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Small College America – Hampden Sydney College

November 2, 2026 by Dean Hoke – At Hampden–Sydney College in Virginia, incoming students receive a small book titled To Manner Born, To Manners Bred. It offers advice about introductions, courtesy, dress, and treating others with respect. Alumnus Thomas H. “Tommy” Shomo, Class of 1969, wrote the guide in 1978 and remained devoted to the college until his death in 2025. The Virginia General Assembly honored him in 2026.

The book is one of several traditions that distinguish Hampden–Sydney. Students and alumni still wear jackets and ties to some football games, and the campus bell remains part of college life. These customs might seem quaint, even old-fashioned, in modern American higher education and society. But they reflect an institution that has deliberately made character, courtesy, and personal responsibility part of its educational identity.

A College Born During the American Revolution

Hampden–Sydney opened on November 10, 1775, during the American Revolution. Its founders sought to educate young men for leadership and citizenship. The college continues to define its mission as forming “good men and good citizens in an atmosphere of sound learning.” That mission has remained remarkably consistent over 250 years, even as American higher education and the country have changed.

Hampden–Sydney occupies a rural campus near Farmville, Virginia, a community of approximately 7,500 people, about 60 miles southwest of Richmond. Its predominantly residential student body contributes to a close-knit campus where students, faculty, and staff interact regularly. The location and traditions are central to the college’s identity.

In 1996, after considerable debate, Hampden–Sydney’s trustees voted to remain a men’s college rather than become coeducational. It is now one of three traditional four-year men’s liberal arts colleges in the United States, along with Wabash and Morehouse. The institutions differ substantially in history and student population, but each has retained a single-sex mission.

The 1996 decision continues to shape recruitment and campus life. Hampden–Sydney offers a residential undergraduate experience designed specifically for men, emphasizing personal responsibility, leadership, and close relationships with faculty and fellow students. It also competes for students in a higher education market dominated by coeducational institutions.

Character, Rhetoric, and a Particular Kind of Campus Life

The Honor Code and Rhetoric Program give substance to the college’s mission. Students are expected to take responsibility for their conduct and academic work, and communication is central to the curriculum. Students must demonstrate proficiency in speaking and writing. Rhetoric was the most popular minor in fall 2025, with 55 declared students. Hampden–Sydney has emphasized these skills for decades, well before colleges began routinely describing them as essential career competencies.

Hampden–Sydney’s emphasis on rhetoric and public affairs extends beyond the classroom. The Wilson Center for Leadership in the Public Interest, student government, and the Honor Code provide opportunities to practice public speaking, leadership, and personal accountability. These activities complement the college’s academic program and its longstanding mission.

Most students live on campus, and fraternities are an important part of student life. The rural setting helps create a community in which academic, athletic, and social activities overlap. That environment can be attractive to students seeking a traditional residential college experience, though it will not appeal to everyone.

Athletics contribute to campus life and student recruitment. Hampden–Sydney competes in NCAA Division III and the Old Dominion Athletic Conference. Its longstanding football rivalry with Randolph–Macon brings students, alumni, and families together, while the basketball team’s appearance in the 2024 Division III national championship game attracted attention beyond Virginia. Supporting competitive teams also requires investment in coaches, travel, and facilities, significant commitments for a college of fewer than 1,000 students.

Inside the Classroom: What Students Study

Hampden–Sydney offers a traditional liberal arts education with 25 majors and 28 minors across the humanities, social sciences and natural sciences. In fall 2025, economics and business were the largest declared majors, with 139 declarations, followed by history (44), government (38), biology (33), and foreign affairs (30). Economics and engineering physics each recorded 26 declarations, and psychology had 24. Students may declare more than one major, so these counts do not represent separate groups of students. The distribution reflects considerable interest in business and public affairs alongside established science and humanities programs.

The college’s Rhetoric Program is one of its clearest academic distinctions. All students complete rhetoric coursework and must demonstrate writing proficiency through an examination generally taken at the end of the sophomore year. The examination requires a timed essay assessed by faculty readers, with additional instruction and retesting available to students who do not pass on the first attempt. The Pannill Center for Rhetoric and Communication offers support in writing, speaking, and digital communication. Rhetoric was the most popular minor in fall 2025, with 55 declared students. The requirement gives the college’s longstanding emphasis on communication a specific place in the curriculum.

The broader core curriculum requires work in mathematics, foreign language, and courses examining Western and global cultures. These requirements apply across majors and are intended to provide students with a common academic foundation. Students also participate in experiential learning through the Compass Program, which connects classroom work with internships, research, study abroad, service learning, and career planning. Its advising and career resources help students consider how their academic interests may translate into professional opportunities.

