The Central Bulletin: Summer 2003

by Christine Mak, Central Archivist (with special appreciation to Josephine Thostenson)

In 1835 the land that was to become Pella, Iowa, was a rolling stretch of prairie populated by Sac Indians and Midwestern wildlife. By 1846, the state of Iowa had been carved out of the Wisconsin Territory and the future site of Pella was split between approximately 20 families.

One year later, these original founders were living side by side with Dominie Hendrik Pieter Scholte and 800 of his Dutch Reformed Church followers in the new city of Pella. Scholte purchased the land for a mere $0.14 an acre. Having fled Holland in search of religious freedom, the settlers arrived in Pella, eager to build a community that nurtured education as well as religious freedom.

Pella thrived over the next six years. During that same time, the Iowa Baptist Education Society worked towards founding a college in the new state. On June 2, 1853, the Baptist Education Convention met in Pella. Among its elected delegates from Baptist churches across the state were noted Pella citizens Dominie Scholte, A.E.D. Bousquet and Professor L. Dwight. Foremost in Scholte’s mind was securing Pella as the future site of the Baptist college over its most imminent threat — Oskaloosa.

A graduate of the University of Leyden, Scholte believed in the power of higher education and showed commendable open-mindedness by campaigning to establish a school outside his own denomination. Both Oskaloosa and Pella were more centralized in the state, which would provide greater access to all Iowans, and both had willing, supportive communities eager for the chance to educate their children along with providing a temporary home for young scholars away from their own families.

It was at this point that Scholte presented an offer in favor of Pella that the Baptists could not refuse — free land and money. When the votes were counted, Pella came out the winner. June 1854 saw the first annual CUI board of trustees meeting in Pella. Plans were made to commence classes of the academic department in the fall of that year. In a stroke of great fortune, Dr. Emanuel H. Scarff of Dayton, Ohio, a Baptist reverend and a graduate of Denison College, was secured as principal for the department. Scarff had contracted malaria in Indiana and his doctors advised him that the “stable” climate of Iowa would ease his weakened lungs.

Scarff arrived in Pella on Sept. 3, 1854, on the stagecoach that made daily runs between Oskaloosa and Pella. Classes were scheduled to begin two weeks later, yet to his surprise, Scarff found no building, no desks, no books and no space rented to even temporarily hold his future students. Scarff delayed the opening to

Oct. 8, using the additional time to acquire rented space for classrooms at 1109 Washington St., the present site of the Strawtown Gift Shop, and to hire carpenters to build benches and desks for the fledgling school.

Enrollment on the first day of classes was 37 students, made up entirely of children from the nine “American” families then residing in Pella before Scholte and his followers arrived. The rest were from the Dutch settlers themselves. At the end of the term that number had risen to 73.

In 1854 the foundation stones for the building known as “Old Central” were laid. J. K. Hornish of Keokuk pledged $10,000 — a sum equal to $201,725 today — provided the Rev. Elihu Gunn, D.D., be appointed as the first president of Central. As Civil War panic tightened its grip on the nation, Gunn took the reins of Central in 1857 only to find his salary was not available in the amount he had been promised.

Despite the reverse in economic conditions, Gunn faithfully began his presidential duties as the first collegiate-level classes commenced in the fall of 1857. By 1860, Central University of Iowa saw its first three college graduates accept their diplomas.

For the five years leading up to the war and during the five years that it was being fought, economic conditions in the United States were in a desperate state. Gunn, Scarff, principal of the Ladies’ Department Drucilla Stoddard and professor Amos Currier had found themselves on shortened salaries from 1858 to the outbreak of hostilities.

Due to never receiving the salary he had been promised, Gunn resigned the presidency in 1861 just as 122 male students at Central exchanged their books for guns and rushed off to make their mark fighting for the Union. This left the school with only two male students — one born with a withered hand, the other missing an arm — and Scarff, Stoddard, two professors and approximately 40 female students to struggle on as best they could until the end of the war.

Despite the hard times, any student wishing to continue their education was not turned away. Promises of future payments after the student was able to secure employment were accepted in good faith, and collegiate students were put to work assisting the teaching of academy students in lieu of tuition.
Thus, through perseverance and an unflagging devotion by its teachers and administrators to keep Central College alive, the struggling school found itself still in operation when the “Boys of ’61” came marching back to take up their studies in fall 1866.

