Contact: Bryan Swafford

"The leaders are here."  Alice Lloyd journeyed from Boston to Kentucky in 1915, seeking to recover her failing health.  In the Appalachian Mountains, she found a desperate need for education.  That need became the impetus for her life's work.  She truly believed that these hills and hollows held the leaders of tomorrow. Thus was born Alice Lloyd College.

            The idea of working for an education at ALC is as old as the school itself.  Early students provided labor in exchange for tuition, room, and board -it wasn't a burden-they were earning their own way. Today, tuition is guaranteed to students residing in 108 central Appalachian counties in parts of five states.

            At Alice Lloyd College, every full-time student is required to work as a part of his or her overall educational experience.  So committed is the College to the concept of student labor, that successful completion of the work assignment is a graduation requirement.

            Today, the tradition of work remains a part of Ms. Lloyd’s commitment to leadership and service to mankind!

Contact:  David Tipton

Berea College's work program has been an important part of a Berea education since 1859.  Employed in more than 130 campus departments, Berea students are part of an atmosphere of democratic living that emphasizes the dignity of all work.      

Berea College in Berea, KY is consistently ranked as one of the South's top liberal arts colleges.  Guided by eight "Great Commitments," Berea provides high-quality liberal arts education to students of high ability but limited financial resources, awarding the equivalent of a full-tuition scholarship to every student admitted.  Berea offers outstanding academic programs leading to bachelor of arts and bachelor of science degrees in 27 fields.  About 55 per cent of alumni eventually will earn a graduate degree.

The first interracial college in the South with a commitment to serving the southern Appalachian region, Berea is today a place where diversity is encouraged and celebrated.  A living expression of the College's scriptural motto "God has made of one blood all peoples of the earth," Berea's student body of 1,500 includes students from more than 60 countries and many faiths, with one in four students representing an ethnic minority.

Contact:  John Malin

Blackburn College, founded in 1837, is primarily a residential college with current enrollment of approximately 625. Blackburn’s student body, which is made up of men and women primarily from the Midwest, comes from 18 states and eight different countries.  It’s small size and democratic traditions permit and encourage wide participation by all. Comprehensive costs are kept the lowest of any four-year, private college in Illinois due in large part to the Work Program

Blackburn College’s student-managed Work Program has been at the foundation of its students’ learning experience since it’s inception in 1913. Students are actively engaged in all of the work necessary to the operation of the college, including management of the Work Program itself. Student self-help, learning by doing, leadership, and community service are guiding principals of the program. 

Blackburn is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA) and is committed to helping students develop their own values and religious perspectives. The college has long enjoyed a reputation for academic quality. Over 80% of the faculty have the highest degree – usually doctorate- that is available in their fields of study.

Contact:  Marci Linson

At College of the Ozarks, in Point Lookout, Missouri, students learn the value of work in their daily lives, but they also learn the value of caring and of character.  It has been said that “character is more important than intellect,” and at C of O, students receive an education involving the head, the heart and the hands.

Students at Hard Work U., as C of O is known, work 15 hours a week during the regular school year, plus two 40-hour weeks during holiday periods, to help offset the costs of their education.  In addition, students may elect to work in the summer as a means of paying their room and board costs for the coming year.

No full time student at College of the Ozarks pays a penny of tuition.

Through the Keeter Center for Character Education, C of O students have a variety of opportunities to focus on learning opportunities and chances for character development outside the classroom.  These include a convocation series that has featured speakers such as Lady Margaret Thatcher, General Colin Powell, Elizabeth Dole, Barbara Bush and others; chances for travel both within the United States and abroad; community service programs; and a host of other programs aimed at strengthening intellect and developing truly well-rounded graduates.

Contact:  J.E. Wadkins

• Demonstrate Biblical faith and character as the foundation for their own further spiritual and ethical development and mentoring of other faithful Christians.
• Demonstrate competence in academia that will appropriately qualify them for their selected vocations.
• Matriculate into their chosen vocations and further studies according to their gifts and callings.
• Relate spiritually, politically and culturally to the cross-cultural diversity and contemporary world issues of a global society by means of courses, workshops, and other events supporting societal awareness and application.

Contact:  Gwyn Harris

Our motto, Working Hands Working Minds, means that we integrate research and discussion, field studies, culture and history, and the dynamics of human relations in a learning environment that combines solid academics with experiential, hands-on learning. Academic majors include Northern Studies, Outdoor Education and Leadership, Sustainable Agriculture, and Wildlands Ecology and Management.

Consideration for the environment is central to our liberal arts curriculum. In fact, we engage students in literature, math, history, sociology, economics, and more through the study of the environment. At Sterling College, students gain intellectual and physical competence, practical skills, and personal confidence in their ability to solve the kinds of problems we face in today’s world. Students develop a keen theoretical and practical understanding of our complex environment—how to care for it, how to live sympathetically with it, and how to make a living in it.

Through our comprehensive Internship Program, students have opportunities for growth and learning away from campus. International field-study opportunities immerse students in different cultures to learn about social ecology and environmental sustainability. A strong adventure-challenge component allows students to gain critical knowledge in leadership and group dynamics that transcend the college experience. Community is vital at Sterling College and students play an important role in creating and sustaining our evolving community.

Contact:  Richard Blomgren

At Warren Wilson College, an education only starts in the classroom.  Although relatively small in number, students at Warren Wilson College have diverse interests and backgrounds. With about 20 countries and 40 states represented in a student body of 728, these interests combine to form a unique college community. Through the College's Triad Education Program, students learn how they are able to make a difference in the community and the world.

The Triad is a holistic approach to learning that blends three components; academics, work, and community service as degree requirements. The academic curriculum combines a liberal arts foundation with a number of innovative programs. Among the most popular majors are human studies, art and environmental studies.

Warren Wilson students work on one of more than 100 crews ranging from landscaping to recycling. In this way, students are active in running the college and its 1,100-acre campus that includes a 300-acre farm, 600-acre forest and five-acre organic garden.

A new program of the college, Warren Wilson WorldWide, enables each student to work, serve and learn abroad or in a cross-cultural environment. Field experiences in North America, Latin America, Africa, Asia and Europe help students understand how the triad of academics, work and service can have application in the global community.

This article was written by Megan Swett, a senior from Winter Park, Fla., and a member of the public information work crew at Warren Wilson College.