Tennessee Wesleyan College Tennessee Wesleyan College ( TWC ) is a small liberal arts university founded in 1857 , located in the city of Athens in the U . S . state of Tennessee . It is affiliated with the Holston Conference of the United Methodist Church . Current enrollment is over 1 , 100 students , and the student - to - faculty ratio is 12 : 1 . The college is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award baccalaureate and master ' s degrees of business , fine arts , humanities , natural and social sciences as well as nursing , other career - related areas , and teacher certification . Through these several academic offerings the college has developed a close relationship with its region and produces a large number of local teachers , police officers , lawyers and local government officials . Tennessee Wesleyan also maintains a branch campus in Knoxville , where it offers evening programs in business administration . It also conducts its nursing classes in Knoxville . Tennessee Wesleyan offers 10 varsity sports , the Bulldogs and Lady Bulldogs compete in the Appalachian Athletic Conference of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics in baseball , basketball , soccer , cross country , tennis , volleyball , cheerleading , softball and lacrosse . Athletics are a very important part of the school , and a very large portion of the student population play on one of the school ' s teams . History . Tennessee Wesleyan was originally founded in 1857 as Athens Female College , and consisted solely of one building ( now called Old College ) . In 1866 the name was changed to East Tennessee Wesleyan College , and in 1867 the name was again altered to East Tennessee Wesleyan University . At that time , the college was one of only a handful of coeducational colleges in the Southern United States . In 1889 , college president John F . Spence changed the name of the school to U . S . Grant Memorial University in an attempt to receive financial support from Northern benefactors . Seventeen years later , the college became a branch campus of the University of Chattanooga ( now the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga ) under the name Athens School of the University of Chattanooga . In 1925 , the college split from Chattanooga to become Tennessee Wesleyan College and served as a junior college . Tennessee Wesleyan became a liberal arts college in 1957 when it began awarding bachelor ’ s degrees . Academics . Articulation agreements . Tennessee Wesleyan College has articulation agreements with Chattanooga State Community College , Cleveland State Community College , Motlow State Community College , Pellissippi State Community College , Roane State Community College and Walters State Community College . Degrees . Tennessee Wesleyan College offers bachelor of arts and bachelor of sciences degrees in Behavioral Science , Biology , Business Administration , Chemistry , Criminal Justice , Early Human Development and Learning , Education , English , Exercise Science , Music , individualized majors , History , Human Services , International Studies , Mathematics , Nursing , Psychology , Church Vocations , Pre - Seminary , Sociology , and Special Education . Admissions and rankings . Tennessee Wesleyan College accepts 83 . 7 % of all applicants and is considered " selective " by U . S . News & World Report . Athletics . Tennessee Wesleyan athletic teams , nicknamed athletically as the Bulldogs , are part of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics ( NAIA ) , primarily competing in the Appalachian Athletic Conference ( AAC ) . Men ' s sports include baseball , basketball , cross country , golf , lacrosse , soccer , tennis and track & field ; while women ' s sports include basketball , cheerleading , cross country , dance , golf , lacrosse , soccer , softball , tennis , track & field and volleyball .