Houghton University

Houghton University began in 1883 as Houghton Seminary, a coeducational high school founded by Willard J. Houghton, a Wesleyan Methodist minister. In 1899, the first few college classes were offered. James S. Luckey was appointed president in 1908 and Houghton College received its provisional charter from New York in 1923.[3] A permanent charter was granted in 1927, and accreditation by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools came in 1935. Stephen Paine was appointed president in 1937. When the former Buffalo Bible Institute merged with Houghton College in 1969, the West Seneca campus was created.[4] Wilber Dayton was appointed president in 1972 and he was succeeded by Daniel R. Chamberlain in 1976. The university initiated its first master’s degree program in 2004 and currently offers nine such degrees. Shirley Mullen was appointed president in 2006, and was succeeded by Wayne Lewis in 2023.[5] From 2012 to 2013, the university set new records of giving to the institution for two years in a row.[6] Despite this, Houghton University faced financial and enrollment challenges which led to academic budget cuts for the 2014–2015 academic year.[7][8] This led to a "strategic reallocation of resources"[9] which led to the development of several new majors including Music Industry,[10] Sports Management,[11] and Data Science.[12] Houghton was approved to become a university in July 2022.[13]

Houghton University's main campus is in the hamlet of Houghton, in Allegany County, New York, about 65 miles (105 km) southeast of Buffalo, New York and 70 miles (110 km) southwest of Rochester, New York. The 1,300 acres (5.3 km²) of campus sit on the Allegheny Plateau at roughly 1,300 feet (400 m), on the site of the former Caneadea Indian Reservation.

• 
  Fancher Hall, oldest building on campus. Home to the Office of Admissions.
• 
  Luckey Memorial Building. Home of the Office of the President, as well as other administrative offices.
• 
  The Greatbatch School of Music
• 
  Willard J. Houghton Library
• 
  Wesley Chapel

Houghton University grants associate and bachelor's degrees in 46 majors. The university also offers six graduate degrees, including through the Greatbatch School of Music.

There are four traditional residence halls and four townhouses residences. Two of the traditional residence halls, Gillette Hall and Lambein Hall, are female residences. Rothenbuhler Hall and Shenawana Hall are male residences. Sophomore, Junior and senior students have the option to live in the townhouses. Houghton University is a distinctly residential campus but does allow for upper class students the opportunity to apply to live in approved off-campus housing, called Community Living Opportunities (CLOs).[17] Many organizations and clubs are available for students to join or found their own.

The Houghton athletic teams are called the Highlanders. The university is a member of the Division III level of the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA), primarily competing in the Empire 8 Athletic Conference (a.k.a. Empire 8) since the 2012–13 academic year. The Highlanders previously competed in the defunct American Mideast Conference of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) from 2001–02 to 2011–12.

Houghton competes in 16 intercollegiate varsity sports: Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, soccer and track & field (indoor and outdoor); while women's sports include basketball, cross country, field hockey, soccer, softball, tennis, track & field (indoor and outdoor) and volleyball.

In 2020 two Houghton alumni presented an exhibition called "We Are All Houghton" to highlight the voices of LGBTQ+ students at Houghton and their negative experiences on campus.[20] This project had a mixed reception by students and alum as some thought it was a much needed discussion, while others thought it promoted anti-biblical principles.[21]

In April 2023, Houghton fired two employees, stating in both their termination letters that one of the reasons was because they included their gender pronouns in their email signatures, which violated institutional policy forbidding the use of pronouns in signatures.[22][23]

• Robert Beckford, a British academic theologian and a professor of Theology and Culture in the African Diaspora at Canterbury Christ Church University,[24]
• Deborah L. Birx, United States Global AIDS Coordinator and Ambassador-at-Large, as well as White House Coronavirus Response Coordination Director under President Trump
• Ira S. Bowen, astronomer, director of Mt Wilson and Palomar Observatories 1946-1964[25]
• Douglas Comer, Professor of Computer Science at Purdue University
• Ronald Enroth, evangelical Christian author
• Victor P. Hamilton, Theologian and biblical scholar. Professor Emeritus of Old Testament at Asbury University.
• Rachel Boone Keith, Liberian-born physician in Detroit
• Neil MacBride, Vice President of Anti-Piracy and General Counsel of the Business Software Alliance, formerly Chief Counsel on the Senate Judiciary Committee and Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Criminal Division of the U.S. Department of Justice.
• Dr. Richard J. Mouw, president of Fuller Theological Seminary for twenty years, 1993-2013
• Kim Pegula, co-owner of the Buffalo Bills and President/CEO of Pegula Sports and Entertainment
• George Beverly Shea, Dove Award-winning musician with the Billy Graham Crusade
• William A. Smalley, linguist
• Nora Lawrence Smith, newspaper publisher[26]
• Bruce Waltke, professor at Reformed Theological Seminary
• Ralph F. Young, historian at Temple University

• Official website
• Official athletics website