Lyon College

Lyon College is a private liberal arts college affiliated with the Presbyterian Church and located in Batesville, Arkansas. Founded in 1872 as Arkansas College, it is the oldest independent college in Arkansas.

Lyon College
Former names
Arkansas College (1872–1994)
MottoLatin: Perseverantia Omnia Vincet Deo Volente[1]
Motto in English
Perseverance Conquers All, God Willing.
TypePrivate college
Established1872 (1872)
Religious affiliation
Presbyterian
Academic affiliations
PresidentMelissa Taverner
Academic staff
61[2]
Students496 (Fall 2022)[3]
Location
Batesville
,
Arkansas
,
United States

35°46′40″N 91°37′33″W
CampusRural town, 136 acres (0.55 km2)[4]
ColorsCrimson, Navy Blue & Gold
     [5]
NicknameScots
Sporting affiliations
NCAA Division III – SLIAC (primary)
Websitewww.lyon.edu

History

Located in Batesville, Arkansas, the college was founded in 1872 and is the oldest independent college in Arkansas.[6][7] It was founded by Isaac J. Long who served as its first president. He was succeeded by his son E. R. Long and then by a Mr. Cleland.[8]

Morrow Hall was built in 1873[9] as the first permanent building of Arkansas College.

In 1871, state leaders narrowed down choices for the potential flagship location of a state college to either Fayetteville or Batesville.[10] Fayetteville and Washington County residents collaboratively offered financial backing to establish the college in Fayetteville, and Batesville ultimately lost the bid.[10] However, Rev. Isaac J. Long, along with others involved with the Presbyterian church, decided to open a college soon after. They named Arkansas College at Batesville.[11][12][13] The charter was signed by Governor Ozra Amander Hadley on October 24, 1872.[14] Morrow Hall was the college's first permanent building, occupied in 1873.[14] The Long family led the college until Dr. Paul M. McCain became president of the college in 1952.[11]

It was renamed Lyon College in 1994, after the Lyon family of Arkansas.[15][16] Frank Lyon Sr. served on the board of trustees from 1946 to 1988, including as chairman from 1977 to 1987.[17] Frank Lyon Jr. served on the board for more than 30 years, until his death in 2015.[18] He served as chair of the board for four years.[16] Frank Lyon Jr. and Jane Lyon gave the largest gift in the college's history of $10 million.[19]

W. Joseph King became president in July 2017.[20][21] King succeeded Donald V. Weatherman, who served as president from 2009 until he retired in 2017.[7][22] Melissa Taverner was named provost in February 2018. After King's resignation in 2021, Taverner succeeded him as president.[23]

Academics

Lyon College is classified among "Baccalaureate Colleges: Arts & Sciences Focus".[24] In 2019, the college was listed at #50 on the "Top Performers of Social Mobility" published by U.S. News & World Report.[25] As of 2020, Lyon College was ranked #164-#215 among "National Liberal Arts Colleges" U.S. News & World Report.[17][4]

Campus
Lyon Building

The college was originally located in the "downtown" block that the First Presbyterian Church of Batesville now occupies.[26] In the 1920s, the college moved to East End Heights neighborhood, which was later known as the middle campus. The college added more buildings from 1991 and 1994, including the Holloway Theatre, Lyon Business and Economics Building, President's Residence, Bradley Manor, Upper Division Residence Hall, and Young House.[26] The Derby Center for Science and Mathematics was completed in December 2003, followed by the Kelley Baseball Complex, in January 2004.[26] The size of the current campus is 136 acres.[4]

In October 2010, a fire damaged the Edwards Commons Dining Hall. The building was named after John W. Edwards and Lucille Welman Edwards, who originally funded the building. Reconstruction of the building began in October 2011.[7][27] Lyon college added two new residence halls, named Whiteside and Wilson, in October 2015.[28][29]

The campus includes an 18-hole disc golf course that is open to the public.[30][31]

Student life

Student enrollment was 655, all undergraduate, as of 2019.[32]

Lyon College has a Scottish Heritage Program that provides scholarships and hosts the Arkansas Scottish Festival every April.[33] The program also started a campus pipe band that includes Lyon College students, faculty, and staff, along with volunteer musicians from Batesville and surrounding areas.[7][33] The pipe band has performed locally in Arkansas as well as in Scotland.[33]

The college adopted a pet-friendly policy in January 2018 that allows students to own pets while living in the on-campus dormitories. It began offering obedience classes for animals and animal-friendly facilities, including a coffee shop and a dog park called the Schram Bark Park.[34]

The college has a student-run honor code and a freshman orientation system that runs from before the start of freshman year until the end of the first year.[33]

