Wabash College Wabash College is a small , private , liberal arts college for men , located in Crawfordsville , Indiana , US . Founded in 1832 by several Dartmouth College graduates and Midwestern leaders , Wabash ranks in the top tier of national liberal arts colleges by the " U . S . News & World Report " . Though there have been calls to institute coeducation , the trustees have consistently rejected such attempts . Because of this , Wabash remains one of the three remaining traditional all - men ’ s liberal arts colleges in the United States . History . Caleb Mills , Wabash College ' s first faculty member , would later come to be known as the father of the Indiana public education system and would work throughout his life to improve education in the then - primitive Mississippi Valley area . Patterning it after the liberal arts colleges of New England , the College ' s founders resolved " that the institution be at first a classical and English high school , rising into a college as soon as the wants of the country demand . " The " demand " occurred rapidly . It was initially named " The Wabash Teachers Seminary and Manual Labor College " but was soon changed as the college solidified . Still , until the early 1900s , the College also offered a " Preparatory School " in order to sufficiently prepare incoming students who may have come from less - rigorous rural high schools and had not had the opportunity to study the courses required for entrance to the College . After declaring the site at which they were standing would be the location of the new school , they knelt in the snow and conducted a dedication service . Although Mills , like many of the founders , was a Presbyterian minister , they were committed to the idea that Wabash should be independent and non - sectarian . Elihu Baldwin was the first President of the College from 1835 until 1840 . He came from a church in New York City and accepted the Presidency even though he knew that Wabash was at that time threatened with bankruptcy . He met the challenge and gave thorough study to the " liberal arts program " at Wabash . After his death , he was succeeded by Charles White , a graduate of Dartmouth College , and the brother - in - law of Edmund O . Hovey , a professor at the college . Joseph F . Tuttle , after whom Tuttle Grade School in Crawfordsville was named in 1906 and Tuttle Middle School in 1960 , became President of Wabash College in 1862 and served for 30 years . " He was an eloquent preacher , a sound administrator and an astute handler of public relations . " Joseph Tuttle , together with his administrators , worked to improve relations in Crawfordsville between " Town and gown " . During World War II , Wabash College was one of 131 colleges and universities nationally that took part in the V - 12 Navy College Training Program which offered students a path to a Navy commission . In 1996 , Wabash became the first college in America to stage Tony Kushner ' s Angels in America . Academics . Curriculum . Wabash College ' s curriculum is divided into three divisions : Division I , Division II , Division III representing the natural sciences , social sciences , history and language . Wabash offers twenty - two major programs , several additional minors , and several areas of concentration . Comprehensive Exams . Seniors at Wabash College take a comprehensive exam in their major subject . Over three days , there are two days of written exams and one day of oral exams . A senior must pass the examinations in order to be eligible for a degree . Student Life . Student Culture and Traditions . Rhyneship was a freshman indoctrination program that took first semester freshmen , " rhynes " and acculturated them to Wabash . While some aspects of rhyneship were less visible , the most visible was the wearing of the " rhynie pot " , a green hat with a red bill . When approaching a member of the faculty or Senior Council , the freshman would dip his pot as a sign of respect . This tradition is carried on by the pledges of the Phi Delta Theta Fraternity . Student Government . The student government , referred to collectively as the Student Body of Wabash College , comprises executive and legislative branches . The executive authority of the student body is vested in a president and vice president , who chair the Senior Council and Student Senate , respectively . They are " ex officio " , non - voting members of the body that they do not chair . The president has broad powers of appointment over all Senate standing committees . The vice - president possesses a tie - breaking vote in the Student Senate . The Student Senate of Wabash College is the legislative authority , consisting of senators from each residence hall and fraternity , four representatives from each of the three underclasses , and the chairmen of the Senate ' s standing committees . The body of approximately 32 voting members manages an annual budget of over $ 400 , 000 , allocating funds and setting guidelines for recognized associations . The Senate also serves as a general student forum . The Senior Council of Wabash College is a special quasi - legislative body comprising the presidents of certain student organizations and self - selected at - large councilmen . The Senior Council is responsible for representing student concerns to the faculty and administration , as well as fostering campus unity and maintaining proper regard for college traditions . The Inter - Fraternity Council ( IFC ) is a body composed of representatives of each of the college ' s fraternities . It helps to organize recruitment activities , all - campus entertainment , and honors the chapters with the best Grade Point Average and Intramural Athletics record . Student Organizations . Student Organizations at Wabash receive funding and recognition from the Student Senate . The student paper of Wabash College is " The Bachelor " and has been publishing since the early 1900s . Fraternities . The Greek system has a unique role at Wabash . The first fraternity appeared at Wabash in 1846 and has been on campus continuously since . It was quickly followed