Mars Hill University is a private Christian university in

Mars Hill, North Carolina Mars Hill is a town in Madison County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 1,869 at the 2010 U.S. Census, and was estimated at 2,032 in 2018 by the U.S. Census. It is the home of Mars Hill University, the name of which was inspired b ...

. The university offers 35 undergraduate majors and includes a school of nursing and graduate schools in education, criminal justice, and management. From 1859 to 2013 the school was called Mars Hill College; in August 2013 it officially changed its name to Mars Hill University.

History

Mars Hill University was founded in 1856, and it is the oldest college or university in

western North Carolina Western North Carolina (often abbreviated as WNC) is the region of North Carolina which includes the Appalachian Mountains; it is often known geographically as the state's Mountain Region. It contains the highest mountains in the Eastern United ...

. It started as the French Broad Baptist Institute, sharing a name with the nearby

French Broad River The French Broad River is a river in the U.S. states of North Carolina and Tennessee. It flows from near the town of Rosman in Transylvania County, North Carolina, into Tennessee, where its confluence with the Holston River at Knoxville form ...

. In 1859, the university changed its name to Mars Hill, in honor of the hill in ancient

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

on which the Apostle Paul debated

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

with the city's leading philosophers. During the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...

the university was closed for two years, but it reopened after the war. From 1897 to 1938 the university, under the leadership of Robert Moore, enjoyed substantial financial and physical growth. In 1921 Mars Hill became an accredited junior college. Hoyt Blackwell served as president from 1938 to 1966, and under his leadership Mars Hill became an accredited four-year college in 1962. From 1966 to 1996 Fred Bentley served as the college's president. Bentley was, at the time of his appointment in 1966, one of the youngest college presidents in the United States. Dan Lunsford, a 1969 graduate of MHU, served as university president from 2002 to 2018. Under Lunsford, Mars Hill University constructed three new dormitories, a new health sciences building to house its nursing program, a new classroom building to house the business department (the most popular major on campus), completely renovated and greatly expanded the math and sciences classroom building, upgraded its athletic facilities, tripled its endowment, increased its student enrollment, and started a graduate school in education. In June 2018, John Anthony "Tony" Floyd became the university's sixth president in 121 years. In 2008, Mars Hill gained autonomy from the

Baptist State Convention of North Carolina The Baptist State Convention of North Carolina (BSCNC) is an autonomous association of Baptist churches in the state of North Carolina. It is one of the state conventions associated with the Southern Baptist Convention. Headquartered in Cary, North ...

when the state convention voted to eliminate the requirement that it have final approval over who could serve as trustees for the school; this ruling allows the university to choose non-Baptists as trustees. The state convention also agreed to start transferring funds traditionally given directly to the university into a new scholarship fund for Baptist students. The move was made in conjunction with the four other remaining N.C. Baptist Colleges – Gardner–Webb University,

Campbell University Campbell University is a private Baptist university in Buies Creek, North Carolina. It is affiliated with the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina (Southern Baptist Convention). Southern Baptist ConventionColleges and Universities sbc.n ...

Wingate University Wingate University is a private Baptist university with campuses in Wingate, Charlotte, and Hendersonville, North Carolina. It is affiliated with the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina ( Southern Baptist Convention). The university enr ...

, and

Chowan University Chowan University ()
, from the North Carolina Collection's website at the

The college yearbook is called the ''Laurel'', the college literary magazine is the ''Cadenza'', and the college newspaper is ''The Hilltop.'' Mars Hill is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award bachelor's and master's degrees, and is an affiliate of the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities,

Council of Independent Colleges The Council of Independent Colleges (CIC) is an association in the United States of more than 650 independent, liberal arts colleges and universities and more than 100 higher education affiliates and organizations that work together to strengthen ...

, the Appalachian College Association, and other similar organizations.

Academics

The university offers six undergraduate degrees (

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 year ...

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 ...

Bachelor of Science in Nursing The Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN, BScN) also known in some countries as a Bachelor of Nursing (BN) or Bachelor of Science (BS) with a Major in Nursing is an academic degree in the science and principles of nursing, granted by an accredited ...

