Editing Wellesley College

{{Short description|Women's college in Wellesley, Massachusetts, US}}
{{Distinguish|Wesleyan College|Wesleyan University}}
{{use American English|date=August 2019}}
{{use mdy dates|date=August 2019}}
{{Infobox university
 | name                   = Wellesley College
 | image                  = Formal Seal of Wellesley College, Wellesley, MA, USA.svg
 | image_upright          = .7
 | caption                = 
 | motto                  = {{Lang|la|Non Ministrari sed Ministrare}} ([[Latin]])
 | mottoeng               = Not to be ministered unto, but to minister<ref name=Facts>{{cite web|url = https://www.wellesley.edu/about/wellesleyfacts |title=Wellesley Facts |work = Wellesley.edu|access-date=May 14, 2020}}</ref>
 | established            = 1870 (chartered)<br />1875 (commenced classes)
 | type                   = [[Private university|Private]] [[Women's colleges in the United States|women's]] [[Liberal arts colleges in the United States|liberal arts college]]
 | endowment              = $2.8 billion (2023)<ref name=NACUBO>As of June 30, 2023. {{cite web |url=https://edge.sitecorecloud.io/nacubo1-nacubo-prd-dc8b/media/Nacubo/Documents/EndowmentFiles/2023-NCSE-Endowment-Market-Values-FINAL.xlsx |title=U.S. and Canadian 2023 NCSE Participating Institutions Listed by Fiscal Year 2023 Endowment Market Value, Change in Market Value from FY22 to FY23, and FY23 Endowment Market Values Per Full-time Equivalent Student |date=February 15, 2024 |publisher=[[National Association of College and University Business Officers]] (NACUBO) and [[TIAA]]|access-date=July 25, 2024 |format=XLSX |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240523180252/https://edge.sitecorecloud.io/nacubo1-nacubo-prd-dc8b/media/Nacubo/Documents/EndowmentFiles/2023-NCSE-Endowment-Market-Values-FINAL.xlsx |archive-date=May 23, 2024 |url-status=live }}</ref>
 | accreditation          = [[New England Commission of Higher Education|NECHE]]
 | president              = [[Paula A. Johnson]]
 | faculty                = 346 (2019)<ref name=CDS>{{cite web |url=https://www.wellesley.edu/sites/default/files/assets/departments/instresearch/files/cds_2019-2020_0.pdf |title= Wellesley College Common Data Set 2019-20 |publisher=Wellesley College |access-date=May 14, 2020}}</ref>
 | undergrad              = 2,280 (2020)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.wellesley.edu/about/wellesleyfacts |title=Wellesley Facts &#124; Wellesley College |publisher=Wellesley.edu |date= |access-date=2022-03-18}}</ref>
 | postgrad               = 
 | city                   = [[Wellesley, Massachusetts]]
 | country                = United States
 | coordinates            = {{Coord|42.2953|-71.3067|region:US_type:edu|display=inline,title}}
 | campus                 = Suburban ([[college town]]), {{convert|500|acre|ha}}
 | former_names           = Wellesley Female Seminary (1870–1873)
 | sporting_affiliations  = {{hlist|[[NCAA Division III]] – [[New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference|NEWMAC]]|[[New England Intercollegiate Sailing Association|NEISA]]}}
 | sports_nickname        = Blue
 | mascot                 = The Blue
 | colors                 = {{color box|#002776}} Wellesley Blue<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.wellesley.edu/sites/default/files/assets/departments/cpa/files/wel_comprehensive_guidelines.pdf |title=Wellesley College Visual Identity Guidelines |date=September 15, 2017 |website=Wellesley College |access-date=July 7, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180708015650/https://www.wellesley.edu/sites/default/files/assets/departments/cpa/files/wel_comprehensive_guidelines.pdf |archive-date=July 8, 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref>
 | academic_affiliations  = <!--do not include accrediting bodies such as WASC and NEASC-->{{hlist
|[[Annapolis Group]]
|[[Consortium of Liberal Arts Colleges|CLAC]]|[[Consortium on Financing Higher Education|COFHE]]|[[National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities|NAICU]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.naicu.edu/member_center/members.asp|title=NAICU – Member Directory|publisher=Naicu.edu|access-date=2015-11-21|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151109231238/http://www.naicu.edu/member_center/members.asp|archive-date=2015-11-09}}</ref>
|[[Oberlin Group]]
|[[Seven Sisters (colleges)|Seven Sisters]]
|[[National Space Grant College and Fellowship Program|Space-grant]]
}}
 | website                = {{URL|https://www.wellesley.edu/| wellesley.edu}}
 | logo                   = Formal Logo of Wellesley College, Wellesley, MA, USA.svg
 | logo_upright           = .7
}}

'''Wellesley College''' is a [[Private university|private]] [[Women's colleges in the United States|historically women's]] [[Liberal arts colleges in the United States|liberal arts college]] in [[Wellesley, Massachusetts]], United States. Founded in 1870 by [[Henry Fowle Durant|Henry and Pauline Durant]] as a [[female seminary]], it is a member of the [[Seven Sisters (colleges)|Seven Sisters Colleges]], an unofficial grouping of current and former women's colleges in the northeastern [[United States]].<ref>Arlene Cohen,  ''Wellesley College'' (Arcadia Publishing, 2006).</ref>

Wellesley enrolls over 2,200 students, including [[transgender]], [[Non-binary gender|non-binary]], and [[genderqueer]] students since 2015. It contains 60 departmental and interdepartmental majors spanning the liberal arts, as well as over 150 student clubs and organizations. Wellesley athletes compete in the [[NCAA Division III]] [[New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference]]. Its 500-acre (200 ha) campus was designed by [[Frederick Law Olmsted]] and houses the Davis Museum and a [[Wellesley College Botanic Gardens|botanic garden]].

==History==
[[file:Wellesley College 1881.JPG|thumb|left|200px|Campus of Wellesley College as it appeared {{Circa|1880}}]]
Wellesley was founded by Pauline and [[Henry Fowle Durant]], believers in educational opportunity for women, who intended that the college should prepare women for "great conflicts, for vast reforms in social life".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wellesley.edu/PublicAffairs/About/briefhistory.html |title=A Brief History of Wellesley College |publisher=Wellesley College |year=2007 |access-date=November 24, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120622094214/http://www.wellesley.edu/PublicAffairs/About/briefhistory.html |archive-date=June 22, 2012 |url-status=live }}</ref> Its charter was signed on March 17, 1870, by Massachusetts governor [[William Claflin]]. The original name of the college was the "Wellesley Female Seminary"; its renaming to Wellesley College was approved by the [[Massachusetts General Court|Massachusetts legislature]] on March 7, 1873. Wellesley first opened its doors to students on September 8, 1875. At the time of its founding, Wellesley College's campus was actually situated in [[Needham, Massachusetts|Needham]]; however, in 1880 residents of West Needham voted to secede and in 1881 the area was chartered as a new town, [[Wellesley, Massachusetts|Wellesley]].

Wellesley College was a leading center for women's study in the sciences. Between 1875 and 1921, Wellesley employed more female scientists than any other U.S. institution of high education.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Rossiter|first=Margaret|title=Women Scientists in America: Struggles and Strategies to 1940|publisher=Johns Hopkins University Press|year=1982|pages=25–26}}</ref> After [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology|MIT]], it was the second college in the United States to initiate laboratory science instruction for undergraduates. In early 1896, [[Sarah Frances Whiting]], the first professor of physics and astronomy, was among the first U.S. scientists to conduct experiments in [[X-ray]]s.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Cameron|first1=John S.|last2=Musacchio|first2=Jacqueline Marie|date=2020-08-01|title=Sarah Frances Whiting and the "photography of the invisible"|journal=Physics Today|volume=73|issue=8|pages=26–32|doi=10.1063/PT.3.4545|bibcode=2020PhT....73h..26C|issn=0031-9228|doi-access=free}}</ref>

[[Image:JudgeMagazine17Jun1922.jpg|thumb|left|170px|1922 cover of ''[[Judge (magazine)|Judge]]'' depicting a Wellesley graduate]]
The first president of Wellesley was [[Ada Howard]]. There have been thirteen more presidents in its history: [[Alice Freeman Palmer]], [[Helen Almira Shafer]], [[Julia Irvine]], [[Caroline Hazard]], [[Ellen Fitz Pendleton]], [[Mildred H. McAfee]], [[Margaret Clapp]], Ruth M. Adams, [[Barbara W. Newell]], [[Nannerl O. Keohane]] (later the president of [[Duke University]] from 1993 to 2004), [[Diana Chapman Walsh]], [[H. Kim Bottomly]], and current president [[Paula Johnson]].

