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Location and environment
Bluffton
University is in Bluffton, Ohio, a progressive town of 4,000
in the heart of a prosperous agricultural area. It is
principally a residential community with several thriving
industries, an attractive shopping district, a good public
school system, a dozen churches, a modern hospital and a full
program of community activities.
Bluffton is midway between Lima and Findlay on Interstate
75, a 90-minute drive from airports at Toledo and Dayton. The
community is served by State Highway 103 and, five miles
south, U.S. Highway 30.
The campus
The campus is on the
northwest side of town. It lies on 234 acres of rolling land,
partially covered with a natural forest of oak, elm, beech,
buckeye, maple and more than 100 other varieties of trees. The
south side of the campus is traversed by Little Riley Creek.
The area abounds in a wealth of material for ecological
studies.
On the 60 acres of the main campus are the academic and
residential buildings, the student center and some of the
athletic facilities. Immediately west of the main campus is a
10-acre athletic facility, the Sears Athletic Complex, where
the Dwight Salzman Stadium is located.
The remaining acreage includes the University Farm and the
Bluffton University Nature Preserve, which offers an outdoor
education site with an eight-acre lake and nature trails.
The Bluffton University student body exhibits
diversity – geographic, religious and racial. Most students
are from Ohio. Among Bluffton's 1,120 students are about
670 women and 450 men. There are approximately 25
international students on campus from a variety of countries.
Approximately 20 percent of Bluffton's traditional
undergraduate students are Mennonite; the rest represent many
different denominational backgrounds.
There are approximately 63 full-time instructional faculty
and 54 part-time faculty members. About 75 percent of the
full-time faculty have earned terminal degrees. The student
faculty ratio is 13.5 to 1.
Buildings and
grounds
Printable campus map (pdf)
Virtual tour
Centennial Hall opened
fall of 2000. The 44,000-square-foot facility houses 16
classrooms, 38 faculty offices, a technology center, and
offices. The following academic departments are located in
Centennial Hall: the social and behavioral sciences;
economics, business administration and accounting; education;
English and language; and mathematics.
College Hall Erected in 1900,
College Hall houses administrative offices, several classrooms
and the A.C. Ramseyer Auditorium. The auditorium has a seating
capacity of 135 and is used for dramatic productions and
theatre classes.
Berky Hall A brick building in
the colonial style of architecture, Berky Hall was built in
1914. The building was renovated in 1981 and houses the family
and consumer sciences department in addition to a number of
classrooms.
Musselman
Library, a 1930 structure of Georgian colonial
architecture, was the gift of Mr. and Mrs. C. H. Musselman,
Pennsylvania apple growers. This facility, with the
four-story 1965 addition, houses over 165,000 volumes and
includes the University Archives and Mennonite Historical
Collections. The Reading Room on the main level is
one of the most attractive spaces on campus and is used for
study and for special events. Throughout the library, there
are areas for individual and group study, including
conveniently located computer workstations. The seminar room
on the fourth floor is used for library classes and group
meetings. For information about library collections and
services, see Learning
resources, Musselman Library.
Founders Hall, the
auditorium/physical education building, was erected in 1951.
The A.C. Burcky Addition was completed in 1971. The auditorium
has a seating capacity of approximately 2,000. In addition to
the main auditorium and stage for public programs,
Founders/Burcky is equipped with two playing floors, storage
and dressing rooms, two racquetball courts, a weight room, a
classroom, offices for the health, physical education and
recreation department, and the Bluffton University
Athletic Hall of Fame. Three general education science
labs are located in the former Stauffer Chapel area. In the
fall of 1996 an addition to Founders/Burcky was completed. Its
upper level contains five offices and a reception area for
HPER. The lower level has a classroom and two offices.
