Carroll University: A Pioneer in Wisconsin Higher Education

Carroll University stands as a beacon of academic excellence and rich history in Waukesha, Wisconsin. As the state's first four-year institution of higher learning, Carroll has cultivated a legacy of innovation, exploration, and discovery since its founding in 1846. Grounded in the liberal arts tradition and a leader in the health sciences, Carroll offers a transformative educational experience that shapes students into impactful members of their communities.

Historical Roots and Growth

Carroll University traces its origins to Prairieville Academy, established in 1841. Officially chartered in 1846, even before Wisconsin achieved statehood, the institution has witnessed significant growth and transformation over its 180 years. From its humble beginnings, Carroll has evolved into a comprehensive university offering a wide array of undergraduate and graduate programs.

Key milestones in Carroll's history include:

1841: Founding of Prairieville Academy.
1846: Carroll University is chartered.
1853: First college building ready for classes.
1859: Original college building destroyed by fire.
1895: Carroll’s first endowed chair, the Voorhees Chair of Oratory, is established.
1935: Campus becomes the home of the Army Air Corps.
2002: Casey FitzRandolph '98 wins an Olympic gold medal.
2018: Carroll launched the nation’s first-ever Drone Engineering major.
2021: The CDR Dan F. Shanower ’83, USN Veterans House is dedicated.

Academics: A Diverse Range of Programs

Carroll University offers more than 95 areas of study, providing students with a wide range of options to pursue their passions. The university is organized into several colleges and schools:

College of Arts and Sciences: Offers a broad foundation in the liberal arts.
College of Health Sciences: A leader in preparing students for careers in healthcare.
The Sullivan School of Business and Technology: Focuses on business and technology education.
School of Education and Human Services: Prepares educators and human service professionals.

Carroll differentiates itself through its Pioneer Core, a curriculum designed to provide students with a well-rounded education. Faculty members are personally invested in their students’ success, prioritizing individual attention and support to help them achieve their academic and personal goals.

Read also: Exploring Carroll College Library

The university offers undergraduate courses in over 95 areas within the arts and sciences, health sciences and business, accounting and economics. Master's degrees are available in selected subjects.

Carroll University takes pride in the fact that all students can receive their bachelor's degree within four years or less; they make sure you are well-rounded in all fields and learned in your major.

Campus Life: A Close-Knit Community

Carroll University fosters a close-knit community where caring is a core value. Students learn and grow both inside and outside the classroom, engaging in a variety of activities and organizations.

Athletics

The university's competitive spirit thrives in its 23 NCAA Division III athletic teams. The Carroll Pioneer football team courses blue and orange through its students' veins. Before the game, tailgating, games, and festivities engulf around Schneider Stadium. You will witness the most blue and orange you will see in your entire life, even more than the Chicago Bears which coincidentally bought their official NFL logo C from Carroll University in the 1930's.

Student Activities

Students have ample opportunities to pursue their passions in areas such as music, theater, art, and photography. The campus hosts a variety of events, including movie nights, spa nights, and bingo with significant prizes.

Intramurals are a big deal at Carroll and are quite the experience. With competitive student chosen teams, intramurals host co-ed: indoor soccer, basketball (men's only as well), flag football, dodgeball, bags, and volleyball.

Traditions

Since the 1960s bagpipes have been an integral part of the university's opening convocation and commencement ceremony. Freshmen are taken to their first assembly by a bagpiper, and upon graduation are led to commencement by a band of bagpipes.

Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner are a big deal at Carroll. Head chef Moe prepares enormous turkeys and hams, homemade mashed potatoes and gravy, green bean casseroles, buns and rolls, pies, cheesecake, and cupcakes. Be prepared to start lining up around 3pm because MDR will be absolutely PACKED by dinner time!

Greek Life

Carroll is home to three sororities: Alpha Gamma Delta, Alpha Xi Delta, and Chi Omega; along with two fraternities: Delta Rho Upsilon and Pi Lambda Phi. Our Greek life has been established proudly for over 100 years. The benefits include high rankings in academics due to study tables with brothers or sisters, networking with alumni, brotherhood and sisterhood lifelong bonds, campus involvement (awareness and activities), career development for resumes, leadership roles on the board, and community service every semester.

