Rhodes College is a private, Presbyterian-affiliated liberal arts and sciences college in Memphis, Tennessee, founded in 1848.
Rhodes College was founded in 1848 in Clarksville, Tennessee, and was originally known as the Masonic University of Tennessee. It was renamed Stewart College in 1850 in honor of its president, William M. Stewart. Control of the college passed to the Presbyterian Church in 1855, and the college remains affiliated with the Presbyterian Church. In 1925, the college moved to its present campus in Memphis, Tennessee. In 1984, it was renamed Rhodes College to honor former president Peyton Nalle Rhodes.
The college's Collegiate Gothic campus sits on a 123-acre, wooded site in historic Midtown Memphis. Original buildings, including Southwestern Hall, Kennedy Hall, and the Robb and White dormitories, date from 1925 and were designed by Henry Hibbs. The Paul Barret Jr. Library was completed in 2005. Robertson Hall, a $30 million, 55,000-square-foot science facility, opened in September 2017. Other facilities include West Village Residence Hall, Catherine Burrow Refectory, Lynx Lair, Middle Ground, Student Health Center, Student Counseling Center, Writing Center, Language Center, and Halliburton Tower.
Rhodes is a privately endowed college. Its mission is to graduate students with a lifelong passion for learning, a compassion for others, and the ability to translate academic study and personal concern into effective leadership and action in their communities and the world. The college is located at 2000 North Parkway, Memphis, TN 38112.
Rhodes offers more than 70 majors, minors, and interdisciplinary programs, and students can design their own. The college is accredited by SACSCOC to award baccalaureate and master's degrees and is an accredited institutional member of NASM. The Princeton Review, Architectural Digest, and Southern Living have noted Rhodes as one of the most beautiful college campuses in America. Rhodes is consistently ranked among the nation's top liberal arts and sciences colleges.
Rhodes uses a test-optional holistic review admissions process.