Davidson College Davidson College is a private liberal arts college in Davidson , North Carolina . The college has graduated 23 Rhodes Scholars . In the past decade , Davidson has consistently been ranked in the top ten best liberal arts colleges in the country by " U . S . News and World Report " magazine . In 2012 , Davidson was ranked the 3rd most rigorous school in the United States by " Newsweek " . Both the town and college were named after Brigadier General William Lee Davidson , a Revolutionary War commander . The land for the college came from General Davidson ' s estate , a large portion of which was donated by his son . The college was established by Presbyterians in 1837 and maintains a loose affiliation with the Presbyterian Church USA . According to its Statement of Purpose , " the ties that bind the college to its Presbyterian heritage . . . have remained close and strong " and " the loyalty of the college . . . extends beyond the Christian community to the whole of humanity and necessarily includes openness to and respect for the world ’ s various religious traditions . " Majors are offered in more than twenty fields ; Davidson also offers several minors and self - designed interdisciplinary options . Institution . According to The Princeton Review , Davidson is ranked among the top twenty colleges nationally for the following categories : " Best Overall Academic Experience For Undergraduates , " " Professors Get High Marks ( # 1 ) , " " Professors Make Themselves Accessible ( # 16 ) , " " Students Study the Most ( # 10 ) , " " School Runs Like Butter ( # 4 ) , " " Town - Gown Relations are Great ( # 3 ) , " " Easiest Campus to Get Around ( # 3 ) , " and " Best Quality of Life ( # 16 ) . " Davidson students once complained of a lack of name recognition among the American public , but recent national media coverage , including articles in the " New York Times " Education supplement and " Time " and " Newsweek " magazines , has heightened Davidson ' s national profile . " Newsweek " named Davidson as one of twenty - five " New Ivies . " In 2007 , " Kiplinger ' s Personal Finance " ranked Davidson fourth in the list of liberal arts colleges . On 19 March 2007 , Davidson became the first liberal arts college in the country to eliminate the need for loans in financial aid packages . All demonstrated need is met through grants , student employment , and parental contribution . The school became co - educational in 1973 and today maintains a 50 / 50 ratio of men to women . Approximately thirteen percent of Davidson graduates enter the legal profession , medicine , or government service . Academics . Admissions profile . Numerous magazines such as " Princeton Review " and " U . S . News & World Report " regard Davidson ' s admission process as " most selective " . The Davidson College Office of Admission & Financial Aid presents the college as one " dedicated to intellectual and cultural growth in the broadest sense . " Davidson prides itself on a student body chosen not only for their academic promise , but also for their character . " Faculty and admission personnel work together to select students for admission . The selection process is composed of three major elements : 1 ) the evaluation of academic performance and potential ; 2 ) the assessment of individual characteristics ; and 3 ) the recognition of outstanding interests , achievements , and activities . These three elements are used to gain an understanding of each student ' s academic and personal strengths and , thus , give an overall evaluation of the individual ' s eligibility for admission . " For the class of 2016 ( enrolled fall 2012 ) , Davidson received 4 , 770 applications and accepted 1 , 185 ( 24 . 8 % ) . The yield rate ( the percentage of accepted students who enroll ) was approximately 42 . 0 % . In terms of class rank , 85 % of enrolled freshmen reporting rank were in the top 10 % of their high school classes . The middle 50 % range of SAT scores for the enrolled freshmen was 620 - 720 for critical reading , 640 - 720 for math , and 620 - 720 for writing , while the ACT Composite range was 29 – 32 . Caucasians represented 69 . 1 % of the incoming class , and 43 . 5 % of enrolled freshmen were from the Southeast . Faculty . Davidson has a student - faculty ratio of 10 - 1 , 89 % of its classes are under 30 students , and no classes have more than 50 students . Davidson has 167 instructional faculty members , of whom 162 are full - time employees . Almost all faculty members have terminal degrees in their field , with 155 of the 162 full - time faculty members holding a PhD or a terminal degree . Honor code . Davidson students are bound by a strict honor code , signed by each student at the start of their Freshman year . The Davidson College Honor Code states : " Every student shall be honor bound to refrain from cheating ( including plagiarism ) . Every student shall be honor bound to refrain from stealing . Every student shall be honor bound to refrain from lying about College business . Every student shall be honor bound to report immediately all violations of the Honor Code of which the student has first - hand knowledge ; failure to do so shall be a violation of the Honor Code . Every student found guilty of a violation shall ordinarily be dismissed from the College . Every member of the College community is expected to be familiar with the operation of the Honor Code . " As one of the most obvious manifestations of the Honor Code , Davidson