Human greatness is achieved when generous, purposefully educated, and confident people come together in a spirit of humility and determination to address the challenges and realize the opportunities of their age. ;xNLx;Our founder, the Rev. George Harvey Ball, lived out that belief when he established this institution along the shores of Keuka Lake in 1890. In ensuing years, other great leaders with vision, passion and purpose built upon that legacy, adding experiential learning to the core of our liberal arts curriculum, capped with our signature Field Period™. Today, after decades of remarkable achievements, we continue to produce well-educated, optimistic and resourceful people who lead lives of purpose and accomplishment. From Rev. Ball to Edith Estey, from Eleanor Roosevelt to Martin Luther King, Jr., from our home campus in Keuka Park to our sister schools in China and Vietnam, we all share in the mission and vision of Keuka College and we Believe in What We Can Do Together.
Construction on the original Ball Hall started in April 1888, but its interior wasn't fully completed til years later.
Baptist minister George Harvey Ball cast his vision to provide a high-level education to all deserving students, regardless of economic background.
Chartered Aug. 30, Keuka College & Institute is established along Keuka Lake to make a quality education affordable for young men and women.
Elected by church and board leaders, Rev. Newell Calhoun served as the temporary leader of the Institute from June 1896 - Feb. 1897.
Rev. Ball returned again to the helm of Keuka College & Institute from February 1897 - 1904.
A distant relative of George Harvey Ball, Rev. John Chester Ball took over as the second president of Keuka Institute, serving 1904-1906.
From 1907-1909, Rev. Dr. Zephaniah A. Space, served as the third president of Keuka Institute. Today, one of the residential halls bears his name.
A young minister, Rev. Arthur Braden, was appointed to serve as the fourth president of the Institute, serving 1909-1910.
Rev. Joseph A. Serena was appointed the fifth president of Keuka Institute, serving from 1910 until the school was forced to close in 1915.
Financial troubles encountered in 1915 forced the College & Institute to close for a period of six years.
Stepping up to serve even before the College reopened in 1921, Pres. Arthur H. Norton served many years as the eighth president of Keuka College.
As World War I and its own bleak period came to an end, the institution was opened again as the all-female Keuka College for Women.
Groundbreaking for the building first known as Richardson Hall was held in 1924. Renamed Harrington Hall, it houses student rooms and the health center.
A ground breaking ceremony for the College's primary classroom building took place in 1924. In 1969, its main corridor was made into an art gallery.
Dr. J. Hillis Miller served as president of the Keuka College for Women from 1935-1941 and corresponded with First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt.
In her Feb. 18 "My Day" column, the First Lady shared about her Keuka College visit, praising its student body, low tuition and work opportunities.
Dr. Henry E. Allen was appointed the eighth president of Keuka College, serving from 1941 - 1946.
The annual, self-designed experience giving undergraduates time to explore their interests in "the laboratory of life" was established.
At the suggestion of First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt three years prior, Keuka College unveiled its acclaimed nursing program.
A new and time-honored tradition began in 1944, of formally "pinning" each graduating nurse with a tangible symbol of the end of her nursing studies.
First occupied in 1945, Allen Hall today houses offices, classrooms and several art studios.
Named for Lucina Ball, a niece of the Rev. George Harvey Ball, the Lucina serves as the ceremonial and physical home for the President's family.
Former Dean and co-founder of Field Period™, Dr. Katherine Gillette Blyley, serves as the first female president, from 1947-1958.
First known as the Hattie Strong Library, Strong Hall opened March 1, 1951, and today houses two departments: Education and IT Services.
During a Monday Social Responsibility Series lecture at Hegeman Hall, eventual Supreme Court Justice, Thurgood Marshall, visited. Speaking on civil rights, the man whom Pres. Kennedy appointed Solictor General and who later was named to the U.S. Supreme Court, was "imposing, both physically and morally," recalls Barbara Schaefer Allardice '61. Marshall's visit to campus came about three years after the monumental Brown vs. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas court case.
Built with federal loan funding, the smallest residence hall was occupied Sept. 1958, and today houses male and female students.
Dr. William S. Litterick assumed the helm of Keuka College in 1959, serving until 1965.
Performing classical music as part of an artists' series, Ania Dorfman, concert pianist, played many of the same songs she would share in December 1959 on stage at Carnegie Hall.
First known as Millspaugh Nursing & Science Center, the $450,000 building was completed in 1961, renovated & renamed Jephson Science Center in 2000.
Dedicated in late April 1972, the building formerly known as South Hall was constructed to house 153 students. It was renamed for Pres. Z.A. Space.
A ground breaking ceremony for the building first known as the Norton Chapel and Jephson Center for Christian Education was held April 28, 1962.
On June 16, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered the baccalaureate address and received an honorary doctor of letters degree.
Completed in Sept. 1963, Saunders Hall first housed the cafeteria and dorm housing for 150 students. Today, it is an all-female residence hall.
Dedicated Oct. 10, 1964 in honor of Pres. Arthur Norton, the chapel serves as a setting for religious services, weddings, musical concerts & events.
In spring of 1965, Robert F. Kennedy toured the Veterans Administration in Bath, NY, meeting KC nurses during the tour.
For less than a year, Dr. Wilbour Eddy Saunders served as interim president for Keuka College. Today, a residence hall is named in his honor.
Dr. G. Wayne Glick served from 1966 - 1974 as the College's 12th president.
Construction on a $1M residence hall for 150 students began in 1966 & in Aug. '67, students moved in. Lucretia Davis Jephson named it for her parents.
At the National Institute of Health in Maryland, two KC nursing students make the most of an evening off. Photo submitted by Ellen Hollstein Jones.
Construction on the athletics building began in 1972. It included a pool until 2010 and now contains a second gym, cardio & weight rooms and offices.
Named for longtime Trustee David Dahlstrom, the center housing the cafeteria, student life offices, bookstore and cafe was dedicated May 20, 1972.
Named for Dr. Quintin Lightner, a 20-year prof & chaplain, the $1.5M library was built & opened in the fall of '72, and dedicated May 12, 1973.
Nursing students and patients of a local Vererans Administration hospital celebrate Halloween together. Submitted by Ellen Hollstein Jones.
Melanie Fitzpatrick, left and Carrie Lowell, (in white) study the bones of the body prior to a test.
Pinning Ceremony event in 1973. Back row, left to right, Rose Kearney, Janet Peck, Betsyanne Parker, Carrie Lowell, Gail Grifforest. Front row: Katie Leask, Ellen Hollstein Jones, Nancy Sinclair and Barbara Jamison.
Dr. William L. Boyle Jr. served as the 13th President of Keuka College from 1975 -1978.
For a brief time in 1978, Dr. Eric J. Stettner served as interim president of the College, the 14th leader to hold the role.
Dr. Elizabeth Woods Shaw, the second female to hold the highest position in the College, served as president from 1978 through 1983
Appointed in late 1983, Dr. Arthur F. Kirk Jr began work Jan. 1, 1984 and served as the 16th president. Dr. Kirk guided the transition from an all-women's college to a co-ed school, introduced men's sports teams and in the course of his 13 years at the helm, restored and stabilized the finances.
In an effort to preserve the school amid financial distress, men were formally admitted to degree programs once again.
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