Engineering physics grew from 10 declared majors in 2021 to 26 in 2025. Biology, chemistry, physics, mathematics, and related disciplines provide options for students interested in scientific and technical careers. In summer 2025, 43 students participated in research projects with faculty members. For an undergraduate-only institution, those projects offer a direct route into research without competing with graduate students for faculty attention. They also give students considering graduate or professional education experience beyond ordinary coursework.

Small classes and faculty contact are important features of its academic model. Assistant Dean of Faculty and History professor James Frusetta-Ulfhrafn, for example, uses historical role-playing exercises in which students debate constitutional reform and political alliances in ancient Athens. The approach encourages students to examine historical decisions while practicing argument, discussion, and public speaking.

In September 2026, Hampden–Sydney announced the Citrone School of Business and Economics and the Hickok School of Government, History, and Civic Leadership. The Citrone School brings together economics and business, entrepreneurship and political economy. The Hickok School links history and politics with programs in leadership and public history. Both organize existing departments and centers into more visible academic units rather than introducing entirely new disciplines. Rather than introducing new disciplines, Hampden–Sydney is investing in academic programs that have already attracted considerable student interest.

The new schools also draw on alumni philanthropy. Rob Citrone, Class of 1987, and his wife Cindy have supported the college through major gifts, including full-tuition merit scholarships for selected incoming students. The two schools, along with the Compass Program and undergraduate research, are part of Hampden–Sydney’s effort to give students a liberal arts education that also prepares them for careers after graduation.

Who Chooses Hampden–Sydney?

Hampden–Sydney enrolled 1,087 students in fall 2015, compared with 924 in fall 2025, a decline of approximately 15 percent. Enrollment fell to a low of 850 in 2022 before recovering to 946 in 2024, then declining modestly in 2025—the college’s 2015 strategic plan called for enrollment of approximately 1,100 students. Although a more recent numerical target was not identified, President Larry Stimpert reaffirmed the intention to grow enrollment in 2025 while maintaining selectivity and expanding geographic recruitment.

For fall 2025, Hampden–Sydney received 3,284 applications, admitted 1,227 students and enrolled 249 new students, producing an admission rate of 37.4 percent and a yield of approximately 20.2 percent. The college continues to recruit students for a specific residential undergraduate experience rather than competing across the full range of programs offered by larger universities.

The admissions figures tell an interesting story about Hampden–Sydney’s position in the college marketplace. Hampden–Sydney admitted fewer than four in ten applicants, yet approximately one in five admitted students enrolled. The distinction matters: an institution can maintain a selective admissions process while still working to improve the proportion of accepted applicants who choose to attend. Its expanded scholarship programs are intended in part to make that choice more attractive to academically strong prospective students. Whether they lead to sustained enrollment growth will become clearer over several entering classes.

Recruitment remains concentrated in Virginia and neighboring states. Of the 924 students enrolled in fall 2025, 571 were from Virginia and 160 from North Carolina. The college has an established regional alumni network, but expanding enrollment will also require reaching more prospective students outside its traditional markets. In interviews I have conducted with small-college presidents, several have indicated that returning to historical enrollment peaks is not necessarily their objective. Hampden–Sydney, however, has stated that it intends to grow while investing in scholarships, academic programs, and career preparation.

The fall 2025 student body was also predominantly White, with 744 students, or approximately 80.5 percent, identifying as White. The college reported 54 Black students, 59 Hispanic students, and 41 students identifying with two or more races. The figures also suggest that Hampden–Sydney has room to reach a more diverse group of prospective students. Increasing representation from communities historically less prominent in its enrollment could expand its applicant pool. However, the college would still need to compete for students interested in a residential men’s liberal arts education.

Hampden–Sydney has made clear its intention to increase enrollment while maintaining its identity as a small, residential liberal arts college for men. Its investments in scholarships, academic programs, and campus facilities reflect that commitment. The challenge will be attracting students who see value in its distinctive educational experience while improving retention and graduation rates. Enrollment growth would also help the college spread the costs of its academic programs, athletics, and residential facilities across a larger student body.

Line graph illustrating fall enrollment of students from 2015 to 2025, showing fluctuations with a peak around 2015 and a gradual decline leading to 2025.

Figure 1. Source: Hampden–Sydney College, 2025–26 Factbook.

Staying, Graduating, and Moving Forward

Student retention and graduation rates also measure Hampden–Sydney’s performance. First-year retention has generally ranged from the upper 70s to the mid-80s in recent years. The most recent reported rate, 78 percent for the fall 2024 entering class, was below the college’s minimum institutional target of 80 percent and its longer-term goal of 90 percent.

Hampden–Sydney reported a six-year graduation rate of 63 percent for students who entered in fall 2019. Its four-year graduation rates were 68 percent for the fall 2020 entering class and 67 percent for the fall 2021 class. The college has established a goal of achieving an 80 percent six-year graduation rate.