The original architecture of the college consisted of one very large building, College Hall, which was approximately {{convert|150|m|ft}} in length and five stories in height.  It was completed in 1875. The architect was [[Hammatt Billings]]. College Hall was both an academic building and a residential building. On March 17, 1914, it was destroyed by fire, the precise cause of which was never officially established. The fire was first noticed by students who lived on the fourth floor near the zoology laboratory. It has been suggested that an electrical or chemical accident in this laboratory—specifically, an electrical incubator used in the breeding of beetles—triggered the fire.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Palmieri |first=Patricia Ann |title=In Adamless Eden: the community of women faculty at Wellesley |date=1995 |publisher=Yale Univ. Pr |isbn=978-0-300-06388-2 |location=New Haven, Conn. |pages=235}}</ref> 

A group of residence halls known as the Tower Court complex is located on top of the hill where the old College Hall once stood.

After the loss of the Central College Hall in 1914, the college adopted a master plan in 1921 and expanded into several new buildings. The campus hosted a [[Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps|Naval Reserve Officer Training program]] during the [[World War II|Second World War]], and the College President Mildred McAfee took a leave of absence to lead the Women's Reserve of the U.S. Navy. She received the Distinguished Service Medal in 1945.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=College History |url=http://www.wellesley.edu/about/collegehistory |access-date=2022-07-21 |website=Wellesley College |language=en}}</ref> Wellesley College began to significantly revise its curriculum after the war and through the late 1960s; in 1968, the college began its exchange programs between other colleges in the area such as MIT.<ref name=":1" /> In 2013 the faculty adopted an [[open-access policy]] to make its scholarship [[open access|publicly accessible]] online.<ref>{{cite journal |url= http://roarmap.eprints.org/561/ |title= Wellesley College |journal= ROARMAP: Registry of Open Access Repository Mandates and Policies |date= December 15, 2014 |publisher= [[University of Southampton]] |location= UK |access-date= July 24, 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170714090848/http://roarmap.eprints.org/561/ |archive-date= July 14, 2017 |url-status= live }}</ref>

The school has admitted transgender, non-binary, and genderqueer students since adopting an inclusive admissions policy in 2015.<ref>{{cite web |title=Reaffirmation of Mission and Announcing Gender Policy |url=https://www.wellesley.edu/news/gender-policy |website=Wellesley College |language=en}}</ref>

==Campus==
[[File:Davis Museum at Wellesley College.jpg|thumb|The [[Davis Museum]] art collections are open to the public]]
The {{convert|500|acre|ha|adj=on}} campus overlooks Lake Waban and includes evergreen, deciduous woodlands and open meadows. [[Frederick Law Olmsted Jr.]], Boston's preeminent landscape architect at the beginning of the 20th century, described Wellesley's landscape as "not merely beautiful, but with a marked individual character not represented so far as I know on the ground of any other college in the country".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wellesley.edu/Welcome/HistoricalMaps/maps_main.html |title=Historical Maps |work=Wellesley.edu |access-date=2010-02-21 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100727034458/http://www.wellesley.edu/Welcome/HistoricalMaps/maps_main.html |archive-date=2010-07-27 }}</ref> He also wrote: "I must admit that the exceedingly intricate and complex topography and the peculiarly scattered arrangement of most of the buildings somewhat baffled me".<ref>{{cite news |last=Campbell |first=Robert |url=https://www.boston.com/ae/theater_arts/articles/2005/11/13/center_of_attention_on_a_centerless_campus/ |title=Center of Attention on a Centerless Campus |work=Boston Globe |date=November 13, 2005 |access-date=2010-02-21 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070808115818/http://www.boston.com/ae/theater_arts/articles/2005/11/13/center_of_attention_on_a_centerless_campus/ |archive-date=August 8, 2007 |url-status=live }}</ref> The campus is adjacent to the privately owned [[Hunnewell Estates Historic District]], the gardens of which can be viewed from the lake's edge on campus.

The original master plan for Wellesley's campus landscape was developed by Olmsted, [[Arthur Shurcliff]], and [[Ralph Adams Cram]] in 1921. This landscape-based concept represented a break from the architecturally-defined courtyard and quadrangle campus arrangement that was typical of American campuses at the time. The {{convert|720|acre|km2|adj=on}} site's glaciated topography, a series of meadows, and native plant communities shaped the original layout of the campus, resulting in a campus architecture that is integrated into its landscape.

The campus offers multiple housing options, including Tower Court, which was built after College Hall burnt down, the Quad (Quint, including Munger), the "New Dorms", referring to the east-side dormitories erected in the 1950s, and multiple "Branch Halls", including both a Spanish and French-speaking house. In total, Wellesley offers 17 different residence halls for students to live in.

The most recent master plan for Wellesley College was completed in 1998 by [[Michael Van Valkenburgh]] Associates. According to the designers, this plan was intended to restore and recapture the original landscape character of the campus that had been partially lost as the campus evolved through the 20th century. In 2011, Wellesley was listed by ''[[Travel+Leisure]]'' magazine as one of the most beautiful college campuses in the United States.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.travelandleisure.com/articles/americas-most-beautiful-college-campuses/23|title=America's most beautiful college campuses|newspaper=Travel+Leisure|date=September 2011|access-date=January 28, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140121080558/http://www.travelandleisure.com/articles/americas-most-beautiful-college-campuses/23|archive-date=January 21, 2014|url-status=live}}</ref>

Wellesley is home to Green Hall, completed in 1931, the only building bearing the name of famed [[miser]] [[Hetty Green]]; the building was funded by her children.<ref name=VirtVt>{{cite web|title=Hetty Green (1834–1916)|url=http://www.virtualvermont.com/history/hgreen.html|website=Virtual Vermont|publisher=Virtual Vermont Internet Services|access-date=2014-07-08|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140714113846/http://www.virtualvermont.com/history/hgreen.html|archive-date=July 14, 2014|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Hardwick|first=M. Jeffrey|date=2001-12-01|title=Review: The Landscape and Architecture of Wellesley College by Peter Fergusson, James F. O' Gorman, John Rhodes; Building America's First University: An Historical and Architectural Guide to The University of Pennsylvania by George E. Thomas, David B. Brownlee|url=http://jsah.ucpress.edu/content/6/4/523|journal=Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians|language=en|volume=60|issue=4|pages=523–525|doi=10.2307/991747|jstor=991747|issn=0037-9808|access-date=September 30, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170930222722/http://jsah.ucpress.edu/content/6/4/523|archive-date=September 30, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> Part of the building is the Galen L. Stone Tower, housing a 32-bell [[carillon]], which is routinely played between classes by members of the Guild of Carillonneurs.

