Calvin University
Calvin University is a private Christian university in Grand Rapids, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1876, Calvin University is an educational institution of the Christian Reformed Church and stands in the Reformed tradition. Known as Calvin College for most of its history, the school is named after John Calvin, the 16th-century Protestant Reformer.
History
The Christian Reformed Church in North America founded the school on August 4, 1876, as part of Calvin College and Theological Seminary to train church ministers. The college and seminary began with seven students, in a rented upper room on Spring Street, in Grand Rapids, Michigan, with Geert Boer as the docent. The initial six-year curriculum included four years of literary studies and two years of theology. In 1892, the campus moved to the intersection of Madison Avenue and Franklin Street in Grand Rapids. In September 1894, the school expanded the curriculum for those who were not pre-theological students, effectually making the institution a college preparatory school. In 1900, the curriculum further broadened, making it more attractive to students interested in teaching or preparing for professional courses at universities, and Albertus Rooks became the school's principal. In 1901, Calvin admitted the first women to the school.In 1906, the literary department of the college became known as John Calvin Junior College and the college held its first commencement. The student newspaper Chimes was first published in 1907. Around 1910, the west Michigan cities of Muskegon and Kalamazoo fought to have Calvin relocate to their respective cities. Muskegon offered US$10,000 and a tract of land to attract the college. The city of Grand Rapids countered with its own $10,000 offer and the junior college chose to stay in Grand Rapids. In time, the two-year college became a four-year college. In 1917, John Calvin Junior College moved to the Franklin Street Campus, which was the southeast edge of Grand Rapids at the time. Two years later the college appointed its first official president, the Rev. J.J. Hiemenga.
Then a year later, in 1920, the college officially transitioned into a four-year college following the liberal arts philosophy of the Free University in Amsterdam as laid out by Dutch theologian and statesman Abraham Kuyper. The next year the college awarded its first bachelor's degree. In 1924, with the opening of Grand Rapids Christian High School, the college offered its last year of college preparatory education, turned its focus exclusively to higher education, and opened its first dormitory. In 1925, the college began a teacher training program and, in 1926, appointed its first female faculty member, Johanna Timmer, as Dean of Women. The college dedicated its library, the Hekman Library on March 8, 1928. The college later dedicated its seminary building at the Franklin Street Campus on October 29, 1930. Still under the leadership of Rev. Hiemenga the college faced significant trouble during the Great Depression as financial hardship beset the college.
Although the school grew slowly in those early years, by 1930 it had reached its pre-World War I size of 350–450 students. Like many colleges in the United States, the end of the war led to the fastest enrollment increase in Calvin's history. By 1950 the enrollment had climbed to 1,270 and Calvin joined the M.I.A.A. The enrollment increase led to space limitations at the Franklin Campus. William Spoelhoef became president of Calvin in 1951.
In 1956, the Synod of the Christian Reformed Church authorized the college to purchase the Knollcrest Farm from J.C. Miller for $400,000. Located beyond the Grand Rapids city limits at the time, the Knollcrest farm increased Calvin's campus from approximately one large city block to with a nature preserve. Many were reticent about the project and the college's ability to finance it, but Spoelhof pursued the initiative. The Theological Seminary was first to move to the new campus since it did not need to be close to the rest of the college, building a new academic building and holding classes there starting in 1960. As space constraints became more noticeable on the Franklin campus, the college built its first academic building on the Knollcrest Campus and first held classes there in 1962. For the next 10 years, the college continued to operate at both the Knollcrest and Franklin campuses, until fully transitioning to the Knollcrest Campus in 1973. During the latter decades of the 20th century, Calvin grew to around 4,200 students. In 1991, the seminary and the college established separate boards of trustees.
At the turn of the millennium, Calvin began several new construction projects. Among these were a new communications and political science building, a conference center and hotel. In 2006, Calvin announced an expansion of the Fieldhouse which was completed in the spring of 2009. Shortly after, in 2010, Calvin completed an extensive renovation and expansion of the Fine Arts Center, thereafter rededicated as the Covenant Fine Arts Center.
The school made national headlines in 2005 when US President George W. Bush served as commencement speaker. Reactions among students and faculty were mixed. According to The Washington Post, more than 800 faculty members, alumni, students and friends of the school signed a full-page ad in the Grand Rapids Press, saying that Bush's policies "...violate many deeply held principles of Calvin College."
