Middlebury College

Overview

Middlebury College is the first institution of higher education in the United States to grant a college degree to an African-American. The Vermont-based college is also among the first exclusive schools for men in New England to accept women, with the first woman to graduate being a valedictorian. Furthermore, it is the first college in the country to furnish a major in Environmental Studies.

Middlebury offers over 40 majors in Literature, Arts, Humanities, Natural Sciences, Social Sciences, and Foreign Languages, among others. As a liberal arts college, it is known for the strength of its liberal arts and science programs, earning recognition from American media companies and publications. Middlebury is one of the most selective colleges in the nation given its high educational standards.

Education in Middlebury places emphasis on the importance of writing across all disciplines. All learners are compelled to take two intensive writing courses, the first of which is a writing seminar for incoming students. The second course would merit formal and informal writing assignments, which may include a 20-page story in prose, writing with visual representations, and web content.

Middlebury’s main campus spans 350 acres and is situated in Champlain Valley. Five residential areas for students are found within the vicinity as well as historic buildings characterized by 18th-century architecture. The school is home to an old chapel, a 220,000-square-foot science facility, an art museum, and four libraries. Right outside the campus are an athletic space and a golf course that the college also runs. Middlebury also has a 1,800-acre campus in Bread Loaf Mountain and a graduate school at Monterrey, California.

Founded on November 1, 1800, Middlebury College was established on the idea of training men to become members of the church ministry or engage in other esteemed professions. It received seven enrollees upon its founding while its initial curriculum focused heavily on writing and literature, with its learners expected to write Latin-based prose and analyze the works of Virgil and Tully.

As of 2020, Middlebury welcomes more than 2,000 undergraduates and 300 academic personnel. It has attracted several distinguished personalities to join its faculty, such as Robert Frost (poet), Jim Douglas (Vermont governor), Theodore Roethke (poet), and John Gardner (novelist). Notably, the college has also produced numerous luminaries, including Ari Fleischer (United States press secretary), Ronald Harmon Brown (U.S. secretary of commerce), Vendela Vida (novelist), and Jeff Lindsay (novelist).

Middlebury aims to inspire its learners to constantly inquire and to be of strong moral fiber through immersive learning. The college also hosts more than 140 student organizations to cultivate its students’ competencies outside academics.

You can also learn more about the educational performance of Middlebury College in our ranking of US universities & colleges.