(BSN),

Bachelor of Music Bachelor of Music (BM or BMus) is an academic degree awarded by a college, university, or conservatory upon completion of a program of study in music. In the United States, it is a professional degree, and the majority of work consists of pre ...

, Bachelor of Fine Arts, and

Bachelor of Social Work A bachelor is a man who is not and has never been married.Bachelors are, in Pitt & al.'s phrasing, "men who live independently, outside of their parents' home and other institutional settings, who are neither married nor cohabitating". (). Etymo ...

), three graduate degrees (

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Th ...

Master of Education The Master of Education (MEd or M.Ed. or Ed.M.; Latin ''Magister Educationis'' or ''Educationis Magister'') is a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. This degree in education often includes the following majors: curriculum a ...

, and

Master of Management The Master of Management (MM, MBM, MIM, MMgt) is a master’s degree comprising one or two years graduate level coursework in business management. As the program is designed for students interested in entering leadership roles, the degree attrac ...

), and 35 majors. In May 2013 the university awarded its first M.Ed degrees. The university recently added a

M.A. A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

in criminal justice program, and a

program. In August 2016 the university opened a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program. The most popular majors are in the fields of business administration and management, education, social work, physical education teaching and coaching, and general psychology. In 1932 Lamar Stringfield, a Mars Hill alumnus, formed the

North Carolina Symphony The North Carolina Symphony (NCS) is an American orchestra based in Raleigh, North Carolina, with sixty-six full-time musicians. The orchestra performs in Meymandi Concert Hall and performs occasionally with the Carolina Ballet and the Opera Com ...

, the first state-supported

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, c ...

in the nation. The "Bailey Mountain Cloggers", the university's dance team, have won 23 national championships in clogging, and they have performed all over the United States and internationally in Canada, Mexico, England, Scotland, Ireland, Austria, France, Greece, Poland, and the Czech Republic. In 2002 the university opened the Ramsey Center for Regional Studies. Named after an alumnus who served a record four terms as the

Speaker of the North Carolina House of Representatives The Speaker of the North Carolina House of Representatives is the presiding officer of one of the houses of the North Carolina General Assembly. The Speaker is elected by the members of the house when they first convene for their regular session, ...

, the center is dedicated to preserving the heritage and culture of the people of the Southern

Appalachian Mountains The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, (french: Appalaches), are a system of mountains in eastern to northeastern North America. The Appalachians first formed roughly 480 million years ago during the Ordovician Period. They ...

. The university's enrollment is typically around 1,200 traditional students, with more than 200 students in its nontraditional degree program. In its 2022-2023 survey of "America's Best Colleges", '' U.S. News & World Report'' ranked Mars Hill among the South's Top 20 Regional Colleges. ''U.S. News'' also rated Mars Hill at #2 in the South for "Best Colleges for Veterans", based on its participation in "federal initiatives helping veterans and active-duty service members pay for their degrees." In 2012 and 2014 Mars Hill also ranked among the Top 20 baccalaureate colleges (out of 100 surveyed) in ''

Washington Monthly ''Washington Monthly'' is a bimonthly, nonprofit magazine of United States politics and government that is based in Washington, D.C. The magazine is known for its annual ranking of American colleges and universities, which serves as an alterna ...

's'' annual survey of the nations' best colleges. In 2015 ''Washington Monthly'' ranked Mars Hill 23rd nationally out of 344 baccalaureate colleges surveyed; in 2016 it ranked 24th nationally out of 230 baccalaureate colleges surveyed. Mars Hill has been named to the President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll five times since the award's inception in 2006, including twice "with distinction" for general community service.

Campus

The university has a scenic campus; most of the dormitories are located atop two hills, named "men's hill" and "women's hill". The main campus is located in a small valley between the two hills. The university is surrounded by the

; from various points on campus it is possible to see

Mount Mitchell Mount Mitchell, known in Cherokee as Attakulla, is the highest peak of the Appalachian Mountains and the highest peak in mainland eastern North America. It is located near Burnsville in Yancey County, North Carolina in the Black Mountain sub ...

, the highest peak east of the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it fl ...

. Bailey Mountain (nicknamed "Old Bailey") is located about a mile (1.5 km) northwest from campus and is a local landmark.

