Guilford College is a private liberal arts college in

Greensboro, North Carolina Greensboro (; formerly Greensborough) is a city in and the county seat of Guilford County, North Carolina, United States. It is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, third-most populous city in North Carolina after Charlotte, North Car ...

. Guilford has both traditional students and students who attend its Center for Continuing Education (CCE). Founded in 1837 by members of the Religious Society of Friends (

Quakers Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belief in each human's abil ...

), Guilford's program offerings include such majors as Peace and Conflict Studies and Community and Justice Studies, both rooted in the college's history as a Quaker institution.

History

Guilford College is the only Quaker-founded college in the southeastern United States. Opening in 1837 as New Garden Boarding School, the institution became a four-year liberal arts college in 1888.

Levi Coffin Levi Coffin (October 28, 1798 – September 16, 1877) was an American Quaker, Republican, abolitionist, farmer, businessman and humanitarian. An active leader of the Underground Railroad in Indiana and Ohio, some unofficially called Coffin the " ...

, a well-known abolitionist, Quaker, and political dissenter grew up on the land, which is now considered a historical site. The woods of New Garden, which still exist on campus today, were used as a meeting point for the

Underground Railroad The Underground Railroad was a network of clandestine routes and safe houses established in the United States during the early- to mid-19th century. It was used by enslaved African Americans primarily to escape into free states and Canada. ...

in the 19th century, run by Coffin.

COVID-19 challenges

Jane Fernandes Jane Fernandes (born ''Jane Frances Kelleher''; August 21, 1956, in Worcester, Massachusetts) is a Deaf American educator and social justice advocate. As of August 2021, Fernandes is the President of Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio. In ...

, having served as president since 2014, made difficult decisions to furlough and lay off colleagues during the COVID-19 pandemic and announced that she would leave office on June 30, 2021, followed by a one-year sabbatical and transition to a tenured faculty position in English. Carol Moore was appointed the interim president and she began a "program prioritization" process that would significantly reduce the number of majors offered once approved. The college announced in November 2020 that it would likely discontinue 19 out of its 42 majors and cut 16 tenured professors. In November 2020, as a response to this plan, the faculty voted no confidence in Moore and the Board of Trustees' leadership, the first no-confidence vote in the college's history. Moore subsequently left the college and Jim Hood, a faculty member, was selected as the new interim president at the end of February 2021. In early 2021, the college paused the November 2020 layoff plans and began significant fundraising effort, placing a hold on the layoff question until after the spring semester. As of late March 2021, the fundraising plan was slightly ahead of schedule. On January 1, 2022, Kyle Farmbry became Guilford's 10th president.

Athletics

Guilford athletic teams are the Quakers. The college is a member at the

Division III In sport, the Third Division, also called Division 3, Division Three, or Division III, is often the third-highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Association football *Belgian Thir ...

level of the

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges ...

(NCAA), primarily competing as a member of the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) since the 1988–89 academic year. The Quakers previously competed in the Carolinas Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (CIAC, now Conference Carolinas) of the

National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) established in 1940, is a college athletics association for colleges and universities in North America. Most colleges and universities in the NAIA offer athletic scholarships to its st ...

(NAIA) from 1930–31 to 1987–88. Guilford competes in 20 intercollegiate varsity sports: Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, lacrosse, soccer, tennis and track & field; while women's sports include basketball, cross country, lacrosse, rugby, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, track & field, triathlon and volleyball.

Accomplishments

The school has won five national championships, including the NAIA men's basketball championship in 1973, the 1981 NAIA women's tennis title and the 1989 (NAIA), 2002 and 2005 (NCAA Division III) men's golf titles.

Campus events

Bryan Series. In the past decade, Guilford's Bryan Series has brought many notable speakers to the campus and city for an annual public lecture series. Past speakers have included Desmond Tutu, Mikhail Gorbachev, Colin Powell,

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 Democratic ...

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...

Tony Blair Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He previously served as Leader of th ...

, Ken Burns,

Mary Robinson Mary Therese Winifred Robinson ( ga, Máire Mhic Róibín; ; born 21 May 1944) is an Irish politician who was the 7th president of Ireland, serving from December 1990 to September 1997, the first woman to hold this office. Prior to her electi ...

David McCullough David Gaub McCullough (; July 7, 1933 – August 7, 2022) was an American popular historian. He was a two-time winner of the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award. In 2006, he was given the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the United States ...

