. Navy's V-12 program, many of whom returned to complete their college educations when the post-World War II GI Bill swelled the enrollments of American colleges and universities. In 1948, three of those veterans – William F. Scandling, Harry W. Anderson, and W. P. Laughlin – took over operation of the Hobart dining hall. Their fledgling business was expanded the next year to include William Smith College; after their graduation, in 1949, it grew to serve other colleges and universities across the country, eventually becoming Saga Corporation, a nationwide provider of institutional food services.


Campus


Layout

Hobart and William Smith Colleges' campus is situated on in
Geneva, New York Geneva is a city in Ontario and Seneca counties in the U.S. state of New York. It is at the northern end of Seneca Lake; all land portions of the city are within Ontario County; the water portions are in Seneca County. The population was 13, ...
, along the shore of Seneca Lake, the largest of the
Finger Lakes The Finger Lakes are a group of eleven long, narrow, roughly north–south lakes located south of Lake Ontario in an area called the ''Finger Lakes region'' in New York, in the United States. This region straddles the northern and transitional ...
. The campus is notable for the style of Jacobean Gothic architecture represented by many of its buildings, notably Coxe Hall, which houses the President's Office and other administrative departments. In contrast, the earliest buildings were built in the Federal style and the chapel is Neo-Gothic. The Quad, the core of the Hobart campus, was formed by the construction of Medbery, Coxe, and Demarest. Several years later, Arthur Nash, a Hobart professor, designed Williams Hall, which would be constructed in the gap between Medbery and Coxe. The Quad is formed to the east by Trinity and Geneva Hall, the two original College buildings, and to the south by the Science compound, and Napier Hall. Geneva Hall (1822) and Trinity Hall (1837) were added to the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...
in 1973. In 2016, the schools announced they were going solar by building two solar farms to create enough electricity for about 50 percent of HWS' needs. The Hill (or William Smith Hill) is a prominent feature of the historic William Smith campus. Located at the top of a large sloping hill to the West of Seneca Lake and the Hobart Quad, the Hill houses three historic William Smith dorms, and one built in the 1960s (Comstock, Miller, Blackwell, and Hirshson Houses). At its peak resides William Smith's all female dorms. The Hill was the site originally conceived for William Smith College. Unveiled in 2008 for the William Smith Centennial is a statue of the college's founder and benefactor, William Smith. A 15 million dollar expansion of the Scandling Campus Center was completed in autumn 2008. This renovation added over 17,000 additional square feet, including an expanded cafe, a new post office, and more meeting areas. In 2016 the Gearan Center for Performing Arts was completed at a cost of 28 million dollars; the largest project in the history of the colleges.


Key buildings

Coxe Hall, serves as the main administrative hub of campus. Constructed in 1901, the building is named after Bishop Arthur Clevland Coxe, a benefactor of the school, and houses the president's office, Bartlett Theater, The Pub, and a classroom wing, which was added in the 1920s. Arthur Cleveland Coxe was closely affiliated with the school. The building was designed by
Clinton and Russell Clinton and Russell was a well-known architectural firm founded in 1894 in New York City, United States. The firm was responsible for several New York City buildings, including some in Lower Manhattan. Biography Charles W. Clinton (1838� ...
Architects. Gearan Center for the Performing Arts, named in honor of President Mark D Gearan and Mary Herlihy Gearan, was in 2016. It includes a lobby that links three flexible performance and rehearsal spaces for theater, music and dance. Also included are faculty offices, practice and recital rooms and a film screening room. Scandling Campus Center, named after William F. Scandling '49, renovated and expanded in 2009, houses Saga (the dining hall), the post office, offices of student activities, a cafe, and Vandervort room (a large event space). Gulick Hall, was built in 1951 as part of the post-war "mini-boom" that also included the construction of the Hobart "mini-quad" dormitories Durfee, Bartlett, and Hale (each named for a 19th-century Hobart College president). Gulick Hall originally housed the campus dining services and, later, the Office of the Registrar. Completely renovated in 1991, Gulick now houses both the Office of the Registrar and the Psychology department, which was moved from Smith Hall in 1991 prior to its renovation in 1992. Stern Hall, named for the lead donor, Herbert J. Stern '58, was completed in 2004. It houses the departments of economics, political science, anthropology & sociology, environmental studies and Asian languages and cultures. Smith Hall, built in 1907, originally housed both the Biology and Psychology Departments. It is now home to the Dean's Offices of both colleges, along with the departmental offices of Writing and Rhetoric and the various modern language departments. Smith Hall was the first building constructed with funds from William Smith on the William Smith College campus, but it is also the first building that has always been shared by both colleges. Williams Hall, completed in 1907, housed the first campus gymnasium and, after the construction of Bristol gymnasium, served several other lives as campus post office, book store, IT services and location of the Music Department. Demarest Hall, connected to St. John's Chapel by St. Mark's Tower, houses the departments of Religious Studies and English and Comparative Literature as well as the Women's Studies Program. Also home to the Blackwell Room, named in honor of Elizabeth Blackwell (once used as study area and library, the space is now used for classrooms in the absence of more intentional planning for classroom space), Demarest was designed by
Richard Upjohn Richard Upjohn (22 January 1802 – 16 August 1878) was a British-born American architect who emigrated to the United States and became most famous for his Gothic Revival churches. He was partially responsible for launching the movement to su ...
's son, Richard M. Upjohn. (Upjohn's grandson, Hobart Upjohn would design several of the college's buildings as well). Demarest served as the college's library until the construction of the Warren Hunting Smith Library in the early 1970s. In the 1960s it was expanded to hold the college's growing number of volumes. Today, it also houses the Fisher Center for the Study of Gender and Justice, an intellectual center led by such scholar faculty as Dunbar Moodie (Sociology), Betty Bayer (Women's Studies), and Jodi Dean (Political Science). Trinity Hall built in 1837, was the second of the colleges' buildings. Trinity Hall was designed by college president Benjamin Hale, who taught architecture. Trinity served as a dormitory and a library, but it was converted into a space for classrooms, labs, and offices later in the 19th century. It presently is home to the Salisbury Center for Career Services. Merrit Hall, completed in 1879, was built on the ruins of the old medical college. Merrit was the first science building on campus and housed the chemistry labs. Merrit also housed a clock atop the quad side of the building. On the eve of the Hobart centennial in 1922, students climbed to the top and made the bell strike 100 times. Merrit Hall was also one of the first buildings shared by Hobart and William Smith. Today Merrit Hall houses a lecture hall and faculty offices. St. John's Chapel, designed by
Richard Upjohn Richard Upjohn (22 January 1802 – 16 August 1878) was a British-born American architect who emigrated to the United States and became most famous for his Gothic Revival churches. He was partially responsible for launching the movement to su ...
the architect of Trinity Church in New York City, served as the religious hub of the campus, replacing Polynomous, the original campus chapel. In the 1960s, St. John's was connected to Demarest Hall by St. Marks Tower. Houghton House, the mansion, known for its Victorian elements, is home to the Art and Architecture departments. The country mansion was built, in the 1880s by William J. King. It was purchased in 1901 by the wife of Charles Vail (maiden name Helen Houghton), Hobart graduate and professor, as the family's summer home. Mrs. Vail remodeled the Victorian mansion's interior to the present classical decor in 1913. The family's "town home" is 624 S. Main Street and is now the Sigma Phi fraternity. Helen Vail's heirs donated the house and its grounds to the colleges to be used as a woman's dormitory. After many years as a student dorm, the house became home to the art department after the original art studio was razed to make way for the new Scandling Campus Center. The building is now home to the Davis Art Gallery, with lecture rooms, multiple faculty offices, and architecture studios on the top floor. Katherine D. Elliot Hall, was constructed in 2006. The "Elliot" houses contains art classrooms; offices; studios for painting, photography, and printing; and wood and metal shops. Goldstein Family Carriage House, was built by William J. King in 1882 and was renovated in 2006 to house a digital imaging lab and a photo studio with a darkroom for black-and-white photography. Warren Hunting Smith Library, in the center of the campus, houses 385,000 volumes, 12,000 periodicals, and more than 8,000 VHS and DVD videos. In 1997, the library underwent a major renovation, undergoing several improvements, such as the addition of multimedia centers, and the addition to its south side of the L. Thomas Melly Academic Center, a spacious, modern location for "round the clock" study. Napier Hall, attached to the Rosenberg Hall, houses several classrooms and was completed in 1994. Rosenberg Hall, named for Henry A. Rosenberg (Hobart '52), is an annex of Lansing and Eaton Hall, the original science buildings. Rosenberg houses many labs and offices. Lansing Hall, built in 1954, is home to Sciences and Mathematics. The building is named for John Ernest Lansing, Professor of Chemistry (1905–1948), who twice served as acting president. Eaton Hall, is named for
Elon Howard Eaton Elon Howard Eaton (sometimes Elon Eton; 8 October 1866 – 27 March 1934) was an American ornithologist, scholar, and author. He was born in the Town of Collins near Springville, New York, the son of Luzerne Eaton and Sophie Newton. As a youth, ...
, Professor of Biology (1908–1935). Eaton, one of New York's outstanding ornithologists, was one of the professors brought to campus with William Smith grant funds. Eaton Hall is a part of the science complex at the south end of the Hobart Quad, which consists of Lansing, Rosenberg, and Napier.


Dormitories


Men's dorms

Geneva Hall, built in 1822, is the college's first building, and the cornerstone site designated by the School's founder, Bishop John Henry Hobart. The building is one of the oldest academic building in continuous use, having served as a dormitory, among other uses, since its completion. The building has inscribed into its quoins, and alongside the perimeter of its facade, plaques which list the graduates of classes dating back to the 19th century. The Mini Quad, consisting of three buildings, Durfee, Hale, and Bartlett, houses about 150 Hobart students. Since the 2006 academic year, the dorms have become coeducational, with at least one floor housing William Smith Students. Hale Hall is named for Benjamin Hale, president of Hobart College from 1836 to 1858. Bartlett Hall was named after the Reverend Murray Bartlett, who served as fourteenth president of Hobart College from 1919 to 1936 Durfee Hall was named after William Pitt Durfee, who from 1884 to 1929 served as Professor of Mathematics and Chair of the Mathematics Department. He was the first dean of a liberal arts college and served as acting president of the Colleges four times.


