Introducing Doane University

Doane’s Commitment to Nontraditional Students

The Doane University degree program for nontraditional students was developed for individuals who can benefit from a combination of college classroom learning experiences, learning outcomes of previous formal education and knowledge gained from work and life experience. This style of higher education creates opportunities for students to make connections with life and work through a degree program that develops knowledge and skills for living and working with self-confidence.

This program is designed for a special student population, less defined by age than by a certain profile. Generally, the students in our program have been absent from involvement in formal education for some time, have full-time employment and wish to be better educated and/or credentialed to take advantage of promotion opportunities, either in a current or future job. They recognize the changing nature of the work environment and are eager to develop knowledge and skills to meet those demands. Many wish to make a career change and/or simply to continue personal growth and development. The nontraditional student can be defined quite simply as a person whose full-time occupation is something other than that of student.

The orientation for nontraditional students begins with generalizations about learners who are the heart of Doane’s traditional liberal arts college. Classes are small with a strong focus on student-teacher interaction, and to make that focus possible, the average class size is 12 students.

Doane’s faculty believes that people are intrinsically motivated to learn, given the right college conditions and encouragement. Experience has taught us that great teachers are the key to learner motivation. We therefore seek, and ultimately keep, instructors who have an abundant knowledge of the subject they are teaching; a genuine care for their students’ having a successful experience with formal education; and the talent to excite others to learn, share knowledge enthusiastically and effectively manage the learning environment.

We believe that a university is a community, and individuals learn best when they feel they are an important part of that community. Our talented support services staff is responsible for building that sense of community, and it provides needed services at times convenient to the nontraditional student while delivering quality academic and personal counseling.

Though we build on the philosophical foundations of the small liberal arts college, we also know that there are characteristics of nontraditional learners that are unique to this student population.

1. They have a psychological need to be self-directing.
2. They bring into any learning situation resources from their previous experience and training that are a rich resource for one another’s learning.
3. They are task-, problem- and life-centered in their orientation to learning.

With ongoing studies of the research in adult education and our own experience, we constantly work to deliver education in ways most appropriate for the nontraditional learner.

Students who complete Doane’s degree requirements through this program are awarded a Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science or Bachelor of Science in nursing degree. Though our nontraditional students attend classes at our Grand Island, Lincoln or Omaha campuses, they are a welcome part of the student body participating in Commencement exercises on the Crete campus.

The effort to develop quality programs of higher education for nontraditional students gives Doane faculty and staff opportunities to grow and further develop their abilities to anticipate new conditions in the field of education and to change in ways that will enable the university to meet the diverse demands of society. We seek to be a part of the development of educated and competent persons, with the highest competence being that of continuous, self-directed, lifelong learning.

Doane University Presidents

Doane University has been led by a succession of enlightened presidents. Doane’s first president, David Brainerd Perry, served from the official founding of the college in 1872 until 1912. He was followed by:

History of Doane University

For 145 years, Doane University has occupied a distinguished place among the colleges and universities of the Midwest as Nebraska’s oldest private liberal arts and sciences school.

The history of Doane dates from 1857, when the General Association of Congregational Churches, in its first annual meeting in Fremont, Nebraska, resolved to lay the foundation of a literary institution of a high order in Nebraska. Fourteen years later, and after several unsuccessful attempts to establish Congregational schools across the state, an academy was founded in Crete on May 22, 1871.

The efforts of the local Congregational pastor and Thomas Doane, chief civil engineer for the Burlington and Missouri River Railroad, were instrumental in advancing the idea of the academy.

On July 11, 1872, Doane College was founded and preempted the Crete Academy. The college was officially incorporated at that time as a nonprofit institution governed by an independent, self-perpetuating board of trustees. It has received continuous accreditation from the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, now named the Higher Learning Commission, since 1913.

In 2016, Doane College became Doane University, reflecting its structure of multiple campuses (Crete, Grand Island, Lincoln and Omaha), colleges (College of Arts and Sciences, College of Education and College of Professional Studies) and the addition of online programs. The university is authorized to conduct all affairs considered essential to the liberal arts enterprise wherever it is carried on, including teaching, research, academic study and granting degrees.

Doane is historically affiliated with what is now called the United Church of Christ. Doane serves as the representative institution for the Nebraska, Rocky Mountain, Kansas-Oklahoma and South Dakota conferences of the UCC. Doane, although founded by Protestants, is open to students of all religions, as well as those who profess no formal religion.

Education for a Lifetime

Throughout Doane’s 145-year history, the university has provided students with dedicated faculty and quality programs. The highest priority for Doane faculty is to continually improve the teaching and learning process. Faculty also are active with scholarly research and publication, community service, and campus life.

Mission Statement

The Doane University mission is to provide an exceptional liberal arts education in a creative, inclusive, and collaborative community where faculty and staff work closely with undergraduate and graduate students preparing them for lives rooted in intellectual inquiry, ethical values, and a commitment to engage as leaders and responsible citizens in the world.

Accreditation Statement

Doane University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission, 30 N. LaSalle Street, Suite 2400, Chicago, IL, 60602-2504. HLC may be reached at 800.621.7440 or ncahlc.org.

In addition, the Teacher Education unit at Doane University is accredited by the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation, 1140 19th St. N.W., Suite 400, Washington, DC 20036.  CAEP can be reached at 202.223.0077 or caepnet.org. This accreditation covers initial teacher preparation programs and advanced educator preparation programs.

The baccalaureate degree program in nursing at Doane University is accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education, 655 K Street, NW, Suite 750, Washington DC 20001, 202.887.6791.

Doane is also accredited by other standardizing agencies, including the Nebraska Coordinating Commission of Post-Secondary Education, 301 Centennial Mall South, P.O. Box 94987, Lincoln, NE, 68509-4987, which can be reached at 402.471.2295.

Documentation of accreditation may be viewed upon request in the Doane University President’s Office.

Assessment Statement

Doane values the participation of undergraduate and graduate students in its institution-wide program to assess student achievement. This program is part of the institution’s responsibility to monitor student outcomes and assure the continuing quality of a Doane degree. Multiple strategies are used to gather information about student achievement throughout the college experience. Information collected as a part of the assessment program is used for assessment purposes only and is not used to evaluate individual performance. The university protects the confidentiality of data collected.

Doane University Memberships

American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education
Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Nebraska
Association of Independent Liberal Arts Colleges of Teacher Education
Council for the Advancement and Support of Education
Council of Independent Colleges
Great Plains Athletic Conference
National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities
National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics
Nebraska Council for Teacher Education
Nebraska Independent College Foundation