Toni Morrison Chloe Anthony Wofford Morrison (born Chloe Ardelia Wofford; February 18, 1931 – August 5, 2019), known as Toni Morrison, was an American novelist. Her first novel, ''The Bluest Eye'', was published in 1970. The critically acclaimed '' So ...

, and

Venus Williams Venus Ebony Starr Williams (born June 17, 1980) is an American professional tennis player. A former world No. 1 in both singles and doubles, Williams has won seven Grand Slam singles titles, five at Wimbledon and two at the US Open. She is ...

. Eastern Music Festival (EMF). Every summer, the college hosts the five-week-long Eastern Music Festival (EMF), where professional and student musicians come together for seminars and public performances. Each year, EMF features more than 70 concerts and music-related events on- and off-campus. Serendipity. The largest campus-wide event of the year is "Serendipity", held annually in the spring. It began in 1972 as a replacement to the somewhat antiquated May Day festivities, and has featured games, musical performances, and "general mayhem." During its peak in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the weekend festival was attended by Guilford students and alumni and thousands of students from other local institutions in the Triad area. Musical acts wt this event include Dave Matthews Band, Widespread Panic, Hootie, the Blowfish, Common, Talib Kweli, De La Soul, Luscious Jackson, Tand the Violent Femmes, Man Man, The Village People, and The Squirrel Nut Zippers. WTH?! Con This event has occurred annually since 2001. Major guests include a host of webcomic creators and

wrock Wizard rock (or Wrock) is a type of novelty rock music themed around the ''Harry Potter'' franchise. The music was largely prevalent in the United States in the early 2000s. Wizard rock initially started in Massachusetts with Harry and the Potte ...

bands. The 2018 event attracted around 300 attendees. Peak attendance has been around 500 people. The most recent con was held the weekend of March 15, 2019.

Notable faculty

* David Hammond, notable director, was a Theater Studies Professor at Guilford. *

Mary Mendenhall Hobbs Mary Mendenhall Hobbs (August 30, 1852 – July 20, 1930), was an American Quaker advocate for women's education, temperance, and suffrage, based in North Carolina. Her campaigning to improve women's education supported the founding of the Univers ...

, wife of Guilford President L. L. Hobbs raised funds for women's education. * David Newton, an American sculpture artist worked as a Guilford art professor. *

Adam Daniel Beittel Adam Daniel Beittel (December 19, 1898 – July 26, 1988) was a minister, academic and supporter of civil rights. He was president of Talladega College from 1945 to 1952 and Tougaloo College from 1960 to 1964. Early life and education Be ...

, minister and former president of

Tougaloo College Tougaloo College is a private historically black college in the Tougaloo area of Jackson, Mississippi. It is affiliated with the United Church of Christ and Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). It was originally established in 1869 by New Yor ...

Notable alumni

* Mary Ann Akers: 1991, reporter for ''

Roll Call ''Roll Call'' is a newspaper and website published in Washington, D.C., United States, when the United States Congress is in session, reporting news of legislative and political maneuverings on Capitol Hill, as well as political coverage of ...

'' * M. L. Carr: 1973, ABA/ NBA player, head coach and executive *

Howard Coble John Howard Coble (March 18, 1931 – November 3, 2015) was an American politician who was the U.S. Representative for , serving from 1985 to 2015. He was a member of the Republican Party. The district includes all or portions of ten counties in ...

: 1953, member of U.S. House of Representatives (6th District, N.C.) * Joseph M. Dixon: 1889, U.S. representative, Senator and Governor of

Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columb ...

* Rick Elmore: 1974, Judge,

North Carolina Court of Appeals The North Carolina Court of Appeals (in case citation, N.C. Ct. App.) is the only intermediate appellate court in the state of North Carolina. It is composed of fifteen members who sit in rotating panels of three. The Court of Appeals was create ...

Rick Ferrell Richard Benjamin Ferrell (October 12, 1905 – July 27, 1995) was an American professional baseball player, coach, scout, and executive. He played for 18 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a catcher for the St. Louis Browns, Boston Red So ...

: 1928,

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

player and member of the Baseball Hall of Fame * John Hamlin Folger: U.S. Representative * World B. Free (formerly Lloyd Free): 1976, NBA player * Griff Garrison: 2020, professional wrestler *

Rick Goings Rick may refer to: People *Rick (given name), a list of people with the given name *Alan Rick (born 1976), Brazilian politician, journalist, pastor and television personality *Johannes Rick (1869–1946), Austrian-born Brazilian priest and mycol ...

