Our Story

The Center for Ethical Leadership and the Center for Professional Pathways launched during the fall semester.

A complete interior renovation and exterior upgrades to the Clark Family Library, formerly U. Grant Miller Library, were completed in May. The project was funded by a leading gift from Richard (Class of ’68) and Angela Clark, with contributions from other generous donors to the College.

The James David Ross Family Recreation Center opened in April. The 30,000-square foot facility features a walking/running track, multi-sport athletic courts, a new wrestling room, and a general exercise room, plus new offices and recruiting spaces for the athletics department. It is named for the family of lead donor David A. Ross ’78.

Dr. John C. Knapp became the 13th president of Washington & Jefferson College. Dr. Knapp is an internationally known author and speaker with leadership experience spanning the education, non-profit, and business sectors.

Dr. Tori Haring-Smith retired as president.

The Janet Swanson Tennis Center opened in September and serves as the home site for the W&J men’s and women’s tennis teams.

John A. Swanson Science Center was opened and dedicated to the physical sciences, including Physics, Chemistry, Biochemistry, and Bioinformatics.

Tori Haring-Smith became the first woman to serve as president of Washington & Jefferson College. Under Haring-Smith’s leadership, the College initiated the award-winning Magellan Project, built the state-of-the-art Janet Swanson Tennis Center, surpassed the $100M goal laid out by its Uncommon Bond capital campaign, established the English Language Institute…

The Burnett Center houses the Departments of Economics and Business, Modern Languages, and Education. It was named after Howard J. Burnett.

Student enrollment grew from 830 in 1970 to 1,100 in 1998.

Under Brian C. Mitchell, who served as president from 1998 to 2004, the college experienced a growth in construction and an effort to improve relations with the neighboring communities.

Howard Burnett retired as president.

Howard J. Burnett took office as president and hired the college’s first female faculty members and the first female dean. The college also adopted a new academic calendar to include intersession and expanded its academic programs to include the Entrepreneurial Studies Program, the Freshman Forum, and several cooperative international education programs.

The Trustees authorized the admission of women as undergraduate students.

Boyd Crumrine Patterson assumed the presidency and oversaw curriculum revisions and the construction of a number of buildings, including the Henry Memorial Center, ten Greek housing units in the center of campus, the U. Grant Miller Library, the Student Center, The Commons, and two new dormitories. His fundraising abilities grew the college’s endowment from…

James Herbert Case, Jr., who was president from 1946 to 1950, constructed several new dormitories to handle the influx of veterans under the G.I. Bill.

James D. Moffat personally paid for the renovations of McMillan Hall.

James D. Moffat led a period of growth when the college constructed The Old Gym, Hays Hall, Thompson Memorial Library, and Thistle Physics Building. Also purchased was the land known as the “old fairground.”

The United States Supreme Court upheld the consolidation, allowing the newly configured college to proceed.

Before the merger could be completed, Canonsburg residents and Jefferson College partisans filed a lawsuit known as the Pennsylvania College Cases, which sought to overturn the consolidation plan.

On April 4th, Jonathan Edwards, a pastor from Baltimore who had been president of Hanover College, was elected the first president of the unified Washington & Jefferson College.

Following the Civil War, both colleges were short on students and on funds, causing them to join together as Washington & Jefferson College.

Matthew Brown petitioned the Pennsylvania General Assembly to grant Washington Academy a charter, allowing it to be re-christened as Washington College.

Canonsburg Academy was reconstituted as Jefferson College, with John McMillan serving as the first President of the Board of Trustees.

During the Whiskey Rebellion, portions of David Bradford’s militia camped on the hillside that would later become home to the unified Washington & Jefferson College.

Washington & Jefferson College traces its origins to three log cabin colleges established by frontier clergymen John McMillian, Thaddeus Dod, and Joseph Smith.