Next year, Elizabethtown College will have reached a golden anniversary of the start of its academic excellence. The 2024-25 academic year will mark 125 years since its founding. Because of this, the College has recently started planning for a celebration that will take place next year.
Etown has a rich history, which began with its founding in 1899. In its early years, the College was run by members of the Church of the Brethren. The school was funded entirely by members of the church until 1921 when it was accredited by the Pennsylvania Department of Public Instruction. However, it wasn’t until 1993 that the Church of the Brethren was replaced by the Board of Trustees as the governors of the College. The campus expanded in size as well as enrollment as time went on. In fact, almost 2,000 undergraduate students attend Etown today, which includes hundreds of honors students and even dozens of students from abroad.
Since its opening, Etown has maintained strong values of peace and social justice. The Center for Global Understanding and Peacemaking (CGUP) was started in 2004 with a mission to encourage students to get involved in their community and study abroad. Over one hundred students each year have the opportunity to study in one of thirty-six foreign countries, giving them a unique new perspective of the world.
The anniversary celebration’s plans are far from being set in stone, but English professor and Director of the English Professional Writing and First-Year Writing Program Dr. Tara Moore has shared the 125th Anniversary Committee’s tentative plans for next year. “Our goal is to have the plans formalized by December,” Moore stated, “and then use the spring semester to finalize the implementation plans for the events beginning in the fall.”
The plan is to begin the festivities with Charter Week at the beginning of the academic year. This week celebrates the time in September 1899 when the charter for the College was approved by the local government. A copy of the very same charter is kept on the first floor of the High Library. The week will kick off with a concert as well as an art exhibit both run by faculty members. This gives Etown staff the opportunity to share beautiful presentations of their appreciation for the College.
Fun and games will also be on the calendar. During Charter Week, the plan is to have an outdoor celebration for the whole community. “We’ve been working with some student representatives to hear what students care about,” Moore explained, “but right now, during the lunchtime hour, we’re hoping to have some food trucks, games and photo opportunities happening in the Academic Quad.”
A one-credit course may also be offered next year. It would be a speaker series involving members of the community who can teach students about Etown’s regional history and culture.
“It’s going to be interactive and interesting, with the speakers bringing primary sources to talk about, and issues… that continue to affect our culture today,” Moore said.
This would be a good opportunity for students to learn about issues here that may affect them while earning credit for their time.
This meticulous planning can be credited to the 125th Anniversary Committee made up of Etown students and staff, including Moore and Caroline Lalvani, Director of Community Affairs & College Special Events. Moore explained the current goals of the committee: “Right now, we’re planning events. We’re finalizing ideas about how to involve all of Etown’s stakeholders, and especially students. We’ve created a website to broadcast anniversary events and collect stories from the wider Etown College community.”
Etown has come a long way over the past 124 years. The school has faced many challenges– such as the COVID-19 pandemic–and will face future issues head-on. Thousands upon thousands of students have once called this campus home; thousands upon thousands of students will find their place here in the years to come. Many lives have been and will be shaped within the borders of this campus, and that is surely a cause to celebrate.