: CEO of

Tupperware Tupperware is an American home products line that includes preparation, storage, and serving products for the kitchen and home. In 1942, Earl Tupper developed his first bell-shaped container; the brand products were introduced to the public in 1 ...

* Greg Jackson: 1974, NBA player * Bob Kauffman: 1968, three-time

NBA All-Star The National Basketball Association (NBA) All-Star Game is an annual exhibition basketball game. It is the main event of the NBA All-Star Weekend. Originally, the All-Star Game featured a conference-based format, featuring a team composed of ...

and NBA head coach/general manager * Jennifer King: 2006, first full-time black female coach in NFL history * Penelope W. Kyle: 1969, president of Radford University * Junior Lord: 1998,

Arena Football Indoor American football, or arena football, is a variation of gridiron football played at ice hockey-sized indoor arenas. While varying in details from league to league, the rules of indoor football are designed to allow for play in a smaller ...

player *

Warren Mitofsky Warren J. Mitofsky (September 17, 1934 – September 1, 2006) was an American political pollster. Mitofsky graduated in 1957 from Guilford College and was executive director of the CBS News election and survey unit from 1967 to 1990. He also prev ...

: 1957, inventor of the exit poll *

Dave Odom George David Odom (born October 9, 1942) is a retired American men's college basketball coach. He served as the head coach of the East Carolina Pirates, Wake Forest Demon Deacons and South Carolina Gamecocks. Playing career Odom began his caree ...

: 1965, head men's basketball coach of East Carolina, Wake Forest & Univ. of South Carolina, now Chairman of Maui Invitational Basketball Tournament EA Sports Maui Invitational * Thomas Gilbert Pearson: 1897, Secretary and later President of the National Audubon Society *

William Queen William "Billy" Queen Jr. is a retired undercover agent with the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and the author of the bestselling books ''Under and Alone'' and ''Armed and Dangerous''. Career Queen was raised in ...

: 1981, author of

New York Times bestseller ''The New York Times'' Best Seller list is widely considered the preeminent list of best-selling books in the United States. John Bear, ''The #1 New York Times Best Seller: intriguing facts about the 484 books that have been #1 New York Times ...

'' Under and Alone'' * Doc Searls: 1969, journalist,

Cluetrain ''The Cluetrain Manifesto'' is a work of business literature collaboratively authored by Rick Levine, Christopher Locke, Doc Searls, and David Weinberger. It was first posted to the web in 1999 as a set of ninety-five theses, and was published as ...

author *

Ernie Shore Ernest Grady Shore (March 24, 1891 – September 24, 1980) was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball for the Boston Red Sox during some of their best years in the 1910s. He was born near East Bend, North Carolina. Shore grad ...

: 1913, professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

player and Guilford professor * D. H. Starbuck: circa 1840, North Carolina lawyer and political figure who served as

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 ...

for the entire state, and then for the

Western District of North Carolina The United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina (in case citations, W.D.N.C.) is a federal district court which covers the western third of North Carolina. Appeals from the Western District of North Carolina are tak ...

after the state was divided into two districts, delegate from Forsyth County to the state constitutional conventions of 1861 and 1865, and elected state superior court judge. * Ben Strong, 2008, professional basketball player * Sam Venuto: NFL Running Back for the 1952 Washington Redskins. Long time high school Athletic Director and football coach. Member of the New Jersey Coaches Hall of Fame. * Tony Womack: 1992,

player, 2001 World Series Champion with the Arizona Diamondbacks. * Hunter Yurachek: 1990, Athletics Director at the University of Arkansas * Tom Zachary: 1917,

player best known for pitching

Babe Ruth George Herman "Babe" Ruth Jr. (February 6, 1895 – August 16, 1948) was an American professional baseball player whose career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanned 22 seasons, from 1914 through 1935. Nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Su ...

's 60th home run.
Karl Stephan
- 1981, artist and educator

References

External links

* *
Official athletics website
{{authority control Liberal arts colleges in North Carolina Quaker universities and colleges Private universities and colleges in North Carolina University and college buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in North Carolina Universities and colleges in Greensboro, North Carolina Educational institutions established in 1837 Colonial Revival architecture in North Carolina Neoclassical architecture in North Carolina Gothic Revival architecture in North Carolina Universities and colleges accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in North Carolina Quakerism in North Carolina 1837 establishments in North Carolina National Register of Historic Places in Guilford County, North Carolina