students take self - scheduled , unproctored final exams . Some exams ( known as " reviews " in Davidson vernacular ) are take - home , timed , and closed book . Other take - home exams may be open book or untimed . Some classes are known for assigning take - home exams that may take the average student 24 hours or more to complete . Every assignment submitted at Davidson includes either an implicit or ( more often ) explicit pledge that the student neither gave nor received assistance on the assignment beyond the bounds of the Honor Code . The Honor Code extends beyond ' reviews , ' essays , or research papers . Notes around campus are commonly seen , whether on a bulletin board or taped to a brick walkway , describing an item found at the location and the finder ' s contact information so that the property may be recovered . Majors and minors . Davidson offers majors in 23 subject areas . Students can also design their own major through the Center for Interdisciplinary Studies . In addition to the one major required for graduation , students may pursue a second major , a minor , or a concentration . 15 Interdisciplinary concentrations are offered in Archaeology , Applied Mathematics , Asian Studies , Biochemistry , Computer Science , Education , Environmental Studies , Ethnic Studies , Film and Media , Gender Studies , Genomics , International Studies , Medical Humanities and Neuroscience . In February 2002 , the Royal Shakespeare Company opened the Duke Family Performance Hall , one of the premier performance spaces in the Southeast . In 2007 and 2008 , the Cunningham Fine Arts building , home to several smaller performance spaces , faculty offices , classrooms and set construction facilities , was completely renovated . Davidson ' s former President , Tom Ross , has repeatedly credited Davidson ' s Classics Abroad program with redirecting his life . Begun by Professor George Labban in the 1960s , the program has survived the retirement of Labban and his successor Dirk French . Presently , it is the most popular of the college ’ s study abroad programs , along with the Semester in India program . Davidson students may also take advantage of the wealth of outside study abroad programs available , applying their Davidson financial aid package to their program of choice . Student life . Athletics . Davidson competes at the NCAA Division I level in 21 sports . Of these sports , 11 are men ' s and 10 are women ' s . Approximately 24 % of the Davidson on - campus student body participates in varsity sports . Davidson has the second smallest enrollment of any school in Division I football . Davidson ' s sports teams are known as the Wildcats . Their colors are red and black , although since 2008 , many sports including football , men ' s basketball , and men ' s soccer have moved towards a brighter hue of red and white . The Wildcats participate as a member of the Southern Conference in most sports . Sports that compete in other conferences include football in Division I Football Championship Subdivision Pioneer Football League , men ' s and women ' s swimming and diving in the Coastal Collegiate Swimming Association , Field Hockey in the Northern Pacific Field Hockey Conference , and women ' s lacrosse in the National Lacrosse Conference . Football . Bowl Games Men ' s basketball . Davidson ' s basketball team first reached considerable success in the 1960s under Coach Lefty Driesell , when " Sports Illustrated " ranked it No . 1 in the country prior to the 1964 – 65 season . The Wildcat men have competed in 11 NCAA tournaments ( 1966 , 1968 – 70 , 1986 , 1998 , 2002 , 2006 – 08 , and 2012 ) . Their last tournament victory was in 2008 over Wisconsin Badgers men ' s basketball in the third round of the 2008 NCAA Tournament . With that victory , the Wildcats advanced to the Elite Eight where they lost to the eventual champion Kansas Jayhawks 59 – 57 , capping off an incredible run that saw the rise of Stephen Curry to national prominence . The Wildcats ' NCAA Tournament run came after finishing their regular season undefeated in conference play , at 20 – 0 , and as the champions of the Southern Conference Tournament . Curry led the nation in scoring in 2008 – 09 , his last season at Davidson before declaring for the 2009 NBA Draft . Under the guidance of Coach Bob McKillop , the Wildcats have consistently posted winning seasons . In 2006 – 07 , the team completed its regular - season conference schedule with only one loss and entered the Southern Conference Tournament as a No . 1 seed , where the team would win the Southern Conference Tournament for the second consecutive season . In 2005 – 06 , the Wildcats went 20 – 10 and earned an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament after winning the Southern Conference Tournament . In 2004 – 05 , the Wildcats were undefeated in conference play at 16 – 0 and advanced to the third round of the NIT . In 2001 – 02 , the Wildcats won the Southern Conference Tournament and lost a close game to Ohio State in the first round of the NCAA Men ' s Division I Basketball Championship . In addition to Driesell and McKillop , a number of notable NCAA men ' s basketball head coaches have coached at Davidson . Matt Doherty , former head coach of SMU , Notre Dame , North Carolina and Florida Atlantic , experienced his first coaching job as an assistant under McKillop , who , not coincidentally , was Doherty ' s high school coach on Long Island . Former Virginia head coach and current East Carolina