Student Organizations

Organizations on campus bring awareness to each clubs' mission statements. Community service and volunteer work are required for all orgs and its members. The academic clubs include: biology (Tri-Beta), chemistry, education, pre-physical therapy, psychology, public health, pre-health professionals, sports medicine, and nursing. Diversity orgs include: veteran's org, cultural knowledge org, women's equality, Latin American, queers & allies questions & answers org. Student senate and Carroll University Republicans make up the government organizations. The special interest clubs include: anime, curling, fishing, dance, Harry Potter, outdoor adventure, campus activity board, and paranormal club. A great opportunity for students, especially education and public health majors, is the service/advocacy clubs that include: best buddies, animal welfare, colleges against cancer, habitat for humanity, social justice league, global medical brigades, and big brother big sisters. The magazine, radio, and photography clubs make up the media for campus. Finally, the religious spiritual clubs include: Carroll Catholic Community and Intervarsity Christian Fellowship. There are over 60 clubs on campus, if you don't see one that is quite right for you, all you need is 20 students and a professor to legitimatize a club created by you!

Read also: Carroll's Career Services

Campus and Location: Waukesha, Wisconsin

Carroll is conveniently located in a historic neighborhood district in Waukesha, Wisconsin, just blocks from a charming riverfront city filled with shopping, dining, and outdoor recreation. The campus itself is part of a safe, historic neighborhood just blocks from downtown Waukesha, Wis., putting you within walking distance of everything you want to do. Whether you’re looking to kick back and study in one of the local coffee shops, bike along the riverfront, browse for vintage vinyl or get your brunch on at a rooftop restaurant, it’s all here at your doorstep. If the great outdoors is more your style, grab your gear.

Local Attractions

Student favorites include Taylor's People’s Park, Rochester Deli, La Estacion, Pat's Ribs and more. Waukesha is the birthplace of the legendary music pioneer, Les Paul. Carroll is also a short drive or bus trip from Milwaukee, Wisconsin’s largest city. There’s plenty to discover, from the amazing Milwaukee Art Museum to the nation’s oldest bowling alley. Hop in a car and visit Wisconsin's state capitol, Madison, one hour west. Discover loads of Wisconsin history and immerse yourself in a great food and culture scene. The nation's third largest city, Chicago, is just under two hours away by car.

Campus Safety

Campus Safety patrols our campus and surrounding areas 24/7. Shuttle rides are available to students to anywhere on campus and up to a mile off campus 24/7 as well. Our officers ensure the safety of campus and its students, responds to calls of service, preforms lock ups and unlocks of buildings, act as first responders for emergency situations, and enforces the University's policies.

Dorm Life: A Variety of Options

Carroll offers multiple styles of dorms such as traditional, suite, a mix, or apartment.

In traditional dorms on every floor there are: bathrooms, laundry units, kitchens, and study or social lounges. No microwaves or open coils allowed, but mini fridges are welcome. A key is required to lock/unlock dorm room door. North and South Bergstrom are lively interactive dorm halls. They are tremendously social and a perfect way to meet friends. Freshmen typically reside in The Bergs and they are located half a block (2 min walk) from the main campus. Steele and Swarthout are on the milder side of social aspects. It’s a relaxed and calm dorm setting due to the fact that both sophomores and freshmen reside here; this hall is right on the main campus. Kilgour is the all-female dorm known for its chatty social aspects and close proximity to main campus.

The mix dorm (half traditional half suite) has laundry on the 1st floor, a kitchenette on the 2nd and 3rd floors, a study or social lounge on every floor, and allows microwaves and mini fridges, but still bands open coils. New Hall is directly connected, through an underground tunnel, to the campus center. It is gender by suite, co-ed on every floor, two roommates share a bathroom with two suitemates (four to a bathroom), and a key is required for dorm room. Generally, sophomores and juniors preoccupy this dorm, but 1st floor is reserved for incoming freshmen and transfer students.

Suite style dorms Frontier, Pioneer, and Prairie have a social or study lounge on each floor, kitchens with stoves, hold anywhere from 2-5 roommates all receiving their own bedroom and sharing: two bathrooms, a kitchen (fridge, microwave, sink, cupboard space and drawers), breakfast bar, and living room. Also included is a pantry, closet, and window seat. These dorms are located a block and a half from main campus (5-7 min walk). The suite styles are not social due to the fact that doors are locked automatically when closed (swipe ID used to enter).