The four-year and six-year figures refer to different entering cohorts and should not be read as a single progression. Retention and graduation rates are important measures of whether Hampden–Sydney is meeting its goals for student success. Hampden–Sydney’s comparatively small entering classes also mean that a change affecting a few dozen students can noticeably shift a percentage from one cohort to another. For that reason, trends across several classes are more informative than a single annual result.

Graduates pursue careers in business, government, education, healthcare, and other professions. In recent years, approximately 15 to 20 percent of graduates have entered or planned to pursue graduate or professional education.

Hampden–Sydney has approximately 10,000 living alumni. For a college of its size, the network is an important asset. The Princeton Review ranked the college second among private colleges for alumni networks in its 2027 guide, based on student surveys. Alumni return as mentors, internship contacts, recruiters, volunteers, and donors, sustaining relationships that extend beyond graduation. Many remain in Virginia and the surrounding region, including Richmond and the Washington area, providing connections for students beginning their careers.

The college’s historical connections to public life include William Henry Harrison, the ninth president of the United States, who attended from 1787 to 1790 but did not graduate. Hampden–Sydney also identifies eight former students who became state governors, including four in Virginia. Their terms extended from William H. Cabell’s governorship beginning in 1805 to Elbert Lee Trinkle’s term ending in 1926. Tommy Shomo, the alumnus who wrote the college’s etiquette manual, also wrote about Harrison for the alumni magazine.

More recent graduates and former students have established careers in medicine, business, journalism and entertainment. Dr. W. Randolph Chitwood Jr., Class of 1968, helped pioneer robotic heart-valve surgery in North America. Rob Citrone, Class of 1987, founded Discovery Capital Management and became a leading college benefactor. Maurice Jones, Class of 1986, served as Virginia’s secretary of commerce and trade and held a senior position at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Filmmaker Scott Cooper, Class of 1992, directed Crazy Heart, while political journalists Charles Hurt, Class of 1995, and Jonathan Martin, Class of 1999, built national careers in reporting and commentary.

Stephen Colbert, who studied philosophy at Hampden–Sydney for two years before transferring to Northwestern University, is among its best-known former students. He did not graduate from the college, but rose to national prominence through The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, and The Late Show.

Alumni involvement extends beyond notable names. Graduates provide mentoring, internship contacts, and professional introductions for students, while philanthropic support has helped fund scholarships and academic initiatives. These relationships are especially valuable as Hampden–Sydney seeks to recruit students beyond its traditional geographic base.

The college’s fundraising record is another measure of alumni and donor commitment, though the campaign’s financial implications are best considered alongside the college’s operating results.

Financial Strength, Operating Pressure

Hampden–Sydney’s endowment is a substantial financial advantage. The college reported investment endowment assets of approximately $280.4 million at June 30, 2025, up from $245.4 million a year earlier and approximately $154.6 million in 2015. The increase reflects investment performance and philanthropy, and provides resources that many colleges of similar enrollment do not possess. The college’s comprehensive It’s Time, Good Men campaign concluded in 2026 after raising more than $400 million against its original $250 million goal. Its priorities included scholarships, endowment support, academic programs, and campus improvements; campaign commitments should not be equated with unrestricted operating revenue.

What makes the endowment growth particularly interesting is that it occurred while enrollment was declining. The college enrolled fewer students in 2025 than in 2015, yet its reported endowment was substantially larger. That combination provides more financial resources per student, although it does not eliminate the need to balance annual operations. The endowment also supports the college’s ability to fund scholarships and maintain a residential liberal arts education that requires significant staffing and facilities.

Hampden–Sydney’s financial statements provide another perspective on the college’s financial position. According to its 2025–26 Factbook, operating revenue for fiscal 2025 was approximately $59.6 million, compared with operating expenses of $65.8 million, resulting in an operating shortfall of $6.2 million. Although the college benefits from a substantial endowment and strong philanthropic support, much of that funding is restricted to specific purposes. Investment returns and contributions can strengthen the college’s overall financial position without necessarily eliminating an annual operating deficit.

Hampden–Sydney must continue to support small classes, residential facilities, laboratories, student services, and Division III athletics. Its substantial philanthropic resources provide flexibility, but recurring expenses remain an important part of the college’s financial planning.

Bar graph displaying endowment value in millions of dollars from fiscal years 2015 to 2025, showing a general upward trend.

Source: Hampden–Sydney College Factbooks.

The Next 250 Years

Hampden–Sydney enters its next 250 years with a clear institutional identity, a substantial endowment, an established residential culture and a committed alumni community. Its enrollment remains below the level of a decade ago, but the college has invested in scholarships, facilities and academic programs while reaffirming its intention to grow.