E. H. Scarff
With the resignation of Gunn in 1861, Scarff took over as acting president of the college even though he maintained, “I am a teacher, not a president.” Scarff remained president for 10 years while still fulfilling his teaching duties and serving as pastor of the Baptist Church of Pella.

By 1864, creditors were pressing for payment. At the June 1864 meeting of the board of trustees, the school found itself in debt to the tune of $12,000 — $134,483 in today’s currency — an amount equal to the entire value of all the college’s property. Not satisfied with the college’s state of indebtedness, Scarff, I. J. Stoddard and the recently returned Professor Currier began fund raising to pay off the $12,000 debt and secure a lasting endowment for the school. When spring rolled around in 1866, Central found itself completely debt-free.

As plays, concerts and visiting musicians began making their way to campus, literary societies began to form. Participation in one of the societies was required of students up until the beginning of the 20th century. Their main purpose was to offer members a forum for practicing the art of public speaking during a time when most lessons were recited to professors in the classroom, not written down and handed in. Members would choose a topic to research, prepare a speech about the topic and then deliver it at their society’s meeting.

Scholarly pursuits were enhanced by the societies’ participation in presenting dramas and other forms of entertainment along with providing a place for socializing. Announcements for dinners, picnics, ice cream socials and other sorts of “get-togethers” hosted by various societies appear in The Central College Ray until their demise between 1943 and 1946.

The first literary society on campus was “The Young American Society,” founded in 1854. This society eventually led to the founding of the second, and longest-running society on campus, the all-male “Philomathians” in 1873, the same year that Central’s Alumni Association was started, making it the oldest in the state. Just two years later the women of the college decided that a society of their own was in order and founded “Advansonia” in 1875.

In later years other societies followed including the coed “Chrestomathian,” the “Delphi” and “Lambda Epsilon Phi.” Eventually the purposes fulfilled by literary societies were supplanted by the Greek system of sororities and fraternities along with specialized clubs geared specifically towards academic majors, such as drama and speech.

In 1871, the board of trustees freed Emanuel Scarff from his duties as college president with the hiring of Rev. Lewis A. Dunn, D.D., of Fairfax, Vt. Scarff continued to teach until 1878. In honor of his 24 years of self-sacrificing service, the sidewalk from the front door of Old Central to the corner of the lawn was laid in a giant “S.” Dunn retired in 1881, and was replaced by Rev. George W. Garner, D.D.

The new president immediately saw that the lack of a suitable endowment was the school’s most pressing challenge. With Chancellor T. E. Balch in charge of financial interests, Garner began a $100,000 fund-raising campaign. Before the full amount could be secured, Garner retired in 1884.

Rev. Daniel Reed, LLOYD, took over as president in 1885. Before Reed had time to even think about the hefty endowment fund-raising campaign begun by his predecessor, a threat of an entirely new form rose up to trouble Central’s peace of mind. In 1884, the Baptists of Iowa had opened a second college in Des Moines. By the spring 1886 it was apparent that the available funds were spread too thin between the two institutions.

During the 1886 Baptist State Convention, delegates voted to dismantle the collegiate department of Central College and maintain only the academy courses, thereby making Central a feeder institution to the new Des Moines College. When the 1886 convention delegates announced this, friends of Central obtained an injunction from the circuit court which kept things the way they had been, thus saving Central from the first round of threats of a merger with Des Moines College.

President Reed resigned in 1886, and the Central board of trustees reinstated Lewis Dunn. During his second term, Dunn established the biblical department to train Baptist ministers. This department remained the largest on campus until the Normal Course was established in 1902 to train teachers. He remained in his position until he died working at his desk on Thanksgiving Day 1888.

Rev. Seth J. Axtell succeeded Dunn until his resignation in 1890. He was followed by Rev. John Stuart, Ph.D., who was the current pastor of the Pella Baptist Church. Stuart also served as professor of natural science and sacred literature.