Houghton Chapel was dedicated in 1899 in the center of the college campus.<ref name=HCaMC>{{cite web | url = http://www.wellesley.edu/religiouslife/houghton#mfwpVCuRJr1jvTT3.97 | title = Houghton Chapel and Multifaith Center | work = Wellesley College | publisher = Trustees of Wellesley College | access-date = July 19, 2017 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170722175754/http://www.wellesley.edu/religiouslife/houghton#mfwpVCuRJr1jvTT3.97 | archive-date = July 22, 2017 | url-status = live }}</ref>  The architectural firm of [[Heins & LaFarge]] designed Houghton<ref name=HCaMC /> of gray stone in the classic [[Architecture of cathedrals and great churches#Latin Cross and Greek Cross|Latin cross]] floor plan. The exterior walls are pierced by stained glass windows. Window designers include [[Tiffany glass|Tiffany]]; [[John La Farge]]; [[Stained glass#Innovations in the United States|Reynolds, Francis & Rohnstock]]; and [[Jeffrey Gibson]].<ref name=HCaMC /><ref>{{cite web | url = http://web.wellesley.edu/RelLife/chapelcenter/stainedglass.html#info | title = Houghton chapel stained glass windows | date = 2013 | work = Wellesley College | publisher = Trustees of Wellesley College | access-date = July 19, 2017 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20171016121144/http://web.wellesley.edu/RelLife/chapelcenter/stainedglass.html#info | archive-date = October 16, 2017 | url-status = live }}</ref><ref name=Council>{{cite web | url = http://hcap.artstor.org/cgi-bin/library?a=d&d=p1916 | title = William S. Houghton Memorial Chapel | date = November 2006 | work = Historic Campus Architecture Project | publisher = Council of Independent Colleges | access-date = July 19, 2017 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180405153124/http://hcap.artstor.org/cgi-bin/library?a=d&d=p1916 | archive-date = April 5, 2018 | url-status = live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url = https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/regionals/west/2012/04/28/wellesley-college-new-stained-glass-features-goddess-many-truths-wellesley-goddess-for-new-age/PyPZi1d4hzzZSzIZsL1oUJ/story.html | title = Wellesley College's new stained glass features a goddess of many truths | first = Evan | last = Allen | date = April 29, 2012 | work = [[The Boston Globe]] | publisher = Boston Globe Media Partners, LLC | access-date = July 19, 2017 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180405153247/https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/regionals/west/2012/04/28/wellesley-college-new-stained-glass-features-goddess-many-truths-wellesley-goddess-for-new-age/PyPZi1d4hzzZSzIZsL1oUJ/story.html | archive-date = April 5, 2018 | url-status = live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url = http://campaign.wellesley.edu/daily-shot/1836-new-chapel-windows-celebrate-power-light | title = New Chapel Windows Celebrate Power of Light | date = December 16, 2016 | work = The Wellesley Effect | publisher = Wellesley College | access-date = July 19, 2017 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170814062651/http://campaign.wellesley.edu/daily-shot/1836-new-chapel-windows-celebrate-power-light | archive-date = August 14, 2017 | url-status = live }}</ref>  The chapel can seat up to 750 people.<ref name=HCaMC /> Houghton is used by the college for a variety of religious and secular functions, like lectures and music concerts,<ref name=HCaMC /> and is also available for rental.<ref name=Ceremonies>{{cite web | url = http://www.wellesley.edu/religiouslife/houghton/ceremonies/chapel#cqB4b4ygBs6KtxC7.97 | title = Ceremonies at Wellesley / The Houghton Chapel | work = Wellesley College | publisher = Trustees of Wellesley College | access-date = July 19, 2017 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20171012184833/https://www.wellesley.edu/religiouslife/houghton/ceremonies/chapel#cqB4b4ygBs6KtxC7.97 | archive-date = 2017-10-12 | url-status = dead }}</ref> The lower-level houses the Multifaith Center.<ref name=HCaMC />

In 1905 [[Andrew Carnegie]] donated $125,000 to build what is now known as Clapp Library, on the condition that the college match the amount for an endowment.  The money was raised by 1907 and construction began June 5, 1909. In 1915 Carnegie gave another $95,446 towards an addition. This renovation added a recreational reading room, offices, archives, a reserve reading room, added space for rare books and additional stacks.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://magazine.wellesley.edu/fall-2014/rewriting-the-book-on-clapp-library|title=Rewriting the Book on Clapp Library {{!}} Wellesley Magazine|website=magazine.wellesley.edu|language=en|access-date=2018-04-23|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180424071659/http://magazine.wellesley.edu/fall-2014/rewriting-the-book-on-clapp-library|archive-date=April 24, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>  The building underwent renovations from 1956 to 1959, that doubled its size. From 1973 to 1975 a major addition was added to the right-hand side of the building. In 1974 the building was renamed for [[Margaret Clapp|Margaret Antoinette Clapp]], a Pulitzer Prize-winning author and member of the 1930 class who served as the eighth college president from 1949 to 1966.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.wellesley.edu/academics/centers/clapplibrary|title=Clapp Library|website=Wellesley College|language=en|access-date=2018-04-23|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180424135520/https://www.wellesley.edu/academics/centers/clapplibrary|archive-date=April 24, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

The [[Davis Museum]], opened in 1993, was the first building in North America designed by [[Pritzker Prize]]-winning architect [[Rafael Moneo]], whose notion of the museum as a "treasury" or "treasure chamber" informs its design.  The Davis is at the heart of the arts on the Wellesley campus adjacent to the academic quad and is connected by an enclosed bridge to the Jewett Arts Center, designed by [[Paul Rudolph (architect)|Paul Rudolph]]. The collections span from ancient art from around the world to contemporary art exhibitions, and admission is free to the general public.

{{wide image|Wellesley college panorama-red.jpg|500px|align-cap=center|Wellesley College campus, fall 2006}}

==Administration==
[[File:Wellesley College Tower Court.jpg|thumb|Tower Court is the largest dorm]]
The current president of Wellesley College is [[Paula Johnson]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wellesley.edu/news/14thpresident|title=Wellesley College Names Harvard's Paula A. Johnson Its 14th President|website=Wellesley College|access-date=2016-07-23|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160801183657/http://www.wellesley.edu/news/14thpresident|archive-date=August 1, 2016|url-status=live}}</ref>  Johnson previously founded the Connors Center for Women's Health and Gender Biology at [[Brigham and Women's Hospital]]. She was the Grace A. Young Family Professor of Medicine in the Field of Women's Health at [[Harvard Medical School]], as well as professor of [[epidemiology]] at the [[Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health]]. Johnson succeeded [[H. Kim Bottomly]] to become [[Paula Johnson|Wellesley's 14th President]] in July 2016.

Wellesley's fund-raising campaign in 2005 set a record for liberal arts colleges with a total of $472.3&nbsp;million, 18.1% more than the goal of $400&nbsp;million.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://web.wellesley.edu/PublicAffairs/Releases/2005/080805.html|title=Wellesley College Completes Record-Setting Campaign; Women's College Raises $472 Million, Highest Among Liberal Arts Colleges|website=web.wellesley.edu|access-date=2016-07-23|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160921220158/http://web.wellesley.edu/PublicAffairs/Releases/2005/080805.html|archive-date=September 21, 2016|url-status=live}}</ref> According to data compiled by [[The Chronicle of Higher Education]], Wellesley's campaign total is the largest of any liberal arts college. In late 2015, the college launched another campaign, with a goal of $500&nbsp;million.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://campaign.wellesley.edu|title=The Wellesley Effect|website=campaign.wellesley.edu|access-date=2016-07-23|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170715092516/http://campaign.wellesley.edu/|archive-date=July 15, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> Many notable alumnae including [[Madeleine Albright]], [[Hillary Clinton]], [[Diane Sawyer]], [[Susan Wagner]], and [[Cokie Roberts]] collaborated on the campaign video and launch festivities. As of Fall 2017, over $446&nbsp;million has been raised.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://campaign.wellesley.edu/the-campaign-for-wellesley|title=The Campaign for Wellesley|website=The Campaign for Wellesley|access-date=2016-09-28|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170929091413/http://campaign.wellesley.edu/the-campaign-for-wellesley|archive-date=September 29, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Wellesley Centers for Women==
The [[Wellesley Centers for Women]] (WCW) is one of the largest [[gender]]-focused [[social science]] research-and-action organizations in the United States.<ref name="ncrw">{{cite web |url=http://www.ncrw.org |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19981212031257/http://www.ncrw.org/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=1998-12-12 |title=Home &#124; Re:Gender |publisher=Ncrw.org |date=2015-10-20 |access-date=2015-11-21 }}</ref>  Located on and nearby the Wellesley College campus, WCW was established when the Center for Research on Women (founded 1974) and the Stone Center for Development Services and Studies at Wellesley College (founded 1981) merged into a single organization in 1995.<ref>{{cite web|title = Wellesley Centers for Women About us {{!}} About us Extra Information {{!}} About us|url = https://www.wcwonline.org/About-us-Extra-Information/about-us|website = Wcwonline.org|access-date = 2015-10-27|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151026233606/http://www.wcwonline.org/About-us-Extra-Information/about-us|archive-date = October 26, 2015|url-status = live}}</ref> It is home to several prominent American feminist scholars, including [[Jean Kilbourne]] and [[Peggy McIntosh]]. The current executive director of the Wellesley Centers for Women is Layli Maparyan. Since 1974, the Wellesley Centers for Women has produced over 200 scholarly articles and over 100 books.<ref>{{cite web|title = Wellesley Centers for Women Fast Facts {{!}} About us Extra Information {{!}} About us|url = https://www.wcwonline.org/About-us-Extra-Information/fast-facts|website = Wcwonline.org|access-date = 2015-10-27|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151122053745/https://www.wcwonline.org/About-us-Extra-Information/fast-facts|archive-date = November 22, 2015|url-status = live}}</ref>