The college’s recent fundraising success does not settle every question about its future. It does, however, provide flexibility that many small private colleges lack. Hampden–Sydney can invest in recruiting students, supporting faculty, and developing programs within its existing mission rather than relying solely on enrollment increases to finance those decisions. The question is whether these investments will help Hampden–Sydney attract and retain more students while bringing annual revenues and expenses into better balance.

Hampden–Sydney has fewer obvious opportunities to diversify enrollment than many other private colleges. Its rural location limits the nearby market of working adults seeking undergraduate degrees, while its residential model and lack of graduate programs make online expansion a less obvious strategy. Its future enrollment is therefore likely to depend largely on attracting traditional-age undergraduate men. Recruiting more widely beyond Virginia, reaching students from a broader range of backgrounds, and strengthening scholarships and academic programs are practical avenues for growth.

The new Citrone and Hickok schools build on subjects students already choose in significant numbers. Together with expanded scholarship support, they give Hampden–Sydney additional ways to reach students who value its approach to undergraduate education. Coeducation remains an option in principle, but the college has repeatedly affirmed its commitment to educating men.

Why Hampden–Sydney Matters

Hampden–Sydney demonstrates that a small college can preserve a distinctive educational mission for 250 years while adapting to changing student expectations and the realities of American higher education. Its Honor Code, Rhetoric Program, residential environment, and alumni relationships provide a clearly defined educational experience.

Its challenges remain substantial: attracting and retaining students, supporting an expensive residential model, and maintaining academic quality. Unlike many small private colleges, however, Hampden–Sydney has considerable philanthropic and endowment resources with which to address those challenges.

The etiquette manual handed to incoming students reflects the college’s commitment to its traditions. Hampden–Sydney has made its choice clear: remain a college for men, strengthen its academic programs, and invest in scholarships to attract the next generation of students.

About This Series

This profile is part of Small College America, an ongoing series of independently researched articles examining the history, distinctive characteristics, academic strengths, financial condition, and future prospects of private nonprofit colleges across the United States. The series is intended to inform college leaders, trustees, alumni, and others interested in the challenges and opportunities facing small colleges.

Dean Hoke is co-founder and managing partner of Edu Alliance Group, a senior fellow at the Sagamore Institute, and executive producer and co-host of Small College America. Hoke is also co-author of the upcoming book Small Colleges at the Crossroads: Strategic Paths to Growth, Partnership, Merger, or Responsible Closure.

Sources and Data References

Hampden–Sydney College, 2025–26 Factbook. Enrollment, admissions, student demographics, majors, faculty, research, student outcomes, and financial statements. https://www.hsc.edu/institutional-effectiveness/factbook

Hampden–Sydney College, Goals for Student Achievement (updated January 2026). Retention and graduation benchmarks and peer comparisons. https://www.hsc.edu/institutional-effectiveness/goals-for-student-achievement

Hampden–Sydney College, Graduate Outcomes and Facts and Figures. Employment, salary and graduate study reporting. https://www.hsc.edu/academics/career-center/graduate-outcomes ; https://www.hsc.edu/about-h-sc/facts-and-figures

Hampden–Sydney College, “H-SC Establishes Two New Academic Schools,” September 15, 2026. https://www.hsc.edu/news-index/new-schools

Hampden–Sydney College, “It’s Time, Good Men, to Celebrate,” May 4, 2026. Campaign results and philanthropic priorities. https://www.hsc.edu/news-index/night-of-gratitude

Hampden–Sydney College, Restated Strategic Plan, August 2015. Historical enrollment and academic priorities. https://www.hsc.edu/Documents/StrategicPlan/RestatedStrategicPlanAugust2015.pdf

The Hechinger Report, College Financial Health Tracker. Hampden–Sydney trends in net tuition and institutional finances, 2019–2024. https://financialtracker.hechingerreport.org/school.html?unitid=232256

The Princeton Review, 2027 Best Colleges rankings, as reported by Hampden–Sydney. Alumni network and student survey results. https://www.hsc.edu/news-index/best-colleges-2027

Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education, Knocking at the College Door, 11th edition (2024). National and state high school graduate projections. https://www.wiche.edu/knocking/

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, College Enrollment and Work Activity of Recent High School and College Graduates (2024). Immediate college enrollment by sex. https://www.bls.gov/news.release/hsgec.toc.htm

Peer salary context: Wabash College (CollegeData/Peterson’s institutional profile) and Illinois Wesleyan University (Class of 2024 first-destination outcomes). Methodologies and reporting periods differ.