Interstate 26 Interstate 26 (I-26) is a main route of the Interstate Highway System in the Southeastern United States. Nominally east–west, as indicated by its even number, I-26 runs from the junction of U.S. Route 11W (US 11W) and US 23 in K ...

is located one mile east of the university, and provides access to the nearby cities of Asheville, North Carolina, to the south, and

Johnson City, Tennessee Johnson City is a city in Washington, Carter, and Sullivan counties in the U.S. state of Tennessee, mostly in Washington County. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 71,046, making it the eighth largest city in Tennessee. Joh ...

to the north.

Athletics

The university is a Division II member 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), and it is also a member of the

South Atlantic Conference The South Atlantic Conference (SAC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level, which operates in the southeastern United States. The SAC was founded in 1975 as a ...

. Mars Hill's sports mascot is the

mountain lion The cougar (''Puma concolor'') is a large cat native to the Americas. Its range spans from the Canadian Yukon to the southern Andes in South America and is the most widespread of any large wild terrestrial mammal in the Western Hemisphere. ...

; the university's colors are

royal blue Royal blue is a deep and vivid shade of blue. It is said to have been created by clothiers in Rode, Somerset, a consortium of whom won a competition to make a dress for Queen Charlotte, consort of King George III. Brightness The ''Oxford E ...

and

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile me ...

Notable alumni

* John S. Battle (1890–1972),

Governor of Virginia The governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia serves as the head of government of Virginia for a four-year term. The incumbent, Glenn Youngkin, was sworn in on January 15, 2022. Oath of office On inauguration day, the Governor-elect takes th ...

from 1950 to 1954, served on President

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...

's Civil Rights Commission. Attended Mars Hill when it was a junior college, later earned a law degree from the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United States, with highly selective ad ...

. * Archie Campbell (1914–1987) American comedian, writer, and star of ''

Hee Haw ''Hee Haw'' is an American television variety show featuring country music and humor with the fictional rural "Kornfield Kounty" as the backdrop. It aired first-run on CBS from 1969 to 1971, in syndication from 1971 to 1993, and on TNN from 1 ...

'', a popular, long-running country-flavored network television variety show. He was also a recording artist with several hits on the

RCA The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...

label in the 1960s. * Mike Houston, (born 1971), head football coach at East Carolina University. From 2016 to 2018 he was the head football coach at

James Madison University James Madison University (JMU, Madison, or James Madison) is a public research university in Harrisonburg, Virginia. Founded in 1908 as the State Normal and Industrial School for Women at Harrisonburg, the institution was renamed Madison Coll ...

, and in 2016 he coached JMU to the

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major collegiate athletic ...

Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) National Championship with a 14–1 record. In 2017, he again coached James Madison to a 14–1 record and a second straight appearance in the FCS national championship game, but lost to North Dakota State. He was also named the

American Football Coaches Association The American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) is an association of over 11,000 American football coaches and staff on all levels. According to its constitution, some of the main goals of the American Football Coaches Association are to "mainta ...

National Coach of the Year in 2016. At Mars Hill, he was a

tight end The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Lik ...

on the football team. * Woodrow W. Jones (1914–2002), United States Congressman from North Carolina from 1950 to 1957. Served as the Chairman of North Carolina's Democratic Party Executive Committee; was appointed by President Lyndon Johnson as the judge for the United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina in 1968. He served as a federal district judge until his retirement in 1985. * Dan Locklair (born 1949), Professor of

Music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspe ...

and Composer-in-Residence at

Wake Forest University Wake Forest University is a private research university in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Founded in 1834, the university received its name from its original location in Wake Forest, north of Raleigh, North Carolina. The Reynolda Campus, the un ...

, internationally known composer who has won awards from the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. His work "The Peace May Be Exchanged" was performed at the funeral service for President Ronald Reagan at the

Washington National Cathedral The Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul in the City and Diocese of Washington, commonly known as Washington National Cathedral, is an American cathedral of the Episcopal Church. The cathedral is located in Washington, D.C., the ca ...

in June 2004. * Graham Martin (1912–1990), Foreign Service Officer, U.S. Ambassador to Thailand (1963–1969); U.S. Ambassador to Italy (1969–1973); last U.S. Ambassador to South Vietnam (1973–1975). He is buried in

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is one of two national cemeteries run by the United States Army. Nearly 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington, Virginia. There are about 30 funerals conducted on weekdays and 7 held on Sa ...