When Axtell took the helm in fall 1890, he found that enrollment had grown to the point where students could no longer find housing in the city of Pella. Ground was broken for Cotton Hall, the campus’s first dormitory in 1890, and the first students moved in a few weeks before the opening of fall 1891. Named for J. B. Cotton, principal of Central’s music department from 1865-1883, Cotton Hall was at the height of modern conveniences for its time.

Two years after the opening of Cotton Hall, the foundations for the YMCA/YWCA Building, also known as The Auditorium, were laid. Because of financial difficulties, the building was not completed until 1901.

When it finally opened its doors for use, the students found inside a brand new chapel, a library, a fully equipped gymnasium and classrooms. With the opening of Central’s first gymnasium, it is assumed that intramural basketball games organized by students were played soon after. Regular schedules of basketball games were first played in 1909 and have continued ever since.

In the final year of construction on the YM/YWCA Building, then-president Rev. Arthur B. Chaffee, D.D., pulled Central through its second round of struggles with the Baptists of Iowa resisting the desire to close Central in favor of supporting only the college in Des Moines.

By the time Rev. Lemuel A. Garrison, D.D., took over the presidency in 1903, the strife between Central College and Des Moines College prompted him to state: “We as a state are beginning to learn that the existence of two colleges is not so great a mistake as the existence of a struggle for pre-eminence between these colleges.”

Garrison realized that financial health was one of the surest ways to ensure the survival of Central against the forces seeking to close its doors. In 1900 he revived the struggling endowment campaign to acquire an additional $26,000. In one of the shrewdest moves of his presidency, he hired H. J. Vanden Berg as treasurer of the college in charge of fund raising, a
position he held with great success for 41 years.

The years of 1902 through 1914 were ones of growth for Central. By 1907 the $100,000 endowment had been reached and immediately a second campaign for an additional $100,000 was launched. At the Baptist State Convention of 1907, the third round of votes attempting to decide if Central College or Des Moines College would remain as the permanent Iowa Baptist school was held. Although this time 222 votes came to Pella with only 146 going to Des Moines, neither location received the required two-thirds majority necessary for decisive action.

As these decisions relating to the future life of Central went on outside of its walls, life on the growing campus in Pella continued on as normal. Additions to the faculty were made on a regular basis including the hiring of Elizabeth Graham in 1905 as professor of English. She served as professor until 1914 when she was made dean of women, a position she remained in until her retirement in 1932. Rev. John L. Beyl, Ph.D., became acting president in 1909 and then president in 1911. He was replaced by Rev. John William Bailey, Ph.D., a pastor of the Pella Baptist Church and professor of biblical studies at Central since 1910.

By 1915, it was obvious to all parties involved that some adjustment of Baptist education in Iowa needed to be made. At a meeting in Chicago during October 1915, a proposition to transfer Central College affiliation to the Reformed Church in America was made. By November 1915, the Reformed Church had accepted the offer, and the name, charter, grounds, buildings and equipment were transferred to the Reformed Church provided they would maintain an accredited college in Pella.

The hard-won endowment of $100,000, current funds and pledges all went to the Baptist Education Society. The final agreement was signed on June 20, 1916, and Central once again found itself without an endowment, uncertain of the path that lay in front, but nevertheless alive and hopeful that the future would bring great things.

The good faith of the Reformed Church to support Central College was immediately tested when the Auditorium Building caught on fire the night of Feb. 28, 1917, taking with it the school’s chapel, library and gymnasium. The school continued work as usual through the generous donation of facility space by the churches and schools of the city of Pella.

While Central concentrated on its own struggles, the United States found itself suddenly embroiled in World War I. More than 100 Central students enlisted in the military and Central College woke up to find itself overrun with GIs when the campus became a base for a unit of the Student Army Training Corps. Student soldiers were housed in Cotton Hall and practiced military drills on the campus lawn. The rest of the student body and faculty held patriotic fund raising campaigns for war relief of prisoners and refugees.

By the close of World War I in 1919, Graham Hall had been opened and Cotton Hall had reverted to a regular men’s dormitory. Cotton Hall suffered severely from a 1923 fire, was sadly condemned and sold for a mere $336 — approximately $3500 today — later that year.

