Bluffton University news

The Great Minds Fellowship Grant awarded to Bluffton University by the Ohio Department of Higher Education

Great Minds Grant

The Great Minds Fellowship Grant will provide up to $10,000 in financial aid to Master of Social Work students who are pursuing careers in high-need areas.


Professor of chemistry Dr. Charles Daws

Drug Detection

Dr. Charles Daws, professor of chemistry, will discuss projects he worked on to measure the quantity of drugs present instead of just whether they are present.


Reagen O’Brien is active in softball, basketball cheerleading and competition cheerleading. At Bluffton, O’Brien plans to study biology.

Knowlton Scholarship

Reagen O'Brien has been awarded the Austin E. Knowlton Memorial Scholarship, valued at more than $16,000 over four years.


Sarah Augustine, co-founder and executive director of the Coalition for Dismantling the Doctrine of Discovery

Harmony in Crisis

Sarah Augustine, climate activist and Pueblo descendant, invites consideration of indigenous wisdom for faithful ecological solutions for the current climate crisis.


Closed for eclipse

Closed for eclipse

For the safety of the research team and our campus community, Bluffton University will be closed to the public on April 8, 2024.


Tickets are available now for the March 21-24 spring theatre production.

Spring play cast list

Tickets are available for "Pride and Prejudice" theater production at Bluffton. Abby Bush and Carter Ritchey play the lead roles in this effervescent adaptation of the Jane Austen novel.


Spiritual Life Week speaker, Lindsay Horn, is a 2019 Bluffton graduate and associate director of social mission at Bellarmine Chapel in Cincinnati.

Spiritual wellness

Ancient practices of meditation will be explored during Spiritual Life Week as ways to cultivate spirituality and bring peace. Lindsay Horn, a 2019 Bluffton graduate, will be the guest speaker.


Assistant professor of art Phil Sugden and retired assistant professor of communication Carole Elchert

Activismo

Phil Sugden, art professor at Bluffton, and Carole Elchert, retired communication professor at Findlay, present a documentary on the political resistance of Cuban artists.


Ways to navigate two hot-button issues in college athletics—name, image, likeness (NIL) deals and social media use—were given to student-athletes.

NIL and social media

Ways to navigate two hot-button issues in college athletics—name, image, likeness (NIL) deals and social media use—were given to student-athletes.


Professor of criminal justice and sociology Dr. Robert Brenneman

Promoting Peace

In honor of the late C. Henry Smith, Dr. Robert Brenneman will discuss what can be learned from the peacebuilding practices of Central American Anabaptist-Mennonite congregations.


CEO of Ten Thousand Villages Dan Alonso

Future of Fair-Trade

Dan Alonso, CEO of Ten Thousand Villages, will share his journey of volunteer service to leadership for the organization that transforms lives around the world.


Mennonite Church USA executive director Glen Guyton

Commencement 2024

Glen Guyton, Mennonite Church USA executive director, will speak at the Commencement. As the first person of color in the role, he has 30 years of experience to share.


2024 music department Winter Instrumental Concert

Winter Concert

The Winter Instrumental Concert, directed by Dr. Roy Couch will include wind band music with themes of hope, joy, Black History Month, and a tribute to Philip Glass.


Writer, community organizer and teacher Maurice Broaddus

English Festival

The English Festival offers students a day of writing, reading and hearing fine literature. During the event, Maurice Broaddus, will describe how Afrofuturism looks in communities imaging the future.


Dr. J. Denny Weaver, professor emeritus of religion, taught at Bluffton from 1975-2006. The release of his memoir was celebrated in Musselman Library.

J Denny Weaver memoir

"This book traces the development of my development as a theologian--from a small boy from a quite conservative Mennonite Sunday school to the publication of 'The Nonviolent Atonement.'"


Senior art exhibit

Kelly Bilen, Jenía Freewalt, Adrianny Ruiz Suarez and Amanda Scott, will showcase their most prominent work in their senior art exhibit "Reflections," Feb. 19 through March 22.


The Bluffton University Nature Preserve will be a learning laboratory for the new environmental science major.