Women's dorms

Blackwell House was designed and built in 1860 by
Richard Upjohn Richard Upjohn (22 January 1802 – 16 August 1878) was a British-born American architect who emigrated to the United States and became most famous for his Gothic Revival churches. He was partially responsible for launching the movement to su ...
as a residence for William Douglass, who served as a trustee of Hobart College. The house was purchased in 1908 as the first William Smith dormitory. The house still houses William Smith students and is known for its grand Victorian features from fireplaces, to chandeliers, to large old windows. Though rarely recognized as such, the house is named for Elizabeth Blackwell, an early graduate of what became the Colleges. Comstock House was designed by
Richard Upjohn Richard Upjohn (22 January 1802 – 16 August 1878) was a British-born American architect who emigrated to the United States and became most famous for his Gothic Revival churches. He was partially responsible for launching the movement to su ...
's grandson, Hobart Upjohn, in 1932. Comstock is a women's dormitory named for Anna Botsford Comstock, friend of William Smith and the first woman to be named a member of the board of trustees. Miller House was William Smith College's second dormitory. Miller was designed by Arthur Nash, professor and grandson of Arthur Cleveland Coxe. Nash also designed Smith Hall and Williams Hall. This house honors Elizabeth Smith Miller, a leader in the women's movement. Hirshson House, completed in 1962, was named for the president of the colleges, Louis Melbourne Hirshson, the last Episcopal clergy person to serve in that capacity. The building is home to William Smith students.


Coed dorms

Medbery Hall is an original Hobart College dorm dating from the 1900. Medbery defines the right side of the Hobart Quadrangle. Designed by
Clinton and Russell Clinton and Russell was a well-known architectural firm founded in 1894 in New York City, United States. The firm was responsible for several New York City buildings, including some in Lower Manhattan. Biography Charles W. Clinton (1838� ...
architects at the same time as Coxe Hall, the two buildings share similarity in their Jacobean Gothic style. Medbery is adorned with a recognizable Flemish roofline. Medbery was designed without long hallways "conductive to rioting" and mischief, such as rolling a cannonball down the hallway. Such mischief was experienced in the other two dormitories on campus, Geneva and Trinity Halls. Jackson, Potter, Rees, together known as JPR for short (and once dubbed "superdorm"), the three identical buildings create their own quad in the south end of campus. The dorms were built in 1966 and are named after various historical figures of Hobart College. The complex houses about 230 first-year and upper class Hobart and William Smith students. The building was completely renovated in 2005 to include quad living spaces (two double bed rooms connected by a common living room) and open lounge spaces and lounges on every floor. Jackson Hall is named for Abner Jackson, president of the Hobart in the middle of the 19th century. Jackson would go on to become president of
Trinity College Trinity College may refer to: Australia * Trinity Anglican College, an Anglican coeducational primary and secondary school in , New South Wales * Trinity Catholic College, Auburn, a coeducational school in the inner-western suburbs of Sydney, New ...
in Connecticut, where he would be the principal designer of its present campus. Rees Hall is named for Major James Rees, an early settler and landowner in Geneva and an acquaintance of George Washington. Potter Hall is named for John Milton Potter, President of Hobart and William Smith Colleges from 1942 to 1947. The Village at Odell's Pond is a collection of apartment style dorms available to upperclassmen at the colleges. The units have either four or five bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a living room and a kitchen. Emerson Hall was built in 1969. The rooms are designed as suites, with two doubles and two singles and a common living room and bathroom. Caird Hall was built, along with deCordova, in 2005. The dorm has provisions for singles, doubles, and quads, and is often desired by students due to the separate temperature controls in each room. The ground floor hosts a lounge area with both gaming and fitness equipment for students. deCordova Hall was built, along with Caird, in 2005. The dorm has provisions for singles, doubles, and quads, and is often desired by students due to the separate temperature controls in each room. The ground floor has a lounge area for students, as well as the deCordova cafe. The surrounding ecosystem plays a major role in the Colleges' curriculum and acquisitions. The Colleges own the Hanley Biological Field Station and Preserve on neighboring
Cayuga Lake Cayuga Lake (,,) is the longest of central New York's glacial Finger Lakes, and is the second largest in surface area (marginally smaller than Seneca Lake) and second largest in volume. It is just under long. Its average width is , and it is ...
and hosts the Finger Lakes Institute, a non-profit institute focusing on education and ecological preservation for the Finger Lakes area. On Seneca Lake one will find the ''William Scandling'', a Hobart and William Smith research vessel used to monitor lake conditions and in the conduct of student and faculty research. The Colleges also own and operate
WEOS WEOS is a college radio station licensed to Geneva, New York, broadcasting primarily on 89.5 FM across the Finger Lakes region of New York. It also broadcasts on a smaller relay transmitter on 90.3FM in Geneva (call sign W212BA). The station i ...
-FM and
WHWS-LP WHWS-LP (105.7 FM) is a low power FM (LPFM) radio station operated by Hobart and William Smith Colleges and broadcasting to Geneva, New York. It is primarily staffed by the students of HWS. The station was first owned by the Finger Lakes Region ...
, public radio stations broadcasting throughout the Finger Lakes and worldwide, on the web.


Academics

Hobart and William Smith Colleges offer the degrees of
Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...
,
Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University o ...
, and
Master of Arts in Teaching The Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) or Master of Science in Teaching (MST) degree is generally a pre-service degree that usually requires a minimum of 30 semester hours beyond the bachelor's degree. While the program often requires education ...
. The colleges follow the semester calendar, have a student to faculty ratio of 10:1 and average class size of 16. Hobart and William Smith Colleges are accredited by the
Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools The Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools (Middle States Association or MSA) was a voluntary, peer-based, non-profit association that performed peer evaluation and regional accreditation of public and private schools in the Mid-Atl ...
and The University of the State of New York


Curriculum

The curriculum was last reviewed and revised in the 2014–15 academic year. Voted on by the faculty, the curriculum adopted the animating principle: Explore. Collaborate. Act. The revisions also adopted a Writing Enriched Curriculum model, the implementation of capstone experiences across all programs and departments and enhanced the First Year Experience. Specifically, to graduate from Hobart and William Smith Colleges, students must: *Pass 32 academic courses, including a First-Year Seminar *Complete the requirements for an academic major, including a capstone course or experience, and an academic minor (or second major). Students cannot major and minor in the same subject. *Complete a course of study, designed in consultation with a faculty adviser, which addresses each of the eight educational goals: # Critical Thinking # Communication # Quantitative Reasoning # Scientific Inquiry # Artistic Process # Social Inequalities # Cultural Difference # Ethical Judgment


First-Year Seminar

First-Year Seminars are discussion-centered, interdisciplinary and collaborative. The only required course at HWS, seminar classes are small – usually about 15 students. Through the First-Year Seminar students: # Develop critical thinking and communication skills # Understand the Colleges’ intellectual and ethical values # Establish a strong network of relationships with peers and mentors Seminar topics vary each year, as do the professors who teach them. Many First-Year Seminars are linked to a Learning Community. Students enrolled in a Learning Community take one or more courses together. They also live together on the same floor of a co-ed residence hall and attend some of the same lectures and field trips.


Global education

More than 60% of Hobart and William Smith students participate in off-campus study before they graduate. The Colleges maintain a robust menu of programs, 50+ sites on 6 continents, offering a wide array of options in different academic disciplines around the world. Admission to these programs is competitive. In the 2020 edition of The Princeton Review's Best 385 Colleges, Hobart and William Smith Colleges study abroad program is ranked third on the “Most Popular Study Abroad” list, marking four years in a row that HWS has been a top-10 study abroad school (No. 7 in 2017 and No. 1 in the 2018 and 2019 editions).


President Joyce P. Jacobsen

On July 1, 2019, Joyce P. Jacobsen began serving as the 29th President of Hobart College and the 18th of William Smith College. She is the first woman to serve as president of Hobart and William Smith Colleges.


Rankings

In its 2020 edition, '' U.S. News & World Report'' ranks Hobart and William Smith Colleges as tied for 72nd best liberal arts college in the U.S. and tied for 60th in "Best Undergraduate Teaching". In 2019, ''
Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also r ...
'' rated it 190th overall in "America's Top Colleges," which ranked 650 national universities, liberal arts colleges and service academies.


Trias Writers-in-Residence

Founded in 2011 with a grant from alumnus Peter Trias, Hobart and William Smith Colleges established the Trias Writer-in-Residence, which brings renowned authors to campus for a year to mentor undergraduate creative writing students. Former writers in residence have included Mary Ruefle,
Mary Gaitskill Mary Gaitskill (born November 11, 1954) is an American novelist, essayist, and short story writer. Her work has appeared in ''The New Yorker'', ''Harper's Magazine'', ''Esquire'', ''The Best American Short Stories'' (1993, 2006, 2012, 2020), and ...
, Tom Piazza,
Chris Abani Christopher Abani (born 27 December 1966) is a Nigerian-American and Los Angeles- based author. He says he is part of a new generation of Nigerian writers working to convey to an English-speaking audience the experience of those born and rai ...
, and
John D'Agata John D’Agata (born 1975) is an American essayist. He is the author or editor of six books of nonfiction, including ''The Next American Essay'' (2003), ''The Lost Origins of the Essay'' (2009) and ''The Making of the American Essay''—all part ...
.