The Ludwig Library, built from the salvaged ruins of the Auditorium Building, was dedicated on April 12, 1918, and found itself led by Marie Greiner, the school’s first full-time librarian. She remained in her position until 1939. By the time of Central’s centennial celebration in 1953, the original 8,000 volumes rescued from the 1917 fire had grown to 29,000 volumes. The new gymnasium was dedicated on Oct. 21, 1921, the funding of which was largely due to the Pella Chamber of Commerce.

Amidst the loss and construction of buildings on campus, academic life continued to thrive. In 1920, the very first classes in theatre were offered at Central as part of the brand-new major titled “Expression.” Along with public speaking, speech preparation and research, classes were offered in vocal interpretation of lyric poetry and interpretation of prose drama. Requirements for the classes included participation in a play during the course of the semester.

In the early morning hours of June 14, 1922, Old Central was completely destroyed by fire. The best foundation stones of Old Central were salvaged from the remains of the burned building to make the bench which now supports the old bell, struck by lightening in 1914, on the lawn in front of Central Hall.

At the 1924 annual meeting of the board of trustees, the endowment campaign began fund raising efforts to secure $400,000, and an additional $100,000 to replace Old Central with a new building on the same site.

By the opening of classes in 1925, President John Wesselink, D.D., found enough money was raised to break ground for what is today Central Hall. Construction was halted due to the harsh winter of 1926-27, and only the first floor was ready for use by September 1928. By 1929 the second floor had been completed, yet it was not until 1935, during the heart of the Great Depression, that the third floor was opened.

As Central and the United States were going through post-WWI growing pains, the social life and attitudes of the college were progressing through innovations of the students. The first women’s athletic organization on campus, The Red Pepper Club, started in 1928, and was absorbed by the Women’s Athletic Association two years later. Until women’s sports became an NCAA Div. III fixture in 1972 after the passage of Title IX, sporting clubs, a few basic physical education electives and intramural games comprised the whole of women’s athletic outlets.

Homecoming
Central first celebrated homecoming in 1927. Today, homecoming is centered around the football game, but the beginning of the tradition was based upon inviting alumni back to the campus to spend a weekend at their alma mater with the football game being an interesting sideline activity.

Homecoming traditions have changed over the years. The first homecoming, and all subsequent ones until the late 1960s, involved an elaborate parade around the square with Central marching bands and floats put together by each class and many of the student organizations. The literary societies hosted dinners for returning alumni, skits were written by each class and performed during the weekend, and a huge bonfire on the Central grounds kicked off the festivities on Friday night. The football game was played on Saturday afternoon.

Beginning in the early 1950s and ending at an unspecified time during the middle 1960s, a snake dance was performed by the Central students as one of the Friday night bonfire traditions. Dubbed the “Crimson Racer,” the snake dance consisted of students joining hands in a long line, and then carousing through town in a long, twisting dance reminiscent of the movements of a snake. The leader pulled the line of dancers over benches, around trees, turning and coiling through the dark streets of Pella; causing a general uproar as cheers were shouted and songs sung.

As in previous years, the opening of classes in 1929 saw Central still seeking money to replace the endowment lost to Des Moines College. President Wesselink and his staff had managed to accrue $200,000, but needed $300,000 to take Central to its next level of being a fully accredited college with acceptance in the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools. By the 1931-32 school year, the Great Depression was beginning to make itself severely felt.

President Wesselink continued to support Central until his resignation in 1934. At that time, the board of trustees decided that Irwin J. Lubbers, Ph.D., was the best person to be found to lead Central through the remainder of the Depression.

In spring 1929, the five starters for the Central College basketball team were unaware of the legendary status they were about to attain. An incredible 37-game winning streak began in spring 1929 and did not end until the beginning of 1932.

Those final five starters, L. A.“Lefty” Schnack, Cornelius “Connie” Muyskens, Clarence “Tiny” Wilkins, Dwain “Barney” Neifert and Richard “Babe” Tysseling, not only proved that they were fierce competitors without a truly worthy rival in their schedule of games, but also gave their supporters a bit of hope in what had become for most people an unstable world.

Tysseling went on to become one of Central’s most beloved coaches and athletic directors. After a distinguished student career during which he became the only Central student to win four varsity letters each in basketball, football, baseball and track, he entered the faculty in 1938 after graduating in 1932. He coached from 1938 until his retirement in 1960 including Iowa Conference championship teams of 1939, 1945 and 1946.

