Amherst College#Athletics

File:Amherst College Class of 1850 daguerreotypes.jpg (second row, far left), brother of poet Emily Dickinson|left|216x216px]]

Image:Amherst College College Row.jpg

File:Fayerweather Hall, Amherst College.jpg

File:Frost Library, Amherst College.jpg

In 1812, funds were raised in Amherst for a secondary school, Amherst Academy; it opened December 1814.[https://archive.org/stream/historyofamhers00tyle#page/34/mode/2up History of Amherst College during its first half century 1821–1871] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150111175204/https://archive.org/stream/historyofamhers00tyle#page/34/mode/2up |date=January 11, 2015 }}. Archive.org. Retrieved on August 2, 2013. The academy incorporated in 1816,{{cite book |title=Massachusetts Register |year=1853 |author=George Adams |location=Boston |publisher=Printed by Damrell and Moore |chapter=Education in Massachusetts: Incorporated Academies |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MScDAAAAYAAJ |access-date=July 25, 2016 |archive-date=December 22, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191222111529/https://books.google.com/books?id=MScDAAAAYAAJ |url-status=live }} and eventually counted among its students Emily Dickinson, Sylvester Graham, and Mary Lyon (founder of Mount Holyoke College).{{cite book |last1=Lombardo |first1=Daniel |title=Images of America: Amherst and Hadley, Massachusetts |year=1997 |publication-date=1997 |publisher=Arcadia |isbn=0-7524-0483-0}} The institution was named after the town, which in turn had been named after Jeffery, Lord Amherst, a veteran from the Seven Years' War and later commanding general of the British forces in North America. On November 18, 1817, a project was adopted at the Academy to raise funds for the free instruction of "indigent young men of promising talents and hopeful piety, who shall manifest a desire to obtain a liberal education with a sole view to the Christian ministry".{{Cite web|url=http://www3.amherst.edu/~rjyanco94/amherst/history/1894tyler-ws/chapter01/menu.html|title=A History of Amherst College (1894) – Chapter 1|website=Amherst College |access-date=April 21, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220193925/http://www3.amherst.edu/~rjyanco94/amherst/history/1894tyler-ws/chapter01/menu.html|archive-date=December 20, 2016}} This required a substantial investment from benefactors.

During the fundraising for the project, it became clear that without larger designs, it would be impossible to raise sufficient funds. This led the committee overseeing the project to conclude that a new institution should be created. On August 18, 1818, the Amherst Academy board of trustees accepted this conclusion and began building a new college.

Founded in 1821, Amherst College developed from Amherst Academy, first established as a secondary school. The college was originally suggested as an alternative to Williams College, which was struggling to stay open. Although Williams survived, Amherst was formed and developed as a distinct institution.{{Cite web|url=https://www.amherst.edu/amherst-story/facts/history|title=History of Amherst |website=Amherst College|access-date=April 21, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160213031743/https://www.amherst.edu/amherst-story/facts/history|archive-date=February 13, 2016|url-status=dead}}

Moore, then President of Williams College, however, still believed that Williamstown was an unsuitable location for a college. When Amherst College was established, he was elected its first president on May 8, 1821. At its opening, Amherst had forty-seven students. Fifteen of these had followed Moore from Williams College. Those fifteen represented about one-third of the total students at Amherst, and about one-fifth of the whole number in the three classes to which they belonged in Williams College. President Moore died on June 29, 1823, and was replaced with a Williams College trustee, Heman Humphrey.

Williams alumni are fond of an apocryphal story ascribing the removal of books from the Williams College library to Amherst College.{{Cite web |url=https://specialcollections.williams.edu/williams-history/groups/theft-of-the-williams-library/ |title=The Theft of the Williams Library |first=Dustin |last=Griffin |website=Special Collections - Williams College |access-date=November 29, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181129143602/https://specialcollections.williams.edu/williams-history/groups/theft-of-the-williams-library/ |archive-date=November 29, 2018 |url-status=live }} In 1995, Williams president Harry C. Payne declared the story false, but many still nurture the legend.