. *

Wayne Oates Wayne Edward Oates (June 24, 1917 – October 21, 1999) was an American psychologist and religious educator who is often - incorrectly - considered to have coined the word 'workaholic'. Early life Born to an impoverished family in Greenville, So ...

(1917–1999), psychologist and minister at the

University of Louisville The University of Louisville (UofL) is a public research university in Louisville, Kentucky. It is part of the Kentucky state university system. When founded in 1798, it was the first city-owned public university in the United States and one o ...

medical school who fused

psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries between ...

and

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

to create many of the practices used in modern pastoral counseling. He is also credited with coining the word "workaholic". * Becca Pizzi (born 1980), first American woman to complete and win the World Marathon Challenge. The event involves completing seven full 26.2-mile marathons on seven continents in seven days. She also broke the female record for the challenge, completing all seven marathons in 6 days, 18 hours, and 38 minutes. * Erwin Potts (1932–2017), former president and CEO of the

McClatchy Company The McClatchy Company, commonly referred to as simply McClatchy, is an American publishing company incorporated under Delaware's General Corporation Law and based in Sacramento, California. It operates 29 daily newspapers in fourteen states and ...

, the second-largest newspaper chain in the United States. Became president of the company in 1989 and was CEO from 1996 until his retirement in 2001. The company owns 30 daily newspapers in 15 states. * David Price (born 1940), United States Congressman from North Carolina's Fourth District from 1987 to 1995 and 1997 to the present. After graduating from Mars Hill, he earned divinity and doctoral degrees from

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Sta ...

and taught

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

at Duke University. * Liston B. Ramsey (1919–2001), North Carolina state legislator who served 19 terms in the state assembly. He was elected Speaker of the State House of Representatives four times in the 1980s, and was the first legislator in the state's history to have been elected to the Speaker's office for four terms. * Jonas Randolph (born 1990), winner of the 2011 Harlon Hill Trophy, the NCAA Division II equivalent of the Heisman Trophy. As a running back for the Mars Hill football team he gained 5,608 yards from 2008 to 2011, a school and

record. * Eugene L. Roberts, Jr., (born 1932), National Editor of ''

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 d ...

'' from 1969 to 1972; Executive Editor of ''

The Philadelphia Inquirer ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' is a daily newspaper headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The newspaper's circulation is the largest in both the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the Delaware Valley metropolitan region of Southeastern Pennsy ...

'' from 1972 to 1990; Managing Editor of ''

'' from 1990 to 1997. In 2007, he won the Pulitzer Prize in history for his book ''The Race Beat: The Press, the Civil Rights Struggle, and the Awakening of a Nation''. * Lacy Thornburg (born 1929), North Carolina

State Attorney General The state attorney general in each of the 50 U.S. states, of the federal district, or of any of the territories is the chief legal advisor to the state government and the state's chief law enforcement officer. In some states, the attorney gener ...

from 1985 to 1993; United States Federal District Judge for Western North Carolina, 1995–2009. *

Ludovico Corsini Ludovico Corsini (born 3 May 1993 in Milan, Italy) is an Italian- Mozambican swimmer specializing in Sprint breaststroke. In 2018, he competed at the XXI Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast Gold Coast may refer to: Places Africa * Gold Coast (r ...

(born 1993), Milan, Commonwealth Games and Olympic Athlete in the sport of Swimming.

References

External links

Official website

Official athletics website

Mars Hill College Yearbooks: 1917-2011
{{authority control University and college buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in North Carolina Colonial Revival architecture in North Carolina Neoclassical architecture in North Carolina Buildings and structures in Madison County, North Carolina National Register of Historic Places in Madison County, North Carolina Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in North Carolina Educational institutions established in 1856 1856 establishments in North Carolina Universities and colleges affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention Private universities and colleges in North Carolina Liberal arts colleges in North Carolina