Athletics at Earlham

There are three forms of competitive athletics at Earlham: intercollegiate, recreational and club. Earlham's varsity athletics are part of the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) Division III. Recreational sports offer on-campus competitions. Club sports are student-organized teams that compete off campus and are not supported by a full-time coach; they are cosponsored by Student Activities and Athletics.

Intercollegiate Athletics

Earlham College values intercollegiate athletics as an integral part of a liberal arts education. A conscientiously designed varsity athletic program can offer practical expression of the belief in the individual's integrity, wholeness and potential for excellence and in the commitment of the individual to a community of persons with a common goal. The training, exercise and enjoyment of the mind and body, and the discipline of cooperation and competition that athletic experience can promote are essential aspects of a liberal education.

Nationally affiliated with the NCAA as a Division III member, Earlham offers academic scholarships to qualifying students as well as need-based financial aid. The College also is a proud member of the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC). Consisting of 10 academically selective colleges and universities in Ohio, Indiana and Pennsylvania, the NCAC includes Allegheny College, Denison University, Earlham College, Hiram College, Kenyon College, Oberlin College, Ohio Wesleyan University, Wabash College, Wittenberg University and The College of Wooster. The NCAC is dedicated to fostering a complementary relationship between intercollegiate athletics and the pursuit of academic excellence.

Earlham offers varsity programs in 16 sports — eight for women and eight for men. Women's sports are basketball, cross country, field hockey, indoor track, outdoor track, soccer, tennis and volleyball. Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, football, indoor track, outdoor track, soccer and tennis. Many of our students participate on more than one team.

Earlham embraces intercollegiate athletic competition as a learning experience which requires each participant to strive to excel, and according to the sport, to cooperate with team members and other contestants in an event defined by established rules and expectations. The peak experience for which athletes will be prepared, and which we hope they will strive to experience, is the union of mind, body and spirit in the competitive moment or encounter. Within reasonable limits, Earlham will provide a variety of varsity sports to satisfy the variety of student interests and will assure that men and women have equal opportunity to develop excellence in sports of their choice.

Varsity athletics offers that experience to individuals who wish to prepare seriously for competitive intercollegiate challenges. In combination with other competitive levels — activity classes, recreational sports and club sports — the total athletic program complements and enhances the academic and social experiences of a liberal arts education.