athletic director Terry Holland is a Davidson graduate ( Class of 1964 ) and was Driesell ' s first recruit at Davidson , before advancing to assistant coaching , head coaching and athletic director duties at Davidson . Larry Brown , who would go on to win an NCAA championship with Kansas in 1988 and NBA championship with Detroit in 2004 , began his nomadic head coaching career at Davidson , managing to depart before the start of his first season . Jim Larranaga , who took George Mason to the 2006 Final Four , is a former Davidson assistant coach . Rick Barnes of Texas was also a Davidson assistant . Men ' s soccer . The men ' s soccer team at Davidson was declared a varsity sport in 1956 and had their first All - American player , Claude Finney , just four years later in 1960 . The peak of the soccer program was in 1992 when the team made a run to the NCAA Men ' s Soccer Tournament Final Four . Led by two - time All - American Rob Ukrop , Davidson finished the regular season 17 – 5 – 5 , earning an at - large invitation to the NCAA Tournament . Three electrifying wins — two on penalty kicks and one in sudden death overtime — propelled Davidson into the Final Four , which miraculously was being hosted by Davidson on the school ' s campus . Davidson lost 3 – 2 in overtime against San Diego in the semifinal game , but the team received plenty of accolades . Ukrop led the nation with 31 goals and 72 points and was awarded the Adi Dassler Award , given to the nation ' s best player . Head coach Charlie Slagle was awarded NCAA Division I Coach of the Year for men ' s soccer . Remarkably , all of this was accomplished without the use of a single athletic scholarship on the 1992 team , leading the " New York Times " to herald the team as “ 22 educated feet . ” Wrestling . The Wildcats wrestling team is coached by Bob Patnesky . The Wildcats wrestle as members of the Southern Conference since the Big South is a non - wrestling conference . The team was established in 1920 and has won 293 dual meets , lost 601 , and tied 18 . The Wildcats last winning season came in 2004 – 2005 under the coaching of T . J . Jaworsky and Patnesky . Davidson has never had an All - America n wrestler at the NCAA Wrestling Team Championship and has had just eight Southern Conference champions . Croquet . Davidson ' s two - man golf croquet team has won the National Collegiate Croquet Championship in 2007 , 2008 , and 2010 . Student organizations . The main student newspaper on campus is the " Davidsonian " , which is published weekly . The " Davidsonian " was founded in 1914 and has published a volume every year since then . In 2007 , Davidson ' s Library completed a project to digitally archive all past issues of the Davidsonian . Davidson offers over 150 student organizations on campus , including arts & culture organizations , performance groups , sports groups , political organizations , health & sexuality groups , religious organizations , and social action groups . The Student Activities Office encourages and is available for students wishing to develop an organization not yet established at Davidson . Most student events are sponsored by the Union Board , the student organization in charge of the student union . In addition to hosting concerts throughout the Fall and Spring semesters , the Union Board organizes events such as pancake breakfasts at midnight , movies , and Freshmen welcome events . Davidson College " a cappella " . Davidson has four a cappella singing groups : the Generals , the Delilahs , Androgyny , and the Nuances . The Davidson Generals , an all - male group , took first place in the " Rockin ' the Forest " intercollegiate a cappella competition at Wake Forest University in 2005 . Following the release of their third CD , " Alpha - Kappa - Pella " in 2006 they were selected for the Voices Only 2006 collegiate a cappella compilation CD with their cover of John Legend ' s " Used 2 Love U . " They released their fourth album , titled " General Consensus , " in the Spring of 2008 and their fifth album , " Decorated " in Spring 2010 . The Davidson Delilahs , an all - female group , have produced five albums to date : " Falling into Place " ( 2001 ) ; " Head over Heels " ( 2004 ) ; " Kickin ' Off our Heels " ( 2006 ) ; " Davidson Delilahs " ( 2008 ) ; and " Small Town , Big Voices " ( 2011 ) . The Delilahs also perform regularly throughout the year . Davidson Androgyny was founded in 1998 as a response to the absence of a co - ed a cappella group on campus . Androgyny has released four albums , " Everything But The Piano " ( 2001 ) , " The A Capocalypse " ( 2003 ) , " A Class Act " ( 2008 ) , and their latest album " iCapella " in spring 2011 . The group also sang " I ' m Yours " with platinum recording artist Jason Mraz on his " Music , Magic , and Make Peace Tour " stop at Davidson College on April 19 , 2008 . The Davidson Nuances , a co - ed a cappella group on campus , was founded in 2009 . In addition to performing on campus and in the community , the group released their debut album " Shaken , Not Stirred " in spring 2012 . Fraternities and eating houses . The fraternity and eating house system at Davidson is known as Patterson Court and is governed by the Patterson Court Council . Sigma Phi Epsilon , Kappa Alpha Order , Phi Gamma Delta , Connor House , Phi Delta Theta , Sigma Alpha Epsilon , Warner Hall , Kappa Sigma , Black Student Coalition , Rusk House , and Turner House all currently occupy houses on Patterson Court . Additionally , Kappa Alpha Psi , Alpha Phi Alpha , Alpha Kappa Alpha , and Delta Sigma Theta maintain a presence on campus . The NPHC sorority Alpha Kappa Alpha was the first sorority of Davidson College ' s social community , receiving its charter in the Fall of 2008 . The NPHC sorority Delta Sigma Theta is the newest member to Davidson ' s Patterson Court , having received its charter in the Spring of 2011 . In total , there are eight national fraternities , four local women ' s eating houses , and two sororities on campus . Approximately 65 % of the female students and 38 % of male students belong to a fraternity or an eating house . Royal Shakespeare Company Residencies . In 2002 , the Royal Shakespeare Company performed William Shakespeare ' s " The Merchant of Venice " in residency at Davidson College , the RSC ' s second residency at a US college or university . The performance inaugurated the Duke Family Performance Hall . In March 2005 , the RSC returned to Davidson and was in residency for most of the month , performing " The Two Gentlemen of Verona " and " Julius Caesar " by William Shakespeare , as well as numerous educational activities , many of which were open to the general public . In February 2006 , their artists directed scenes from Shakespeare ' s plays and other theatric materials inspired by Shakespeare , entitled " For Every Passion , Something " , with Davidson students as actors . The productions " Infinite Variety " and " For Every Passion Something " were presented at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in Edinburgh , Scotland . In February 2007 , the Royal Shakespeare Company performed Shakespeare ' s " Pericles " and " The Winter ' s Tale " , as well as Roy Williams ' s Days of Significance , in the Duke Family Performance Hall . In 2008 , the RSC conducted educational programs , similar to those they presented in 2006 . In addition , during this residency , playwright Rona Munro developed a new play , Little Eagles . Financial aid . On 19 March 2007 , Davidson College announced that all students would have their demonstrated financial need met by grants and student employment ; loans would no longer be a component of any Davidson financial aid package . On 7 June 2007 , the Duke Endowment pledged $ 15 , 000 , 000 to support the initiative . In March 2008 , the initiative was named The Davidson Trust . In addition to not including loans in their financial aid packages , Davidson recently completed a capital campaign adding 156 new scholarships funded with $ 88 million . Davidson states that they are committed to providing 100 % of demonstrated need of all students , with 44 % of students receiving need - based aid and over 50 % receiving some form of financial aid . Notable alumni . Davidson has many notable graduates , particularly in politics , athletics , and the arts . Woodrow Wilson , the 28th President of the United States , and current NBA player Stephen Curry attended Davidson . Neither graduated , though Curry has stated he intends to do so . History . Davidson College was founded in 1837 by The Concord Presbytery after purchasing of land from William Lee Davidson II . The first students graduated from Davidson in 1840 and received diplomas with the newly created college seal designed by Peter Stuart Ney , who is believed by some to be Napoleon ' s Marshal Ney . In the 1850s , Davidson overcame financial difficulty by instituting " The Scholarship Plan , " a program that allowed Davidson hopefuls to purchase a scholarship for $ 100 , which could be redeemed in exchange for full tuition to Davidson until the 1870s . The college ' s financial situation improved dramatically in 1856 with a $ 250 , 000 donation by Maxwell Chambers , making Davidson the wealthiest college south of Princeton . The Chambers Building was built to commemorate this gift . On November 28 , 1921 , the Chambers Building was destroyed in a fire but was rebuilt 8 years later with funds provided by a generous gift from the Rockefeller family . The Chambers Building continues to be the primary academic building on campus . In 1923 , the Gamma chapter in North Carolina of Phi Beta Kappa was established at Davidson . Over 1500 men and 500 women have been initiated into Davidson ' s chapter of Phi Beta Kappa . In 1924 , James Duke formed the Duke Endowment , which has provided millions of dollars to the college , including a $ 15 million dollar pledge in 2007 to assist with the elimination of student loans . On May 5 , 1972 the trustees voted to allow women to enroll at Davidson as degree students for the first time . ( Women had attended classes as early as the 1860s but did not enjoy degree privileges . The first women to attend classes at Davidson were then - President Kirkpatrick ' s five daughters , who attended classes to increase the size of the student body during the Civil War . ) Art major Marianna " Missy " Woodward ‘ 73 , the only woman in a class of 217 , was the first woman to graduate from Davidson . In early 2005 , the College ' s Board of Trustees voted in a 31 - 5 decision to allow 20 % of the board to be non - Christian . John Belk , the former mayor of Charlotte and one of the heirs of Belk Department Store , was a casualty of this decision , resigning in protest after more than six decades of affiliation with the college . Stephen Smith also resigned . Belk , however , continued his strong relationship with his alma mater and was honored in March 2006 at the Tenth Anniversary Celebration of the Belk Scholarship .