Hampden–Sydney College, institutional history, alumni publications, and The Record (including September 2010 William Henry Harrison article). https://www.hsc.edu/about-h-sc/history ; https://www.hsc.edu/alumni/record

Hampden–Sydney College, Academic and Core Requirements; Rhetoric Program and Rhetoric Proficiency Examination. https://www.hsc.edu/academics/majors-and-minors/academic-requirements and https://www.hsc.edu/academics/rhetoric-program

Hampden–Sydney College, Compass Program. Internships, undergraduate research, study abroad, and experiential learning. https://www.hsc.edu/compass

Hampden–Sydney College, Citrone Scholars Program. Full-tuition merit scholarships and donor information. https://www.hsc.edu/admission-and-financial-aid/financial-aid/types-of-aid/scholarship-awards/citrone-scholars

Hampden–Sydney College, alumni and institutional profiles; Northwestern University, Stephen Colbert education and career background—historical and contemporary alumni biographies.

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Small College America – St. Olaf College

Where Music, Science, Faith, and Vocation Meet

October 18, 2026, by Dean Hoke – Northfield, Minnesota, is an unusual American college town. With approximately 21,000 residents, it is home to two nationally respected private liberal arts colleges: St. Olaf College and Carleton College. Together, they enroll more than 5,000 students. Yet their proximity is only part of the story: communities with distinctly different religious and cultural traditions founded the two institutions eight years apart.

Carleton was established in 1866 by Congregationalists with New England roots. In 1874, Norwegian Lutherans sought to establish their own school. Northfield’s citizens welcomed the proposal. At public meetings that October, residents pledged $5,400 to help bring the school to town, including $2,000 from merchant Harald Thorson. The new institution opened in January 1875 with 37 students in a former public-school building. A Carleton student attended the opening—a small sign of the intertwined histories to come.

Over time, St. Olaf and Carleton developed into nationally respected liberal arts colleges, each with its own traditions and institutional identity. Their athletic rivalry became part of Northfield’s culture, but so did an increasingly practical willingness to cooperate. That relationship remains a distinctive feature of this small Minnesota community.

For St. Olaf, those modest beginnings were the foundation of something its Norwegian Lutheran founders could scarcely have imagined. What began as a school of 37 students has grown into a nationally respected liberal arts college enrolling more than 3,000 undergraduates. Its Lutheran heritage and celebrated musical traditions remain central to its identity, but they tell only part of the story. St. Olaf has also built an impressive record in the sciences, international education, and student achievement, showing how an institution rooted in tradition can evolve without losing its sense of purpose.

From Norwegian Immigrants to a National Liberal Arts College

St. Olaf grew from its origins as a Norwegian Lutheran school into a nationally recognized liberal arts college. Its founders sought to prepare young people for leadership and service while sustaining a cultural and religious community. The college moved to Manitou Heights, known locally as the Hill, in 1878. Its setting above Northfield became part of the institution’s identity, even as its educational reach expanded far beyond Minnesota.

Northfield’s two-college identity gives St. Olaf a distinctive setting: a residential liberal arts campus on Manitou Heights, within a small city shaped by two independent institutions. Their contemporary partnership, explored later in this profile, reflects that history.

Enrollment: A Stable College with a Broad Recruiting Market

For small private colleges, academic reputation matters, but enrollment is often the most immediate measure of institutional sustainability. St. Olaf’s enrollment record stands out for its consistency.

St. Olaf enrolled 3,114 students in fall 2025, up from about 3,046 in 2015. Enrollment has stayed near 3,000 over the past decade, with some variation during and after the pandemic.

First-year applications increased from 5,524 in 2022 to 7,521 in 2026, an increase of approximately 36 percent. Over the same period, the admission rate declined from approximately 56 percent to 41 percent. St. Olaf enrolled 840 new first-year students in fall 2026.

Approximately 45 percent of the newest entering class came from Minnesota, while the remaining 55 percent came from other states or countries. The class represented 44 states. International students account for approximately 10 percent of total enrollment, although the number of new international students has declined in recent entering classes.

The broader enrollment picture is one of relative consistency rather than contraction. That matters for a residential educational model in which campus life, housing, and extracurricular participation are closely connected.

Student Success: Retention and Completion

St. Olaf’s student-success measures are among its strongest institutional indicators. First-year retention has generally ranged from 90 to 94 percent. Among students who entered in fall 2024, 93.6 percent returned in fall 2025. (See retention chart.)

Its six-year graduation rates have generally been in the low- to mid-80-percent range, substantially above the broad national average for private nonprofit four-year institutions.

There are differences among student populations. For the 2019 entering cohort, the six-year graduation rate was approximately 80.7 percent for Pell Grant recipients, compared with 85.3 percent for students receiving neither Pell Grants nor federal subsidized loans. That difference deserves attention even though both figures compare favorably with broad national benchmarks.