The Wellesley Centers for Women has five key areas of research: education, economic security, mental health, youth and adolescent development, and gender-based violence.  WCW is also home to long-standing and highly successful action programs that engage in curriculum development and training, professional development, evaluation, field building, and theory building. Those programs include the National SEED Project, the National Institute on Out-of-School Time, Open Circle, the [[Jean Baker Miller]] Training Institute, and ''Women's Review of Books.''<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.wcwonline.org/Projects/topics-list |title=Research &#124; Wellesley Centers for Women |access-date=February 26, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170709014258/https://www.wcwonline.org/Projects/topics-list |archive-date=July 9, 2017 |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Academics==
[[File:Margaret Clapp Library - Wellesley College - DSC09638.JPG|thumb|Margaret Clapp Library]]

Wellesley's average class size is between 17 and 20 students, with a student-faculty ratio of 7:1. 60 departmental and interdepartmental majors are offered,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Academics - Academics |url=https://www.wellesley.edu/academics |access-date=2024-07-08 |website=Wellesley |language=en-US}}</ref> and students have the option to propose their own major.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-12-05 |title=“It’s more than just a place.” |url=https://www.wellesley.edu/news/its-more-than-just-a-place |access-date=2025-01-22 |website=Wellesley |language=en-US}}</ref>

Wellesley offers support to nontraditional aged students through the Elisabeth Kaiser Davis Degree Program, open to students over the age of 24.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://new.wellesley.edu/admission/esp/nontraditional |title=Wellesley College, Nontraditional Student Website: Davis Degree Program |work=Wellesley.edu |date=2006-05-24 |access-date=2010-02-21 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120415163617/http://new.wellesley.edu/admission/esp/nontraditional |archive-date=2012-04-15 }}</ref> The program allows women who, for various reasons, were unable to start or complete a bachelor's degree at a younger age to attend Wellesley.
[[File:Whitin Observatory circa.2011.jpg|thumb|The Whitin Observatory is home to the Astronomy department, and occasionally has viewing nights open to the public.]]
Wellesley offers dual degree programs with the [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]] and the [[Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering|Olin College of Engineering]], enabling students to receive a Bachelor of Science at those schools in addition to a Bachelor of Arts at Wellesley.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wellesley.edu/advising/classdeans/engineering/dd|title=Dual Degree with MIT|publisher=Wellesley.edu|access-date=2015-11-21|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141206110433/http://www.wellesley.edu/advising/classdeans/engineering/dd|archive-date=December 6, 2014|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wellesley.edu/advising/classdeans/engineering/dual-degree-with-olin|title=Dual Degree with Olin|publisher=Wellesley.edu|access-date=2015-11-21|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151122101600/http://www.wellesley.edu/advising/classdeans/engineering/dual-degree-with-olin|archive-date=2015-11-22|url-status=dead}}</ref> Wellesley also has a joint five-year BA/MA program with [[Brandeis University]]'s International Business School, which allows qualified Wellesley students to receive a Masters of Arts degree from the school, as well as a Bachelor of Arts at Wellesley.<ref>{{cite web |title=BA/MA (Brandeis/Wellesley Undergraduates Only) |url=https://www.brandeis.edu/global/academics/ma/ba-ma/index.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150907191447/https://www.brandeis.edu/global/academics/ma/ba-ma/wellesley-students.html |archive-date=September 7, 2015 |access-date=2023-09-23 |website=www.brandeis.edu |language=en}}</ref>

Wellesley College offers research collaborations and cross-registration programs with other Boston-area institutions, including [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]], [[Babson College]], [[Olin College]], and [[Brandeis University]].

Its most popular majors, based on 2023 graduates,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Graduates and Degree Conferral |url=https://www.wellesley.edu/about-us/offices-departments/office-of-institutional-research/factbook/graduates-and-degree-conferral |access-date=2024-07-08 |website=Wellesley |language=en-US}}</ref> were:
*Economics (94)
*Computer Sciences (67)
*Psychology (53)
*Political Science (45)
*Biological Sciences (37)
*Neuroscience (35)
*Mathematics (27)
*English (27)

===Admissions===
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{|  class="wikitable" style="float:right; font-size:85%; margin:10px; text-align:center; font-size:85%; margin:auto"
|+ ''Fall Admission Statistics''
|-
! &nbsp;
!2021<ref>{{cite web|title=FAQ|url=http://www.wellesley.edu/admission/faq|access-date=2022-01-08|website=Wellesley College|language=en}}</ref>
!2019<ref name=CDS/>
!2018<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.wellesley.edu/sites/default/files/assets/departments/instresearch/files/cds_2018-2019-completed_jsj_edits.pdf |title= Wellesley College Common Data Set 2018-19 |publisher=Wellesley College |access-date=May 14, 2020}}</ref>
!2017<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.wellesley.edu/sites/default/files/assets/departments/instresearch/files/cds_2017-2018_201802.pdf|title=Wellesley College Common Data Set 2017–2018|publisher=Wellesley College|access-date=September 6, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180918161752/https://www.wellesley.edu/sites/default/files/assets/departments/instresearch/files/cds_2017-2018_201802.pdf|archive-date=September 18, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>
!2016<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.wellesley.edu/sites/default/files/assets/departments/instresearch/files/cds_2016-2017_final_0.pdf|title=Wellesley College Common Data Set 2016–2017|publisher=Wellesley College|access-date=September 6, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170519001452/http://www.wellesley.edu/sites/default/files/assets/departments/instresearch/files/cds_2016-2017_final_0.pdf|archive-date=May 19, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref>
!2015<ref name="ReferenceA">{{cite web |url=https://www.wellesley.edu/sites/default/files/assets/departments/instresearch/files/wellesley_cds_2015-2016_corr.pdf |title=Common Data Set 2015–2016 |publisher=Wellesley College |access-date=September 6, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170314225710/http://www.wellesley.edu/sites/default/files/assets/departments/instresearch/files/wellesley_cds_2015-2016_corr.pdf |archive-date=March 14, 2017 |url-status=live }}</ref>

|- style="text-align:center;"
! Applicants
|7,920
| 6,395 || 6,631 || 5,666 || 4,854 || 4,555 
|- style="text-align:center;"
! Admits
|1,240
| 1,379 || 1,296 || 1,251 || 1,388 || 1,380 
|- style="text-align:center;"
! % Admitted
|16
| 21.6 || 19.5 || 22.1 || 28.6 || 30.3 
|- style="text-align:center;"
! Enrolled
|606
| 612 || 614 || 605 || 590 || 595 
|- style="text-align:center;"
! Mid 50% SAT range
|1479
| 1370–1510 || 1330–1520 || 1360–1530 || 1970–2250 || 1940–2240 
|- style="text-align:center;"
! Mid 50% ACT range
|33
| 31–34 || 30–34 || 30–33 || 30–33 || 29–33 
|}

The 2020 annual ranking of ''[[U.S. News & World Report]]'' categorizes admission to Wellesley as "most selective".<ref name=USNWR/> For the Class of 2023 (enrolling fall 2019), the middle 50% range of [[SAT scores]] was 680–750 for evidence-based reading and 680–780 for math, while the middle 50% range for the [[ACT (test)|ACT]] composite score was 31–34 for enrolled first-year students.<ref name=CDS/> For the incoming class of 2028, Wellesley received a record number of applications, totaling over 8,900 applications, and 13% of applicants were offered admission.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-03-18 |title=Welcome to Wellesley, class of 2028! |url=https://www.wellesley.edu/news/welcome-to-wellesley-class-of-2028 |access-date=2024-07-08 |website=Wellesley |language=en-US}}</ref> During the 2023–2024 admissions cycle (enrolling Fall 2024), the college was test-optional and did not publish standardized testing statistics for the class of 2027 as of July 2024. The college is [[need-blind]] for domestic applicants.<ref>{{cite web |title=Cost & Financial Aid |url=https://www.wellesley.edu/admission/cost |publisher=Wellesley College |access-date=4 May 2023}}</ref>