Elizabeth Blackwell Award

In honor of Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell (1821-1910), the first woman in America to receive the Doctor of Medicine degree, the Elizabeth Blackwell Award is given by Hobart and William Smith Colleges to a woman whose life exemplifies outstanding service to humanity. Its recipients have included
Chair of the Federal Reserve The chair of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System is the head of the Federal Reserve, and is the active executive officer of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. The chair shall preside at the meetings of the Boa ...
Janet Yellen Janet Louise Yellen (born August 13, 1946) is an American economist serving as the 78th United States secretary of the treasury since January 26, 2021. She previously served as the 15th chair of the Federal Reserve from 2014 to 2018. Yellen is ...
(2015); the Most Rev.
Katharine Jefferts Schori Katharine Jefferts Schori (born March 26, 1954) is the former Presiding Bishop and Primate of the Episcopal Church of the United States. Previously elected as the 9th Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Nevada, she was the first woman elected ...
(2013);
Eunice Kennedy Shriver Eunice Mary Kennedy Shriver (July 10, 1921 – August 11, 2009) was an American philanthropist and a member of the Kennedy family. She was the founder of the Special Olympics, a sports organization for persons with physical and intellectual disa ...
(2011); first woman ordained a rabbi in the United States, Rabbi
Sally Priesand Sally Jane Priesand (born June 27, 1946) is America's first female rabbi ordained by a rabbinical seminary, and the second formally ordained female rabbi in Jewish history, after Regina Jonas. Priesand was ordained by the Hebrew Union College-Je ...
(2009);
Wangari Maathai Wangarĩ Muta Maathai (; 1 April 1940 – 25 September 2011) was a Kenyan social, environmental and a political activist and the first African woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize. As a beneficiary of the Kennedy Airlift, she studied in the Un ...
(2008), first African woman to receive the
Nobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfr ...
; the first woman to be ordained to the episcopate in the worldwide Anglican Communion, Bishop Barbara Harris (2004); Secretary of State
Madeleine Albright Madeleine Jana Korbel Albright (born Marie Jana Korbelová; May 15, 1937 – March 23, 2022) was an American diplomat and political scientist who served as the 64th United States secretary of state from 1997 to 2001. A member of the Democrat ...
(2001); tennis great
Billie Jean King Billie Jean King (née Moffitt; born November 22, 1943) is an American former World number 1 ranked female tennis players, world No. 1 tennis player. King won 39 Grand Slam (tennis)#Tournaments, major titles: 12 in singles, 16 in women's double ...
(1998); Wilma Mankiller (1996), first woman chief of the Cherokee Nation; U.S. Representative
Barbara Jordan Barbara Charline Jordan (February 21, 1936 – January 17, 1996) was an American lawyer, educator, and politician. A Democrat, she was the first African American elected to the Texas Senate after Reconstruction and the first Southern African-A ...
(1993); U.S. Senator Margaret Chase Smith (1991); former Surgeon General
Antonia Novello Antonia Coello Novello, M.D., (born August 23, 1944) is a Puerto Rican physician and public health administrator. She was a vice admiral in the Public Health Service Commissioned Corps and served as 14th Surgeon General of the United States from ...
(1991); Supreme Court Justice
Sandra Day O'Connor Sandra Day O'Connor (born March 26, 1930) is an American retired attorney and politician who served as the first female associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1981 to 2006. She was both the first woman nominated and th ...
(1985);
Fe del Mundo Fe Villanueva del Mundo, , (born Fé Primitiva del Mundo y Villanueva; 27 November 1911 – 6 August 2011) was a Filipina pediatrician. She founded the first pediatric hospital in the Philippines and is known for shaping the modern child healt ...
, the first Asian woman admitted to
Harvard Medical School Harvard Medical School (HMS) is the graduate medical school of Harvard University and is located in the Longwood Medical Area of Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1782, HMS is one of the oldest medical schools in the United States and is cons ...
(1966); Miki Sawada, who started an orphanage for abandoned mixed-race children (1960); among many others.


President's Forum

Each semester, Hobart and William Smith sponsors a series of guest lectures. The most prominent has been the President's Forum, established in 2000 and led by former president
Mark Gearan Mark Daniel Gearan (born September 19, 1956) is a public servant, lawyer, higher education expert, and the director of the Harvard Kennedy School Institute of Politics. From 1999 to 2017, Gearan was the president of Hobart and William Smith Colleg ...
. The forum has included The Hon. Shireen Avis Fisher,
Nancy Zimpher Nancy L. Zimpher (born October 29, 1946) is an American educator, state university leader, and former Chancellor of the State University of New York (SUNY). Prior to her service at SUNY, Zimpher was a dean and professor of education at Ohio State ...
, Mary Matalin and
James Carville Chester James Carville Jr. (born October 25, 1944) is an American political consultant, author, and occasional actor who has strategized for candidates for public office in the United States and in at least 23 nations abroad. A Democrat, he is a ...
, Kathy Platoni, Svante Myrick,
Cornel West Cornel Ronald West (born June 2, 1953) is an American philosopher, political activist, social critic, actor, and public intellectual. The grandson of a Baptist minister, West focuses on the role of race, gender, and class in American society an ...
,
Ralph Nader Ralph Nader (; born February 27, 1934) is an American political activist, author, lecturer, and attorney noted for his involvement in consumer protection, environmentalism, and government reform causes. The son of Lebanese immigrants to the Un ...
,
Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...
, Eric Liu, and
Alan Keyes Alan Lee Keyes (born August 7, 1950) is an American politician, political activist, author, and perennial candidate who served as the Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs from 1985 to 1987. A member of the Repub ...
, among other prominent names.


Publications

''Seneca Review'', founded in 1970 by James Crenner and Ira Sadoff, is published twice yearly, spring and fall, by Hobart and William Smith Colleges Press. Distributed internationally, the magazine's emphasis is poetry, and the editors have a special interest in translations of contemporary poetry from around the world. Publisher of numerous laureates and award-winning poets, including
Seamus Heaney Seamus Justin Heaney (; 13 April 1939 – 30 August 2013) was an Irish poet, playwright and translator. He received the 1995 Nobel Prize in Literature.
,
Rita Dove Rita Frances Dove (born August 28, 1952) is an American poet and essayist. From 1993 to 1995, she served as Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress. She is the first African American to have been appointed since the positi ...
,
Jorie Graham Jorie Graham (; born May 9, 1950) is an American poet. The Poetry Foundation called Graham "one of the most celebrated poets of the American post-war generation." She replaced poet Seamus Heaney as Boylston Professor of Rhetoric and Oratory at ...
,
Yusef Komunyakaa Yusef Komunyakaa (born James William Brown; April 29, 1941) is an American poet who teaches at New York University and is a member of the Fellowship of Southern Writers. Komunyakaa is a recipient of the 1994 Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award, for ''Ne ...
,
Lisel Mueller Lisel Mueller (born Elisabeth Neumann, February 8, 1924 – February 21, 2020) was a German-born American poet, translator and academic teacher. Her family fled the Nazi regime, and she arrived in the U.S. in 1939 at the age of 15. She worked as a ...
, Wislawa Szymborska,
Charles Simic Dušan Simić ( sr-cyr, Душан Симић, ; born May 9, 1938), known as Charles Simic, is a Serbian American poet and former co-poetry editor of the ''Paris Review''. He received the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1990 for ''The World Doesn' ...
,
W.S. Merwin William Stanley Merwin (September 30, 1927 – March 15, 2019) was an American poet who wrote more than fifty books of poetry and prose, and produced many works in translation. During the 1960s anti-war movement, Merwin's unique craft was the ...
, and Eavan Boland, ''Seneca Review'' also consistently publishes emerging writers. In 1997, ''Seneca Review'' began publishing the "lyric essay," creative nonfiction that borders on poetry, under the associate editorship of
John D'Agata John D’Agata (born 1975) is an American essayist. He is the author or editor of six books of nonfiction, including ''The Next American Essay'' (2003), ''The Lost Origins of the Essay'' (2009) and ''The Making of the American Essay''—all part ...
. ''Echo and Pine'' is the annual student-produced college yearbook. Originally two separate publications, the ''Hobart Echo'' of Seneca, and the ''William Smith Pine'', the two merged in the 1960s to create one publication to serve both colleges. ''The Herald'' is the student-run school newspaper, founded in the late 19th century as the ''Hobart Herald''. ''The Pulteney St. Survey'' is the official magazine of Hobart and William Smith Colleges. ''martini'' is the alternative student publication at Hobart & William Smith Colleges featuring an oftentimes witty and critical look at music, politics and social issues on both the Colleges' campus and on the national level. ''Thel'' provides an outlet for HWS student artists and writers. The bi-annual, student-run publication features poetry, photography, visual art and short stories created by HWS students. The ''Aleph'' is a journal that expresses global perspectives by conveying the insights of HWS and
Union College Union College is a private liberal arts college in Schenectady, New York. Founded in 1795, it was the first institution of higher learning chartered by the New York State Board of Regents, and second in the state of New York, after Columbia Co ...
students who studied abroad in joint programs as well as international and exchange students from both campuses. The journal is sponsored by the Hobart and William Smith Colleges and Union College Partnership for Global Education.


Debate

The HWS Debate Team dates back over 100 years. Notable recent victories include the 2016 Cornell IV, the 2015 Brad Smith Debate Tournament @ University of Rochester, the 2012 US National Championships, and the 2012 and 2009 Northeastern Regional Championship. The team hosts the HWS IV (one of the largest tournaments in North America) each fall, and the HWS Round Robin (an international tournament of champions) each spring. Every year, an HWS debater is honored with the Nathan D. Lapham Prize in Public Speaking, which comes with a cash award of up to $1000 to the student. HWS is among the few liberal-arts colleges to offer numerous four-year debate scholarships.


Music

Hobart and William Smith has a number of ensemble groups, including: Colleges Chorale, a mixed ensemble which performs a wide range of a cappella choral repertoire — music from the Middle Ages to the present. In addition to a formal concert at the end of each semester and the annual spring tour, the Colleges Chorale performs at various campus events throughout the year. Cantori is a chamber vocal ensemble comprising members from the larger Colleges Chorale. Since the group's formation in 1993, the sixteen-member Cantori has sought to foster contemporary choral music through the Cantori Commissioning Project – the annual commissioning and performance of a new work by a deserving American composer. Classical Guitar Ensemble - a student group providing a performance opportunity for talented student guitarists. Community Chorus - students, faculty and staff at the Colleges, and members from the surrounding community. The fifty-voice ensemble performs major works from the standard repertoire as well as lesser-known works deserving wider familiarity. Recent programs have included extended works by Franz Joseph Haydn, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Franz Schubert, Felix Mendelssohn, Gabriel Fauré, Ottorino Respighi, Sir Edward Elgar, Aaron Copland, Benjamin Britten, and Randall Thompson. Community Wind Ensemble - students, faculty and staff at the Colleges, and members from the surrounding community. This relatively new ensemble looks forward to exploring the rich and diverse repertoire composed for wind ensemble. Jazz Ensemble - a student group providing a performance opportunity for talented student jazzers. Arrangements are found to accommodate a variety of instrumental combinations. Jazz Guitar Ensemble - a student group providing a performance opportunity for talented student jazz guitarists. Percussion Ensemble - a student group providing a performance opportunity for talented student percussionists, although students with minimal experience are encouraged to audition. String Ensemble - a student chamber group providing a performance opportunity for talented string players. Hobartones - Hobart College's student-run all-male a cappella group. Three Miles Lost - William Smith College's student-run all-female a cappella group Perfect Third - HWS's student run, coed a cappella group.