Among Class of 2025 graduates, St. Olaf reported that 95 percent with known outcomes were employed, continuing their education, or participating in full-time service within seven months of graduation. The college reported outcomes information for approximately 90 percent of the class.

Taken together, retention, graduation, and early career outcomes suggest that most St. Olaf students make steady progress toward their degrees and next steps.

Lutheran Heritage, Contemporary Mission

Founded by Norwegian Lutheran immigrants, St. Olaf has maintained a strong connection to its religious heritage while welcoming students from a broad range of faiths and backgrounds. Today, about 15 percent of entering students identify as Lutheran, reflecting the changing religious composition of American higher education. More importantly, the college continues to incorporate its founding philosophy into its educational mission.

St. Olaf’s mission statement declares: “St. Olaf College challenges students to excel in the liberal arts, examine faith and values, and explore meaningful vocation in an inclusive, globally engaged community nourished by Lutheran tradition.”

The college gives that commitment substance through its academic curriculum. Students pursuing the Bachelor of Arts degree must complete general education requirements in Religion, Faith, and Values; Christian Theology in Dialogue; and Ethical Reasoning in Context. These courses encourage students to examine religious traditions, consider different perspectives, and engage with moral and philosophical questions. The emphasis is not on religious conformity but on developing the intellectual tools to understand faith, values, and human responsibility.

Central to this philosophy is the Lutheran concept of vocation. At St. Olaf, vocation means more than preparing for employment or choosing a profession. It asks students to consider how their knowledge, talents, and responsibilities can contribute to their communities and the broader world. This understanding extends naturally into the college’s emphasis on service, civic engagement, and international education.

The commitment is also evident in St. Olaf’s 2024–2030 strategic plan, Solution Seekers, which identifies elevating vocation, expanding innovation, and sustaining the community as its principal goals. The plan reinforces the idea that academic excellence and preparation for meaningful lives are closely connected.

The college’s Lutheran heritage remains visible in its attention to faith, ethics, and vocation, even as its curriculum and student body reflect a wider range of perspectives.

Academics: More Than a College Known for Music

Music is central to St. Olaf’s public identity, but its record of preparing students who eventually earn research doctorates reveals an equally important academic strength.

According to the National Science Foundation’s Survey of Earned Doctorates, 314 St. Olaf alumni earned research doctorates between 2020 and 2024. By total number, the college ranked sixth among comparable baccalaureate arts and sciences institutions, placing it alongside Oberlin, Carleton, Swarthmore, Williams, and other nationally recognized liberal arts colleges.

For 2015–2024, St. Olaf ranked second among comparable liberal arts colleges in the number of alumni earning doctorates in biological and biomedical sciences, third in chemistry, and third in mathematics and statistics. These rankings measure former undergraduates who later earned doctorates, not degrees awarded by St. Olaf; they are not adjusted for undergraduate enrollment.

Mathematics, biology, and chemistry are prominent fields, alongside economics and psychology. The instructional model is also relatively personal: in 2025–26, St. Olaf reported an 11.3-to-1 student-faculty ratio and 237 full-time instructional faculty. These figures help explain the capacity for faculty-guided research, although they are not, by themselves, measures of teaching quality.

Students have access to Regents Hall of Natural and Mathematical Sciences, a major academic facility that opened in 2008. The approximately $64 million building provides laboratories, classrooms, and interdisciplinary learning spaces and received LEED Platinum certification.

Through the Collaborative Undergraduate Research and Inquiry program, students work with faculty on projects in the natural sciences, social sciences, and humanities. During summer 2025, 82 students collaborated with 30 faculty and staff members.

This environment provides important context for President Susan Rundell Singer’s 2023 appointment. A biologist, Singer previously directed the National Science Foundation’s Division of Undergraduate Education and spent approximately three decades on the faculty at nearby Carleton College before becoming provost at Rollins College. She inherited a strong scientific tradition rather than one needing to be created from scratch.

That scientific record complicates the familiar picture of St. Olaf as primarily a music college. Its students can combine serious study in the sciences with performance, research, and other campus activities.

Music: A Tradition with Unusual Reach

In 1912, F. Melius Christiansen, founder of St. Olaf’s music department, organized a Christmas musical program for the college community. What began as a local event became a defining feature of the institution.

More than a century later, the St. Olaf Christmas Festival brings together over 500 student musicians from five choirs and the college orchestra. The annual celebration combines sacred music, orchestral performance, and the traditions of Advent, Christmas, and Epiphany. The festival reaches audiences beyond campus through performances, recordings, and broadcasts.

Yet the Christmas Festival represents only part of the college’s musical life. St. Olaf maintains choirs, orchestras, bands, jazz ensembles, and other performance opportunities. More than 1,000 students participate in its musical ensembles, a remarkable level of involvement for a college of approximately 3,100 undergraduates.