Riley Court, a cluster of five
multipurpose halls completed in 1969, is located on the town
side of the campus, across Beeshy footbridge from Marbeck
Center. Several administrative offices are located in Riley
Court including: admissions, financial aid, development,
alumni and public relations, and student life. The academic
departments of communication and theatre and history and
religion are housed in Riley Court. The Bluffton Cohort-based
Organizational Management Program (BCOMP) and the master of
arts recruiting office are in Riley Court. The Institute for
Learning in Retirement and The Lion and Lamb Peace Arts Center
share space in the lower level of Riley Court. Two units are
also periodically used as theme housing for residential
students.
Mosiman Hall and Yoder Halls The
music department’s home, Mosiman Hall, was expanded in 1996 to
include Yoder Recital Hall, a 300-seat, state-of-the-art
performance facility. In addition to this elegant setting, the
music building contains three classrooms, a rehearsal/lecture
hall and faculty teaching studios. The music library/listening
center includes a collection of performance scores and
provides facilities for students to use the department’s
collection of CDs, tapes and LPs. The MIDI lab includes
synthesizers, computers and software used for sophisticated
music and video applications. Seven Yamaha Clavinovas make up
a fully equipped piano lab which, in addition to three
harpsichords and a Baroque style pipe organ located in Yoder
Recital Hall, offer various opportunities for
keyboardists.
Computer Center, an addition to
Berky Hall completed in 1965, houses the administrative
computer and related offices.
Marbeck Center is a campus center
with dining facilities for the entire student body, a snack
shop, lounges, bookstore, post office, student organization
offices and a variety of other facilities. Marbeck Center was
completed in 1968. An addition and renovation occurred in
2002.
Shoker Science Center, completed
in 1978, provides 10,000 square feet of space in a unique
underground energy-conserving design. The center houses
integrated laboratory facilities for biology, chemistry and
physics; a science library; faculty offices; and instructional
computers.
Klassen Court lies between
Marbeck Center and Founders Hall and displays artwork by the
late Bluffton professor J.P. Klassen.
Rosenberger Drive and Plaza The
main approach to Founders Hall and Marbeck Center is known as
Rosenberger Drive and Plaza.
International flags flown on a
rotating basis on 10 flagpoles along the walkway leading from
the Marbeck Center parking lot to Klassen Court, represent the
countries of current international students.
Sauder Visual Arts Center, a
12,000-square-foot pre-engineered steel building with stone
and brick exterior completed in 1991, is located on the bluff
overlooking the Riley Creek floodplain. Sauder Visual Arts
Center houses an art gallery; projection/lecture room;
darkroom; foyer/reception area; faculty offices; and
laboratory/classroom space for printing, painting, drawing,
arts and crafts, sculpture, ceramics, kilns, woodshop, and
welding.
Emery Sears Athletic Complex,
located adjacent to the main campus, includes a baseball
diamond, all-weather track, football field, and soccer field.
The Dwight Salzman Stadium, dedicated in 1993, affords seating
for 2,600 spectators and hosts Bluffton home football games.
The pavilion beneath the stadium houses locker rooms, dressing
rooms, concession stand, restrooms, three classrooms, and a
storage area.
Buildings and Grounds Center,
erected in 1967, is located on the western edge of the campus.
It houses workshops and storage facilities for the buildings
and grounds department.
Residence
halls
Ropp Hall was
built in 1914, with a second wing (Ropp Annex) completed in
1958 and an addition (Ropp Addition) completed in 1967. It
provides housing for 220 students. More info...
Lincoln Hall, erected in 1924,
provides rooms for 78 students. More info...
Bren-Dell Hall, built in 1962,
provides housing facilities for 95 students. More info...
Hirschy Hall, with housing for 95
students, was completed in 1963. More info...
Hirschy Annex, which includes
housing for 109 students and a hall director’s apartment, was
completed in 1966. The multicultural affairs office is located
in the Hirschy Annex breezeway. More info...
Ramseyer Hall, which was
completed in 1994 and dedicated in May 1995, houses 111
students. Features include air conditioning, a large
main-floor lobby, floor lobbies on second and third floors, an
exercise room and a conference room. More info...
Neufeld Hall opened in 2003,
housing 112 students in a four floor mod arrangement with each
floor having a kitchenette and common lounge area. A large
exercise area is located in the lower level. More info...
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