In 1826, Edward Jones became Amherst's first Black graduate.{{Cite book |last=Wills |first=David W. |title=Amherst in the World |publisher=Amherst College Press |year=2020 |editor-last=Saxton |editor-first=Martha |pages=29–50 |chapter=Remembering Edward Jones: First Black Graduate, Missionary Hero, ‘Genteel Young Man of Excellent Disposition |doi=10.3998/mpub.11873533 |access-date=2025-01-03 |chapter-url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.3998/mpub.11873533.5 |jstor=10.3998/mpub.11873533.5|isbn=978-0-943184-20-3 }}

Amherst grew quickly, and for two years in the mid-1830s, it was the second largest college in the United States, behind Yale. In 1835, Amherst attempted to create a course of study parallel to the classical liberal arts education. This parallel course focused less on Greek and Latin, instead emphasizing contemporary English, French, and Spanish languages, chemistry, economics, etc. The parallel course did not take hold and replace the classical, however, until the next century.

Amherst was founded as a non-sectarian institution "for the classical education of indigent young men of piety and talents for the Christian ministry" (Tyler, A History of Amherst College). One of the hallmarks of the new college was its Charity Fund, an early form of financial aid that paid the tuition of poorer students.{{cite book|author=Claude Moore Fuess|author-link=Claude Fuess|title=Amherst: Story of a New England College}} Although officially non-denominational, Amherst was considered a religiously conservative institution with a strong connection to Calvinism; the Puritans still controlled much of Massachusetts life.

As a result, there was considerable debate in the Massachusetts government over whether the new college should receive an official charter from the state. A charter was not granted until February 21, 1825, as reflected on the Amherst seal. Religious conservatism persisted at Amherst until the mid-nineteenth century: students who consumed alcohol or played cards were subject to expulsion. A number of religious revivals were held at Amherst. Toward the end of the nineteenth century, however, the college began a transition toward secularism. This movement was considered to culminate in the 1949 demolition of the college church.{{cite book|author=Stanley King|title="The Consecrated Eminence": The Story of the Campus and Buildings of Amherst College |location=Amherst |publisher=Amherst College |year=1952|orig-date=1951 |oclc=2747723}}

Academic hoods in the United States are traditionally lined with the official colors of the school, in theory so watchers can tell where the hood wearer earned his or her degree. Amherst's hoods are purple (Williams' official color) with a white stripe or chevron, said to signify that Amherst was born of Williams. Amherst records one of the first uses of Latin honors of any American college, dating back to 1881.{{cite web|url=https://www.amherst.edu/system/files/media/0450/ChairsUpdateWebReady5-29-07.pdf |title=Annual Fund Update |date=May 29, 2007 |access-date=August 15, 2013 |website=Amherst College |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140413124931/https://www.amherst.edu/system/files/media/0450/ChairsUpdateWebReady5-29-07.pdf |archive-date=April 13, 2014 }} The college was an all-male school until the late 1960s, when a few female students from nearby schools in the Four-College Consortium (Amherst, Mount Holyoke, Smith, UMass) attended on an experimental basis. In October 1974, the faculty voted in favor of coeducation and in November 1974, the board of trustees voted to admit female students starting in the 1975–1976 school year. This was done while John William Ward served as president.{{Cite web|title=Coeducation: 25 years {{!}} Exhibitions and Blog {{!}} Amherst College|url=https://www.amherst.edu/library/archives/exhibitions/coed25|access-date=2021-04-27|website=www.amherst.edu|archive-date=November 6, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131106021814/https://www.amherst.edu/library/archives/exhibitions/coed25|url-status=live}} In 1975, nine women who were already attending classes as part of an inter-college exchange program were admitted as transfer students. In June 1976, they became the first female graduates of the college.[https://www.amherst.edu/library/archives/exhibitions/coed25 Coeducation: 25 years | Amherst College] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131106021814/https://www.amherst.edu/library/archives/exhibitions/coed25 |date=November 6, 2013 }}. Amherst.edu. Retrieved on April 12, 2014.

