Trevecca Nazarene University
Encyclopedia
Trevecca Nazarene University (TNU) is a private
Christian liberal arts college
located in Nashville
, Tennessee
.
TNU was founded in 1901 by Cumberland Presbyterian
minister J. O. McClurkan as the "Pentecostal Literary and Bible Training School". Part of the Pentecostal Alliance, it started offering bachelor's degree
s in 1910, and the school's name was changed to Trevecca College for Christian Workers in 1911, after the Coleg Trefeca. The school was located in downtown
Nashville until 1914, when it was moved to East Nashville on Gallatin Road. In 1917, the campus suffered a disastrous fire, and its students and faculty temporarily transferred to Ruskin Cave College. That same year, the school begrudgingly became an official college of the Church of the Nazarene
, in order to save itself financially. Shortly after it had become a Nazarene institution, it absorbed the Southeastern Nazarene College of Georgia, but still found itself in bankruptcy
and forced to sell its campus by 1932.
After occupying a temporary space on the former campus of the defunct Walden University
on White's Creek, it was unable to buy the property and relocated to the Nashville First Church of the Nazarene, taking on the name Trevecca Nazarene College (TNC) in 1934. In 1935, the college moved back to its present location on Murfreesboro Road in southeast Nashville, where it once again leased and then took over the 7-acre
campus of Walden University in 1937. President A. B. Mackey bought an adjoining 40 acres (161,874.4 m²) plot for himself and later transferred it to the college. It was first accredited in 1969 and began offering master's degree
s in 1984. In 1995, the school's name was changed from Trevecca Nazarene College to Trevecca Nazarene University (TNU). In 1999, Trevecca offered its first doctoral degree (an EdD), and in 2011, added its first PhD degree (in clinical counseling).
s affiliated with the Church of the Nazarene
. TNU is the college for the "Southeast Region" of the United States, comprising the Kentucky, Tennessee, East Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama North, Alabama South, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, North Florida, Central Florida, and Southern Florida districts, which include Tennessee
, North Carolina
, South Carolina
, Mississippi
, Alabama
, Georgia
, Florida
, and part of Kentucky
. Each college receives financial backing from the Nazarene churches on its region; part of each church budget is paid into a fund for its regional school. Each college or university is also bound by a gentlemen's agreement
not to actively recruit outside its respective "educational region." TNU has been accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools
since 1969.
offered by TNU are traditional bachelor's degrees in 53 different majors. The management
and human relations degree is a non-traditional undergraduate degree geared toward working adults. The associate's degree
, the master's degree
, a doctor of philosophy
degree, and a doctor of education
degree are also available.
The 2009 acceptance rate for students who applied to the college was 69.3 percent. The most popular degrees at Trevecca are business, management, marketing, and related support services; biological and biomedical services; education; visual and performing arts; and philosophy and religious studies. The freshman retention rate (freshman who continue their education at Trevecca after the first year) was 70.5% as of 2010. Over 72% of classes at Trevecca have fewer than 20 students.
Students participate in spiritual life activities throughout the school year and summers, including chapels three times a week (a number of which each semester are required for all undergraduates), local community service projects, mission trips both in the US and around the world, MERGE small groups (each designed for specific types of spiritual growth and learning), and other spiritually formational activities.
), Trojan Idol, and the Songwriter's Challenge. Since many of these events cost money to produce, there is a need for an admission fee. Student Life Activities Pass (SLAP) cards are sold by the Student Government Association at the beginning of every school year for discounts at on-campus events and around the Nashville area to offset this cost.
In addition to SGA and RHA, TNU has a large number of student organizations and groups, including ministry-related clubs, service organizations, political and social interest clubs, and clubs or ensembles for many individual majors.