Coordinate system

Founded as two separate colleges, Hobart for men in 1822 and William Smith for women in 1908, Hobart and William Smith Colleges preserve their own identities while benefiting from a shared campus, faculty, administration and curriculum. The Colleges welcome students of all gender identities. The two colleges combined gradually. In 1922, the first joint commencement was held, though baccalaureate services remained separate until 1942. By then, coeducational classes had become the norm, and the curriculum centered on the idea of an across-the-board education, encouraging students and faculty to consider their studies from several points of view. In 1943, during the administration of President John Milton Potter, William Smith College was elevated from its original status as a department of Hobart College to that of an independent college, on equal footing with Hobart. Today, Hobart and William Smith students retain their own deans, athletic departments and student governments. Each college celebrates its history through a series of time-honored traditions beginning when each student matriculates and lasting through graduation. Maintaining their traditional gender separation - Hobart College for men and William Smith College for women - the Colleges celebrate their position as one of the few remaining coordinate systems in the nation.


Coordinate traditions


Matriculation exercises

Upon arriving to campus for orientation, students and their families are personally greeted by the president before signing their name in the matriculation book. On the eve of the first day of classes, new students are invited to attend matriculation ceremonies hosted by the Dean's Offices.


Academic excellence

The Hobart and William Smith Dean's Offices recognize the academic and social achievements of their students at celebratory events each spring semester. * Benjamin Hale Dinner - Students and distinguished alumni come together to recognize the best of Hobart student achievements. * Celebrating Excellence Dinner - The academic achievements of William Smith students are recognized and new members of the Laurel Honor Society are inducted. * Moving Up Day - Students gather by class at the top of William Smith Hill and process down The Hill with the seniors carrying a laurel rope. The event culminates with the passing of the laurel from the seniors to the juniors and all students “Moving Up.” Academic awards are given, new members of the Hai Timiai Honor Society are inducted and the Dean reflects on the year.


Honoring the colleges' founders

In honor of John Henry Hobart and William Smith, the community gathers each year to mark the founding of Hobart College and William Smith College. * Charter Day - The campus community commemorates the founding of Hobart College and the day on which a provisional charter from the State Regents of New York officially brought the college into being. New inductees are welcomed to the Hobart honor societies and a distinguished alumnus is invited to speak. * Founder's Day - Students, alumnae, administrators and faculty members gather to celebrate the establishment of William Smith College and the achievements of its students. A notable William Smith alumna addresses the community and engages in a public dialogue.


Alumni/ae welcome

Hosted by the Alumni and Alumnae Associations, soon-to-be graduates are officially welcomed into the alum community during graduation weekend. * Hobart Launch - Each member of the Hobart class is given an oar in celebration of his alma mater, its heritage and the promise of a reciprocal lifelong bond. * William Smith Welcome Toast - The William Smith seniors are toasted by the alumnae, plant a class pine tree and each member receives a pine tree charm in honor of the college's nurseryman founder.


Athletics


Varsity sports

There are 23 varsity sports at Hobart and William Smith Colleges, with about 25% of students involved at the varsity level. Hobart sponsors 11 varsity programs (basketball, cross country, football, golf, ice hockey, lacrosse, rowing, sailing, soccer, squash, tennis), while William Smith also sponsors 12 varsity programs (basketball, cross country, field hockey, golf, ice hockey, lacrosse, rowing, sailing, soccer, squash, swimming & diving, tennis). Hobart and William Smith varsity teams have won 23 national championships and 104 conference championships, producing 665
All-Americans The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...
and 43
Academic All-America The Academic All-America program is a student-athlete recognition program. The program selects an honorary sports team composed of the most outstanding student-athletes of a specific season for positions in various sports—who in turn are giv ...
honorees. In March 2017, Hobart and William Smith were named to the "100 Best Colleges for Sports Lovers" by ''Money'' and ''
Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence tw ...
''. ;History Originally known as the Hobart Deacons, Hobart's athletic teams became known as the "Statesmen" in 1936, following the football team's season opener against
Amherst College Amherst College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Amherst, Massachusetts. Founded in 1821 as an attempt to relocate Williams College by its then-president Zephaniah Swift Moore, Amherst is the third oldest institution of higher educati ...
. The morning after the game, ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' referred to the team as "the statesmen from Geneva," and the name stuck. The nickname for William Smith's athletic teams comes from a contest held in 1982. Several names were submitted, but "
Heron The herons are long-legged, long-necked, freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae, with 72 recognised species, some of which are referred to as egrets or bitterns rather than herons. Members of the genera ''Botaurus'' and ''Ixobrychu ...
s" was selected because of the strong and graceful birds that lived at nearby Odell's Pond. These ominous birds frequently flew over the athletic fields as the teams were practicing. ;Affiliations The colleges compete in
NCAA Division III NCAA Division III (D-III) is a division of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States. D-III consists of athletic programs at colleges and universities that choose not to offer athletic scholarships to their ...
, with the exception of men's
lacrosse Lacrosse is a team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game was extensiv ...
, which competes in the Division I
Atlantic 10 Conference The Atlantic 10 Conference (A-10) is a collegiate athletic conference whose schools compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) Division I. The A-10's member schools are located in states mostly on the United States Easter ...
(A-10). The colleges' main conference affiliation is with the Liberty League with the following exceptions: Hobart
ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice ...
competes in the
New England Hockey Conference New England Hockey Conference (formerly the ECAC East) is a college athletic conference which operates in the northeastern United States. It participates in the NCAA's Division III as a hockey-only conference. __TOC__ History The New Englan ...
; Hobart lacrosse competes in the A-10; and William Smith ice hockey competes in the
United Collegiate Hockey Conference The United Collegiate Hockey Conference (UCHC) is a college athletic conference which operates in Maryland, New York, and Pennsylvania in the eastern United States. It participates in NCAA Division III as a hockey-only conference. The confer ...
.. ;Facilities Hobart and William Smith recently finished construction on the Caird Center for Sports and Recreation, which is now home to most of its athletics teams. ;Football Offensive linesman
Ali Marpet Alexander "Ali" Marpet (; born April 17, 1993) is an American former professional football guard who played seven seasons for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). Marpet played college football at Hobart and William ...
, drafted in the second round, 61st overall, of the
2015 NFL draft The 2015 NFL Draft was the 80th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. It took place in Chicago at the Auditorium Theatre and in Grant Park, from April 30 to May 2. The previo ...
, is the highest-drafted pick in the history of Division III football. He was three-time All- Liberty League first team (2012, 2013, 2014), and 2014 Liberty League Co-Offensive Player of the Year—the first offensive lineman in league history to be so honored. ;Field hockey The William Smith field hockey team has captured three national championships, ascending to the top of Division III in 1992, 1997 and 2000. ;Lacrosse The Statesmen lacrosse team has compiled fifteen national championships (1 USILA, 2 NCAA Division II, and 13 NCAA Division III). ;Sailing The lone coed team, the HWS
sailing Sailing employs the wind—acting on sails, wingsails or kites—to propel a craft on the surface of the ''water'' (sailing ship, sailboat, raft, windsurfer, or kitesurfer), on ''ice'' (iceboat) or on ''land'' ( land yacht) over a chose ...
team is a member of the
Middle Atlantic Intercollegiate Sailing Association Middle Atlantic Intercollegiate Sailing Association (MAISA) is one of the seven conferences affiliated with the Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association that schedule and administer regattas within their established geographic regions. MAISA organiz ...
. In 2005, the Colleges won the Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association Team Race National Championship and the ICSA Coed Dinghy National Championship. ;Soccer The William Smith soccer team was the first Heron squad to capture a national championship, winning the 1988
title bout In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...
with a 1–0 victory over
University of California, San Diego The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego or colloquially, UCSD) is a public land-grant research university in San Diego, California. Established in 1960 near the pre-existing Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego is ...
. ;Crew The Hobart Crew team has also found success, earning gold medals at the Head of The Charles Regatta, the ECAC National Invitational Regatta (most recently a gold in the 2nd varsity 8+ over the "Hometown Boys" of WPI in 2015), and the IRA National Championships. While the Hobart Crew team has won gold in every event they have entered since the inception of rowing as a Liberty League Sport, they failed to win the team championships only once (2004.) The eventual champions, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, were known for having a large team and only able to defeat the Statesmen by securing a win in the 2nd Varsity 8+ – the only event that Hobart did not have an entry. However, over the past few seasons Hobart has fielded one of the most dominant 2nd Varsity 8's in school history. The Crew Team took part in the Henley Royal Regatta in Henley, England in the summer of 2011, as well as the summer of 2015.