The college established the Black Studies Department in 1969. In 1973, it launched the nation's first undergraduate neuroscience program. In 1983, it established a Department of Asian Languages and Literatures, which was later to become the Department of Asian Languages and Civilizations.{{cite web|url = https://www.amherst.edu/aboutamherst/facts/history/timeline|title = An Amherst Timeline|website = Amherst College|access-date = August 28, 2015|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150813192329/https://www.amherst.edu/aboutamherst/facts/history/timeline|archive-date = August 13, 2015|df = mdy-all}}

In 1984, on-campus fraternities were abolished. The former fraternity buildings, which were owned by the college, were converted into residence halls. The Department of Women's and Gender Studies, which later became the Department of Sexuality, Women's, and Gender Studies, was established in 1987, and the Department of Law, Jurisprudence, and Social Thought in 1993.

In March 2013, the faculty adopted an open-access policy.{{cite journal |url= http://roarmap.eprints.org/445/ |title= Amherst College |journal= ROARMAP: Registry of Open Access Repository Mandates and Policies |date= December 15, 2014 |publisher= University of Southampton |location= UK |access-date= July 23, 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170710074110/http://roarmap.eprints.org/445/ |archive-date= July 10, 2017 |url-status= live }} Eight years later, the college ended its practice of legacy admissions and increased financial aid to increase access to low and middle-income students and diversify the college.{{Cite web|date=October 2021|title=Amherst College to End Legacy Preference and Expand Financial Aid Investment to $71 Million|url=https://www.amherst.edu/news/news_releases/2021/10-2021/amherst-college-to-end-legacy-preference-and-expand-financial-aid-investment-to-71-million|access-date=October 23, 2021|website=Amherst|archive-date=October 23, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211023131338/https://www.amherst.edu/news/news_releases/2021/10-2021/amherst-college-to-end-legacy-preference-and-expand-financial-aid-investment-to-71-million|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|last=Martin|first=Carolyn|date=October 20, 2021|title=Statement to the Community About Financial Aid, Legacy Announcement|url=https://www.amherst.edu/amherst-story/president/statements/node/815241|access-date=October 23, 2021|website=Amherst|archive-date=October 23, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211023135736/https://www.amherst.edu/amherst-story/president/statements/node/815241|url-status=live}}

1. Zephaniah Swift Moore, 1821–1823
2. Heman Humphrey, 1823–1845
3. Edward Hitchcock, 1845–1854
4. William Augustus Stearns, 1854–1876
5. Julius Hawley Seelye, 1876–1890
6. Merrill Edwards Gates, 1890–1899
7. George Harris, 1899–1912
8. Alexander Meiklejohn, 1912–1924
9. George Daniel Olds, 1924–1927
10. Arthur Stanley Pease, 1927–1932
11. Stanley King, 1932–1946
12. Charles Woolsey Cole, 1946–1960
13. Calvin Hastings Plimpton, 1960–1971
14. John William Ward, 1971–1979
15. Julian Gibbs, 1979–1983
16. G. Armour Craig, 1983–1984 (acting)
17. Peter Pouncey, 1984–1994
18. Tom Gerety, 1994–2003
19. Anthony Marx, 2003–2011
20. Carolyn "Biddy" Martin, 2011–2022
21. Michael A. Elliott, 2022–{{Cite web |title=Michael A. Elliott '92, Professor of English and Dean of The College of Arts and Sciences at Emory University, is Named 20th President of Amherst College {{!}} Press Releases {{!}} Amherst College |url=https://www.amherst.edu/news/press-releases/node/843569 |access-date=2022-06-04 |website=www.amherst.edu |archive-date=June 1, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220601140551/https://www.amherst.edu/news/press-releases/node/843569 |url-status=live }}

{{Expand section|date=October 2018}}

Image:Amherst College Main Quad.jpg

Amherst College is located in the town of Amherst in Western Massachusetts.

Amherst College has a total of 34 residence halls, seven of which are strictly for first year students. Following their first year, sophomores, juniors, and seniors have the choice to live off campus and are offered options of Themed Houses including Arts House, Russian House, and French House, however this option is only available for two years of residence.{{Cite web |url=https://www.amherst.edu/campuslife/housing-dining/ |title=Housing & Dining | Student Life | Amherst College |access-date=May 21, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190603161908/https://www.amherst.edu/campuslife/housing-dining |archive-date=June 3, 2019 |url-status=live }}

First-year students are required to live on campus.