Trevecca has cooperative agreements with other local universities for programs not available directly through Trevecca, including the Army ROTC at Vanderbilt University, which offers a commission in the Army as well as a degree from Trevecca once the bachelor's program at TNU and the ROTC program at Vanderbilt are both successfully completed. Trevecca and Vanderbilt also have a joint program allowing students interested in marching band to participate in the Vandy band during Vanderbilt's football season.
of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics
Division I and competes in baseball
, basketball
, golf
, soccer, softball
, cross country
, and volleyball
. In July 2011, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) announced that Trevecca had been approved for the Division-II membership process. TNU continues to compete in both the NAIA and TSAC conferences throughout the 2011-12 school year while beginning the possible 3-year transition. In addition to intercollegiate sports, TNU also has a cheerleading
team and holds competitions in a variety of intramural sports
, including flag football
, softball
, and beach volleyball
.
Private university
Private universities are universities not operated by governments, although many receive public subsidies, especially in the form of tax breaks and public student loans and grants. Depending on their location, private universities may be subject to government regulation. Private universities are...
Christian liberal arts college
Liberal arts college
A liberal arts college is one with a primary emphasis on undergraduate study in the liberal arts and sciences.Students in the liberal arts generally major in a particular discipline while receiving exposure to a wide range of academic subjects, including sciences as well as the traditional...
located in Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
.
History
Cumberland Presbyterian Church
The Cumberland Presbyterian Church is a Presbyterian Christian denomination spawned by the Second Great Awakening. In 2007, it had an active membership of less than 50,000 and about 800 congregations, the majority of which are concentrated in the United States...
minister J. O. McClurkan as the "Pentecostal Literary and Bible Training School". Part of the Pentecostal Alliance, it started offering bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
s in 1910, and the school's name was changed to Trevecca College for Christian Workers in 1911, after the Coleg Trefeca. The school was located in downtown
Downtown
Downtown is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's core or central business district ....
Nashville until 1914, when it was moved to East Nashville on Gallatin Road. In 1917, the campus suffered a disastrous fire, and its students and faculty temporarily transferred to Ruskin Cave College. That same year, the school begrudgingly became an official college of the Church of the Nazarene
Church of the Nazarene
The Church of the Nazarene is an evangelical Christian denomination that emerged from the 19th century Holiness movement in North America with its members colloquially referred to as Nazarenes. It is the largest Wesleyan-holiness denomination in the world. At the end of 2010, the Church of the...
, in order to save itself financially. Shortly after it had become a Nazarene institution, it absorbed the Southeastern Nazarene College of Georgia, but still found itself in bankruptcy
Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal status of an insolvent person or an organisation, that is, one that cannot repay the debts owed to creditors. In most jurisdictions bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor....
and forced to sell its campus by 1932.
After occupying a temporary space on the former campus of the defunct Walden University
Walden University (Tennessee)
Walden University , a historically black college, was created by northern missionaries of the Methodist Church in 1865 in Nashville, Tennessee to serve freedmen...
on White's Creek, it was unable to buy the property and relocated to the Nashville First Church of the Nazarene, taking on the name Trevecca Nazarene College (TNC) in 1934. In 1935, the college moved back to its present location on Murfreesboro Road in southeast Nashville, where it once again leased and then took over the 7-acre
Acre
The acre is a unit of area in a number of different systems, including the imperial and U.S. customary systems. The most commonly used acres today are the international acre and, in the United States, the survey acre. The most common use of the acre is to measure tracts of land.The acre is related...
campus of Walden University in 1937. President A. B. Mackey bought an adjoining 40 acres (161,874.4 m²) plot for himself and later transferred it to the college. It was first accredited in 1969 and began offering master's degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
s in 1984. In 1995, the school's name was changed from Trevecca Nazarene College to Trevecca Nazarene University (TNU). In 1999, Trevecca offered its first doctoral degree (an EdD), and in 2011, added its first PhD degree (in clinical counseling).
Affiliation
TNU is one of eight U.S. liberal arts collegeLiberal arts college
A liberal arts college is one with a primary emphasis on undergraduate study in the liberal arts and sciences.Students in the liberal arts generally major in a particular discipline while receiving exposure to a wide range of academic subjects, including sciences as well as the traditional...
s affiliated with the Church of the Nazarene
Church of the Nazarene
The Church of the Nazarene is an evangelical Christian denomination that emerged from the 19th century Holiness movement in North America with its members colloquially referred to as Nazarenes. It is the largest Wesleyan-holiness denomination in the world. At the end of 2010, the Church of the...