==== Transgender applicants                                                                                                                                ====
Following years of student activism, the college's admissions policy was updated in 2015 to allow [[trans women]] and [[non-binary]] [[Assigned female at birth|people assigned female at birth]] to be considered for admittance.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2015/03/05/wellesley/1a3eDzywpzF4QAznRuOw3L/story.html|title=Wellesley to accept transgender women - The Boston Globe|work=BostonGlobe.com|access-date=2018-03-06|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171120113451/http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2015/03/05/wellesley/1a3eDzywpzF4QAznRuOw3L/story.html|archive-date=November 20, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> The first Wellesley transgender students enrolled in Fall 2017.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://wbsm.com/all-female-massachusetts-college-welcomes-first-transgender-students/|title=All-Female Massachusetts College Welcomes First Transgender Students|website=1420 WBSM|date=September 5, 2017 |language=en|access-date=2018-03-06|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180307150921/http://wbsm.com/all-female-massachusetts-college-welcomes-first-transgender-students/|archive-date=March 7, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

==== Nontraditional age applicants ====
Wellesley began its program for [[non-traditional student]]s in 1971 when the Continuing Education Program was launched. This program was renamed in 1991 for Elisabeth Kaiser Davis, a member of the Class of 1932.<ref>{{Cite news|date=1991-03-17|title=Campus Life: Wellesley; A Higher Profile for Older Students|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/03/17/nyregion/campus-life-wellesley-a-higher-profile-for-older-students.html|access-date=2022-02-01|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Wellesley allows applicants older than 24 who had begun but have not completed a bachelor's degree to apply to the Elizabeth Kaiser Davis Degree Program.<ref name="Davis Degree Program Applicants">{{cite web |url=https://www.wellesley.edu/admission/apply/davis |website=Wellesley College |title = Davis Degree Program Applicants|access-date=16 November 2020}}</ref> Davis Scholars are fully integrated into the Wellesley community; they take the same classes as traditional students and can choose to live on campus. According to the Wellesley web site, Davis Scholars' "diverse backgrounds, experiences and perspectives enrich the lives of the whole student body."<ref>[http://www.wellesley.edu/NSP/davisProgram.html Wellesley College. "Davis Degree Program and Postbaccalaureate Study Program."] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060902042953/http://www.wellesley.edu/NSP/davisProgram.html |date=2006-09-02 }} 24 May 2006.</ref>

=== Tuition and financial aid ===
For the 2024–2025 school year, Wellesley's annual tuition was $92,060 per year, the first tuition cost for a Boston-area school (along with [[Boston University]]) to exceed $90,000 annually.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Welker |first1=Grant |last2=Tran |first2=Jericho |date=2024-03-26 |title=A first for Mass. colleges: Breaking the $90,000 barrier |url=https://www.nbcboston.com/boston-business-journal/a-first-for-mass-colleges-breaking-the-90000-barrier/3319692/ |access-date=2024-07-26 |website=[[NBC Boston]] |language=en-US}}</ref> In 2020–2021, the average annual aid offer was over $56,000.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Student Financial Services |url=http://www.wellesley.edu/sfs |access-date=2022-07-21 |website=Wellesley College |language=en}}</ref> The maximum loan level for other students on aid is $12,825 total for four years.<ref>{{cite web |date=2007-07-30 |title=Understanding Financial Aid |url=http://www.wellesley.edu/sfs/UnderstandingFinAid.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100127224913/http://www.wellesley.edu/sfs/UnderstandingFinAid.html |archive-date=2010-01-27 |access-date=2010-02-21 |work=Wellesley.edu}}</ref>

===Rankings===
{{Infobox US university ranking
<!-- Liberal arts rankings -->| Forbes = 23
| USNWR_LA = 7
| Wamo_LA = 20
| THE_WSJ = 31
}}

In its 2025 rankings of national liberal arts colleges in the U.S., ''[[U.S. News & World Report]]'' ranked Wellesley seventh overall, first for women's colleges, 8th for "best value", tied at 23rd for "best undergraduate teaching", and 17th for "top performers on social mobility".<ref name="USNWR">{{cite web |url=https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/wellesley-college-2224 |title=Wellesley College Rankings |year=2021 |magazine=U.S. News & World Report |access-date=October 13, 2020 }}</ref>

In 2024, ''[[Washington Monthly]]'' ranked Wellesley 20th among 194 liberal arts colleges in the U.S. based on its contribution to the public good, as measured by social mobility, research, and promoting public service.<ref>{{Cite web |title=2024 Liberal Arts Colleges Ranking |url=https://washingtonmonthly.com/2024-college-guide/liberal-arts/ |access-date=2025-03-12 |website=Washington Monthly |language=en-US}}</ref>

In addition, ''[[Forbes]]''' 2024–25 "America's Top Colleges" ranked the institution 23rd among the top 500 U.S. colleges, service academies and universities.<ref>{{cite web |title=America's Top Colleges |url=https://www.forbes.com/top-colleges/list/#tab:rank |magazine=Forbes |date=August 15, 2019 |access-date=September 2, 2020}}</ref> Wellesley College is [[Higher education accreditation in the United States|accredited]] by the [[New England Commission of Higher Education]].<ref>{{Citation|title=Massachusetts Institutions – NECHE|publisher=[[New England Commission of Higher Education]]|url=https://www.neche.org/institutions/ma/|access-date=May 26, 2021}}</ref>

==Student life==
Approximately 98% of students live on campus.

[[File:Punch's Alley.jpg|thumb|A behind-the-bar view of a busy night at Punch's Alley]]

For more than 50 years, Wellesley has offered a cross-registration program with [[MIT]]. Students can participate in research at MIT through the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP).<ref>{{cite web|title=UROP for Wellesley College Students {{!}} MIT Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program|url=https://urop.mit.edu/research-exploration/urop/options/urop-wellesley-college-students|access-date=2020-11-16|website=urop.mit.edu}}</ref> In recent years, cross-registration opportunities have expanded to include nearby [[Babson College]], [[Brandeis University]], and [[Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering|Olin College of Engineering]]. The college also has exchange programs with other small colleges, including [[Amherst College|Amherst]], [[Connecticut College]], [[Dartmouth College|Dartmouth]], [[Mount Holyoke College|Mount Holyoke]], [[Smith College|Smith]], [[Trinity College (Connecticut)|Trinity]], [[Vassar College|Vassar]], [[Wesleyan University|Wesleyan]], and [[Wheaton College (Massachusetts)|Wheaton]].<ref name=":0">{{cite web|title = Opportunities at Other Schools|url = http://www.wellesley.edu/academics/theacademicprogram/otherschools|website = Wellesley College|access-date = 2015-06-25|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150626133643/http://www.wellesley.edu/academics/theacademicprogram/otherschools|archive-date = June 26, 2015|url-status = live}}</ref>

===Organizations===
The college has approximately 180 student organizations. WZLY is the college's campus radio station. It is entirely student-run and plays on 91.5 FM. Founded in 1942, it holds claim to be the oldest still-running women's college radio station in the country.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.radiosurvivor.com/2016/01/05/investigating-some-contenders-for-the-oldest-womens-college-radio-station/ |title=Investigating Some Contenders for the Oldest Women's College Radio Station - Radio Survivor |date=January 5, 2016 |access-date=December 17, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181218010740/http://www.radiosurvivor.com/2016/01/05/investigating-some-contenders-for-the-oldest-womens-college-radio-station/ |archive-date=December 18, 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.wellesley.edu/news/stories/node/18346 |title=Wellesley Student Radio Station Turns 70 &#124; Wellesley College |access-date=December 17, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181218010806/https://www.wellesley.edu/news/stories/node/18346 |archive-date=December 18, 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Publications on campus include ''Counterpoint'', the monthly journal of campus life;<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9GvgAAAAMAAJ&q=counterpoint%20journal%20wellesley |title=Directory of Electronic Journals, Newsletters, and Academic Discussion Lists |year=1996 |pages=119}}</ref> ''The Wellesley News'', the campus newspaper; ''International Relations Council Journal,'' the internationally oriented campus publication; ''The Wellesley Review'', the literary magazine;<ref>{{Cite book |last=Field |first=Andrew |url=https://archive.org/details/nabokovabibliogr00fiel/mode/2up?q=%22Wellesley+Review%22 |title=Nabokov, a bibliography |date=1973 |publisher=McGraw-Hill |others=Internet Archive |isbn=978-0-07-020680-9 |location=New York |pages=141}}</ref> ''GenerAsians:'' the asian writing review,<ref>{{Cite book |last=DiMaggio |first=Paul |url=https://www.google.at/books/edition/Art_in_the_Lives_of_Immigrant_Communitie/uHJprl1xkmUC?hl=de&gbpv=1&dq=GenerAsians+wellesley&pg=PA151&printsec=frontcover |title=Art in the Lives of Immigrant Communities in the United States |last2=Fernández-Kelly |first2=María Patricia |date=2010 |publisher=Rutgers University Press |isbn=978-0-8135-4757-2 |pages=151 |language=en}}</ref> and ''W.Collective'', the fashion and lifestyle magazine.