New science major

Gain a broader understanding of the natural and built worlds through the new environmental science major. Students may become involved in the management of the Nature Preserve.


You too could get into the suit! Applications are accepted through 4:30 p.m. Friday Feb. 23.

Who is in the suit?

Who served as J. Denny and Jenny Beaver for 2023-24?. Find out Friday, Feb. 16, between the women's and men's basketball games against Defiance College.


During Forum, Amanda (Fogle ‘05) Sigmon offered practical steps for building a growth mindset using the acronym GRIT.

Alumna speaker

Amanda (Fogle '05) Sigmon, Girl Scouts of the USA council partner manager, shared tools to build a growth mindset, helping people thrive instead of spiraling in times of difficulty.


K-5 literacy event

Students in grades K-5 are invited to explore literacy centers, earn prizes and receive a free book at "Dive into Reading" at The Lion and Lamb Peace Arts Center.


Adeline Thorn plans to study business administration and writing at Bluffton.

Scholarship winner

Adeline Thorn, a senior at Smithville High School, has been awarded the university's full-tuition Presidential Scholarship, valued at more than $144,000 over four years.


Associate professor of music Roy Couch

Digital Development

Roy Couch will discuss how the development of digital software affects the creative process during his Colloquium, "The Possibilities of the Digital Sound Palette in Music Creation."


Jesse Jackson

Recovery Process

Jesse W. Jackson III, the school improvement coach and author, will help students build resiliency while adapting to and recovering from trauma during this presentation.


Mental health grant

On-campus student mental health services will be available thanks for a grant from the Ohio Department of Higher Education's Mental Health Support Funding Program.


2006 Bluffton alumnae Bethny Ricks has led multiple billion-dollar business transformations over 18 years as a business executive.

Stand firm in chaos

"Embrace failure" was just one piece of advice given by business executive and Bluffton alumna Bethny Ricks during the annual Presidential Leadership Forum.


In his book release

Theological Memoir

In his book release "New Moves: A Theological Odyssey," J. Denny Weaver, shares how his career as a theologian shaped his nonviolent understanding of Jesus' atonement.


Council partner manager and Girls Scouts of the USA Amanda Sigmon

Growth Mindsets

Amanda Sigmon '05 will present the Forum, "Grow Through the GRIT- Developing Your Growth Mindset," offering a healthy path to addressing organizational changes.


Award winning sci-fi novelist Tobias Buckell

AI and Creative Writing

Tobias Buckell, instructor of English, will share, "Can Artificial Intelligence Write Decent Creative Fiction?" during the spring 2024 Colloquium series.


The best works from 2023-24 Bluffton art classes are on display.

56th Student art show

The best works of art created during Bluffton University classes or supervised independent studies will be displayed during the 56th Annual Juried Student Exhibition.


Pastor Steve Terry drew from the book of Phillipians for the annual Martin Luther King Jr. Forum.

Choose your attitude

Pastor Steve Terry pressed the importance of a positive attitude and leading a life of impact during the annual Martin Luther King Jr. Forum.


Professor or History Dr. Martina Cucchiara will provide an historical context to the Middle East conflict.

Historical context

100 years of Middle East conflict between will be explored by Dr. Martina Cucchiara in a special evening Forum. The goal is an informed engagement with the current conflict.


2006 Bluffton University graduate Bethny Ricks returns as the Presidential Leadership Lecture speaker.

Leadership Forum

Bethny Ricks, a business executive, author, speaker and Bluffton alumnae, will present the Forum, "See Your Way Clear: Leading Through Chaos."


Pastor Steve Terry will expound on the importance of a positive attitude.

MLK Forum

Pastor Steve Terry, New Life Church of God, Fort Wayne, Ind., will present, "The Impact of a Positive Attitude" for the MLK Jr Day Forum.


Alumni email

Alumni email

"Email for life" will no longer be provided to Bluffton alumni due to increasing cyber security concerns. Alumni accounts will expire March 21, 2024.


2021 Masterworks Concert performance.

Masterworks rehearsals

"Requiem" by French composer Maurice Durufle will be performed for the Masterworks Concert in April. Vocalists, high school age and older, are invited to attend rehearsals beginning, Jan. 16.


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