The St. Olaf Choir, established by Christiansen, is internationally recognized for its choral tradition. Its longtime conductor, Anton Armstrong, a 1978 graduate, has directed the ensemble since 1990.

Music extends well beyond the music major, which accounted for approximately 5 percent of declared majors in 2023–24. More than 1,000 students participate in ensembles, including those pursuing medicine, mathematics, business, and education.

Athletics and the Broadly Engaged Student

St. Olaf competes in NCAA Division III as a member of the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. Its teams are known as the Oles.

Nearly 600 St. Olaf undergraduates participate in the college’s 26 varsity sports. Club and intramural programs extend athletic opportunities to an even broader segment of the student body.

The scale of participation in athletics and music illustrates the range of experiences available alongside academic study.

International Education: Learning Beyond Northfield

Approximately 70 percent of St. Olaf’s Class of 2025 participated in study abroad or study away during their undergraduate years—an unusually extensive commitment to learning beyond campus. The Institute of International Education’s 2025 Open Doors ranked St. Olaf second nationally among baccalaureate colleges by the number of students studying abroad in 2023–24. The two measures differ: the class participation figure includes domestic study away, while Open Doors counts international study.

International experiences are supported through the Smith Center for Global Engagement. The college has received major philanthropic support from Louis and Mary Kay Smith, whose international experiences helped shape their interest in global education. A $20 million gift announced in 2026 followed earlier support for study abroad and international music touring.

Beginning in 2027, St. Olaf plans to offer qualifying semester-long study abroad programs at the same institutional cost as studying on campus, reducing a potential financial barrier to participation.

Philanthropy has also supported a clearly defined academic priority in international education. St. Olaf’s unusually high participation and national Open Doors distinction make it one of the college’s most consequential strengths.

Financial Strength and the Cost of the Model

At the end of fiscal year 2025, St. Olaf’s endowment stood at approximately $863.9 million, up from $711.7 million two years earlier. Total net assets exceeded $1 billion.

The college’s financial strength reflects generations of philanthropic support, investment returns, and institutional planning. The For the Hill and Beyond campaign, completed in 2020, raised approximately $252 million in commitments against a $200 million goal, including substantial support for endowed scholarships.

The financial story, however, is more complicated than the size of the endowment suggests. Audited statements report approximately $154.7 million in operating revenue and support and $155.1 million in operating expenses for FY2025, a modest deficit of about $360,000. FY2024 produced a small operating surplus. These narrow annual margins illustrate the ongoing cost of sustaining a residential liberal arts college, even one with considerable accumulated resources.

Endowment distributions totaled about $33.1 million in FY2025, or 21.4 percent of reported operating revenue and support. Such distributions are a planned component of the operating model rather than evidence of distress. They do, however, underscore the importance of investment returns, disciplined spending policies, and donor restrictions on endowed funds.

For 2026–27, St. Olaf’s published comprehensive fee—tuition, housing, meals, and student activity charges—is approximately $81,200. Most students pay less after financial aid. According to the U.S. Department of Education’s College Scorecard, the average net price for first-time, full-time undergraduates receiving federal Title IV aid was approximately $23,874 in 2023–24; an individual family’s cost varies.

The difference between the published price and the revenue St. Olaf actually collects is substantial. In FY2025, approximately $138.5 million in scholarships and grants reduced $226.6 million in combined tuition, room, and board charges to about $88.0 million in net revenue. Scholarship assistance thus offset about 61 percent of those combined charges, compared with about 59 percent the previous year. This is not a NACUBO-equivalent tuition discount rate, because the charges include housing and meals. Net revenue from tuition, room, and board increased modestly from $85.7 million in FY2024, even as scholarship commitments grew. The figures show both the extent of student assistance and the resources required to maintain St. Olaf’s educational model.

Collaboration Across the Cannon

St. Olaf and Carleton are two respected, well-resourced liberal arts colleges sharing one small Minnesota community. They have different histories, traditions, and institutional identities, and they compete for students, faculty, philanthropic support, and football victories. Yet their relationship also shows that competition need not prevent meaningful cooperation.

Their libraries began collaborating in 2003 through a cross-library borrowing system. A $1.4 million Andrew W. Mellon Foundation grant awarded in 2013 expanded their work in library services, academic programs, and information technology. The partnership has included shared library systems and staffing arrangements, collaborative courses, and jointly supported information-security and environmental health and safety functions.

The collaboration remains active. St. Olaf’s 2024–2030 strategic plan identifies Carleton and the City of Northfield as partners in shared sustainability goals. The colleges also share the Campus-Go shuttle service, which helps students reach appointments, volunteer opportunities, and jobs in Northfield and nearby Dundas. Northfield’s own long-range plan identifies stronger relationships with both colleges as a community priority.