There are also several social organizations on campus, called "societies," which each have a unique academic focus. In order to join, students must attend "teas" where they can learn more about the focus of each society. Societies that are active on campus include the Shakespeare Society (theater), Society Zeta Alpha (literature), Tau Zeta Epsilon (arts and music), and Agora Society (politics).<ref>{{Cite web |last=Merchant |first=Sanika |title=The Tea on Wellesley Societies |url=https://thewellesleynews.com/16260/features/the-tea-on-wellesley-societies/ |access-date=2024-12-02 |website=The Wellesley News}}</ref>

===Athletics===
[[File:Wellesley logo from NCAA.svg|thumb|left|120px|Wellesley athletics logo]]
Wellesley fields 13 [[varsity sports]] teams – basketball, crew, cross country, fencing, field hockey, golf, lacrosse, soccer, softball, swimming & diving, tennis, track & field, and volleyball.  Wellesley does not have a mascot in the traditional sense – its sports teams are referred to both individually and collectively as "the Blue" (the school colors are [[royal blue]] and white). Wellesley is a member of the [[NCAA]] [[Division III (NCAA)|NCAA Division III]] and the Eastern Conference Athletic Conference (ECAC) and competes primarily as a member of the [[New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference]] (NEWMAC).

[[File:Setting up for Quidditch, Wellesley College, Wellesley MA.jpg|thumb|Preparations for a spring game of [[quidditch (real-life sport)|quidditch]]]]
The Wellesley College Crew Team, affectionately known as "Blue Crew", was founded in 1970 and was the first women's intercollegiate rowing team in the country. In 2016, Blue Crew won the [[NCAA Division III Rowing Championship]] as a team for the first time in Wellesley history, with its first Varsity 8+ boat placing first and second Varsity 8+ boat placing second. This historic win marked the first time a team from Wellesley College won a national championship and the first time a women's college won the NCAA Rowing Championships. In 2022, Blue Crew won the [[NCAA Division III Rowing Championship]] as a team for a second time, with both its first Varsity 8+ and second Varsity 8+ boats placing second.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=2022-05-28 |title=Wellesley Crew Wins the 2022 NCAA DIII Rowing National Championship |url=https://www.wellesleyblue.com/sports/wcrew/2021-22/releases/20220528nhpzbk |language=en}}</ref>

In 2023, Blue Crew again won the [[NCAA Division III Rowing Championship]] as a team, with its first Varsity 8+ boat placing first and second Varsity 8+ boat placing second.<ref>{{cite web |url-status=live |archive-date=Jul 18, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230718004947/https://www.ncaa.com/news/rowing/article/2023-05-27/wellesley-wins-2023-ncaa-diii-rowing-national-championship |location=[[Pennsauken Township, New Jersey|Pennsauken, New Jersey]] |date=May 27, 2023 |website=[[National Collegiate Athletic Association]] |language=en |access-date=6 August 2023 |title=Wellesley wins 2023 NCAA DIII rowing national championship |url=https://www.ncaa.com/news/rowing/article/2023-05-27/wellesley-wins-2023-ncaa-diii-rowing-national-championship}}</ref>

Wellesley also fields club teams in archery, alpine & Nordic skiing, equestrian, ice hockey, rugby, sailing, squash, Ultimate Frisbee, and water polo. Squash was originally a varsity sport but was downgraded to a club sport status in 2017 when the college left the proper division.<ref>{{cite journal|date=2017-03-22|title=Wellesley College Squash To Compete As A Club Sport Beginning In 2017-18|url=https://www.wellesleyblue.com/sports/wsquash/2016-17/releases/20170320nev8r0|access-date=2020-11-16|website=Wellesley|language=en}}</ref>Recently, ultimate frisbee competed at nationals and ranked 2nd (2022) and 7th (2024). 

From 1943 to 1946, [[Judy Atterbury]] won multiple national [[NCAA Division I Women's Tennis Championship#Singles and Doubles Championships (1922–1982)|intercollegiate women's tennis championships]] in both singles (1943, 1946) and doubles (1943, 1944).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.tennisforum.com/threads/pre-ncaa-womens-collegiate-tennis.1378268/|title=Pre-NCAA women's collegiate tennis|website=Tennis Forum|access-date=25 May 2021|via=Newspapers.com}} (''Boston Globe'', 1929-1953. ''St. Louis Post-Dispatch'', 1954-1963.)</ref> [[Nadine Netter]] won the Eastern Women's College Tournament in 1962, and was the Eastern Intercollegiate Champion and New England Intercollegiate women's Tennis Championship winner in 1965.

====Crew====
In both 2016 and 2023, Wellesley College's first Varsity 8+ boat became a national champion in its event at the NCAA Rowing Championships. Wellesley College Crew Team's head coach, Tessa Spillane, was voted the NCAA Division III Rowing Coach of the Year in 2010–11, 2015–16, and 2021–22.  Additionally, Wellesley College Crew Team's coaching staff received the 2015–16 and 2021–22 CRCA NCAA Division III National Coaching Staff of the Year awards.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=2022-07-08 |title=Blue Crew's Spillane, Muller, Ball Named CRCA Division III National Coach and Staff of the Year |url=https://www.wellesleyblue.com/sports/wcrew/2021-22/releases/20220708ofvu32 |language=en}}</ref>

===Traditions===
[[File:Wellesley College Library.jpg|thumb|upright|Wellesley College Library]]
[[Hoop rolling]] is an annual tradition at the college that dates to 1895.<ref>{{cite press release | url = http://www.wellesley.edu/PublicAffairs/Releases/2009/042509.html | title = Susan Wang Wins Wellesley's 114th Annual Hoop Rolling Contest | date = April 25, 2009 | author = Wellesley College Office for Public Affairs | publisher = Wellesley College | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100516033729/http://www.wellesley.edu/PublicAffairs/Releases/2009/042509.html | archive-date=May 16, 2010 }}</ref> Each senior has a wooden hoop, often passed down to them from their "big". Before graduation, the seniors, wearing their graduation robes, run a short race while rolling their hoops. In the early 20th century, the winner was said to be the first in her class to marry; in the 1980s, the winner was said to become the class's first CEO; and since the 1990 Commencement speech by then-[[First lady|First Lady]] [[Barbara Bush]], the winner has been said to be the first to achieve success, however she defines it.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wellesley.edu/Welcome/Traditions/hooprolling.html |title=All About Hooprolling |work=Wellesley.edu |access-date=2010-02-21 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100108110054/http://www.wellesley.edu/Welcome/Traditions/hooprolling.html |archive-date=2010-01-08 }}</ref>The winner is also carried by their classmates and thrown in Lake Waban. 