The college also owns the Emily Dickinson Museum, operated as a museum about the life and history of poet Emily Dickinson, and the Inn on Boltwood near to the main campus.

Amherst College is reducing its energy consumption through a computerized monitoring system for lighting and the use of an efficient cogeneration facility. The cogeneration facility features a gas turbine that generates electricity in addition to steam for heating the campus.{{cite web|title=It is Easy Being Green|publisher=Amherst College|url=http://www.amherst.edu/aboutamherst/news/news_releases/2008/09/node/64489|access-date=June 5, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110605003846/https://www.amherst.edu/aboutamherst/news/news_releases/2008/09/node/64489|archive-date=June 5, 2011|url-status=live}} Amherst also operates a composting program, in which a portion of the food waste from dining halls is sent to a farmer in Vermont.

Amherst College offers 41 fields of study (with 850+ courses){{cite web|url=https://cms.amherst.edu/academiclife/departments|title=Majors |website=Amherst College|access-date=August 14, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071018234940/https://cms.amherst.edu/academiclife/departments|archive-date=October 18, 2007|url-status=live}} in the sciences, arts, humanities, mathematics and computer sciences, social sciences, foreign languages, classics, and several interdisciplinary fields (including premedical studies{{cite web |url=http://www.amherst.edu/~sageorge/guide1.html |title=Amherst College Guide for Premedical Students |publisher=Amherst.edu |access-date=October 15, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110918110750/http://www3.amherst.edu/~sageorge/guide1.html |archive-date=September 18, 2011 |url-status=live }}{{cite web |url=http://www.amherst.edu/~drewhealth/pmcourses.html |title=Charles Drew Health Professions Society |publisher=Amherst.edu |date=February 3, 2007 |access-date=October 15, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120309095948/http://www3.amherst.edu/~drewhealth/pmcourses.html |archive-date=March 9, 2012 }}) and provides an unusually open curriculum. Students are not required to study a core curriculum or fulfill any distribution requirements and may even design their own unique interdisciplinary major. Freshmen may take advanced courses, and seniors may take introductory ones. Amherst College is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education.{{Citation|title=Massachusetts Institutions – NECHE|publisher=New England Commission of Higher Education|url=https://www.neche.org/institutions/ma/|access-date=May 26, 2021|archive-date=October 9, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211009082139/https://www.neche.org/institutions/ma/|url-status=live}}

Forty-five percent of Amherst students in the class of 2019 were double majors.{{Cite web |title=Class of 2023 Secondary School Report {{!}} Reports to Secondary Schools {{!}} Amherst College |url=https://www.amherst.edu/amherst-story/facts/secondary_school_reports/class-of-2023-ssr-data |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220612012423/https://www.amherst.edu/amherst-story/facts/secondary_school_reports/class-of-2023-ssr-data |archive-date=June 12, 2022 |access-date=July 31, 2022 |publisher=Amherst College}} Amherst College has been the first college to have undergraduate departments in the interdisciplinary fields of American Studies; Law, Jurisprudence and Social Thought; and Neuroscience{{cite web|url=https://www.amherst.edu/academiclife/departments/american_studies/history |title=American Studies: History of the Department |access-date=August 26, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081205124917/https://www.amherst.edu/academiclife/departments/american_studies/history |archive-date=December 5, 2008 }}{{cite web |url=https://www.amherst.edu/academiclife/departments/neuroscience |title=The Neuroscience Program |access-date=August 26, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081117165244/https://www.amherst.edu/academiclife/departments/neuroscience |archive-date=November 17, 2008 |url-status=live }} and has helped to pioneer other interdisciplinary programs, including Asian Languages and Civilizations.{{Cite web|url=https://www.amherst.edu/academiclife/departments/asian|title=Asian Languages & Civilizations |website=Amherst College|access-date=April 21, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160320233523/https://www.amherst.edu/academiclife/departments/asian|archive-date=March 20, 2016|url-status=live}} Its most popular majors, by 2021 graduates, were:{{cite web |url=https://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/?q=Amherst&s=all&id=164465#programs |website=National Center for Education Statistics |publisher=U.S. Dept of Education |title=Amherst College |access-date=January 24, 2023 |archive-date=January 24, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230124172742/https://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/?q=Amherst&s=all&id=164465#programs |url-status=live }}

