How Roanoke College Began and Why It Continues

Because David F. Bittle and Christopher C. Baughman, both

Lutheran pastors, recognized the need to educate the young

men of the rural frontier, they founded in 1842 the institution

which was to become Roanoke College. Located near

Staunton,Virginia, and named the Virginia Institute, it was

chartered in 1845 and renamed the Virginia Collegiate

Institute.

Realizing the advantage of having the school at a center of

activity, the two men moved it to Salem in 1847. In 1853, the

Virginia Legislature granted the charter that raised the school

to college status, and the trustees changed its name to

Roanoke College.

Today Roanoke is the center of learning for its 1,750

students, a place where tradition and educational innovation

meet. Excellence and creativity are the criteria by which

Roanoke evaluates its academic programs. Careers of alumni

and the respected standing of the College provide a means for

measuring the quality of the education offered by Roanoke

College. Every area of interest and specialization is

represented among the College's alumni: the arts, athletics,

business, religion, education, government, industry, journalism,

law, medicine, the military, and public service.