Lean times
Lubbers, along with faculty and staff, began to think of creative ways to see Central through The Great Depression. Faculty accepted a “not-set” salary plan under which each member would receive a proportional share of whatever tuition was taken in. Lubbers aimed to pay faculty at least 50 percent of what they had earned the previous year.

The families of students were equally hard hit and most could not pay tuition. Following the example set by Scarff and Stoddard during the Civil War, Lubbers devised creative ways in which students could still attend college without having money up front in those days before government-funded student loans. Produce from farms was accepted in lieu of tuition payment, which then went on to feed the students of the school and pay faculty members instead of giving them salaries. Dean of women, Elizabeth Graham, and matron of Graham Hall, Carrie Halbert, organized work programs in the Graham Hall dining facility.

Along with working in the dining hall, students could also work off part of their tuition through the “earn-your-way” program by putting in time at the Central College Student Industries factory, located on the southwest corner of the town square. Students were allowed to sign up to work for blocks of time in exchange for tuition payments. The amount of work a student was given to do was based upon his or her need.

Student Industries produced various items such as wooden toys, ironing boards, storm windows, folding tables, and hog feeders along with made-to-order furniture cabinets and the importation, growth, culture and sale of tulip bulbs. The close of World War II marked the beginning of extensive federal student loan programs providing money for college tuition and ending the necessity for Student Industries. The factory closed in 1947.

Perhaps because of the tuition flexibility shown by Central College during the Great Depression, enrollment increased at a surprising rate throughout the 1930s. When Lubbers arrived in 1934 the total enrollment of the school was 218. By 1936 that number had risen to 286, and opening day in the fall of 1939 saw 364 students beginning classes on Central’s campus. In 1937, Lubbers launched the “Greater Central” fund-raising campaign.

With more students came the opportunity for more campus growth. The family of A. N. Kuyper of Pella donated the funds for the leveling and construction of the first Kuyper Field located to the south of the present Geisler Library. In 1939 the Rev. Richard D. and Lena Douwstra contributed the funds to build Douwstra Chapel, now Douwstra Auditorium, in Central Hall.

Along with other U.S. colleges and universities, Central began to sponsor the Collegiate Flight Training Program in February 1941 under the supervision of the Civil Aeronautics Administration. Ten months later on Dec. 7, the United States found itself embroiled in yet another world war, the third major war Central had witnessed in its history.

Central was approved for enlistment of students into the Army Enlisted Reserve Corps for prepping graduates for officer training. New courses were added to the curriculum such as “Post-War Planning” in the social sciences department. Though social life certainly did not stop at Central, activities such as sports, forensics and musical group tours were de-emphasized for the duration of the war. In all, over 600 students, faculty and staff joined the military and 21 gave their lives in active duty.

From the beginning of his administration in 1934, throughout the remainder of the Depression and into World War II, Lubbers diligently encouraged the faculty and administration to strive towards meeting accreditation standards. In the spring of 1942, Central College was accepted as a full member of the North Central Association of College and Secondary Schools. Also that spring, the commencement ceremonies were marked by a visit from Princess Julianna of the Netherlands. Her party included Dr. Alexander Louder, Netherlands ambassador to the U.S., who gave the commencement address. The princess was awarded an honorary doctorate degree.

The end of the war was joyous for the United States. Enrollment in 1945 reached an all-time high of 518 prompting the building of a small men’s dorm, which is now the current Media Center, and a “trailer town” of temporary bungalows for the unprecedented numbers of married students.

After leading Central through some of the leanest times in its history, Lubbers resigned at the close of the 1945 spring semester to become the president of Hope College in Holland, Mich. Dr. Henry W. Pietenpol replaced Lubbers as the interim president until January 1946 when the Rev. Gerrit T. Vander Lugt, Ph.D., was inaugurated on Feb. 8.

In 1947 the north wing was added to Graham Hall and the lounge received a redecoration job in 1953. Gaass Hall, the largest dorm on Central’s campus at that time, was built in 1951, named for the Gaass family whose members have been associated with Central since its inception.

Between 1920, with the first theatre classes offered at Central, and 1947, with the arrival of Maurice Birdsall, stage productions at Central had mainly relied on a few courses along with organized social groups at Central. A full theatre major was not included into Central’s
curriculum until 1949.

