Grinnell College: A Comprehensive Overview of Its Location, Academics, and Campus Life
Grinnell College, a private liberal arts college, is located in Grinnell, Iowa, approximately equidistant from Des Moines and Iowa City. Founded in 1846 by Congregationalists from New England under the name Iowa College, it has evolved into a nationally recognized institution known for its rigorous academics, commitment to social responsibility, and unique open curriculum.
Historical Context and Location
In 1843, eleven Congregational ministers, all of whom trained at Andover Theological Seminary in Massachusetts, set out to preach on the frontier. The first 25 years of Grinnell's history saw a change in name and location. In Davenport, the college had advocated against slavery and saloons, leading to conflict with the Davenport city council, which retaliated by constructing roads that transected the campus. Iowa College moved farther west from Davenport to the town of Grinnell and unofficially adopted the name of its new home, which itself had been named for the abolitionist minister Josiah Bushnell Grinnell.
The main campus is bounded by 6th Avenue on the south, 10th Avenue on the north, East Street on the east, and Park Street on the west. The college maintains a 365-acre (1.48 km2) environmental research area called the Conard Environmental Research Area (CERA).
Campus Life and Residential Experience
Grinnell College is primarily a residential campus in a suburban community in a rural setting. The residential part of campus is divided into three sections: North Campus, East Campus, and South Campus. North and South Campus' dormitories are modeled explicitly after the residential colleges of Oxford and Cambridge. All three campuses feature dormitory buildings connected by loggia, an architectural signature of the college. The loggia on South Campus is the only entirely closed loggia, while the loggias on East and North campus are only partially closed. From the time that the first dorm opened in 1915 until the fall of 1968, the nine north campus dorms were used exclusively for male students, and the six south campus dorms reserved for female students.
Housing is guaranteed for four years and most students choose to live on campus. There are no fraternities or sororities, but there are more than 150 student organizations and more than 500 free events that take place on campus each year. Grinnell's many activities appeal to everyone from musicians to environmentalists to athletes.
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Academics and Curriculum
Grinnell's hallmark and greatest strength is the agency you have in shaping your own studies and career. At Grinnell, you'll love the freedom of our "individually advised curriculum." We require only two courses outside your major. The rest of your four-year class schedule is up to you and your academic adviser to craft, based on your interests and aspirations. You can uncover what you truly care about, like diving into a new major or working on graduate-level research in your topic of choice.
Grinnell's open curriculum encourages students to take initiative and to assume responsibility for choosing their own courses of study. The college requires only two courses outside a student's chosen major, allowing students, with the guidance of an academic advisor, to tailor their education to their specific interests and aspirations.
Every student will have the opportunity to pursue a significant research or creative project, and more than 40% of students complete a Mentored Advanced Project (MAP), where they work closely with a professor on a scholarly research or creative project. Grinnell also provides funding for research, internships, and off-campus study.
Pre-professional advising is available for students in the following areas: Architecture, Business, Engineering, Medicine, Law, Librarianship, Religious vocations, Social Work, and Education.
Although the college does not offer any graduate degrees, it does have dual degree programs with several universities that let Grinnell students move directly into graduate programs. Grinnell participates in a 3-2 engineering dual degree program with Columbia University, Washington University in St. Louis, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and California Institute of Technology.
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Financial Aid and Affordability
Grinnell College is committed to making education accessible. The average per year after aid is $33,000. Thanks to a no-loan financial aid policy and individualized advising, our students graduate with less debt and more direction.
Grinnell offers a large amount of need-based and merit-based aid in comparison with peer institutions. Beginning with the first-year students enrolled in the 2006-2007 school year, Grinnell ended its need-blind admissions policy for international applicants. Under the new "need-sensitive" or "need-aware" policy, international students whose demonstrated financial needs can be met are given a slight admissions edge over applicants who cannot.
Athletics
The school's varsity sports teams are named the Pioneers. They participate in eighteen intercollegiate sports at the NCAA Division III level and in the Midwest Conference. The Grinnell Pioneers won the first game of intercollegiate football west of the Mississippi when they beat the University of Iowa 24-0 on November 16, 1889.
The men's water polo team, known as the Wild Turkeys, were runners-up in the 2007 College Water Polo Association (CWPA) Division III Collegiate National Club Championships hosted by Lindenwood University in St. Charles, Missouri. They also qualified for the tournament in 2008, 2009, 2011, 2013, and 2014. The Men's Ultimate team, nicknamed the Grinnellephants, qualified in 2008 for its first Division III National Championship in Versailles, Ohio.
In February 2005, the Grinnell Pioneers men's basketball team became the first Division III school featured in a regular season basketball game by the ESPN network family in 30 years when it faced off against the Beloit Buccaneers on ESPN2. Grinnell lost 86-85. Grinnell College's basketball team attracted ESPN due to the team's run and gun style of playing basketball, known in Grinnell simply as "The System."
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The Grinnell System
Coach Dave Arseneault originated the Grinnell System that incorporates a continual full-court press, a fast-paced offense, an emphasis on offensive rebounding, a barrage of three-point shots and substitutions of five players at a time every 35 to 40 seconds. This allows a higher average playing time for more players than the "starters" and suits the Division III goals of scholar-athletes. "The System" has been criticized for not teaching the principles of defense. However, under "The System", Grinnell has won three conference championships over the past ten years and have regularly placed in the top half of the conference.
On November 19, 2011, Grinnell player Griffin Lentsch set a new Division III individual scoring record in a game against Principia College. The 6-foot-4-inch (1.93 m) guard scored 89 points, besting the old record of 77, also set by a Pioneers player-Jeff Clement-in 1998. Lentsch made 27 of his 55 shots, including 15 three-pointers as Grinnell won the high-scoring game 145 to 97. On November 20, 2012, Grinnell's Jack Taylor broke Lentsch's scoring record, as well as the records for NCAA and collegiate scoring, in a 179-104 victory over Faith Baptist Bible College. Taylor scored 138 points on 108 shots, along with 3 rebounds, 6 turnovers and 3 steals.
In 2019, the Grinnell women's volleyball team advanced to the NCAA Division III National Tournament for the first time in the 46-year history of the program, defeating St. Norbert College in a five-set thriller during the Midwest Conference Tournament championship match at Cornell College's gymnasium.
Self-Governance and Student Life
Students at Grinnell adhere to an honor system known as "self-governance" wherein they are expected to govern their own choices and behavior with minimal direct intervention by the college administration. Founded in November 2000, the student-run group Pioneer Capital Investments (PCI), formerly known as Student Endowment Investing Group, actively invests over $100,000 of Grinnell College's endowment capital in public equities. Service organizations are popular.
Rankings and Recognition
Grinnell College is consistently ranked among the top liberal arts colleges in the United States. Grinnell is ranked 5th in the 2021 Washington Monthly rankings for liberal arts colleges,[47] which focus on key outputs such as research, dollar value of scientific grants won, the number of graduates going on to earn Ph.D. degrees, and certain types of public service.
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