. TNU is the college for the "Southeast Region" of the United States, comprising the Kentucky, Tennessee, East Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama North, Alabama South, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, North Florida, Central Florida, and Southern Florida districts, which include Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
, North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
, South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
, Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
, Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
, Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, and part of Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
. Each college receives financial backing from the Nazarene churches on its region; part of each church budget is paid into a fund for its regional school. Each college or university is also bound by a gentlemen's agreement
Gentlemen's agreement
A gentlemen's agreement is an informal agreement between two or more parties. It may be written, oral, or simply understood as part of an unspoken agreement by convention or through mutually beneficial etiquette. The essence of a gentlemen's agreement is that it relies upon the honor of the parties...
not to actively recruit outside its respective "educational region." TNU has been accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools
Southern Association of Colleges and Schools
The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools is one of the six regional accreditation organizations recognized by the United States Department of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation...
since 1969.
Campus
Trevecca has a 65 acre campus in an urban neighborhood environment, located about 3 miles from downtown Nashville. The campus of Trevecca includes not only the Nazarene University, but also Trevecca Community Church of the Nazarene, pastored by Dr. Dwight M. Gunter, II, and Trevecca Towers, a Christian retirement community.Academics
TNU is organized into four schools: Arts and Sciences, Business and Management, Education, and Religion. Each of these schools is separated into divisions or departments. Most of the degreesAcademic degree
An academic degree is a position and title within a college or university that is usually awarded in recognition of the recipient having either satisfactorily completed a prescribed course of study or having conducted a scholarly endeavour deemed worthy of his or her admission to the degree...
offered by TNU are traditional bachelor's degrees in 53 different majors. The management
Management
Management in all business and organizational activities is the act of getting people together to accomplish desired goals and objectives using available resources efficiently and effectively...
and human relations degree is a non-traditional undergraduate degree geared toward working adults. The associate's degree
Associate's degree
An associate degree is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by community colleges, junior colleges, technical colleges, and bachelor's degree-granting colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study usually lasting two years...
, the master's degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
, a doctor of philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
degree, and a doctor of education
Doctor of Education
The Doctor of Education or Doctor in Education degree , in Latin, Doctor Educationis, is a research-oriented professional doctorate that prepares the student for academic, administrative, clinical, or research positions in educational, civil, and private organizations.-Differences between an Ed.D...
degree are also available.
The 2009 acceptance rate for students who applied to the college was 69.3 percent. The most popular degrees at Trevecca are business, management, marketing, and related support services; biological and biomedical services; education; visual and performing arts; and philosophy and religious studies. The freshman retention rate (freshman who continue their education at Trevecca after the first year) was 70.5% as of 2010. Over 72% of classes at Trevecca have fewer than 20 students.
Student life
There were 2,345 students at the college in Fall 2010, 975 of whom were traditional undergraduates. Of the entire student body, 44% were male, and 56% were female (as of 2010). The majority of undergraduate students live on campus in residence halls or apartment-style housing and dine on campus in the Hub (fast-food service), the Cube (a sandwich shop), or, most of the time, in the Apple Dining Hall, which was remodeled before the 2010-11 school year.Students participate in spiritual life activities throughout the school year and summers, including chapels three times a week (a number of which each semester are required for all undergraduates), local community service projects, mission trips both in the US and around the world, MERGE small groups (each designed for specific types of spiritual growth and learning), and other spiritually formational activities.