In the summer of 2008, The Capella of Calvin College, the concert choir of Calvin under the direction of professor Joel Navarro, earned two third prizes in the Mixed and Free Category at the 37th Florilege Vocal de Tours Competition in Tours, France.
In August 2009, the college's board of trustees issued a controversial memo to all employees that said that faculty were prohibited from teaching, writing about, or advocating on behalf of homosexuality or homosexual issues such as same-sex marriage. Many faculty members were critical of the policy and of the way it was adopted without consultation by the board. The Faculty Senate, by a vote of 36–4, asked the Board to withdraw the memo. The official policy of the college continues to be that the "proper place" for sexual relations is a "marriage relationship between a man and a woman".
In June 2012, the Synod of the Christian Reformed Church of North America voted to appoint Michael K. Le Roy as the president of Calvin College, succeeding President Gaylen J. Byker. Within months of assuming office, President Le Roy disclosed that Calvin faced a financial crisis, with $117 million in debt at the time. As part of the debt reduction plan, Calvin raised $25 million in eight months to reduce its long-term debt to $90 million. It continues to implement cost-cutting measures. In September 2015, four lightly enrolled majors were reduced to minors and one minor eliminated, marking the final step in academic division prioritization.
Calvin College changed its name to Calvin University on July 10, 2019, a date that matches the 510th birthday of John Calvin, the college's namesake. As an institution that already had numerous departments and centers, it was hoped that a name change to Calvin University would make the college more attractive to potential students as, internationally, colleges are considered a lower academic category than a university.
In 2021, the university ended several "underperforming" majors and minors, citing financial strain. The programs cut included the astronomy minor, Chinese major and minor, classical studies major and minor, Greek minor, Latin minor, Dutch major and minor, German major, and global development studies major and minor. This included dismissing tenured faculty members.
President Le Roy announced he would step down on June 10, 2021. On March 8, 2022, the Calvin University Board of Trustees announced the appointment of Wiebe Boer as the 12th president of Calvin College, succeeding Michael Le Roy.
In July 2023, the university announced that it was acquiring the Compass College of Film and Media in the fall of 2023. It will become part of the university's communication school.
In February 2024, Wiebe Boer resigned from the position of president facing allegations of "concerning and inappropriate conduct". Vice President of Advancement Gregory Elzinga was appointed interim president. Boer and his wife Joanna retaliated in April with a federal lawsuit against Calvin University, alleging defamation and breach of contract, including a list of complaints against Calvin in its handling of his resignation and its actions prior. In June, the Boers dropped their suit against Calvin. The Calvin Board of Trustees and the Boers issued a joint statement, saying that "the Board and the Boers had resolved the matter, and the Boers have dropped their legal actions."
In October 2024, the Calvin board of trustees announced that Gregory Elzinga would serve as Calvin's 13th president after serving as the university's interim president since February 2024.
In November 2025, citing financial strain, president Gregory Elzinga announced a 12.5% reduction in faculty headcount within the next two years. As part of this reduction, the university also decided to eliminate the French and sociology majors, as well as minors in German and journalism.
Academics
Calvin University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. Calvin offers majors or minors in over 100 academic or pre-professional fields and ten graduate programs. Its most popular undergraduate majors, in terms of 2023 graduates, were:Calvin is a member of the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities and as an institution in the Calvinist tradition, subscribes to a robust theology that produces a high regard for participating in and forming culture.
Admissions
For the Class of 2025, Calvin University received 3,267 applications and accepted 2,992. Of those accepted, 736 enrolled, a yield rate of 24.6%. Calvin University's freshman retention rate is 86%, with 77.1% going on to graduate within six years.Of the 61% of the incoming freshman class who submitted SAT scores; the middle 50 percent Composite scores were 1130–1330. Of the 24% of enrolled freshmen in 2021 who submitted ACT scores; the middle 50 percent Composite score was between 24 and 30.
Together with Michigan State University, Michigan Technological University, Wayne State University, Hillsdale College, Kalamazoo College, and Hope College, Calvin University is one of the seven college-sponsors of the National Merit Scholarship Program in the state. The university sponsored 5 Merit Scholarship awards in 2020. In the 2020–2021 academic year, 7 freshman students were National Merit Scholars.