Guilford College
Guilford College is a private liberal arts college in Greensboro, North Carolina. Guilford has both traditional students and students who attend its Center for Continuing Education (CCE). Founded in 1837 by members of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), Guilford's program offerings include such majors as Peace and Conflict Studies and Community and Justice Studies, both rooted in the college's history as a Quaker institution. History. Guilford College is the only Quaker-founded college in the southeastern United States. Opening in 1837 as New Garden Boarding School, the institution became a four-year liberal arts college  in 1888. Levi Coffin, a well-known abolitionist, Quaker, and political dissenter grew up on the land, which is now considered a historical site. The woods of New Garden, which still exist on campus today, were used as a meeting point for the Underground Railroad in the 19th century, run by Coffin. COVID-19 challenges. Jane Fernandes, having served as president since 2014, made difficult decisions to furlough and lay off colleagues during the COVID-19 pandemic and announced that she would leave office on June 30, 2021, followed by a one-year sabbatical and transition to a tenured faculty position in  English. Carol Moore was appointed the interim president and she began a "program prioritization" process that would significantly reduce the number of majors offered once approved. The college announced in November 2020 that it would likely discontinue 19 out of its 42 majors and cut 16 tenured professors. In November 2020, as a response to this plan, the faculty voted no confidence in Moore and the Board of Trustees' leadership, the first no-confidence vote in the college's history. Moore subsequently left the college and Jim Hood, a faculty member, was selected as the new interim president at the  end of February 2021. In early 2021, the college paused the November 2020 layoff plans and began significant fundraising effort, placing a hold on the layoff question until after the spring semester. As of late March 2021, the fundraising plan was slightly ahead of schedule. On January 1, 2022, Kyle Farmbry became Guilford's 10th president. Athletics. Guilford athletic teams are the Quakers. The college is a member at the Division III level of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), primarily competing as a member of the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) since the 1988–89 academic year. The Quakers previously  competed in the Carolinas Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (CIAC, now Conference Carolinas) of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) from 1930–31 to 1987–88. Guilford competes in 20 intercollegiate varsity sports: Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, lacrosse, soccer, tennis and track & field; while women's sports include basketball, cross country, lacrosse, rugby, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, track & field, triathlon and volleyball. Accomplishments. The school has won five national championships, including the NAIA men's basketball championship in 1973, the 1981 NAIA women's tennis title and the 1989 (NAIA), 2002 and 2005 (NCAA Division III) men 's golf titles. Campus events. Bryan Series. In the past decade, Guilford's Bryan Series has brought many notable speakers to the campus and city for an annual public lecture series. Past speakers have included Desmond Tutu, Mikhail Gorbachev, Colin Powell, Madeleine Albright, Bill Clinton, Tony Blair, Ken Burns, Mary Robinson, David McCullough, and Toni Morrison. The 2008–09 Bryan Series lecturers were Khaled Hosseini, Christiane Amanpour and James Rubin, Salman Rushdie, and Anna Quindlen. The 2009–10 lecturers were Garry Trudeau, Paul Krugman, Anna Deavere Smith, David Gregory, and Yo-Yo Ma. Eastern Music Festival (EMF). Every summer, the college hosts  the five-week-long Eastern Music Festival (EMF), where professional and student musicians come together for seminars and public performances. Each year, EMF features more than 70 concerts and music-related events on- and off-campus. Serendipity. The largest campus-wide event of the year is "Serendipity", held annually in the spring. It began in 1972 as a replacement to the somewhat antiquated May Day festivities, and has featured games, musical performances, and "general mayhem." During its peak in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the weekend festival was attended by Guilford students and alumni and thousands of students from  other local institutions in the Triad area. Musical acts wt this event include Dave Matthews Band, Widespread Panic, Hootie, the Blowfish, Common, Talib Kweli, De La Soul, Luscious Jackson, Tand the Violent Femmes, Man Man, The Village People, and The Squirrel Nut Zippers. Despite the fact that Serendipity is considered by alums to be a hallmark of the Guilford experience, , its future remains uncertain. Following concerns expressed by the interim Dean of Students Jenn Agor about music festival culture, school officials have begun to discuss to possibility of discontinuing the tradition. This has led to a sizable alumni backlash. The  dispute over Serendipity is indicative of the tensions between the very liberal alumni and students and its more conservative administration. WTH?! Con This event has occurred annually since 2001. Major guests include a host of webcomic creators and wrock bands. The 2018 event attracted around 300 attendees. Peak attendance has been around 500 people. The most recent con was held the weekend of March 15, 2019.