There were many key supporters of Central theatre before Birdsall arrived on campus. Cunera van Emmerik ’22, became a faculty member of the English department in 1929 after completing her Ph.D. She believed that speech competitions, or forensics, went hand-in-hand with stage acting. During her 40-year career with Central, van Emmerik distinguished herself not only as a great debater, but worked to found the Iowa Intercollegiate Forensic Association. She used these skills to hone one of the most respected forensics teams in Iowa winning numerous state and national titles.

As the economic boom time of the 1950s progressed and the college celebrated its centennial birthday in 1953, President Vander Lugt, along with Central supporters, began to see the need to once again create new facilities to support Central’s burgeoning population.

On Jan. 13, 1954, ground was broken for the brand new Student Memorial Union, named in honor of all Central students who had died while on active duty in the military.

New majors were added in the ’50s including psychology, political science and geography, bringing Central’s total number of majors up to 20. By expanding its educational curriculum, Central saw steadily increasing class sizes with new “all-time high” enrollment numbers entering each year between 1950 and 1960.

On Dec. 4, 1954, the sophomore women, class of 1956, won the Pietenpol Cup for the second year in a row. Begun in 1951 as the “Freshman-Sophomore Literary-Musical Competition,” the contest that quickly became dubbed the Pietenpol Cup was either originally developed by Dean Henry Pietenpol himself, or by dean of women, Henrietta Prins. The Pietenpol Cup competition was held annually from 1951 to 1991 between freshman and sophomore women who wrote an original script with musical numbers for a half-hour long play.

The visual arts flourished during these years of post-war American prosperity. Visiting artists during this time included painters Ken Gore, Dorothy Cogswell and Ralston Crawford. Dance troupes, musical groups and student recitals provided entertainment for the Central community on a weekly basis, much as they do today.

Throughout the 1950s, the unique all-brass Central Marching Band, the only one of its kind in Iowa, performed in front of many dignitaries. Yet none could compare to November 1956, when the band had the honor of playing for President Dwight D. Eisenhower and wife Mamie Dowd Eisenhower, as they boarded a plane to leave the state.

Following in the footsteps

By 1960, President Vander Lugt had resigned to become president of New Brunswick Seminary. The 29-year-old Dr. Arend “Don” Lubbers became Central’s new leader. The son of former president Irwin Lubbers, the new president found himself coming home to the campus that he had lived on from 1934-1945 when his father was president. Lubbers was the youngest college president in the United States at the time of his inauguration, but proved to be the right person to lead Central College into a new phase of U.S. history.

It is important to recognize the differences in attitudes that existed between the beginning of Lubber’s presidency and the changes that came about by the end of it. In 1960, women were not allowed to smoke in their rooms, wear pants to class or chapel, and had an earlier curfew than men. Freshmen were required to wear little felt beanies and large nametags hung around their necks from the first week of classes until homecoming.

Telephones were not a feature of each dorm room. Students had to use communal phones located either in the hallway on each floor, in the lounges, or at the front desk of the dorm depending upon which one a person lived in. Visitors of the opposite sex were not allowed in each other’s rooms, and a dorm-room sized refrigerator was unheard of. Mandatory chapel was still in full force even though it was a growing student complaint.

Over the next 10 years, Lubbers set out to jump-start Central into the modern age, propelling students to recognize the wider world around them. One of the most memorable events he pushed for was inviting Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to speak on Central’s campus on March 22, 1967. Though King spoke extemporaneously without any written notes and, unfortunately, a recording of the speech has never been found, the content of his speech was a call to action, to volunteer on behalf of human rights and to support civil rights internationally.

During Lubber’s administration many building projects were completed including Pietenpol Hall in 1962, the Cox-Snow Music Building in 1964, Hoffman Hall in 1965, Scholte Hall and the pond in 1967, and Kuyper Gymnasium in 1969. The pond and the bridge, affectionately known as “Lubber’s Lake” and “Lubber’s Leap” respectively, have each become enduring landmarks.

