Drury University

History

Drury was founded as Springfield College in 1873 by Congregationalist church missionaries in the mold of other Congregationalist universities such as Dartmouth College and Yale University. Rev. Nathan Morrison, Samuel Drury, and James and Charles Harwood provided the school's initial endowment and organization; Samuel Drury's gift was the largest of the group and the school was soon renamed in honor of Drury's recently deceased son.

The early curriculum emphasized educational, religious, and musical strengths. Students came to the new college from a wide area, including the Indian Territories of Oklahoma. The first graduating class included four women.

When classes began in 1873, they were held in a single building on a campus occupying less than 1 ¹⁄₂ acres (0.61 ha). Twenty-five years later the 40-acre (16.2 ha) campus included Stone Chapel, the President's House and three academic buildings. Today, the university occupies a 115-acre (46.5 ha) campus, including the original historic buildings.

On April 28, 1960, Drury College was the setting for an episode of NBC's The Ford Show, Starring Tennessee Ernie Ford. Tennessee Ernie Ford sang his trademark "Sixteen Tons" and the hymn "Take My Hand, Precious Lord".

Drury College became Drury University on January 1, 2000.

The current president is J. Timothy Cloyd, formerly president of Hendrix College in Conway, Arkansas. Dr. Cloyd was elected to serve as the 18th president of Drury University in 2016.

Religious affiliations

Drury, like Dartmouth and Yale, was founded by Congregationalist missionaries, and like these schools, it is no longer a religious institution. It remains affiliated with the Congregationalist church and its successor, the United Church of Christ. It has also been affiliated with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) since the founding of the Drury School of Religion in 1909.

Academics

Drury is a mid-size undergraduate and graduate research university, accredited by The Higher Learning Commission. The university offers 54 undergraduate majors and several professional degrees through the Hammons School of Architecture, Breech School of Business Administration, and School of Education & Child Development.

Awards

Drury has been at or near the top of the U.S. News and World Report "Great Schools at Great Prices" list for the Midwest since 1999, including five years in the #1 slot. It was ranked No. 8 on U.S. News and World Report's Best Regional Universities (Midwest) for 2014. It has been included in Princeton Review's Guide to Green Colleges since 2010. Other accolades include Honorable Mention for Best Liberal Arts School in the Nation by Time Magazine, a top producer of Fulbright Scholars in 2011 according to the Institute of International Education, and one of 13 "Institutions of Excellence" by the Policy Center on the First Year of College.

Housing

Drury is a residential university. Full-time day school students live on campus until they are a minimum of 21 at the start of an academic year, unless they meet specific criteria to be exempt from the housing policy.

Freshmen live in one of the three residence halls: Smith, Wallace, and Sunderland halls. Smith Hall and Wallace Hall are suite-style double-occupancy rooms, where four students share a bathroom. Sunderland Hall has suite-style single-occupancy rooms, with four students and two bathrooms in a suite. Freshmen in Sunderland Hall live in Living Learning Communities (LLCs). Each LLC is composed of 16-20 students interested in a common theme, interacting together and with faculty and staff through a shared class, CORE 101.

Upperclassmen may choose to live in university-owned apartments, houses, fraternity houses, or the Summit Park Leadership Community (an upperclassman LLC). A majority of campus apartments have 4 single-occupancy bedrooms and are fully furnished. There are a limited number of studios, 1-bedroom, 2-bedroom and 3-bedroom apartments, both furnished and unfurnished. Summit Park residents (usually sophomores) in groups of 4 or 8 form a year-long partnership with a local community agency and commit to 15 hours of community service a semester.

Amenities for the residence halls and fraternity houses include furnishings, mini-fridge/microwave, wireless and network Internet, expanded basic cable TV service, community laundry facilities for no additional charge, all utilities, including trash and co-mingled recycling.

Campus apartments include expanded basic cable television service, Internet access, all utilities including trash and co-mingled recycling. Furnishings, laundry facilities and kitchen appliances will vary by location.

All residents may attend Residence Life Association (RLA) events for no additional charge, as well as programs hosted by Resident Assistants or Community Assistants.

Study abroad

Drury's study abroad program is an integral part of the college experience. Almost half of the student body studies overseas at some point in short-term, semester, or year-long programs. Foreign learning is a requirement for most students with majors in the schools of Business and Architecture.

Drury also maintains a satellite campus in Aegina, Greece that is home to several of the university's most distinctive courses. Though the Center is quite popular with architecture students, it is attended by students across disciplines and majors.

Athletics

Drury's NCAA Division II intercollegiate athletic teams compete in men's and women's basketball, men's and women's cross country, men's and women's golf, men's and women's soccer, men's and women's swimming, men's and women's tennis, men's baseball, men's wrestling, women's softball, and women's volleyball.

The school was a founding member of the Heartland Conference. In the fall of 2005, the Drury Panthers joined the Great Lakes Valley Conference

Greek organizations

Drury currently has four sororities and four fraternities.

Sororities:

Fraternities:

Notable alumni

Bill Virdon,Professional Baseball Player, National Baseball Hall of Fame