The Wellesley campus sits just before the halfway mark on the [[Boston Marathon]] course, and students come out to cheer runners in what has become known as the "Scream Tunnel".<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.runnersworld.com/boston-marathon/wellesley-scream-tunnel-cheers-kisses-and-funny-signs|title=Wellesley Scream Tunnel: Cheers, Kisses, and Funny Signs|date=2017-04-17|work=Runner's World|access-date=2018-04-29|language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180430051140/https://www.runnersworld.com/boston-marathon/wellesley-scream-tunnel-cheers-kisses-and-funny-signs|archive-date=April 30, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> Student have been cheering on runners since the first running of the marathon.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wellesley.edu/about/collegehistory/traditions/marathonmonday|title=Marathon Monday|website=Wellesley College|language=en|access-date=2018-04-29|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180430113839/http://www.wellesley.edu/about/collegehistory/traditions/marathonmonday|archive-date=April 30, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> In 1966 the school heard word that a woman was running in the race and turned out in numbers in cheer her on.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.runnersworld.com/boston-marathon/first-lady-of-boston|title=First Lady of Boston|date=2016-04-06|work=Runner's World|access-date=2018-04-29|language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180430051150/https://www.runnersworld.com/boston-marathon/first-lady-of-boston|archive-date=April 30, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>  Once women were officially allowed to register for the 1972 race, the campus cheer tradition became more popular.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.boston.com/sports/boston-marathon/2018/04/12/kissing-posters-and-so-much-screeching-a-history-of-the-wellesley-college-scream-tunnel|title=A history of the Wellesley College Boston Marathon 'Scream Tunnel'|date=2018-04-12|work=Boston.com|access-date=2018-04-29|language=en-US|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180430050004/https://www.boston.com/sports/boston-marathon/2018/04/12/kissing-posters-and-so-much-screeching-a-history-of-the-wellesley-college-scream-tunnel|archive-date=April 30, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>This day known commonly as "MarMon" (Marathon Monday) is the one day students can count on a break from academics as the campus celebrates the runners and each other in jolly fashion. 

==Notable alumnae and faculty==
{{Main|List of Wellesley College people}}
{{see also|List of Presidents of Wellesley College}}

===Notable alumnae===
<gallery mode="packed">
File:Secalbright.jpg|[[Madeleine Albright]]
File:Portrait of Katharine Lee Bates, ca. 1880-1890.jpg|[[Katharine Lee Bates]]
File:Cokie Roberts (49094906053).jpg|[[Cokie Roberts]]
File:Diane Sawyer May 2014 (cropped).jpg|[[Diane Sawyer]]
File:Nora Ephron cropped.jpg|[[Nora Ephron]]
File:Marjory S Douglas Friends photo.jpg|[[Marjory Stoneman Douglas]]
File:Soong Mei-ling in Taiwan (June 1960).jpg|[[Soong Mei-ling]]
File:Pamela Melroy.jpg|[[Pamela Melroy]]
File:Annie Jump Cannon 1922 Portrait.jpg|[[Annie Jump Cannon]]
</gallery>Wellesley's alumnae are represented among business executives and also work in a variety of other fields, ranging from government and public service to the arts.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1995/10/29/business/how-to-succeed-go-to-wellesley.html|title=How to Succeed? Go to Wellesley|last=Dobrzynski|first=Judith H.|date=1995-10-29|newspaper=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331|access-date=2016-04-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170227043034/http://www.nytimes.com/1995/10/29/business/how-to-succeed-go-to-wellesley.html|archive-date=February 27, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> They include the first woman to be named professor of clinical medicine [[Connie Guion]], class of 1906; architect [[Ann Beha]], class of 1972; author [[Harriet Stratemeyer Adams]] (author and publisher) class of 1914; astronomer [[Annie Jump Cannon]], class of 1884; archaeologist [[Josephine Platner Shear]], class of 1924; astronaut [[Pamela Melroy]] class of 1983; screenwriter [[Nora Ephron]], class of 1962; composers [[Elizabeth Bell (composer)|Elizabeth Bell]] and [[Natalie Sleeth]]; and professor and songwriter [[Katharine Lee Bates]]. Journalists [[Callie Crossley]], [[Diane Sawyer]], [[Cokie Roberts]], [[Lynn Sherr]], and [[Michelle Caruso-Cabrera|Michele Caruso-Cabrera]] also graduated from Wellesley as did [[Amalya Lyle Kearse]], Judge on the [[United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit]], [[Sandra Lynch]], United States Circuit Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, and political scientist [[Jane Mansbridge]], class of 1961.<ref>{{cite web |last1=WeNews Staff |title=21 Leaders 2007: Seven Who Exert the Power of their Voice |url=https://womensenews.org/2007/01/seven-who-exert-the-power-their-voice/ |website=www.womensenews.org |date=January 2, 2007 |access-date=29 November 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181130030253/https://womensenews.org/2007/01/seven-who-exert-the-power-their-voice/ |archive-date=November 30, 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Rebecca Lancefield]], a member of the [[National Academy of Sciences]], graduated from Wellesley,<ref>{{cite journal |last1=O'Hern |first1=Elizabeth M. |title=Rebecca Craighill Lancefield: Pioneer Microbiologist |journal=ASM (American Society for Microbiology) News |date=1975 |volume=41 |issue=12 |url=https://www.asm.org/ccLibraryFiles/FILENAME/0000000266/411275p805.pdf |access-date=29 November 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180430104555/https://www.asm.org/ccLibraryFiles/FILENAME/0000000266/411275p805.pdf |archive-date=April 30, 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref> as did [[Alice Ames Winter]] (B.A. 1886; M.A. 1889), president of the [[General Federation of Women's Clubs]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=James|first1=Edward T.|last2=James|first2=Janet Wilson|last3=Boyer|first3=Paul S.|editor=Radcliffe College|title=Notable American Women, 1607-1950: A Biographical Dictionary|url=https://archive.org/details/notableamericanw02jame_0|url-access=registration|page=[https://archive.org/details/notableamericanw02jame_0/page/40 40]|year=1971|publisher=Harvard University Press|isbn=978-0-674-62734-5}}</ref> [[Adaline Emerson Thompson]], class of 1880, later served as a trustee for twenty years.<ref name="Annual-1915">{{cite book |author1=Wellesley College |title=Annual Reports [of] President and Treasurer |date=1915 |page=7 |edition=Public domain |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H6HOAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA7 |access-date=18 April 2022 |language=en}} {{Source-attribution}}</ref>

Both [[Madeleine Albright]] ('59), and [[Hillary Clinton|Hillary Rodham Clinton]] ('69), have spoken about the formative impact their Wellesley experiences had on their careers. During her life, Secretary Albright returned annually to campus to lead the [[Madeleine Korbel Albright Institute for Global Affairs]], a month-long pedagogical seminar where students learn more about global affairs through analysis and action.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wellesley.edu/albright/about|title=About {{!}} Albright Institute|website=www.wellesley.edu|language=en|access-date=2018-06-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180630141311/http://www.wellesley.edu/albright/about|archive-date=June 30, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> Additionally, three U.S. ambassadors ([[Julieta Valls Noyes]], [[Anne W. Patterson|Anne Patterson]], and [[Michele J. Sison|Michele Sison]]) are Wellesley alumnae. [[Soong Mei-ling]], the wife of former [[President of the Republic of China|President]] [[Chiang Kai-shek]] of the [[Republic of China]], graduated from Wellesley.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Li |first1=Laura Tyson |title=Madame Chiang Kai-Shek: China's Eternal First Lady |date=2007 |publisher=Open Road + Grove/Atlantic |pages=34–38, 212}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Pakula |first1=Hannah |title=The Last Empress: Madame Chiang Kai-shek and the Birth of Modern China |url=https://archive.org/details/lastempressmadam00paku |url-access=registration |date=2009 |publisher=Simon and Schuster |location=NY|isbn=9781439148945 }}</ref>

Other notable Wellesley graduates who have received the college's Alumnae Achievement Award include: [[Anna Baetjer|Anna Medora Baetjer]], class of 1920, public health expert, physiologist, toxicologist; [[Marian Burros]] '54, journalist, food writer; [[Sally Carrighar]], class of 1922, writer, naturalist; [[Elyse Cherry]] '75, an entrepreneur, financial, and social equity activist; [[Suzanne Ciani]] '68, electronic music composer, recording artist; [[Phyllis Curtin]] '43, opera singer; [[Jocelyn Gill]] '38, astronomer; [[Marjory Stoneman Douglas]], class of 1912, environmental activist, author; [[Persis Drell]] '77, particle physicist; [[Nora Ephron]] '62, writer and director; [[Helen Hays]] '53, ornithologist; [[Dorothea Jameson]] '42, psychologist; [[Jean Kilbourne]] '64, media educator; [[Judith Martin]] '59, (pen name [[Miss Manners]]) author; [[Nergis Mavalvala]] '90, a quantum astrophysicist; [[Lorraine O'Grady]] '55, conceptual artist and cultural critic; [[Santha Rama Rau]] '45, writer; [[Marilyn Yalom]] '54, historian, feminist scholar; and [[Patricia Zipprodt]] '46, costume designer.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.wellesley.edu/alumnae/awards/achievementawards/allrecipientsbyyear|title=Alumnae Achievement Awards: All Recipients by Award Year|publisher=Wellesley College|language=en|access-date=September 8, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190702145247/https://www.wellesley.edu/alumnae/awards/achievementawards/allrecipientsbyyear|archive-date=July 2, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>