Central College can point to the 1960s as being the decade in which one of its brightest points of pride was developed with the creation of the study abroad program. In 1955, art professor Larry Mills made a summer journey to the Yucatan in Mexico to study pre-Columbian art and scope out the possibilities of taking a group of students there for a short summer course. The idea was discussed off and on until 1962 when French professor, Dr. William Wing, credited by retired professor James Graham as the principle power behind the development of study abroad, took the first group of Central students on a foreign study program to the Yucatan Peninsula.

In the summers of 1963 and 1964, summer sessions were led by Wing to Paris with approximately 12 students each time. By 1965, Central was ready to send students abroad for a full year.

As the 1960s progressed, foreign locations in England, Wales, Austria, Holland, Spain and China were quickly added. A foreign study location in Kenya was added in summer 2001. Today nearly half of all Central students spend at least one semester at one of 10 study abroad sites.

The townhouse design was another dramatic innovation of the Lubbers years. Named after distinguished faculty and school supporters from years past, the townhouses dotting Central’s campus contribute significantly to the physical atmosphere we know today. The students living in the new townhouses found themselves part of the largest student body Central had ever seen. By the time Lubbers left Central in January 1970, the student body had grown from 430 to 1355. Administrative staff had reached 42 members and the faculty grew from 43 to 107.

A unique position- the 19 twenties through the nineties

early 1970s
An outdoor meeting in front of Central's bridge.

When Lubbers left to take over the presidency of Grand Valley College in Michigan, his successor turned out to be one of the most fondly remembered presidents in Central’s 150-year history. Dr. Kenneth Weller arrived in Pella in 1969 from his previous position as professor of economics and business at Hope College.

During the first three years of his administration, the campus was embroiled in the social unrest of the late 1960s and early 1970s. Peace marches, sit-ins and protests against the Vietnam War were a regular occurrence on campus. Though none of the protests were ever violent, the new president found himself in a rather unique position upon taking office — having to deal with politics not only from an administrative level, but from a newly conscious student level as well.

Dr. Kenneth Weller, 1970-1990

While political opinions influenced social culture, one of the most cherished Central traditions began in 1977 during the homecoming festivities — the Lemming Race. First conceived and organized by the men of second floor Gaass Hall, with Larry Happel ’81 receiving credit for the original idea, the event was eventually taken over by the Theta Kappa Alpha fraternity. The Lemming Race takes as its inspiration the urban legend that lemmings, an arctic animal, leap to their death in mass suicide migrations each spring. The ornately costumed lemmings wait for the signal to race, and sprint down Peace Mall to the edge of the pond, throwing themselves into the murky water. In 1977 there were approximately 40 racers. In 1978 that number had jumped to over 100, and today approximately 200-300 racers participate each year.

Central's first football team in 1892

Though homecoming originally began with the football game as a sideline activity, today it has grown into the centrifugal point of the weekend’s events. Football was first recorded at Central in 1893 though early game records are not complete. Early teams were not considered school-supported organizations, so players organized themselves into intramural clubs that arranged their own practices along with supplying their own coaches and uniforms.

Two games are recorded in 1894 and 1895 respectively. There is no record of the first game, but it is known that the second was played on a field in Monroe against Des Moines College. A player from the opposing team was badly hurt during the game and later died as a result of his injuries. The game was not finished, and football was dropped at Central until 1899 when one game was played against an independent town team from Knoxville.

Ron Schipperr, head football coach from 1961-1996

Current costumed Lemmings race toward the pond

Regular football schedules were played from 1903 to 1905, dropped until the 1909–16 years, and then dropped again until 1920. A regular schedule of games has been played yearly ever since. Central’s first Iowa Conference title for football was won in 1939 under Coach Richard Tysseling as were the second and third in 1945 and 1946. In total, Central has captured 25 Iowa Conference titles. The longest conference winning streak occurred from 1983 to 1987 during which Central came out on top each year. One of the greatest football highlights is the 1974 National Championship title brought home by the team coached by Ron Schipper, the first in Central’s history.

The presidential medallion worn by Dr. Ken Weller

Athletes and activists did not take up all of Central’s time during the 1970s. In December 1972, the 10-year $2,500,000 “Central Challenge” campaign fund drive was launched. This fund drive was aimed at fully changing the face of Central by building a new library, 12 new residence units and introducing new academic innovations.