Lyon College has a fully endowed two-week study abroad program called the Nichols Program.[33]

In 2019, Lyon College initiated an Army Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) program and Military Science and Leadership concentration. The program is an affiliate of the Arkansas State University ROTC program.[35]

Former radio station

From 1976 through 1981, the then-Arkansas College operated a low power "Class D" educational FM radio station, KGED, transmitting on 88.1 MHz.[36] Its studio was in the lower level of the Mabee-Simpson library building and the transmitter was located on the upper level of Brown Chapel, with the broadcast antenna inside the steeple. Broadcasting was sporadic over the years and an attempt was made to revive operations in the fall semester of 1981 by freshman station manager Kevin Manzer. However, operations ceased permanently later that same year when the transmitter failed and was deemed not repairable by the station engineer, Dick Treat.

Athletics

The Lyon athletic teams are called the Scots.[37] The college is a member of the Division III level of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), primarily competing as an NCAA D-III Independent since the 2022–23 academic year. The Scots previously competed in the American Midwest Conference (AMC) of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) from 2012–13 to 2022–23;[38][39][40] in the TranSouth Athletic Conference (TranSouth or TSAC) from 1997–98 to 2011–12; as an NAIA Independent from 1995–96 to 1996–97; and in the defunct Arkansas Intercollegiate Conference (AIC) from about 1980–81 to 1994–95.

Lyon competes in 21 intercollegiate varsity sports:[33] Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf,[41] soccer, track & field and wrestling; while women's sports include basketball, cross country, golf,[41] soccer, softball,[42][43] track & field, volleyball and wrestling; and co-ed sports include archery, competitive cheer, competitive dance, eSports and shooting sports. Former sports included men's lacrosse.

Wrestling

In January 2014, the college added men's and women's wrestling to its athletic offerings.[44]

Football
Main article: Lyon Scots football

Football was added in 2015, which prompted the construction of new residence halls and a 5,500 sq foot field house.[37] The Lyon College football team competed in the Sooner Athletic Conference of the NAIA.[45][46]

Esports

The college is the only member of National Association of Collegiate Esports in the state of Arkansas.[47] Kevin Jenkins is the athletic director.[48]

Intramurals

The college also fields an intramural sports program.[49]

Move to NCAA Division III

On February 8, 2022, the school announced that it planned to transition its athletic programs from the NAIA to NCAA Division III, with any conference home yet to be determined.[50]

On August 22, 2022, Lyon received an invitation to join the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC), starting in the 2023–24 school year.[51]