Rivalries

Hobart's archrival in football is
Union College Union College is a private liberal arts college in Schenectady, New York. Founded in 1795, it was the first institution of higher learning chartered by the New York State Board of Regents, and second in the state of New York, after Columbia Co ...
. Other team rivalries include
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute () (RPI) is a private research university in Troy, New York, with an additional campus in Hartford, Connecticut. A third campus in Groton, Connecticut closed in 2018. RPI was established in 1824 by Stephen Van ...
(football, basketball);
University of Rochester The University of Rochester (U of R, UR, or U of Rochester) is a private research university in Rochester, New York. The university grants undergraduate and graduate degrees, including doctoral and professional degrees. The University of ...
(football);
Elmira College Elmira College is a private college in Elmira, New York. Founded as a college for women in 1855, it is the oldest existing college granting degrees to women that were the equivalent of those given to men. Elmira College became coeducational in a ...
and
Manhattanville College Manhattanville College is a private university in Purchase, New York. Founded in 1841 at 412 Houston Street in lower Manhattan, it was initially known as Academy of the Sacred Heart, then after 1847 as Manhattanville College of the Sacred Heart ...
(hockey);
Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to tea ...
( one of the oldest in lacrosse) and
St. John Fisher University St. John Fisher University is a private liberal arts college in Pittsford, New York. It is named after John Fisher, an English Catholic cardinal and saint. It was named St. John Fisher College until July 1, 2022. History St. John Fisher Univers ...
,
Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York. Established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church, the university has been nonsectarian since 1920. Locate ...
and
Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private research university in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll in 1789 as Georgetown College, the university has grown to comprise eleven undergraduate and graduate ...
(lacrosse); and
University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...
(crew). William Smith has rivalries with
St. Lawrence University St. Lawrence University is a private liberal arts college in the village of Canton in St. Lawrence County, New York. It has roughly 2,400 undergraduate and 100 graduate students. Though St. Lawrence today is non-denominational, it was founde ...
(lacrosse, basketball, field hockey),
Union College Union College is a private liberal arts college in Schenectady, New York. Founded in 1795, it was the first institution of higher learning chartered by the New York State Board of Regents, and second in the state of New York, after Columbia Co ...
(soccer, field hockey, basketball, lacrosse),
Hamilton College Hamilton College is a private liberal arts college in Clinton, Oneida County, New York. It was founded as Hamilton-Oneida Academy in 1793 and was chartered as Hamilton College in 1812 in honor of inaugural trustee Alexander Hamilton, following ...
(field hockey, basketball and lacrosse) and
Ithaca College Ithaca College is a private college in Ithaca, New York. It was founded by William Egbert in 1892 as a conservatory of music and is set against the backdrop of the city of Ithaca (which is separate from the town), Cayuga Lake, waterfalls, and ...
(crew).


Greek life

Greek life has been integral to Hobart College historically. Hobart has several active Chapters of Greek societies.
Delta Chi Delta Chi () is an international Greek letter collegiate social fraternity formed on October 13, 1890, at Cornell University, initially as a professional fraternity for law students. On April 30, 1922, Delta Chi became a general membership soc ...
, Hobart Chapter;
Kappa Alpha Society The Kappa Alpha Society (), founded in 1825, was the progenitor of the modern fraternity system in North America. It is considered to be the oldest national, secret, Greek-letter social fraternity and was the first of the fraternities which would ...
, CH – NY Beta;
Kappa Sigma Kappa Sigma (), commonly known as Kappa Sig, is an American collegiate social fraternity founded at the University of Virginia in 1869. Kappa Sigma is one of the five largest international fraternities with currently 318 active chapters and col ...
, Delta-Phi Chapter;
Phi Sigma Kappa Phi Sigma Kappa (), colloquially known as Phi Sig or PSK, is a men's social and academic Fraternities and sororities, fraternity with approximately 74 List of Phi Sigma Kappa chapters#List of Chapters, active chapters and provisional chapters in ...
, Psi Triton Chapter;
Theta Delta Chi Theta Delta Chi () is a social fraternity that was founded in 1847 at Union College, New York, United States. While nicknames differ from institution to institution, the most common nicknames for the fraternity are TDX, Thete, Theta Delt, and Thump ...
, Xi Charge;
Sigma Chi Sigma Chi () International Fraternity is one of the largest North American fraternal literary societies. The fraternity has 244 active (undergraduate) chapters and 152 alumni chapters across the United States and Canada and has initiated more t ...
, Alpha Alpha Chapter;
Chi Phi Chi Phi () is considered by some as the oldest American men's college social fraternity that was established as the result of the merger of three separate organizations that were each known as Chi Phi. The earliest of these organizations was for ...
; Hobart used to be the home of several now inactive fraternities including,
Alpha Delta Phi Alpha Delta Phi (), commonly known as Alpha Delt, ADPhi, A-Delt, or ADP, is a North American Greek-letter social college fraternity. Alpha Delta Phi was originally founded as a literary society by Samuel Eells in 1832 at Hamilton College in C ...
, Pi Lambda Phi, Beta Sigma, Phi Phi Delta,
Sigma Phi Society The Sigma Phi Society () was founded on the Fourth of March in the year 1827, on the campus of Union College as a part of the Union Triad in Schenectady, New York. It is the second Greek fraternal organization founded in the United States.
,
Tau Kappa Epsilon Tau Kappa Epsilon (), commonly known as or Teke, is a social college fraternities and sororities, fraternity founded on January 10, 1899, at Illinois Wesleyan University. The organization has chapters throughout the United States and Canada, maki ...
,
Alpha Phi Alpha Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. () is the oldest intercollegiate historically African American fraternity. It was initially a literary and social studies club organized in the 1905–1906 school year at Cornell University but later evolved in ...
and
Phi Kappa Tau Phi Kappa Tau (), commonly known as Phi Tau (), is a collegiate fraternity located in the United States. The fraternity was founded in 1906. As of November 2022, the fraternity has 161 chartered chapters, 79 active chapters, 6 Associate chapte ...
. In the fall of 2017, William Smith welcomed their first sorority,
Theta Phi Alpha Theta Phi Alpha (), commonly known as Theta Phi, is a women's fraternity founded at the University of Michigan – Ann Arbor on August 30, 1912. The main archive URL iThe Baird's Manual Online Archive homepage Theta Phi Alpha is one of 26 nationa ...
.


Controversies


1970 Coercion Charges

Students and faculty of Hobart and William Smith Colleges were active during the anti-war movements in the late 1960s and early 1970s. On April 30, 1970, a group of first-year students threw three Molotov cocktails through the windows of the Air Force ROTC office located on the first floor of Sherrill Hall. The incident was incited by "Tommy the Traveler" an agent provocateur who worked for the Ontario County Police Department and the FBI. No one was injured and no significant damage was done to Sherrill Hall. In July that year, the Colleges were officially indicted on coercion charges in a landmark case in the history of higher education in the United States. The incident marks the first time in U.S. history where a college has been charged with criminal activities relating to a campus disorder. The Colleges were acquitted of all charges.


2014 Title IX Investigation

On May 1, 2014, the U.S. Department of Education released a list of 55 colleges being investigated for potential violations of federal law regarding
sexual assault Sexual assault is an act in which one intentionally sexually touches another person without that person's consent, or coerces or physically forces a person to engage in a sexual act against their will. It is a form of sexual violence, which ...
and harassment complaints. The list included Hobart and William Smith Colleges. A ''
New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' article published in July of the same year detailed a case in which a student reported a sexual assault by three college football players two weeks into her first year; within two weeks the college's investigation cleared the two men accused, despite medical evidence, a corroborating witness to one of the incidents and discrepancies in the alleged perpetrators' accounts of the evening. The story also alleged the members of the disciplinary panel that heard the case were uninformed about sexual assault and frequently changed the subject rather than hear the victim's account of events. Following the report, the colleges unveiled new initiatives and policies, including revising their sexual violence policies, creating a rape hotline and forming an Office of
Title IX Title IX is the most commonly used name for the federal civil rights law in the United States that was enacted as part (Title IX) of the Education Amendments of 1972. It prohibits sex-based discrimination in any school or any other educat ...
Programs and Compliance.


Notable alumni


Notable alumni of Geneva Academy (1794–1822)

* Ward Hunt, Associate Justice of the
Supreme Court of the United States The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. Federal tribunals in the United States, federal court cases, and over Stat ...
. * DeWitt Clinton Littlejohn,
United States Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...
from New York and brigadier general in the
Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union (American Civil War), Union of the collective U.S. st ...
.


Notable alumni of Geneva College (1822–1852)

* General Edward Stuyvesant Bragg (1848) lawyer,
United States Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...
from Wisconsin, Union
brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointe ...
of the
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and t ...
, envoy. * Peter Myndert Dox (1833) lawyer; United States Representative from
Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = " Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,7 ...
, 1869–1873. *
Charles J. Folger Charles James Folger (April 16, 1818 – September 4, 1884) was an American lawyer and politician. A member of the Republican Party, he was a State Senator in New York from 1862 to 1869 and served as the 34th U.S. Secretary of the Treasury from ...
(1836)
United States Secretary of the Treasury The United States secretary of the treasury is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury, and is the chief financial officer of the federal government of the United States. The secretary of the treasury serves as the principal a ...
, Chief Judge of the
New York Court of Appeals The New York Court of Appeals is the highest court in the Unified Court System of the State of New York. The Court of Appeals consists of seven judges: the Chief Judge and six Associate Judges who are appointed by the Governor and confirmed by ...
. * Frederick S. Lovell (1835), member of the
Wisconsin State Assembly The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Representatives are elected for two-year terms, e ...
. Union brigadier general. *
Albert J. Myer Albert James Myer (September 20, 1828 – August 24, 1880) was a surgeon and United States Army general. He is known as the father of the U.S. Army Signal Corps, as its first chief signal officer just prior to the American Civil War, the inventor ...
, MD (1847) father of the U.S. Army Signal Corps. A founding member of the International Meteorological Organization. *
David Rumsey David Rumsey (born 1944) is an American map collector and the founder of the David Rumsey Map Collection. He is also the president of Cartography Associates. Rumsey has a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Fine Arts from Yale University and wa ...
, United States Representative from New York. * Horatio Seymour (1823–1825) 18th
Governor of New York The governor of New York is the head of government of the U.S. state of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor h ...
, Democratic candidate for 1868 President. *
George Washington Woodward George Washington Woodward (March 26, 1809May 10, 1875) was a Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania. George W. Woodward was born in Bethany, Pennsylvania. He attended Geneva Seminary (now Hobart and William ...
(About 1828) lawyer, U.S. Congressman of Pennsylvania and Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania.


