Company Profile
Washburn University
Company Overview
WASHBURN UNIVERSITY is located on a spacious, attractive campus in Topeka, the capital city of the state of Kansas. Washburn is a municipally supported, state assisted university comprised of six major academic units; the College of Arts and Sciences, the School of Law, the School of Business, the School of Nursing, the School of Applied Studies and the Division of Continuing Education. There are over 7,000 students enrolled in traditional undergraduate degree programs, two-year associate degree programs and professional graduate programs in Law, Business, Psychology, Education, Social Work, Criminal Justice and Liberal Studies.
Company History
Washburn was founded as Lincoln College, a private Congregational school, on February 6, 1865. Since few young people had a high school education at that time, the founders decided to offer a three year high school curriculum in addition to the college curriculum. Classes began January 3, 1866 with 38 high school students enrolled, including one African-American student. The stage was set and the first two college students enrolled in Lincoln College in the fall of 1866.
The economy immediately following the Civil War made it difficult to raise money, so the fledgling college struggled to keep its doors open. The Board appointed Rev. Horatio Q. Butterfield, professor, to be its fundraiser in order to solicit money to help with expenses and to create an endowment to put the college on a more secure financial footing.
We recognize our origins annually on Founders Day, a celebration of Washburn University and its long and storied past. From its founding on the heels of the Civil War to the 1966 tornado to the 21st century institution it is today, Washburn University is resilient, determined, well-established and stands the test of time.