The History of Brenau University, 1878-2013: A Study of Student, Faculty, and Staff Negotiation to Shape the Collegiate Experience

"Gold as refined by fire" is both the meaning of the word "Brenau" and a phrase that could encapsulate the very history of this institution. Since Brenau's modest origins as a women's college in 1878, generations of Brenau students and faculty members have overcome many trials by fire to forge what is today a distinctive university. Brenau was the first women's college in Georgia-if not the Deep South-to pioneer novel degree programs in fields like domestic science and business, to compete in intercollegiate athletics, to count courses in fine arts as electives, and to establish student government. Brenau was also among the last women's colleges to secure regional accreditation and to racially desegregate. This book's description of these feats and flaws and how Brenau students fashioned and embraced rules (governing everything from attendance to smoking to interacting with men) and college traditions (such as festivals, pageants, and freshmen initiation rites) brings Brenau's history to life just as does the account of things unique to Brenau (such as its sororities, secret societies, campus buildings, and lore). Organized not around periods of time but around themes important in higher education (such as academics, athletics, rules, etc.), The History of Brenau University, 1878-2013, departs in an engaging way from the traditional format of institutional histories. Using Brenau as a case study, this book also explores the formal and informal processes of negotiation between college students and college officials to create the collegiate experience. Examining this process shows how students-and not just the faculty-influence the history of a college.