Notable alumni of Geneva Medical College (1834–1872)

*
Elizabeth Blackwell Elizabeth Blackwell (3 February 182131 May 1910) was a British physician, notable as the first woman to receive a medical degree in the United States, and the first woman on the Medical Register of the General Medical Council for the United Ki ...
, MD (1849), first woman awarded a
Doctor of Medicine Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated M.D., from the Latin ''Medicinae Doctor'') is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the M.D. denotes a professional degree. ...
degree in the United States. * George W. Cole, MD (1850), brigadier general in the Union army; charged with murder. * Moses Gunn, MD (1846), original faculty member and holder of the first chair of surgery at the
University of Michigan Medical School Michigan Medicine (University of Michigan Health System or UMHS before 2017) is the wholly owned academic medical center of the University of Michigan, a public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Michigan Medicine includes the Unive ...
, surgeon of the 5th Michigan Infantry and went through the Peninsular Campaign with Gen.
George B. McClellan George Brinton McClellan (December 3, 1826 – October 29, 1885) was an American soldier, Civil War Union general, civil engineer, railroad executive, and politician who served as the 24th governor of New Jersey. A graduate of West Point, McCl ...
’s army. * Robert Mitchell, MD (1845), Wisconsin physician, Civil War surgeon and member of the Wisconsin State Assembly.


Notable alumni of Hobart and William Smith Colleges


Academia

*
Willis Adcock Dr. Willis Alfred Adcock (November 25, 1922 – December 16, 2003) was a Canadian-American physical chemist, electrical engineer, and university professor who worked on the first atomic bomb and assisted with the invention of the silicon tra ...
(1944), professor of electrical and computer engineering at the
University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...
. *
Willard Myron Allen Willard Myron Allen (November 5, 1904 – August 15, 1993) was an American gynecologist. He was born in 1904 in Farmington, New York, near Rochester, New York. As an undergraduate student at Hobart College (now Hobart and William Smith Colleges ...
, MD (1926), professor and chairman of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at
Washington University School of Medicine Washington University School of Medicine (WUSM) is the medical school of Washington University in St. Louis in St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1891, the School of Medicine has 1,260 students, 604 of which are pursuing a medical degree with ...
. * William Watts Folwell (1857), first president of the
University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public land-grant research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. ...
. * John P. Grotzinger (1979), Fletcher Jones Professor of Geology at
California Institute of Technology The California Institute of Technology (branded as Caltech or CIT)The university itself only spells its short form as "Caltech"; the institution considers other spellings such a"Cal Tech" and "CalTech" incorrect. The institute is also occasional ...
and chair of the Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences. * Michael Ann Holly (1973), American art historian, Starr Director of the Research and Academic Program at the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. * Jacquelyn S. Litt (1980), Professor of Sociology and Women's and Gender Studies at
Rutgers University Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and was ...
and Dean of
Douglass Residential College Douglass Residential College, is an undergraduate, non degree granting higher education program of Rutgers University-New Brunswick for women. It succeeded the liberal arts degree-granting Douglass College after it was merged with the other und ...
. * Kay Payne (1973), Professor of Communication Sciences and Disorders at
Howard University Howard University (Howard) is a Private university, private, University charter#Federal, federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C. It is Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education, classifie ...
* Elizabeth J. Perry (1969), Henry Rosovsky Professor of Government at
Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of highe ...
, director of the Harvard-Yenching Institute, fellow of the
American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, a ...
, corresponding fellow of the British Academy, and recipient of a
Guggenheim Fellowship Guggenheim Fellowships are grants that have been awarded annually since by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the art ...
. * Edward Regan (1950), president of
Baruch College Baruch College (officially the Bernard M. Baruch College) is a public college in New York City. It is a constituent college of the City University of New York system. Named for financier and statesman Bernard M. Baruch, the college operates unde ...
from 2000 to 2004. * Gregory J. Vincent (1983), president of
Talladega College Talladega College is a private historically black college in Talladega, Alabama. It is Alabama's oldest private historically black college and offers 17 degree programs. It is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. His ...
; former president of Hobart and William Smith Colleges; former executive director of the Civil Rights and Education Initiative and Professor at the
University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a public land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentucky, the university is one of the state ...
. * Ralph Wyckoff (1916), Professor of Microbiology and Physics at the
University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it was the first ...
.


Arts

* Melissa Bank (1982), author of '' The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing''. * Eric Bloom (1967), singer, songwriter, guitarist, and keyboardist, most recently of
Blue Öyster Cult Blue Öyster Cult ( ; sometimes abbreviated BÖC or BOC) is an American rock band formed on Long Island in Stony Brook, New York, in 1967, and best known for the singles "(Don't Fear) The Reaper", "Burnin' for You", and "Godzilla". The band h ...
. *
Janet Braun-Reinitz Janet Braun-Reinitz is a muralist, painter and activist committed to social justice. Her ongoing involvement in civil rights activism began in 1961 when she was a Freedom Rider. During one incident in Little Rock, Arkansas, she was arrested and ...
(1973), president of Artmakers, Inc. *
Michael Burkard Michael Paul Burkard is an American poet. Life He graduated from Hobart College in 1968 and from the Iowa Writers' Workshop with an MFA in 1973. He taught at Kirkland College (1975–78) and Sarah Lawrence College (1983–84, 1986–87), and ha ...
(1968), poet, recipient of the
Whiting Award The Whiting Award is an American award presented annually to ten emerging writers in fiction, nonfiction, poetry Poetry (derived from the Greek '' poiesis'', "making"), also called verse, is a form of literature that uses aesthetic and ...
and the Jerome Shestack Poetry Award from the ''
American Poetry Review ''The American Poetry Review'' (''APR'') is an American poetry magazine printed every other month on tabloid-sized newsprint. It was founded in 1972 by Stephen Berg and Stephen Parker in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The magazine's editor is Elizabe ...
'',
Guggenheim Fellowship Guggenheim Fellowships are grants that have been awarded annually since by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the art ...
in Poetry. * Christian Camargo (Minnick) (1992), actor, various movies and series, including ''
Dexter Dexter may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Dexter, the main character of the American animated series '' Dexter's Laboratory'' that aired from 1996 to 2003 * Dexter, a fictional character in the British web series ''Diary of a Bad Man'' * Dext ...
'', Fast, Inc., All My Sons (Broadway). *
John D'Agata John D’Agata (born 1975) is an American essayist. He is the author or editor of six books of nonfiction, including ''The Next American Essay'' (2003), ''The Lost Origins of the Essay'' (2009) and ''The Making of the American Essay''—all part ...
(1995), professor of English and director of Nonfiction Writing Program at
University of Iowa The University of Iowa (UI, U of I, UIowa, or simply Iowa) is a public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized into 12 co ...
, co-author of ''
The Lifespan of a Fact ''The Lifespan of a Fact'' is a book co-written by John D'Agata and Jim Fingal and published by W.W. Norton & Company in 2012. The book is written in a non-traditional format consisting of D’Agata's 2003 essay “What Happens There” in blac ...
''. * Arthur Dove (attended), early American modernist often considered the first American
abstract painter Abstract art uses visual language of shape, form, color and line to create a composition which may exist with a degree of independence from visual references in the world. Western art had been, from the Renaissance up to the middle of the 19th ...
. *
Brad Falchuk Bradley Douglas Falchuk (born March 1, 1971) is an American television writer, director, and producer, best known for co-creating with Ryan Murphy the comedy-drama television series '' Glee'', the drama series '' Pose'', the horror comedy '' S ...
(1993), television writer, director, and producer best known for ''
American Horror Story ''American Horror Story'' is an American anthology horror television series created by Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk for the cable network FX. The first installment in the '' American Story'' media franchise, each season is conceived as a ...
'' and '' Glee''. * Evelyn Tooley Hunt (1926), originator of American style of
Haiku is a type of short form poetry originally from Japan. Traditional Japanese haiku consist of three phrases that contain a '' kireji'', or "cutting word", 17 '' on'' (phonetic units similar to syllables) in a 5, 7, 5 pattern, and a '' kigo'', or ...
; her poem "Taught Me Purple" was the inspiration for the book ''
The Color Purple ''The Color Purple'' is a 1982 epistolary novel by American author Alice Walker which won the 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the National Book Award for Fiction.
'' by
Alice Walker Alice Malsenior Tallulah-Kate Walker (born February 9, 1944) is an American novelist, short story writer, poet, and social activist. In 1982, she became the first African-American woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, which she was awa ...
. * Alan Kalter (1964), actor, announcer of the ''
Late Show with David Letterman The ''Late Show with David Letterman'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS, the first iteration of the ''Late Show'' franchise. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and was produced by Letterman's production ...
''. * Jessica Knoll (2006), novelist, author of best-seller ''
Luckiest Girl Alive ''Luckiest Girl Alive'' is a 2015 New York Times Bestselling mystery novel written by the American author Jessica Knoll, and is her debut work. It was first published on May 12, 2015, by Simon & Schuster in the United States, and Pan Macmilla ...
''. * Stephen Kuusisto (1978), American poet. *
Eric Lax Eric Lax is an American author who has written books on modern medicine, four books on Woody Allen including a biography, and a personal memoir ''Faith: Interrupted'' about his loss of Christian faith. Biography Lax was raised in an Episcopalian ...
(1966), author, biographer of
Woody Allen Heywood "Woody" Allen (born Allan Stewart Konigsberg; November 30, 1935) is an American film director, writer, actor, and comedian whose career spans more than six decades and multiple Academy Award-winning films. He began his career writing ...
and
Humphrey Bogart Humphrey DeForest Bogart (; December 25, 1899 – January 14, 1957), nicknamed Bogie, was an American film and stage actor. His performances in Classical Hollywood cinema films made him an American cultural icon. In 1999, the American Film In ...
, among others. * Reynold Levy (1966), former president of
Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (also simply known as Lincoln Center) is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has thirty indoor and outdoor facilities and is host to 5 milli ...
, former president of the
Robin Hood Foundation The Robin Hood Foundation is a charitable organization which attempts to alleviate problems caused by poverty in New York City. The organization also administers a relief fund for disasters in the New York City area. In 2010, a key supporter gave ...
. *
Christopher McDonald Christopher McDonald (born February 15, 1955) is an American film, television, theatre and voice actor. McDonald is best known for playing the villainous professional golfer Shooter McGavin in the 1996 comedy ''Happy Gilmore''. Other notable ...
(1977), movie, television, and stage actor (''
Happy Gilmore ''Happy Gilmore'' is a 1996 American sports comedy film directed by Dennis Dugan and produced by Robert Simonds. It stars Adam Sandler as the title character, an unsuccessful ice hockey player who discovers a newfound talent for golf. The scr ...
'', ''
Requiem for a Dream ''Requiem for a Dream'' is a 2000 American psychological drama film directed by Darren Aronofsky and starring Ellen Burstyn, Jared Leto, Jennifer Connelly, Christopher McDonald and Marlon Wayans. It is based on the 1978 novel of the same na ...
'', '' The Perfect Storm,
Quiz Show A game show is a genre of broadcast viewing entertainment (radio, television, internet, stage or other) where contestants compete for a reward. These programs can either be participatory or demonstrative and are typically directed by a host, s ...
''). *
Greg Mullavey Greg Mullavey (born Gregory Thomas Mulleavy Jr., September 10, 1939) is an American film and television actor who has had roles as Tom Hartman in the television series '' Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman'' and Carly's grandfather in ''iCarly''. He has ...
(1955), actor ('' Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman'', ''
The Rockford Files ''The Rockford Files'' is an American detective drama television series starring James Garner that aired on the NBC network from September 13, 1974 to January 10, 1980, and remains in syndication. Garner portrays Los Angeles private investiga ...
'', '' Hawaii Five-O'', ''
iCarly ''iCarly'' is an American teen sitcom created by Dan Schneider, which originally aired on Nickelodeon from September 8, 2007, to November 23, 2012. The series tells the story of Carly Shay (Miranda Cosgrove), a teenager who creates and host ...
''). *
Mark Neveldine Mark Neveldine (born May 11, 1973) is an American filmmaker. He is best known for frequently collaborating with Brian Taylor as Neveldine/Taylor. Early life and education Neveldine was born in Watertown, New York, to Tom Neveldine and Carolyn ...
(1995), screenwriter and director of films such as ''
Gamer A gamer is a proactive hobbyist who plays interactive games, especially video games, tabletop role-playing games, and skill-based card games, and who plays for usually long periods of time. Some gamers are competitive, meaning they routin ...
'' and '' Crank''. * Leslie Peirez (1992),
television producer A television producer is a person who oversees one or more aspects of video production on a television program. Some producers take more of an executive role, in that they conceive new programs and pitch them to the television networks, but upon ...
. * Lt. Col. Hunter "Rip" Rawlings IV (1994), U.S. Marine and ''New York Times'' bestselling author of ''Red Metal''. *
Jonas Wood Jonas may refer to: Geography * Jonas, Netherlands, Netherlands * Jonas, Pennsylvania, United States * Jonas Ridge, North Carolina, United States People with the name * Jonas (name), people with the given name or surname Jonas * Jonas, one of ...
(1999), contemporary artist. *
Brock Yates Brock Wendel Yates (October 21, 1933 – October 5, 2016) was an American print and TV journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was longtime executive editor of ''Car and Driver'', an American automotive magazine. In 1971 Yates, his son, and a f ...
(1955), editor of
Car and Driver ''Car and Driver'' (''CD'' or ''C/D'') is an American automotive enthusiast magazine. In 2006 its total circulation was 1.23 million. It is owned by Hearst Magazines, who purchased prior owner Hachette Filipacchi Media U.S. in 2011. It was f ...
magazine, motorsport television commentator, and screenwriter of the film ''
The Cannonball Run ''The Cannonball Run'' is a 1981 action comedy film. It was directed by Hal Needham, produced by Hong Kong's Golden Harvest films, and distributed by 20th Century Fox. Filmed in Panavision, it features an all-star ensemble cast, including B ...
''.


