Bethany College (Kansas) - History

History

Bethany College, established by Swedish Lutheran immigrants in 1881, is a college of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ECLA). Swedish-Lutheran settlers worked with the Rev. Dr. Carl Aaron Swensson, Bethany’s founder, to establish Bethany Academy on October 15, 1881, in the sacristy of Bethany Lutheran Church in Lindsborg, Kansas, with ten students. Growing rapidly, Bethany evolved from Academy through 1885, to Bethany Normal Institute in 1887, to Bethany College in 1889. Notable Bethany presidents in the 20th century include Rev. Dr. Ernst Frederick Wilhelm Pihlblad (1873–1943), who was a Professor from 1895 to 1904, and president from 1905 to 1941. Under Pihlblad, Bethany was accredited and became a member of the National Association of Schools of Music. Under the watch of Emory K. Lindquist (1908–1922), who took office of president in 1943, Bethany survived war troubles, grew in post-war America and improved its reputation. He is the author of Bethany in Kansas: The History of a College (1975).

In May 2007, Bethany College announced the appointment of Dr. Edward F. Leonard III as the college's 13th president. Leonard previously served as Vice President for College Advancement at Wilmington College.

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