Judson University

Judson was formed out of the liberal arts component of Northern Baptist Theological Seminary (NBTS), which was founded in 1913. [ 6 ] In the early 1960s, when the seminary portion of Northern moved from Chicago to Lombard it was decided to make the college an independent entity. [ 6 ] Under the guidance of Benjamin P. Browne, the college and seminary president, Judson College was founded along the shores of the Fox River in Elgin in 1963. [ 6 ] The college was named after Adoniram Judson , the first American missionary abroad, who went to Burma in 1813 and would spend 37 years overseas. [ 6 ] Judson University entrance Lindner Tower, Conference center The land where Judson College was founded was an estate belonging to Margaret Deuterman, a doctor's widow. [ 6 ] Deuterman was ready to sell the estate at $150,000 to a business that was planning to convert it into an entertainment club, but she was willing to listen to Browne and the other men from NBTS in their effort to use the estate to build the college. [ 6 ] Mrs. Deuterman agreed to sell the estate for $100,000, and all she required was $500 earnest money to secure the property. [ 6 ] No one else had any cash, except for Browne, who had $5. [ 6 ] But Amos Barton, a college trustee who owned a construction business, had his company checkbook, and he agreed to loan the college the $500 needed to secure the property. [ 6 ] The college received a charter from the State of Illinois , dated March 11, 1963. [ 6 ] Judson College was financially strapped for most of its first ten years of existence and faced fierce opposition from the trustees of NBTS, other Baptist seminaries, other Baptist colleges, and even from the leadership of the American Baptists. [ 6 ] Despite this, enrollment continued to grow, and by its fifth year, Judson was sending more graduates to Baptist seminaries than all the other established Baptist colleges. [ 6 ] Judson College became Judson University on August 28, 2007.

[ 7 ] In 2023 the administrations of Ambria College of Nursing and Judson University announced that Ambria was being acquired by Judson University. [ 8 ]

Judson University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and has more than 60 undergraduate majors, minors, and pre-professional programs and is the only evangelical Christian college or university that offers an accredited graduate program in architecture. [ 9 ] [ 10 ] Its Master of Architecture degree is accredited by the National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB). [ 9 ] The university was granted an exception to Title IX in 2017 which allows it to legally discriminate against LGBT students for religious reasons. [ 11 ] Judson was ranked 95th out of 157 in the list of Midwest Regional colleges by U.S. News & World Report in 2022. [ 12 ] It is ranked among the "Absolute Worst Campuses for LGBTQ Youth" in the US by Campus Pride . [ 11 ] All undergraduate students taking 12 or more credit hours are automatically enrolled in "Chapel" as a graded one-credit hour academic course. The grade is determined by attendance at religious worship held three times per week. Chapel grades are included in each students grade point average. [ 13 ]

The university offers programs and extra curricular activities in fine arts, including degrees in art and design, music, and concentrations in theater. [ 14 ] [ 15 ] The Draewell Gallery, housed in the Harm A. Weber Academic Center, hosts student work as well as exhibits from artists across the country and around the world. The School of Art, Design and Architecture features a Lecture and Exhibition Series each fall and spring semester. Invited artists tend to show three-to-five times a semester along with one-to-three student shows mainly for senior exhibition. [ 16 ] The Judson University Theater Program offers a musical, a traditional play and a Nowhere Near Broadway production each fall and spring semester. In recent years, the theater program has produced Shakespeare performances and such plays as Steel Magnolias , Alice in Wonderland , The Wizard of Oz , Children of Eden , Newsies . Off-Stage Improv is a student-led, school-approved group that performs once a month. The Music Department at Judson University offers degrees in professional music performance, music education, music ministry, and most recently, music business and entrepreneurship. The university has a variety of performing musical groups including symphonic and orchestral bands, choral groups and ensembles. [ 15 ]