Business

*
Abigail Johnson Abigail Pierrepont Johnson (born December 19, 1961) is an American billionaire businesswoman, and the granddaughter of the late Edward C. Johnson II; the founder of Fidelity Investments. Since 2014, Johnson has been president and chief executive ...
(1984),
Fidelity Investments Fidelity Investments, commonly referred to as Fidelity, earlier as Fidelity Management & Research or FMR, is an American multinational financial services corporation based in Boston, Massachusetts. The company was established in 1946 and is o ...
, CEO and President. * Warren Littlefield (1974), head of programming for
Sony Pictures Television Sony Pictures Television Inc. (abbreviated as SPT) is an American television production and distribution studio. Based at the Sony Pictures Studios complex in Culver City, it is a division of Sony Entertainment's unit Sony Pictures Entertainme ...
and the former president of
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
Entertainment. *
Dan Rosensweig Dan Rosensweig is an American business executive who is chairman, president and chief executive officer (CEO) of student services company Chegg. Previously, Rosensweig served as president and CEO of ''Guitar Hero''; COO at Yahoo!; president of C ...
(1983), business executive; president and chief executive officer of
Chegg Chegg, Inc., is an American education technology company based in Santa Clara, California. It provides homework help, digital and physical textbook rentals, textbooks, online tutoring, and other student services. The company was launched in 200 ...
. * William "Bill" Scandling (1949), founder of Saga Corporation (sold to
Marriott Corporation Marriott Corporation was a hospitality company that operated from 1927 until 1993, founded by J. Willard Marriott and Frank J. Kimball as Hot Shoppes, Inc. In 1957, Marriott Corporation opened its first hotel in Arlington County, Virginia, ...
in 1986). * Dana Telsey (1984), CEO, Telsey Advisory Group


Government and law

* Harold Baer Jr. (1954), judge of the
United States District Court for the Southern District of New York The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (in case citations, S.D.N.Y.) is a federal trial court whose geographic jurisdiction encompasses eight counties of New York State. Two of these are in New York City: New ...
. * Richard Brown (1953), Associate Justice of the
New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division The Appellate Divisions of the Supreme Court of the State of New York are the intermediate appellate courts in New York State. There are four Appellate Divisions, one in each of the state's four Judicial Departments (e.g., the full title of the ...
, Second Department, and longest-serving District Attorney in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
. *
Rodney Frelinghuysen Rodney Procter Frelinghuysen (born April 29, 1946) is an American former politician and lobbyist who served as the U.S. representative for from 1995 to 2019. The district includes most of Morris County, an affluent suburban county west of New ...
(1969), U.S. Representative for
New Jersey's 11th congressional district New Jersey's 11th congressional district is a suburban district in northern New Jersey. The district includes portions of Essex, Morris, and Passaic Counties; it is centered in Morris County. The 11th congressional district, along with the 12 ...
. * Richard R. Kenney (1878)
U.S. Senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and power ...
,
Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent ...
1895–1900. * Joseph M. Kyrillos (1982), New Jersey state Senator. *
Alan Lowenthal Alan may refer to: People *Alan (surname), an English and Turkish surname *Alan (given name), an English given name **List of people with given name Alan ''Following are people commonly referred to solely by "Alan" or by a homonymous name.'' * A ...
(1962), U.S. Representative for
California's 47th congressional district California's 47th congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of California. The district is centered in Long Beach, extends into the western Orange County cities of Garden Grove, Westminster, Stanton, Buena Park, ...
. * Edward Regan (1950),
Comptroller A comptroller (pronounced either the same as ''controller'' or as ) is a management-level position responsible for supervising the quality of accounting and financial reporting of an organization. A financial comptroller is a senior-level execut ...
of New York. *
Herbert J. Stern Herbert Jay Stern (born November 8, 1936) is a trial lawyer, with a national practice in civil and criminal litigation, as well as mediation and arbitration.  Earlier in his career, Stern served as a United States district judge of the United S ...
(1958), judge of the
United States District Court for the District of New Jersey The United States District Court for the District of New Jersey (in case citations, D.N.J.) is a federal court in the Third Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are appealed to the ...
,
United States Attorney United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal ...
, prosecuted
Malcolm X Malcolm X (born Malcolm Little, later Malik el-Shabazz; May 19, 1925 – February 21, 1965) was an American Muslim minister and human rights activist who was a prominent figure during the civil rights movement. A spokesman for the Nation of I ...
killers. * Ben Wattenberg (1955), speechwriter for
Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He had previously served as the 37th vice ...
from 1966 to 1968 and adviser to
Hubert Humphrey Hubert Horatio Humphrey Jr. (May 27, 1911 – January 13, 1978) was an American pharmacist and politician who served as the 38th vice president of the United States from 1965 to 1969. He twice served in the United States Senate, representing ...
's 1970 Senate race. Served on the
1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using mean solar tim ...
and
1976 Democratic National Convention The 1976 Democratic National Convention met at Madison Square Garden in New York City, from July 12 to July 15, 1976. The assembled United States Democratic Party delegates at the convention nominated former Governor Jimmy Carter of Geor ...
platform committees. * John Paul Wiese (1962), judge of the
United States Court of Federal Claims The United States Court of Federal Claims (in case citations, Fed. Cl. or C.F.C.) is a United States federal court that hears monetary claims against the U.S. government. It was established by statute in 1982 as the United States Claims Court, ...
.


