Ohio Northern University, Not your Average Small University

Ohio Northern University is not a name that comes immediately to mind when the topic of colleges comes to mind. As a matter of fact, people who are from out of state have most likely never heard of the school itself. The school is located in a small mid-western town in Ohio, and has no more students than the village it is located in. This small university is located in the midst of some of the largest colleges in the nation. Dwarfed by large schools such as Ohio State and Michigan State, Ohio Northern joins the ranks of the small universities that receive the overflow from these goliath colleges. However, Ohio Northern does its best to not go unnoticed in the crowd.

Sign and flower bed at the front of campus.

The university attempts to compete with the allure of large school life with the charm of small school as well as small town life. Ohio Northern shows its promise to its perspective students through a very well-manicured campus. Perspective touring season is most definitely the time that the university looks its best. The maintenance workers of the university spend countless hours maintaining the focal points of the university that are hit by the tour groups. This ranges anything from the planting of flowers in the Universities numerous planters scattered about campus, the painting of trim on the main buildings of campus, and the pruning of the many trees that occupy the campus. The university is actually known as a “tree campus” because the main section of campus is densely populated with trees of varying varieties. The charm of the campus is also enhanced by the buildings that serve as the academic centers of the university. The university was first founded in August of 1871 as the Ohio Normal School. The three buildings in the front of the campus were all some of the first ones build on the campus property. The buildings attribute to the charm of the school due to their historic mid-western architectural style. The prime example of this is the university’s Hill Hall as well as the McIntosh student center. The Hill building is used by the university as its logo to perspective students.The building is located in the center of the campus’ front row, and is painted a bright and vibrant color. The clock tower and other architectural features of the building also draw attention to the building as well as the campus..modern designs in its facilities to reside alongside the current historical facilities. The Dicke Building for the business college, the Mathile Hall for the science and mathematics departments, and most recently the new

Rendering of new ONU engineering building

addition of an engineering building. The new building (along with the others previously listed) is intended to embody Ohio Northern University’s dedication to the future while also remaining in touch with the university’s overall image. The facilities on Ohio Northern University’s campus contribute to the overall attractiveness of the campus in terms of the first impression that is received by perspective students touring the campus.  However, the charm of the campus is not the only due to the physical allure of the buildings and other visual effects on the campus.

ONU's Hill Memorial Hall

The allure of Ohio Northern does not reside only in the appearance of the campus that houses its students and academic facilities. The allure of the campus also involves the academic reputation that comes with the university. Ohio Northern has gained a reputation as a school of incredible merit in its areas of study. The university lately has been using this information to broadcast itself out through media outlets as well as in its own recruitment literature. The university has gained attention mainly in the scientific fields. The pharmacy college for example is one of the top schools in the nation, and attracts people not only from all around the country, but also around the globe. The same can be said for the engineering program at Ohio Northern. The engineering program is ranked as the second best undergraduate program in the mid-west (behind only Case Western Reserve University), as well as being in the top 50 undergraduate engineering programs in the nation. The other programs hosted by this university are also ranked incredibly highly, and regarded as very respectful on a national scale. The academic reputation of the university, as well as the charming appearance of the campus, make this University quite the contender against the major universities that have competing programs to the ones offered by ONU. It is for these reasons that Northern has prospered since 1870, and shows no signs of slowing down.