West Liberty University

Former names	West Liberty Academy (1837–1870) West Liberty State Normal School (1870–1931) West Liberty State Teachers College (1931–1943) West Liberty State College (1943–2009)[1]
Type	Public university
Established	March 30, 1837 (1837-03-30)
Accreditation	HLC
Academic affiliation	WVHEPC
Endowment	$20.3 million (2021)[2]
President	Dr. Tim Borchers[3]
Academic staff	143
Undergraduates	2,525 (Fall 2018)
Postgraduates	303
Location	West Liberty , West Virginia , United States
Campus	Fringe rural[4], 290 acres (1.2 km2)
Other campuses	Triadelphia
Newspaper	The Trumpet
Colors	Black and gold[5]
Nickname	Hilltoppers
Sporting affiliations	NCAA Division II - MEC
Mascot	Topper the Bear
Website	westliberty.edu

West Liberty University (WLU) is a public university in West Liberty, West Virginia. It is West Virginia's oldest college or university. It offers more than 70 undergraduate majors plus graduate programs, including a master's degree in education, a physician assistant studies program, and an online MBA. WLU's athletic teams, known as the Hilltoppers, are charter members of the NCAA Division II Mountain East Conference with nearly 400 student-athletes participating in 16 intercollegiate sports, including football, basketball, wrestling, track, acrobatics & tumbling and baseball.

History

What is now West Liberty University was established as West Liberty Academy on March 30, 1837, before the state broke away from Virginia during the American Civil War. Under the guidance of Reverend Nathan Shotwell, it was created to respond to the need for higher educational opportunities west of the Appalachian ridge. The institution was originally a normal school and was named after the town in which it is located. West Liberty was so named in the late 18th century as the westernmost point of the new liberty proclaimed by the U.S. Declaration of Independence.

Under the direction of Paul N. Elbin, the youngest president of a four-year college in the U.S. at age 30, the West Liberty Academy transitioned to West Liberty State Teachers College and eventually West Liberty State College. Under Elbin's 35-year leadership, the college developed a full curriculum, faculty, staff, student services, and activities including music and theatre.

West Liberty was approved to become a university by the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission in November 2008.^[6] The West Liberty Board of Governors voted to change to West Liberty University on May 3, 2009. The bulk of its student body comes from the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia, eastern Ohio, and western Pennsylvania.

Dr. Tim Borchers was appointed as the 38th president on May 12, 2023 by the West Liberty University Board of Governors.

Colleges

Main Hall and Paul N Elbin Library at WLU

Clubs and organizations

West Liberty University offers 9 organizations made up of fraternities and sororities, 18 academic and professional organizations, 10 honoraries, 6 sports and recreational clubs, 6 religiously affiliated groups and 23 special interest groups.

Athletics

West Liberty Hilltoppers logo.

West Liberty University's Intercollegiate Athletics Program is an integral part of the institution's total educational mission. Sixteen men's and women's sports are offered: football, women's volleyball, men's and women's cross country, men's and women's basketball, wrestling, women's softball, men's baseball, men's and women's track, men's and women's golf, men and women's soccer and women's acrobatic and tumbling. The men's and women's tennis teams were discontinued in May 2023.^[9] There is also a coed cheerleading squad. The college is a member of NCAA Division II and formerly belonged to the 16-member West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WVIAC). In June 2012, it was one of nine WVIAC members that announced plans to leave the conference after the 2012–13 school year to start a new Division II league. Two months later, the new league was unveiled as the Mountain East Conference, with West Liberty as one of its 12 charter members.