Benson hall
Trevecca has many different places for student residence. The 1 and only males dorm is named "Benson hall", and houses all freshman and sophmore males. There are 4 floors of housing for the students with each floor containing 10 suite areas. Each suite has 4 bedrooms and and 1 public style restroom to share. The nuber 1 bedroom houses only 1 person and is 11' 3.5" x 8' 7.5", considerably smaller than the other 3 rooms. Room 2 is 18' 8" x 11' 1.5", room 3 is 15' x 14' 2.5", and room 4 is 18' 3" x 11' 1.5", all 3 of these rooms housing 2 people. (you may rent a 2 person room for 1 person by paying out the fees for the other half of the room.) Every bedroom furnishes a bed, dresser, and desk for every student in the room. Benson also has a sub-basement for storage and many events throughout the year. Located on the 1st floor is a student laundry room which is free to residents of benson. There is also a PC computer lab, and a private prayer room located on the 1st floor that are open at all times.Student activities
Trevecca has organizations such as the Residence Hall Association and the Student Government Association that are in charge of planning and hosting many social life events. Events that have gained the most popularity among the student body would be Friday Night Live (a rendition of the popular skit show Saturday Night LiveSaturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
), Trojan Idol, and the Songwriter's Challenge. Since many of these events cost money to produce, there is a need for an admission fee. Student Life Activities Pass (SLAP) cards are sold by the Student Government Association at the beginning of every school year for discounts at on-campus events and around the Nashville area to offset this cost.
In addition to SGA and RHA, TNU has a large number of student organizations and groups, including ministry-related clubs, service organizations, political and social interest clubs, and clubs or ensembles for many individual majors.
Trevecca has cooperative agreements with other local universities for programs not available directly through Trevecca, including the Army ROTC at Vanderbilt University, which offers a commission in the Army as well as a degree from Trevecca once the bachelor's program at TNU and the ROTC program at Vanderbilt are both successfully completed. Trevecca and Vanderbilt also have a joint program allowing students interested in marching band to participate in the Vandy band during Vanderbilt's football season.
Athletics
TNU is a member of the TranSouth Athletic ConferenceTranSouth Athletic Conference
The TranSouth Athletic Conference is a college athletic conference for smaller colleges and universities located in the Southern United States...
of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics
National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics
The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics is an athletic association that organizes college and university-level athletic programs. Membership in the NAIA consists of smaller colleges and universities across the United States. The NAIA allows colleges and universities outside the USA...
Division I and competes in baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
, basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
, golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
, soccer, softball
Softball
Softball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of 10 to 14 players. It is a direct descendant of baseball although there are some key differences: softballs are larger than baseballs, and the pitches are thrown underhand rather than overhand...
, cross country
Cross country running
Cross country running is a sport in which people run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open country, and include hills, flat ground and sometimes gravel road...
, and volleyball
Volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
. In July 2011, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) announced that Trevecca had been approved for the Division-II membership process. TNU continues to compete in both the NAIA and TSAC conferences throughout the 2011-12 school year while beginning the possible 3-year transition. In addition to intercollegiate sports, TNU also has a cheerleading
Cheerleading
Cheerleading is a physical activity, sometimes a competitive sport, based on organized routines, usually ranging from one to three minutes, which contain the components of tumbling, dance, jumps, cheers, and stunting to direct spectators of events to cheer on sports teams at games or to participate...
team and holds competitions in a variety of intramural sports
Intramural sports
Intramural sports or intramurals are recreational sports organized within a set geographic area. The term derives from the Latin words intra muros meaning "within walls", and was used to indicate sports matches and contests that took place among teams from "within the walls" of an ancient city...
, including flag football
Flag football
Flag football is a version of Canadian football or American football that is popular worldwide. The basic rules of the game are similar to those of the mainstream game , but instead of tackling players to the ground, the defensive team must remove a flag or flag belt from the ball carrier to end...
, softball
Softball
Softball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of 10 to 14 players. It is a direct descendant of baseball although there are some key differences: softballs are larger than baseballs, and the pitches are thrown underhand rather than overhand...
, and beach volleyball
Beach volleyball
Beach volleyball, or sand volleyball, is an Olympic team sport played by two teams of two players on a sand court divided by a net.Like volleyball, the object of the game is to send the ball over the net in order to ground it on the opponent’s court, and to prevent the same effort by the opponent....
.