What Are the Five Colleges of Ohio?

The Five Colleges of Ohio, frequently shortened to simply, “the Little Five,” specifies an academic organization comprised of five highly competitive, private, liberal-arts colleges located throughout the state of Ohio.

Oberlin College

Situated near Cleveland in Lorain County, Oberlin, the city, provides a home to the well-known college of the same name. With around three thousand students, the school achieved fame for admitting female and black students long before other colleges. Highlights of campus life include its active student cooperative organization, a high degree of political activism, the administration’s commitment to sustainable energy, the variety of musical opportunities and a unique program allowing students to rent art to display in their dorm rooms.

Kenyon College

This old campus, established in 1824, remains one of the most exclusive and prestigious liberal arts institutions in the country, the reason for which some dub it a “Hidden Ivy.” Also the oldest private college in Ohio, the campus is renowned for its “collegiate gothic” architecture; some authorities believe the school’s Old Kenyon Hall is the oldest existent Gotchic revival structure in the U.S. Aside from its reputation for excellence in academics, various traditions practiced on the campus, such as the Matriculation Book, date back to its founding.

Denison University and Ohio Wesleyan University

Near Ohio’s state capital, Columbus, Denison University makes its home in Granville. The 900-acre campus contains a 550-acre biological reserve that science professors use in their teaching. Students from all over the U.S. attend Denison to major in economics, biology, communication, psychology, history and English. Famous alumni include Jennifer Garner, Hal Holbrook and Steve Carell. Founded in 1842 on a solid base of liberal principles, Ohio Wesleyan continues to emphasize international and community activism. Its small campus is home to the Perkins Observatory and Kraus Wilderness Reserve. The school’s priority of activism influences university policy; for example, always a supporter of civil rights, during the 1980s, student protests related to apartheid caused the university’s president to fully divest all of its holdings connected to South Africa.

College of Wooster

Famous for its independent study program, the College of Wooster in Wooster, Ohio enrolls about 2,000 students each year. Loren Pope referred to the college as one of the best-kept secrets in higher education and included it in his book “Colleges That Change Lives.” A highly dynamic educational environment in which students work closely with professors for their senior theses, the College of Wooster also maintains a famous art gallery, a well-respected music program and several idiosyncratic traditions.

The five colleges in the academic consortium combine their educational resources to collaborate on several academic programs. The overarching purpose for The Five Colleges of Ohio states that member colleges are to mutually enhance and support the educational and cultural objectives of each school.