Notable people

References
  1. Style Guide and Visual Standards. Lyon College. February 15, 2016. p. 31. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  2. "The Lyon College Student to Faculty Ratio & Faculty Composition". College Factual. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  3. "Lyon College". Retrieved August 9, 2023.
  4. "Overview of Lyon College". U.S. News & World Report. 2020. Retrieved January 29, 2020.
  5. Style Guide and Visual Standards. Lyon College. February 15, 2016. p. 29. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  6. Humphrey, Mark (November 19, 2019). "Jackson Signs With Lyon College". Washington County Enterprise-Leader. Retrieved January 31, 2020.
  7. Straumsheim, Carol (December 14, 2016). "'Out of the Ashes'". Inside Higher Ed. Retrieved July 11, 2019.
  8. "The College Year-Book and Athletic Record". 1897.
  9. "The Council of Independent Colleges: Historic Campus Architecture Project". Morrow Hall. Retrieved June 13, 2014.
  10. Brooks Blevins (2003). Lyon College: 1872-2002 The Perseverance and Promise of An Arkansas College. Fayetteville, Arkansas: University of Arkansas Press. pp. 6–7. ISBN 978-1-55728-742-7. Retrieved August 23, 2019.
  11. "Lyon College". Encyclopedia of Arkansas. December 7, 2016. Retrieved September 6, 2019.
  12. Brooks Blevins (2003). Lyon College: 1872-2002 The Perseverance and Promise of An Arkansas College. Fayetteville, Arkansas: University of Arkansas Press. pp. 7–10. ISBN 978-1-55728-742-7. Retrieved August 23, 2019.
  13. Reynolds, John Hugh, ed. (1911). Publications of the Arkansas Historical Association, Volume 3. Fayetteville, Arkansas: The Arkansas Historical Association. p. 354. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  14. "Arkansas College, 1872–1972". Independence County Chronicle. Special issue (14): 6–9. October 1972.
  15. Brooks Blevins (2003). Lyon College: 1872-2002 The Perseverance and Promise of An Arkansas College (c). Fayetteville, Arkansas: University of Arkansas Press. pp. 337–342. ISBN 978-1-55728-742-7. Retrieved August 23, 2019.
  16. Bowden, Bill (November 10, 2015). "Hunter inherited passion, acumen". Arkansas Democrat Gazette. Retrieved July 8, 2019.
  17. Dishongh, Kimberly (March 12, 2006). "James Frank Lyon Jr. Frank Lyon Jr. is a 'stealth philanthropist' with a particular passion for supporting Goodwill Industries and Lyon College. His love of hunting is rooted in respect for conservation and nature's creatures". Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Retrieved July 8, 2019.
  18. "Frank Lyon Jr., prominent businessman, veteran dies at 74". Talk Business & Politics. November 10, 2015. Retrieved July 18, 2019.
  19. Gadden, Alex (March 9, 2019). "Trust's $1M gift to aid Lyon College students". Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Retrieved July 8, 2019.
  20. Baugh, Kayla (July 30, 2017). "Lyon College welcomes new president to Batesville". Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Retrieved July 7, 2019.
  21. Lieberman, Mark (June 11, 2018). "'The World Had Moved On'". Inside Higher Ed. Retrieved July 9, 2019.
  22. Lederman, Doug (May 11, 2009). "New Presidents or Provosts: Hong Kong U. of Science and Technology, LaGrange College, Lyon College, SUNY-Albany". Inside Higher Ed. Retrieved July 6, 2019.
  23. Buffalo, Mark (February 11, 2018). "New provost looking toward long-term relationship with Lyon". Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Retrieved July 19, 2019.
  24. "Lyon College". The Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. Indiana University Center for Postsecondary Research. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
  25. "Top Performers on Social Mobility National Liberal Arts Colleges". U.S. News & World Report. 2019. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  26. "Our History". Lyon College. 2020. Retrieved January 29, 2020.
  27. "Lyon College revives Edwards Commons". Arkansas Independent Colleges and Universities. Retrieved September 6, 2019.
  28. "Lyon College opens new dorms for students". KAIT8. October 23, 2015. Retrieved July 19, 2019.
  29. "Lyon College set to expand, build two new dorms". KAIT8. January 31, 2014. Retrieved July 19, 2019.
  30. "The Course at Lyon College". Professional Disc Golf Association. September 2, 2009. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  31. "Disc Golf Coruse". Lyon College. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  32. "Lyon College". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  33. Williams, Helaine R. (December 11, 2005). "Wallie Roettger believes that college is still the best investment anyone can make". Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Retrieved July 11, 2019.
  34. Jaschik, Scott (January 8, 2018). "To Recruit Students, Welcome Their Pets". Inside Higher Ed. Retrieved July 8, 2019.
  35. Jared, George (September 3, 2019). "Lyon College offers ROTC program in partnership with ASU". Talk Business & Politics. Retrieved October 17, 2019.
  36. Radio Stations: Arkansas: Batesville", Broadcasting Yearbook (1980 edition), page C-13.
  37. Krueger, John (June 29, 2013). "Football returning to Lyon College in 2015". The Baxter Bulletin. Retrieved July 8, 2019.
  38. Long, Christina (April 16, 2019). "Columbia College softball sweeps St. Louis College of Pharmacy". Columbia Missourian. Retrieved August 22, 2019.
  39. "Lyon College". American Midwest Conference. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  40. "2019-20 NAIA Member Institutions" (PDF). Kansas City, Missouri: National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  41. Hicks, Phil (October 13, 2019). "College Notebook: Tyler's Bryson Smith throws TD pass for Houston". Tyler Morning Telegraph. Retrieved October 16, 2019.
  42. "Lyon softball ranked #18 in NAIA Coaches Poll". KAIT8. March 12, 2019. Retrieved October 16, 2019.
  43. Long, Christina (April 16, 2019). "Columbia College softball sweeps St. Louis College of Pharmacy". Columbia Missourian. Retrieved October 16, 2019.
  44. "Lyon College Gets a New Look". Sporting Life Arkansas. January 21, 2014. Retrieved September 6, 2019.
  45. "State sports briefs". Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. October 13, 2019. Retrieved October 16, 2019.
  46. "Lyon College". Sooner Athletic Conference. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  47. Walkenhorst, Emily (April 7, 2019). "Gaming tourneys planned for ASU". Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Retrieved August 22, 2019.
  48. "Lyon College preps for first football game in 61 years". KAIT8. August 8, 2015. Retrieved August 23, 2019.
  49. "Lyon College Intramurals". Lyon College. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  50. "Lyon College athletics announces full transition from NAIA to NCAA Division III by 2026". Fort Smith Times Record. February 8, 2022. Retrieved February 10, 2022.
  51. Lyon College (August 22, 2022). "Lyon College enters NCAA Div. III in SLIAC". GuardOnline.com. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
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