Journalism

*
Byron Andrews Byron Andrews (October 25, 1852 – October 15, 1910) was an American journalist for Chicago Inter Ocean and National Tribune, private secretary to U.S. President Ulysses S. Grant on his Industrial Excursions to Mexico and Cuba, a statesman, a lect ...
(1876), journalist, private secretary to President
Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant ; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was an American military officer and politician who served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877. As Commanding General, he led the Union A ...
; received an honorary degree at Hobart in 1900. *
Holman W. Jenkins Jr Holman W. Jenkins Jr. is a columnist, editorial writer, and member of ''The Wall Street Journal'' editorial board. He writes the twice-weekly column "Business World," which appears in the paper and online every Wednesday and Saturday. Aside from wr ...
(1982), ''
The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...
'' editorial board member, policy commentator. *
Milissa Rehberger Milissa Rehberger is an American television journalist. She joined the 24-hour cable news television channel MSNBC in December 2003 as a freelance anchor and reporter. In July 2004 she was named anchor of its primetime news updates. Most rece ...
(1993), news reporter,
MSNBC MSNBC (originally the Microsoft National Broadcasting Company) is an American news-based pay television cable channel. It is owned by NBCUniversala subsidiary of Comcast. Headquartered in New York City, it provides news coverage and political ...
. *
Laura Sydell Laura Sydell formerly reported on Digital Culture for NPR. She was born in New Jersey, and is a former senior technology reporter for Public Radio International's ''Marketplace'', and a regular reporter on for National Public Radio's ''All Thing ...
(1983), digital culture correspondent for
NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...
. *
Ben J. Wattenberg Benjamin Joseph Wattenberg (born Joseph Ben Zion Wattenberg;Roberts, Sam New York ''Times'', June 29, 2015. Retrieved 2015-06-29. August 26, 1933 – June 28, 2015) was an American author, neoconservative political commentator and demographer, ...
(1955), journalist, PBS host, and former speech writer for President
Lyndon Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He had previously served as the 37th vice ...
. * Bill Whitaker (1973),
Emmy The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...
-winning CBS News correspondent for the
CBS Evening News The ''CBS Evening News'' is the flagship evening television news program of CBS News, the news division of the CBS television network in the United States. The ''CBS Evening News'' is a daily evening broadcast featuring news reports, feature st ...
and
60 Minutes ''60 Minutes'' is an American television news magazine broadcast on the CBS television network. Debuting in 1968, the program was created by Don Hewitt and Bill Leonard, who chose to set it apart from other news programs by using a unique st ...
. * Dorothy Wickenden (1976), executive editor of ''
The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...
''. *
Brock Yates Brock Wendel Yates (October 21, 1933 – October 5, 2016) was an American print and TV journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was longtime executive editor of ''Car and Driver'', an American automotive magazine. In 1971 Yates, his son, and a f ...
(1955), editor-in-chief of ''
Car and Driver ''Car and Driver'' (''CD'' or ''C/D'') is an American automotive enthusiast magazine. In 2006 its total circulation was 1.23 million. It is owned by Hearst Magazines, who purchased prior owner Hachette Filipacchi Media U.S. in 2011. It was f ...
'' magazine. * Mark Zusman (1976), editor-in-chief of ''
Willamette Week ''Willamette Week'' (''WW'') is an alternative weekly newspaper and a website published in Portland, Oregon, United States, since 1974. It features reports on local news, politics, sports, business, and culture. History Early history ''Willam ...
''


Religion

* The Rt Rev. Albert Arthur Chambers (1950), seventh Bishop of Springfield, Illinois. * The Most Rev. Michael B. Curry (1975), first African American Bishop and Primate of the Episcopal Church, presided at the wedding of
Prince Harry Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, (Henry Charles Albert David; born 15 September 1984) is a member of the British royal family. He is the younger son of Charles III and his first wife Diana, Princess of Wales. He is fifth in the line of succ ...
and
Meghan Markle Meghan, Duchess of Sussex (; born Rachel Meghan Markle; August 4, 1981) is an American member of the British royal family and former actress. She is the wife of Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, the younger son of King Charles III. Meghan was ...
. * Thomas Frederick Davies, Sr. (1889), third Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Michigan 1889 – 1905. * Arthur Wheelock Moulton (1897), Episcopal Bishop of Utah. * The Rt Rev. George Elden Packard (1966), Episcopal Church in the United States of America, Episcopal Suffragan Bishop of the Armed Forces. * Robert Rusack (1947), was the fourth Episcopal Church in the United States of America, Episcopal Bishop of Los Angeles, California.


Science and medicine

*
Willis Adcock Dr. Willis Alfred Adcock (November 25, 1922 – December 16, 2003) was a Canadian-American physical chemist, electrical engineer, and university professor who worked on the first atomic bomb and assisted with the invention of the silicon tra ...
(1944), inventor of the silicon transistor, member of team that developed the atomic bomb. *
Willard Myron Allen Willard Myron Allen (November 5, 1904 – August 15, 1993) was an American gynecologist. He was born in 1904 in Farmington, New York, near Rochester, New York. As an undergraduate student at Hobart College (now Hobart and William Smith Colleges ...
, MD (1926), co-discoverer of progesterone with George W. Corner. Allen received the first Eli Lilly Award in Biological Chemistry in 1935. * Darrick E. Antell, MD (1973), New York plastic surgeon known for his studies on aging and twins. * Harry Coover (1941), inventor of "Cyanoacrylate, super glue". * Robert Peter Gale, MD (1966), leukemia and bone marrow disorders expert; coordinated medical relief efforts for victims of the Chernobyl disaster, Chernobyl nuclear power accident. * John P. Grotzinger (1979), mission leader and project scientist for NASA's Mars Science Laboratory. * Matt Lamanna (1997), paleontologist responsible for several major discoveries. * Ralph Walter Graystone Wyckoff (1916), pioneer inventor of X-ray crystallography.


Sports

* Frank Dwyer (1889), Major League Baseball player. * Jeremy Foley (1974), athletics director at the University of Florida. * Fred King (American football), Fred King (1937), the first Hobart Statesman to play in the National Football League, NFL. *
Ali Marpet Alexander "Ali" Marpet (; born April 17, 1993) is an American former professional football guard who played seven seasons for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). Marpet played college football at Hobart and William ...
(2015), National Football League, NFL football player. Drafted in the second round (61st overall) of the 2015 NFL Entry Draft, he is the highest-drafted pick in the history of
NCAA Division III NCAA Division III (D-III) is a division of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States. D-III consists of athletic programs at colleges and universities that choose not to offer athletic scholarships to their ...
football. Starting Guard (gridiron football), left guard on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers team that won Super Bowl LV. Member of 2022_Pro_Bowl, 2022 Pro Bowl Team. * Pierre McGuire (1983), two-time Stanley Cup winner; hockey commentator for NBC Sports Network. * Kent Smack (1997), 2004 Summer Olympics, 2004 Athens Olympic rower for Team U.S.A. * Jon Wallach (1989), sports broadcaster, WEEI, WBZ-FM (The Toucher and Rich Show).


Honorary degree recipients

* Eric Andersen - Received in 2022 *
Byron Andrews Byron Andrews (October 25, 1852 – October 15, 1910) was an American journalist for Chicago Inter Ocean and National Tribune, private secretary to U.S. President Ulysses S. Grant on his Industrial Excursions to Mexico and Cuba, a statesman, a lect ...
– Received in 1900. * William Martin Beauchamp, S.T.D. – Received in 1886. Author on Native Americans, archeologist of New York State Museum * William Robert Brooks – Received in 1898. * William Jefferson Clinton - Received in 2017, in honor of President Mark Gernan's retirement from the Colleges. * Nat King Cole – Received in 1965 (posthumous). * Millard Fillmore – Received in 1850. * Ulysses Prentiss Hedrick – Received in 1913. * Henry Champlin Lay – A Bishop of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America, Diocese of Easton. *
Wangari Maathai Wangarĩ Muta Maathai (; 1 April 1940 – 25 September 2011) was a Kenyan social, environmental and a political activist and the first African woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize. As a beneficiary of the Kennedy Airlift, she studied in the Un ...
– Received in 1994. * George McAneny – Received in 1914. * Henry Ustick Onderdonk – Received in 1827. Bishop of Pennsylvania. Born 1789, died 1858. * Fred Rogers – Received in 1985. * Eleanor Roosevelt – Received in 1947. * Franklin Delano Roosevelt – Received in 1929. * B. F. Skinner – Received in 1972. * Gloria Steinem – Received in 1998. * Gulian Crommelin Verplanck – Received in 1834. *Kurt Vonnegut, Kurt Vonnegut Jr. – Received in 1974. His commencement address is included in his book Palm Sunday (book), ''Palm Sunday''."Thoughts of a Free Thinker". Kurt Vonnegut's commencement address at Hobart and William Smith Colleges, Geneva, NY (May 26, 1974).


Notable faculty

* Benjamin Fish Austin (1850–1933), Campaigner for Women's Education. Also a renowned proponent of the Spiritualism (religious movement), Spiritualism movement. * William Robert Brooks (1844–1922), was an American astronomer who specialized in comet discovery and has some periodic 16P/Brooks, comets named for him. *
Elon Howard Eaton Elon Howard Eaton (sometimes Elon Eton; 8 October 1866 – 27 March 1934) was an American ornithologist, scholar, and author. He was born in the Town of Collins near Springville, New York, the son of Luzerne Eaton and Sophie Newton. As a youth, ...
, founded the biology department and was state ornithologist and author of bird books. * William A. Eddy, President of Hobart College, 1942 *
Mark Gearan Mark Daniel Gearan (born September 19, 1956) is a public servant, lawyer, higher education expert, and the director of the Harvard Kennedy School Institute of Politics. From 1999 to 2017, Gearan was the president of Hobart and William Smith Colleg ...
, President of Colleges, former White House Deputy Communications Director for President Bill Clinton, and former Director of the Peace Corps * Andrew Harvey (religious writer), Andrew Harvey, Professor of English and noted author on religion and mysticism. * Susan Henking, President of Shimer College, Professor emerita, formerly professor of Religious Studies, Women's Studies, and LGBT Studies * Matt and Bubba Kadane, Matthew Kadane, Assistant Professor of History, main songwriter (along with brother Bubba) of Bedhead (band), Bedhead and The New Year (band), The New Year. * Daniel A. McGowan, professor emeritus. * H. Wesley Perkins, Professor of Sociology and the author of "Father of Social Norms Marketing." * William Stevens Perry (1832–1898), History Professor and President at Hobart College, Author and second bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Iowa. * Lyman Pierson Powell former President of Hobart College, author, lecturer and ordained priest. * David Weiss (novelist), David Weiss, Professor of English and Comparative Literature, author of "The Mensch" and noted poet.


References


External links

* *
HWS Athletics website
{{authority control Hobart and William Smith Colleges, 1822 establishments in New York (state), Hobart College Education in Ontario County, New York Educational institutions established in 1822, Hobart College Geneva, New York Liberal arts colleges in New York (state) Tourist attractions in Ontario County, New York U.S. Route 20 Universities and colleges affiliated with the Episcopal Church (United States) Private universities and colleges in New York (state) New England Hockey Conference teams