There are limits: admissions and fundraising remain independent, and the colleges have not published comprehensive estimates of financial savings. But this is not a rescue arrangement. Two strong institutions have chosen to share selected capabilities while retaining the independence and traditions they value. For other small colleges, Northfield offers an encouraging example of cooperation that can serve students and the surrounding community without requiring a merger.

Leadership and Institutional Continuity

St. Olaf’s recent leadership history contrasts with institutions experiencing frequent presidential turnover. David R. Anderson, a 1974 St. Olaf graduate, served as president from 2006 until 2023. His 17-year tenure included major fundraising initiatives, campus investments, and continued efforts to build the college’s national reputation.

In June 2023, Susan Rundell Singer succeeded him as St. Olaf’s first woman president. Singer brought experience from Carleton College, the National Science Foundation, and Rollins College. The transition was planned well in advance, not prompted by an institutional emergency.

Singer’s administration introduced Solution Seekers, the strategic plan for 2024–2030, with priorities including vocation, innovation, and community sustainability.

Alumni: A Strong Network with Deep Minnesota Roots

St. Olaf reports an alumni network of more than 35,000 people. LinkedIn identifies approximately 28,700 profiles associated with the institution. Nearly half of those profiles are located in Minnesota, including approximately 13,400 in the Greater Minneapolis–St. Paul metropolitan area.

The college’s concentration of Minnesota alumni also provides a professional network for graduates seeking opportunities in the region.

The metropolitan area provides opportunities across healthcare, business, education, technology, finance, and nonprofit organizations. Employers represented among St. Olaf’s LinkedIn alumni include Mayo Clinic, the University of Minnesota, Target, and U.S. Bank.

Notable graduates illustrate the breadth of the college’s educational tradition. Ole E. Rølvaag (1905) became an influential Norwegian-American novelist and St. Olaf professor, and his novel Giants in the Earth explored immigrant life on the frontier. James Reeb (1950), a Unitarian Universalist minister and civil rights activist, was fatally attacked in Selma, Alabama, in 1965 while supporting voting rights.

Dean Buntrock (1955), founder and longtime leader of Waste Management, became one of St. Olaf’s most consequential benefactors; his family’s philanthropic commitments exceeded $66 million. He died in April 2026. Siri Hustvedt (1977) became an internationally recognized novelist and essayist exploring identity, psychology, memory, and science. Anton Armstrong (1978) returned to lead the St. Olaf Choir in 1990 and helped preserve its international reputation. Cheryl Willman (1977) became a prominent physician-scientist and cancer researcher.

These alumni represent literature, civil rights, business, music, and medical research—very different fields connected by a common undergraduate institution.

Beyond the Brochure: Jay Gatsby and the Hill

St. Olaf has an unexpected place in one of the best-known American novels. In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, the fictional Jay Gatsby attends St. Olaf for only two weeks before leaving, dissatisfied with his circumstances. The reference gives the college an unusual footnote in American literary history.

Northfield has an equally memorable story beyond the campus. On September 7, 1876, the James–Younger Gang attempted to rob the First National Bank. Townspeople resisted, and the robbery failed, though bank cashier Joseph Lee Heywood and resident Nicolaus Gustafson were killed. The episode remains part of the city’s identity through its annual Defeat of Jesse James Days celebration. On campus, generations of students have had their own rallying cry: the exuberant “Um! Yah! Yah!” cheer.

What St. Olaf Tells Us About Small Colleges

St. Olaf’s reputation for music and its Lutheran heritage tell only part of the story. Its record of preparing graduates for scientific research, its international education programs, and the breadth of student participation demonstrate how a small college can sustain more than one institutional strength.

The resources behind that breadth matter. Strong retention and graduation outcomes accompany substantial commitments to scholarships, academic facilities, and student opportunities. Endowment support makes those commitments possible, but it does not eliminate the need for careful financial choices.

For other small colleges, the lesson is not to replicate St. Olaf’s endowment or programs. It is to recognize which inherited strengths can serve contemporary educational purposes—and to understand the financial commitments required to sustain them.

In Northfield, two institutions have also demonstrated that preserving a distinctive identity need not rule out cooperation. St. Olaf’s experience suggests that a college’s traditions are most valuable when they open opportunities for students rather than limit what the institution can become.

About This Series

This profile is part of Small College America, an ongoing series of independently researched articles examining the history, distinctive characteristics, academic strengths, financial condition, and future prospects of private nonprofit colleges across the United States. The series is intended to inform college leaders, trustees, alumni, and others interested in the challenges and opportunities facing small colleges.