Additional notable alumni include [[Jasmine Guillory]] '97, American New York Times Best-selling author, and [[Vicky Tsai]] '00, [https://www.tatcha.com/ Tatcha] Founder.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Carey |first=Emily |date=2019-04-04 |title=Wellesley alum Jasmine Guillory '97 soars on the New York Times Best Sellers List {{!}} The Wellesley News |url=https://thewellesleynews.com/2019/04/03/wellesley-alum-jasmine-guillory-97-soars-on-the-new-york-times-best-sellers-list/,%20https://thewellesleynews.com/2019/04/03/wellesley-alum-jasmine-guillory-97-soars-on-the-new-york-times-best-sellers-list/ |access-date=2024-06-20 |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Where Are They Now: Victoria Tsai '00 – Wellesley Career Education Blog |url=https://blogs.wellesley.edu/mycws/vtsai/ |access-date=2024-06-20 |website=blogs.wellesley.edu}}</ref>

===Notable faculty===
Notable Wellesley faculty include:
<!---♦♦♦ Please keep the list in alphabetical order by LAST NAME ♦♦♦--->
* [[Leah Allen]], astronomer
* [[Myrtilla Avery]], art historian and a [[Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives program|Monuments Men]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.wellesley.edu/news/2014/02/node/42230|title=The &quot;Monuments Men&quot; of Wellesley College|website=Wellesley College|language=en|access-date=2017-12-16|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171216201140/https://www.wellesley.edu/news/2014/02/node/42230|archive-date=December 16, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref>
* [[Emily Greene Balch|Emily Green Balch]], economist and peace activist
* [[Katharine Lee Bates]], poet, novelist, essayist
* [[Frank Bidart]], poet
* [[Karl E. Case]], economist 
* [[Dan Chiasson]], poet and writer
* [[Margaret Clapp]], author
* [[Katharine Coman]], economic historian
* [[Rose Laub Coser]], sociologist<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/rose-laub-coser|title=Coser, Rose Laub|website=Jewish Virtual Library|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180424135919/http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/rose-laub-coser|archive-date=April 24, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>
* [[Alona E. Evans]], political scientist
* [[Alice T. Friedman]], architectural historian
* [[Jorge Guillén]], poet and literary critic
* [[Charlotte Riefenstahl|Charlotte Houtermans]], physicist
* [[Grace E. Howard]], botanist
* [[Elizabeth Ellis Hoyt]], economist<ref name="Sloss2001">{{Cite web |title=Twentieth Century Women of Iowa State: Elizabeth Hoyt |url=https://historicexhibits.lib.iastate.edu/20thWomen/Listpages/hoyt1.html |last=Sloss |first=Margaret |website=[[Iowa State University]] |date=2001 |access-date=April 19, 2025 |language=en}}</ref>
* [[Jonathan B. Knudsen]], historian
* [[Frances Lowater]], physicist and astronomer
* [[Paul K. MacDonald]], political scientist
* [[Mary Kate McGowan]], philosopher of language
* [[Peggy McIntosh]], women's studies scholar<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2014/05/the-woman-who-coined-the-term-white-privilege.html |title=The Origins of "Privilege" |magazine=The New Yorker |date=2014-05-12 |access-date=2014-08-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140527112401/http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2014/05/the-woman-who-coined-the-term-white-privilege.html |archive-date=May 27, 2014 |url-status=live }}</ref>
* [[Vladimir Nabokov]], novelist<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wellesley.edu/russian/history/nabokovslaight |title=Vladimir Nabokov at Wellesley |publisher=Wellesley College |date=2001-01-08 |access-date=2014-12-04 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141206105906/http://www.wellesley.edu/russian/history/nabokovslaight |archive-date=2014-12-06 }}</ref>
* [[Adrian Piper]], philosopher
* [[Marietta Sherman Raymond]], violinist, music educator, orchestral conductor
* [[Susan Mokotoff Reverby]], Gender Studies professor
* [[Alan Schechter]], political scientist
* [[Vida Dutton Scudder]], English professor
* [[Helen L. Webster]], philologist and educator
* [[Sarah Frances Whiting]], physicist and astronomer

==See also==
*[[Wellesley College Botanic Gardens]]
*[[Wellesley College Tupelos]]
*[[Women's colleges in the United States]]
* [[List of coordinate colleges]]
*{{section link|Boston marriage|Wellesley marriage}}
*''[[Mona Lisa Smile]]'', a fictional film about Wellesley in the 1950s

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Further reading==

* Bonillas, Luisa Elena.  "Pushing for change: Women of color at Wellesley College, 1966–2001" (PhD dissertation,  Arizona State University; ProQuest Dissertations Publishing,  2007. 3287915).
* Calkins, Mary Whiton. “Experimental Psychology at Wellesley College.” ''American Journal of Psychology, ''vol. 5, no. 2, 1892, pp.&nbsp;260–71. [https://doi.org/10.2307/1410869 online]
* Clemence, Richard V. “The Wellesley Undergraduate Tutorial.” ''American Economic Review' 51#3 (1961), pp.&nbsp;385–88. [http://www.jstor.org/stable/1814167 online]
* Cohen, Arlene. ''Wellesley College'' (Arcadia Publishing, 2006). [https://www.amazon.com/Wellesley-College-Campus-History-Arlene/dp/0738544787/ref=sr_1_1?Adv-Srch-Books-Submit.x=0&Adv-Srch-Books-Submit.y=0&qid=1699992695&refinements=p_28%3A%27%27Wellesley+College%27%27&s=books&sr=1-1&unfiltered=1 description]
* Fergusson, Peter,  James F. O'Gorman, and John Rhodes. ''The Landscape and Architecture of Wellesley College'' (Stuttgart,  Germany: Cantz Publishing for Wellesley College, 2001) [http://www.jstor.org/stable/44671053 online book review]
* Horowitz, Helen Lefkowitz. ''Alma Mater: Design and experience in the women's colleges from their nineteenth-century beginnings to the 1930s'' (Univ of Massachusetts Press, 1993) .[https://archive.org/details/almamaterdesigne0000horo/page/n7/mode/2up online]
* Morgan, Anne Eugenia. “Bible-Study at Wellesley College.” ''The Old Testament Student'', vol. 7, no. 10, 1888, pp.&nbsp;308–11 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/3156598 online]
* Olsen, Deborah M. “Remaking the Image: Promotional Literature of Mount Holyoke, Smith, and Wellesley Colleges in the Mid-to-Late 1940s.” ''History of Education Quarterly'' 40#4 (2000), pp.&nbsp;418–59. [https://doi.org/10.2307/369724 online]
* Palmieri, Patricia A. "Here was fellowship: A social portrait of academic women at Wellesley College, 1895–1920." ''History of Education Quarterly'' 23.2 (1983): 195-214. [https://www.jstor.org/stable/368159 online]
* Palmieri, Patricia Ann. "In Adamless Eden: A social portrait of the academic community at Wellesley College, 1875-1920" (PhD dissertation, Harvard University;  ProQuest Dissertations Publishing,  1981. 8125492).
* Solomon, Barbara Miller. ''In the Company of Educated Women: A History of Women and  Higher Education in America'' (Yale University Press, 1985) [https://archive.org/details/incompanyofeduca0000solo/page/n4/mode/1up online]
* Stevenson, Ana. "Women in the Ivory Tower: Historical Memory and the Heroic Educator in Mona Lisa Smile (2003)." in ''Academia and Higher Learning in Popular Culture'' (Cham: Springer International Publishing, 2023) pp.&nbsp;111–130.
* “The Wellesley College Graduate Who Was the Nation’s First Black Woman Judge.” ''The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education'' no. 34, (2001), pp.&nbsp;36–37. [https://doi.org/10.2307/3134101 online]
* “Wellesley College and its relations to lady-teachers.” ''National Journal of Education,'' vol. 10, no. 3, 1879, pp.&nbsp;44–44. [http://www.jstor.org/stable/44959939 online]

==External links==
{{ccat}}
{{Americana Poster|Wellesley College}}
* {{oweb}}
* [https://wellesleyblue.com/ Athletics website]

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