The Central Challenge campaign was a great success. The imaginative townhouse system begun by Lubbers expanded during the ’70s until 15 such houses dotted the campus. In 1974 the award-winning Geisler Library was built housing 200,000 volumes when it opened and a full media center.

The old Ludwig Library was added onto and renovated until it became the Arts and Behavioral Sciences Building housing the Mills Gallery and Central’s unique-to-Iowa glassblowing studio. In 2001 this structure was re-named the Lubbers Center for the Visual Arts in honor of Irwin and Don Lubbers.

Weller also found funding to build the Kruidenier Center for Communication and Theatre. Named for Daniel Kruidenier, 1805-1893, and his descendents, the Kruidenier family has made significant contributions to Central College and the community of Pella since 1855. In 1981, the Kuyper family of Pella funded the building of The Chapel, and in 1989 the Kuyper Fieldhouse. The final building project of Weller’s presidency was the 1990 Maytag Center, which replaced the old Student Union.

Former presidents Don (left) and Irwin (right) Lubbers with then-current president Weller

Dr. William Wiebenga,
1990-1997

After the passage of Title IX in 1972, Central found itself in the happy position of having two sets of sports teams — men’s and women’s — to set loose on the other competitors of NCAA Div. III athletics and bring home Central glories. Before this time, female athletes on intramural teams provided their own uniforms and transportation to and from games.

Women sports have played a key role at Central. The Central volleyball and softball teams both had their official beginnings in 1972, though they were played as intramural sports from the late 1960s. In total women’s sports have amassed 10 national championships between track, basketball, softball, volleyball and cross-country. The Central volleyball team proved their dominance by capturing the NCAA Div. III national title three consecutive years from 1998-2000.

By 1990, Weller was ready to retire from Central College. His successor, William Wiebenga, served as president for eight years during which time ground was broken for the visionary Central Market dining hall. After Wiebenga’s resignation in 1997, Central spent the next year and a half interviewing potential candidates before choosing David Roe, Ph.D. as the new president.

mid 1960s
The Student Union

1976
The flag that flew over Central throughout the bicentennial year.

ca. 1974
The Central College Ray

Today and Tomorrow - the 21st century

2003
"The Quest," a sculpture by Nick Keplinger, was added to campus in 2000.

Dr. David Roe, 1998-present

Former Air Force Brigadier General, corporate businessman and professor of physiology at the Air Force Academy, Roe has put into practice many ambitious plans for the college in all areas from new buildings to new academic programs to a new endowment campaign.

At the end of 1997, Central’s enrollment had dipped to a decade-low of 1,100. Today the enrollment numbers are approaching 1,700 and steadily increasing each year. Other improvements seen during Roe’s presidency are the new Weller Center for Business and International Studies and the Schipper Fitness Center, which both opened in 1999, the new Graham Hall Conference Center and the Carlson-Kuyper Field Station opened in 2000 and in 2003, a $20 million expansion and renovation of the Vermeer Science Center was completed. In fall 2003 a new pod-style residence on the far west side of campus opened.

The entire community celebrated its heritage with the April 2003 public launch of The Campaign for Central, a fund-raising campaign designed to net $50 million for the endowment of Central’s next 150-year legacy. The last class of the first sesquicentennial graduated on Sunday, May 11, 2003, marked by an appearance and commencement address by President Emeritus Weller.

The past 150 years have, overall, been good to Central College. The influences of a Central education are some of the most important in the lives of the people who have spent significant years on its campus. This sentiment is summarized by Merle Hamre ’40:

“Over the years I have from time to time wondered why I have kept such an
affection for Central, as I have grown older I realize that the basic foundation of the school is love. It exists, as I see it, for the sole purpose of perfecting young persons … I love the school because I know of the love it has shown me.”

The presidential medallion worn by Dr. David Roe

The kickoff celebration for The Campaign fro Central. The campaign has already raised over $36 million.

Please direct questions or comments regarding editorial content of the Central Bulletin to Patrick Roland, News & Marketing Writer.
Phone: 641.628.5157 | Email: rolandp@central.edu

For alumni-related issues, please contact Don Morrison, Director of Alumni & Church Relations.
Phone: 641.628.5280 | Email: morrisond@central.edu