Campus facilities

Shotwell Hall

Shaw Hall

• Academic, Sports and Recreation Complex (ASRC) – Opened in the summer of 2000, the complex features an exercise physiology suite, a conference center, a wellness/fitness center, team rooms and administrative office area. The multi-purpose arena includes a competition basketball-volleyball court and three additional modules for classes, intramurals, athletic team practices/ events and other functions. The entire complex totals more than 145,000 square feet (13,500 m²). The project involved the connection of two buildings, Blatnik and Bartell halls, and the construction of a new 27,000-square-foot (2,500 m²) multi-purpose arena. The Blatnik building is now the Blatnik "Wing" and is named for Dr. Albert Blatnik, long-time coach, director of athletics, and chairperson of the Department of Physical Education. This area consists of a gymnasium, classrooms, offices, a four-lane swimming pool and a wrestling practice room. The Bartell "Wing," named for Dr. Joseph Bartell, former dean, athletic director and multi-sport coach, houses four racquetball courts, classrooms, lockers, a training room, an athletic weight room, a wellness center, offices, and connects with the arena.
• Arnett Hall of Natural Sciences – This building was named for Denver F. Arnett, Academic Dean of West Liberty from 1955 to 1970. The complex includes 12 laboratories, six general-purpose classrooms, faculty offices, and houses the biology and chemistry units. A modern greenhouse is located on the south end of the building.
• College Hall- The Helen Pierce Elbin Auditorium seats 450 and serves as a recital hall and center for lectures and other public programs. It is equipped with a 42-rank, three-manual Moeller pipe organ and two concert grand pianos. The building houses voice studios, a music education classroom, and a recording studio.
• College Union – The College Union is designed to serve the social and extracurricular needs of the students, faculty, staff, administration, and guests, providing lounges, an Aladdin food court, a convenience store, an automated teller machine, and a campus service center (post office, etc.). The college bookstore, the student newspaper, the campus radio station 91.5 WGLZ West Liberty, and guest rooms for parents are also provided in the Union. Limited student employment is provided in the Union.
• Hall of Fine Arts – This is the administrative center of the Department of the Arts and Communications. The Hall of Fine Arts houses Kelly Theatre, art studios, art gallery, music practice rooms, electronic piano labs, Disklavier piano studios, choral room, band rooms, general classrooms, and faculty offices.
• Interfaith Chapel – This worship center seats 175 and is equipped with a 33-rank, three-manual Moeller pipe organ and a grand piano. Other facilities include five offices and the Ellwood Social Room. West Liberty University is one of only a few state institutions to host an interfaith chapel on its campus.
• Main Hall – This four-story structure, located on the circle just beyond the main entrance, houses several academic sections and also serves as the major classroom area. In addition, the administrative offices of information technology services are centralized here. The Gary E. West College of Business and the College of Education and Human Performance are both housed in Main Hall. The building includes the Curtis and McColloch wings, which were the two original academic facilities on campus. These structures were named for pioneer West Liberty families who played important roles in the early development of West Liberty.
• Media Arts Center – This wing of the Hall of Fine Arts opened in Fall 2006, the Media Arts Center is a facility housing a music technology computer lab, digital media design lab, recording studio, television studio, and graphic design lab.
• Paul N. Elbin Library – The three-story building was named in honor of Paul N. Elbin, President of the College from 1935 until 1970. The library collection consists of more than 200,000 print volumes, 800 hard copy periodical and newspaper subscriptions, access to several thousand online periodical subscriptions, electronic databases, and numerous titles in media or microform formats. On the main floor are reference services; reference education classroom; bibliographic instruction; circulation services; and the fiction, videocassette, DVD, music and periodical collections. Photocopy machines for print and microforms are located near the periodical section. Word processing stations and Internet access stations, as well as digital imaging, are located on this floor. The third floor houses most of the open stack circulating collection including the children's literature section. Also found on the third floor are the Special Collections: the Nelle M. Krise Rare Book Room that features a collection of books tracing the history of bookmaking, the college archives, and the college museum. In addition, rooms and areas are available for conferences, seminars, meetings, group and individual study—and most are equipped for the latest technology. The Humanities Department offices, classrooms, computer lab, and major's lounge are located on the lower level of the building.
• West Family Stadium – Named for community leader, businessman and alumnus Gary E. West ('58) and wife Flip West and Family, the West Family Stadium hosts football games and more and includes the Stephen J. Russek Field, a Mondo Echofill Star artificial turf arena with a seating capacity of 4,000. It also includes the Charlie Annett Hospitality Box, named after alumnus and donor Charlie Annett '66. On 30 August 2008, the University held a field dedication prior to the football game to thank Gary ('58) and Flip West for their vision and generosity. WLU vs. Edinboro University marked the first game played on the new turf. The field was officially renamed in the Fall of 2014.
• Shaw Hall – Formerly a women's residence hall named for John Shaw, president from 1908 to 1919. Shaw Hall currently houses the offices of Admissions, Alumni Association, Campus Safety, the president, provost and vice president of academic affairs, registrar, business office, financial aid, human resources, institutional advancement, marketing, public relations, housing administrative offices and student service center. The university's Health Services Center is also located in this building. Shaw Hall has been placed on the National Register of Historic Places.^[10]
• Shotwell Hall – Formerly a men's residence hall named for the Reverend Nathan Shotwell, D.D., founder of West Liberty Academy, Shotwell Hall currently houses International Student Office and the Office of Graduate Studies. This building has been placed on the National Register of Historic Places.^[10]

Residence life

There are seven residence halls on campus.

There is a physical education club for students majoring in physical education, and an intramural program covering activities such as basketball, volleyball, softball, tennis, swimming, racquetball, ping pong, billiards, flag football, aerobics, euchre, and 3-on-3 basketball. This program is operated by the office of the Vice President of Student Affairs.

Alumni

References

External links

• Official website
• WLU Athletics website

40°9′48″N 80°36′8″W / 40.16333°N 80.60222°W / 40.16333; -80.60222