Getting To Know: Monmouth College (IL)
I recently made an online connection with Peter Pitts, aka ‘The Small College Guy’. Author of two college profile books, including Cool Stuff at Small Colleges and 333 Awesome Small Colleges (that might save you money), Peter served as Regional Director of Admission at Monmouth College for 30 years before retiring in 2019. He introduced me to the current director, Brock McNinch, who gave me the opportunity to ask more questions in a Zoom interview. I hope that you will listen, then read on to learn about an interesting small college.
There are small colleges. Then there are very small colleges.
Located in Western Illinois between the Quad Cities (Moline & East Moline in Illinois, Davenport & Bettendorf, Iowa), Monmouth College was founded in 1853 by the Presbyterian Church. The College currently has just under 800 undergrads; at one point it had nearly 1,200. Monmouth College is the founding home to Pi Beta Phi, the first national women’s secret society in the U.S. that is known as a fraternity, not a sorority, as well as the founding chapter of the nationally known Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority.
Monmouth has used its main building (top photo) as the focal point for its marketing and campus design.
I’ve dropped some more photos below to show how newer buildings followed the style of the main building and thank Brock for sharing them with me. The college also has its own farm and nature preserve, facilities which I have seen at only two other small schools I have profiled: DePauw University (IN) and Dickinson College (PA).
Monmouth College is in a good financial position for a very small school.
Monmouth’s endowment of $142 million at the end of FY 2024 exceeded that of some larger schools that I have either visited or previously profiled, including Cornell College (IA) and Lake Forest College (IL). There’s generous financial aid to be earned here, including a scholarship that includes full tuition plus an educational stipend. Nearly everyone who applies for need-based or merit-based aid receives a scholarship.. According to College Navigator, Monmouth College’s average grant/scholarship package can exceed half of the estimated total cost of attendance for the school. The average student loan debt for 2023 graduates of just over $29,000. While higher than the Federal maximum pf $27,000, is often lower than the amounts that someone might borrow if they attend a much larger school.
Monmouth College advertised itself as a liberal arts college.
However, the school recently announced that it is reorganizing its academic programs into six divisions called Schools of Thought. The decision is so recent, and the school so small in student body boy size, that I had to ask Brock why leadership made a decision to have divisions much like a larger school .
I can understand some reasons for the decision to have divisions .
A college might want to make it easier for prospective students to learn about potential majors, especially those in high demand with employers.. A larger school may admit students to divisions, asking them to choose a path or major beginning freshman year. Some divisions at very large schools are far more selective than the university as a whole. Examples include Indiana University-Bloomington (Kelley School of Business) or Purdue (Engineering and Science)
Monmouth College is not the first small school to aggressively grow its pre-professional offerings.
The college offers 74 majors, minors and preparatory prograsm. Some are unique to such a small school including:
- Biopsychology
- Engineering (Electrical and Mechanical emphasis)
- Exercise Science
- Peace Corp Prep
- Theatre Education.
There is also a general education core and First Year Experience much like many liberal arts colleges. All students must fill their core requirements, regardless of their major.
There’s also rare options at Monmouth.
- If a student is interested in a second major in an engineering discipline not offered at Monmouth, that student may opt for a 3-2 dual degree program. Partners include Case Western, Washington U in St. Louis or the University of Southern California.
- Another rarity is a dual degree partnership in Atmospheric Sciences with the University of Arizona.
- A 3+1 nursing partnership with an area hospital’s nursing school where students earn a bachelors degree and a BSN in four years..
.Before connecting with Brock I watched as many Monmouth College YouTubes as I could.
.The Monmouth-Knox Turkey Bowl football revivalry is one of the oldest in the country. The teams, the Fighting Scots have a band backed by a bagpipe corps (photo up top), as you find at The College of Wooster.
About a quarter of the student body is engaged in Greek life, though the Greek organizations do not appear to dominate the community as they have at other liberal arts colleges like DePauw. Monmouth College seems to be a great place to go to school if you can find your academic direction and make friends fairly quickly. The social life is likely be very campus based. Athletic facilities are impressive for such a small school as are the on-campus theatre performance spaces.
The campus, while about about an hour from the Qaud Cities (Devenport and Bettendorf in Iowa, Molene and East Moline in Illinois) and Peoria, is quite far from cities such as Chicago. However, Monmouth is a member of the Associated Colleges of the Midwest, along with several larger and more selective schools that have joined together to offer student competitions as well as study abroad in student away in other North American cities and regions.
A small school in a small town has its pluses. Yet Monmouth loses abut a fifth of a freshman class each year. Just under 60 percent of the class graduates within four years. I’m sure that the college wants to do better. However, to be fair, some of these students are finishing a dual degree partnership at another school.
Conclusions
I felt that Monmouth College is doing a great deal to thrive at a time when college students want to choose majors, minors and other options that might lead them to job opportunities after college versus immediate entry into graduate and professional schools. Monmouth’s financial aid program, really helps to attract prospective students.
However, the alumni base outside of Chicago and the Quad Cities is quite small. Monmouth appears to be a nice option for residents of Illinois and neighboring states who want a more personalized education.
Report Card: Monmouth College (IL)
- 4-Year/6-Year Graduation Rates: C+/C+
- Freshman Retention: B
- Costs: A
- Curriculum: A
- Community: B+
- Comforts: B+
- Connections: A (IL and IA)/C (elsewhere)
Listen to my conversation with Brock McNinch now!
Buy my new book, The Good College!
Listen to my latest interview on ‘Tests and the Rest’ with Amy Seeley and Mike Bergin!
Check out my talk, What Exactly Is a Good College? hosted by test-prep experts Amy Seeley and Mike Bergin on Tests And The Rest!
Listen to my talk, College Is A Learning AND Living Community hosted by Dr. Cynthia Colon from Destination YOUniversity on Voice of America Radio!