Food and Dining: Options for Every Palate

Meal plans are located on ID swipe card and are worth \$6, but do not roll over each semester or year. There are two types of meal plans, commuter which is up to 90 meal swipes or regular which ranges 140-220 meal swipes. Dining dollars is another feature on ID swipe. It is money that is used to pay for food items (anything from coffee shop to soda and fries) that aren't worth as much as a meal swipe and they DO roll over at each semester and year; commuters are allotted up to \$225 and regular plans up to \$550.

The main dining room (MDR) is located on the main campus center and offers: all you can eat buffet, baker's crust (similar to subway), pizzeria, salad bar, hot bars, breakfast corner, drink station, and dessert bar. In the lower level of the campus center, the pioneer indoor terrace (PIT) is home to Coyote Jacks (burgers, wraps, fries, etc.), Red Mango (smoothies and frozen yogurt), 2 Mato (pizza, calzones, pasta, etc.), and refrigerators (soda, water, chips, candy, etc.). All of the places will sell items as a meal swipe or separately with dining dollars. Au Bon Pain, which is similar to a Panera, is located underneath Frontier Hall. Sandwiches (turkey, tuna, vegan, etc.), soups (chicken noodle, tomato basil, 12 veggie, mac and cheese, etc.), salad (Caesar, garden, southwester, etc.), and pastries are sold in either a meal swipe or separately with dining dollars. Verde! is a small shop located outside MDR that sells snacks, bottled drinks, and coffee. Dining dollars are used to purchase any of those items. At Second Cup, a coffee shop that beat out Starbucks in a taste testing contest located in the Carroll library, is a social study area where coffee, chai tea, bottled drinks, and food can be purchased with dining dollars or cash.

Value for Money: A Holistic Education

Carroll professors teach information relevant to the course and for your major that will be on standardized exams that you might take for graduate school or the field you will be going into. The professors establish personal and caring relationships with their students. They also always have their office doors open to answer any and all questions thoroughly and one on one. Plus as mentioned before, the small class sizes (student to professor ratio 18:1) and the fact there are no TA's is an added bonus! Tutoring and supplemental instruction (study groups led by upperclassmen who have completed and did exceptional in the course) are free to utilize by students.

Unusual Traditions and Locations

Carroll University was the first college built in Wisconsin founded by Charles Carroll, an original signer of the Declaration of Independence, in 1846. The campus has a few mysterious locations such as the secret trail that runs from the football field all the way across to the opposite side of campus, the Hartwell Apartments (I found it when I went for a jog!). Main hall has wood from the old building that burnt down built into its walls. There are also many stairwells that provide access to every floor. Maxon Hall's roof can be accessed through a utility closet. Even at good ole Carroll, there are some odd traditions. In MDR there are trays provided, but no one ever uses them. Carroll has a grandmother named Gert who has been here for 50 years (we celebrated with cake at the homecoming football game) and always welcomes prospective students with a huge smile, compliments you, and wishes you a good day. Many students hail from Illinois and Minnesota so expect to take part in rowdy rivalries when the Packers play the Bears or Vikings (being a born and raised diehard cheesehead combined with the Packers always destroying, bragging rights are a given). Being that Carroll resides in the frozen tundra, hockey games are huge. The Chicago Blackhawks are watched in the lounges on the flat screens. The day of and/or following day, students will be sporting their Blackhawks jerseys.

Who Excels at Carroll?

Students particularly interested in the sciences: nursing, pre-med, chemistry, physics, physical therapy, exercise sciences, athletic training, etc. will benefit greatly due to the outstanding programs that Carroll offers academically and experience wise. Any student who is athletic or just digs sports, especially football and soccer, will fit right in. Since Carroll is a liberal arts college, artistically inclined students will benefit from our arts program as well. This is a perfect University for the loudest and most shy students because it is a family. Carroll University is its own community and tightly knit family. Any students who are looking for a party scene, Carroll is NOT the place for you. It is quiet and alcohol free in the majority of the dorms.

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