Central College

Central College is a four year liberal arts college affiliated with the Reformed Church of America. It is based in the town of Pella in southern Iowa, and was founded in 1853. The campus is located in beautiful natural surroundings, and is just a two minute walk from Lake Red Rock, the largest lake in Iowa.

There are over 73 established academic programmes at Central. The courses range from accounting to theatre, and the international studies section is split into four options; African, East Asian, Latin American and western European. The Martin Heerema entrepreneurship program is offered as a minor, and teaches students who wish to use their enterprising abilities to contribute to economic development as part of a start-up firm.

Central College is also known for its active and expansive study abroad programmes, and the university has exchange agreements with three institutions in the U.S. and fifteen globally. The most variety comes from the semester long academic programmes, and focus on liberal arts and cultural studies at universities such as in Bangor, Grenada (Spain), Cusco and Muscat. Many programmes are intensive language courses, immersing students in the dialect of the local surroundings. Urban internships are offered in both Washington D.C and Chicago.

The 7,200ft Ron Schipper Fitness Centre on campus offers exercise opportunities for all students and athletes and includes a large multipurpose room for activities such as aerobics, cheerleading and tae-kwon-do.

Some notable alumni of Central College are television journalist Harry Smith, former U.S. Ambassador to Niger, Bernadette Allen, presidential candidate for the Libertarian party John Hospers, and American football player Vern Den Herder.

It is not to be confused with Kentucky’s Centre College