Geneva College has always had a desire to serve a vastly diverse student body. After the Civil War ended, there was push to re-open the doors of the college. This desire for re-establishment had three motivations.
First, Nathan Johnston and his wife wanted to re-open the college and came from Vermont for that purpose.
Second, the Reformed Presbyterian Church realized the benefits of a denominational college and led by RP Rev. John McCartney wanted to re-establish Geneva.
Third, McCartney, who owned the college buildings, had a vision to provide a fully funded education to selected freedmen in the South. His hope was to educate these men so that they could return as pastors and teachers to help build and strengthen a new community of freed and educated people of color. This vision, being important to the college and the Reformed Presbyterian denomination, became a reality when Geneva College was reestablished in 1865.
Daniel Boxley was one student who came to Geneva because of the Program for Freedmen. He graduated from the college in 1873 and went on to teach at Knox Academy in Alabama. Knox Academy was a school established by Reformed Presbyterians to provide education for African-Americans in the South. After teaching, Boxley went on to work as a mail carrier and hotel clerk. In 1908 he became a rancher in Franklin County, Washington.
The presence of freedmen in college life in the North was uncommon in this era, but Geneva was at the forefront of inclusiveness in higher education. African-American students from the South would be members of the student body well into the 1880s. Some notable African-American graduates were Lewis Johnston, G. M. Elliott and Solomon Kingston, all of whom returned to Alabama after their Geneva education to become pastors in the African-American Reformed Presbyterian congregation in Selma.
Geneva College values honoring one another and has been involved in breaking the social and economic barriers that prevent people from receiving a necessary education. Geneva continues today to seek to provide equal opportunity education and to minster to people of all backgrounds. The Diversity and Inclusion team works as part of the Center for Student Engagement at Geneva College to ensure that all students are being served, to learn more go to http://u1tc.tif2005.com/cse/diversity-inclusion/.
If you’d like to learn more about the core values of a biblically based, Christ-centered education at Geneva, we’d love to chat with you. For more information on how Geneva College can help you pursue your education goals, please phone us at 855-979-5563 or email web@tif2005.com.
-Katharyne Reitsma ‘20
Opinions expressed in the Geneva Blog are those of its contributors and do not necessarily represent the opinions or official position of the College. The Geneva Blog is a place for faculty and contributing writers to express points of view, academic insights, and contribute to national conversations to spark thought, conversation, and the pursuit of truth, in line with our philosophy as a Christian, liberal arts institution.
Feb 26, 2019
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Today is National School Librarian. Learn more about the Geneva College library staff and resources here!
We can learn much from those who came before us. In 1923, President of Geneva College Archibald A. Johnston wrote a forward for the college yearbook highlighting the history, purpose, and doctrine of Geneva. Only 75 years from the founding of the college at Northwood, Ohio, Johnston had a clear understanding of not only the how behind Geneva’s establishment but the why.
Here in Beaver Falls, there is a ton of history and a load of fun facts that go right along with it. Take a break and read part 3 of our series of fun facts about Geneva.
Summer Orientation is designed to welcome both incoming students and parents on a journey together along with Geneva faculty and staff to ensure a well-informed, smooth transition into college. The college strongly recommends that incoming students attend Summer Orientation.
Geneva College faculty members understand and effectively teach their disciplines with academic excellence in combination with a consistent biblical worldview. In addition to serving students on campus, Geneva professors approach the larger world as thought leaders in the integration of faith and learning. Here are some recent examples.
Dr. Kevin DeYoung works as both a pastor in Christ Covenant Church (PCA) in Matthews, NC, and an Associate Professor of Systematic Theology at Reformed Theological Seminary in Charlotte. DeYoung delivered his Geneva College Commencement Address, "Whatever You Do, Do Not Be True to Yourself," to the graduating class on May 7, 2022.
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