University of Redlands history

Nine founding faculty members held their first day of classes in the Redlands Baptist Church on September 30, 1909, with 39 students attending.

On January 27, 1910, the University of Redlands opened its physical doors by occupying the administration building.

President Field was charged with further securing $200,000 for endowment, but the Great Freeze of 1911, which wiped out half the California citrus crop and severely damaged the local economy, made this impossible.

Now-university president Field was charged with further securing $200,000 for endowment, but the 1912 United States cold wave, which wiped out half the California citrus crop and severely damaged the local economy, made this impossible.

Redlands competes in the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC), which operates within NCAA Division III. Redlands was one of the founding members of the SCIAC in 1915 and is one of only two schools to have had continuous membership.

The School of Education, founded in 1924, offers convenient programs for working adults.

By 1928, the university's endowment was $2.592 million, the fourth largest in the state and among the top ten percent of American universities.

By the beginning of 1932, the effects of the Great Depression started to be felt at the university.

The July 1, 1943, arrival of a Navy V-12 unit, composed of 631 men for officer candidate training, along with a civilian enrollment of 473 women and 110 men, was Redlands’ largest enrollment ever, and gradually led to the easing of social restrictions.

Two months later, the Navy held the first formal dance on the commons, and the trustees finally discarded the "no dancing" policy in 1945, after the Redlands V-12 unit had been disbanded.

1947 The first presentation of the Feast of Lights is offered by J. Williams Jones, adjunct professor of church music, in Memorial Chapel—a service of worship celebrating, in spoken word, tableaux, song and instrumental offering, the birth of Jesus.

The first Ph.D. ever granted by the university was received in 1957, by Milton D. Hunnex, in Philosophy.

The Johnston Center for Integrative Studies was established as an independent institution, Johnston College for Individualized Learning, in 1969.

The first class of approximately 30 students, graduated in 1972.

Fairmont is the only hall with its own mascot: a rock, deemed such a prize for its theft and relocation over the years that Fairmont residents anchored it to the ground in concrete in 1976.

In 1979, it was integrated into the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) as the Johnston Center for Individualized Studies.

Wadada Wa Rangi Wengi (WRW), meaning "Sisters of Many Shades" in Swahili – founded on October 15, 1992 – non-Greek sisterhood dedicated to raising awareness about issues of diversity, gender, and social injustice.

Delta Sigma Pi: Xi Pi chapter – chapter founded 1999

The hall was renovated in 2000 and is viewed by many to be the epitome of upperclass housing within the hall system.

In 2001 the School of Education partnered with the Lewis Center for Educational Research in Apple Valley.

Fidelity, Isonomy, Erudition (FIE) – founded on February 10, 2006 – Co-ed Siblinghood that prides itself in its commitment to service and awareness, creating a more empathetic community, and combating a gender binary.

In the Fall of 2008, the University of Redlands, School of Education expanded to a second satellite campus in Orange County.