by others . Many of the traditions of the college were begun and are maintained by the fraternities , both individually and collectively . On average , 50 - 60 % of students belong to one of the campus ' s nine national fraternities . Unlike most other colleges and universities , Wabash fraternity members — including pledges — live in the fraternity houses by default . While most Wabash fraternities allow juniors and seniors to live outside the house , the majority of Greek students live in their respective house all four years . This has led to the odd circumstance of a college with fewer than 1 , 000 students being dotted with Greek houses of a size appropriate to campuses ten times Wabash ' s size . The fraternity chapters range in size from approximately 40 to 70 members each . The college and the fraternity system have created a somewhat symbiotic relationship that differs from most other colleges and universities . The college believes that the system largely accomplishes the task of quickly involving new students in the life of the college while also providing leadership opportunities for a larger number of students . All fraternity houses on campus , except one , are owned by the college . In 2009 the college and the fraternity ' s alumni associations completed a ten year project of rebuilding or renovating the chapter houses . At the same time , the college realized that fraternity life is not right for each student . Therefore the re - building project also included the renovation of most of the dormitories on campus . Inactive Fraternities : Endowment . For the 2012 fiscal year , the value of the college ' s endowment was approximately $ 320 million , making it one of the highest in the United States on a per - student basis . The endowment was created primarily over the past seventy years utilizing both major campaigns and estate planning with alumni . Those who have funded this endowment notably include the pharmaceutical industrialist Eli Lilly , the company his grandfather founded , and his heirs . The school ' s library is named after him as are a number of premier scholarships . During the most recent capital campaign , " Challenge of Excellence " , between Fall of 2010 and 1 October 2012 , the college raised $ 68 . 1 million , exceeding the original goal of $ 60 million . Athletics . The school ' s sports teams are called the Little Giants . They participate in the NCAA ' s Division III and in the North Coast Athletic Conference , where they are back - to - back - to - back - to - back ( 2005 – 2008 ) NCAC football champions . Every year since 1911 , Wabash College has played rival DePauw University in a football game called the Monon Bell Classic . Wabash College is a member of the North Coast Athletic Conference . The rallying cheer of Wabash College athletics is " Wabash always fights " . Wabash College competes in men ' s intercollegiate baseball , basketball , tennis , cross country , track and field , golf , football , soccer , swimming and diving , and wrestling . The head swim coach is Steve Barnes , and is assisted by Craig Fleming . The basketball team at Wabash is coached by Antoine Carpenter , a 2000 Little Giant graduate . Carpenter replaced Malcolm " Mac " Petty who retired after 35 seasons at Wabash . Wabash won the 1981 – 82 NCAA Division III title with a 24 – 4 record . Wabash won the first national intercollegiate championship basketball tournament ever held in 1922 . Football at Wabash dates back to 1884 , when student - coach Edwin R . Taber assembled a team and defeated Butler University by a score of 4 – 0 in the first intercollegiate football game in the history of the state of Indiana . The current head football coach is Erik Raeburn . In the summer of 2010 , Wabash reconstructed Mud Hollow and Byron P . Hollett Stadium to provide the football , soccer , baseball and intramural teams with better athletic facilities . Monon Bell Classic . Voted " Indiana ' s Best College Sports Rivalry " by viewers of ESPN in 2005 , DePauw University and Wabash College play each November — in the last regular season football game of the year for both teams — for the right to keep or reclaim the Monon Bell . The two teams first met in 1890 . In 1932 , the Monon Railroad donated its approximately 300 - pound locomotive bell to be offered as the prize to the winning team each year . The series is as close as a historic rivalry can be : Wabash leads the series 56 – 53 – 9 . The game routinely sells out ( up to 11 , 000 seats , depending upon the venue and seating arrangement ) and has been televised by ABC , ESPN2 , and HDNet Each year , alumni from both schools gather at more than 50 locations around the United States for telecast parties , and a commemorative DVD ( including historic clips known as " Monon Memories " ) is produced each year . The most recent Monon Bell game , played on November 12 , 2011 , saw Wabash defeat DePauw 45 - 7 . In 1999 , " GQ " listed the Monon Bell game as reason number three on its " 50 Reasons Why College Football is Better Than Pro Football " list . Summer programs . Wabash has a summer program for high school students : OLAB ( Opportunities to Learn about Business ) . OLAB is a co - ed program going into its 39th year at Wabash . OLAB is a one - week hands - on introduction to business and the market economy for young women and men entering their senior year in high school . In 2010 , 44 students from 11 states and Korea participated in the OLAB program . National rankings . There are approximately 2000 four - year colleges and universities in the United States . Over the years , various publications have attempted to " rank " them according to a variety of standards . Wabash has long been ranked in the top - tier of all national liberal arts colleges in the annual U . S . News & World Report . According to the Princeton Review ' s Annual Rankings of College , Wabash was ranked nationally in the following categories : Wabash College is also listed in Loren Pope ' s " Colleges That Change Lives " . Notable alumni . Business Politics Media and The Arts Military Law Sports Medicine Academia