::Mathematics (40)

::Econometrics and Quantitative Economics (34)

::Research and Experimental Psychology (31)

::Political Science and Government (25)

::History (22)

::Biology/Biological Sciences (21)

::Neuroscience (19)

::American/U.S. Law/Legal Studies/Jurisprudence (19)

The Amherst library is named for long-time faculty member, poet Robert Frost.{{Cite web|url=https://www.amherst.edu/offices/student-affairs/handbook/services/libraries#rfl|title=The Amherst College Library |website=Amherst College|access-date=April 21, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160213024810/https://www.amherst.edu/offices/student-affairs/handbook/services/libraries#rfl|archive-date=February 13, 2016}} The student-faculty ratio is 7:1 and 84% of classes have fewer than 30 students.{{cite web |title=Fast Facts & FAQs {{!}} The Amherst Story {{!}} Amherst College |url=https://www.amherst.edu/amherst-story/facts |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220731023030/https://www.amherst.edu/amherst-story/facts |archive-date=July 31, 2022 |access-date=July 31, 2022 |publisher=Amherst College}}

Notable faculty members include, among others, modern literature and poetry critic William H. Pritchard, Beowulf translator Howell Chickering, Jewish and Latino studies scholar Ilan Stavans, novelist and legal scholar Lawrence Douglas, physicist Arthur Zajonc, Pulitzer Prize-winning Nikita Khrushchev biographer William Taubman, African art specialist Rowland Abiodun, Natural Law expert Hadley Arkes, Mathematician Daniel Velleman, Biblical scholar Susan Niditch, law and society expert Austin Sarat, Asian American studies scholar and former Director of the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center Franklin Odo, and Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Lewis Spratlan, professor emeritus of the music faculty.{{Cite web|title = College Plans to Revitalize Teaching with Mellon Grant {{!}} The Amherst Student|url = http://amherststudent.amherst.edu/?q=article/2016/02/03/college-plans-revitalize-teaching-mellon-grant|website = amherststudent.amherst.edu|access-date = February 9, 2016|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160209172822/http://amherststudent.amherst.edu/?q=article%2F2016%2F02%2F03%2Fcollege-plans-revitalize-teaching-mellon-grant|archive-date = February 9, 2016|url-status = live}}

File:Amherst College Johnson Chapel winter.jpg

{{Infobox US university ranking

| Forbes = 24

| USNWR_LA = 2

| Wamo_LA = 6

| THE_WSJ = 8

| ARWU_W = 801–900

}}

Since the inception of the U.S. News & World Report rankings in 1987, Amherst College has been ranked ten times as the first overall among 266 liberal arts colleges in the United States,{{cite web|url=https://www.usnews.com/articles/education/best-colleges/2009/08/19/methodology-ranking-category-definitions.html |title=Methodology: Ranking Category Definitions |publisher=Usnews.com |access-date=October 15, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100811013402/http://www.usnews.com/articles/education/best-colleges/2009/08/19/methodology-ranking-category-definitions.html |archive-date=August 11, 2010 |url-status=live }} and in 2022 ranked second, behind Williams.{{cite web |url=https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/national-liberal-arts-colleges |title=National Liberal Arts Colleges Rankings |work=U.S. News & World Report |access-date=July 31, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202725/https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/national-liberal-arts-colleges |archive-date=July 30, 2022 |url-status=live }} In 2023, Amherst College was ranked as the best liberal arts college and 8th best college or university overall in the United States by The WSJ/College Pulse 2024 Best College Rankings.{{Cite web |title=Best U.S. Colleges 2024 - WSJ / College Pulse Rankings |url=https://www.wsj.com/rankings/college-rankings/best-colleges-2024 |access-date=2023-10-30 |website=WSJ |language=en-US |archive-date=September 14, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230914105737/https://www.wsj.com/rankings/college-rankings/best-colleges-2024 |url-status=live }} In 2022, Amherst was ranked as the best liberal arts college in the country by The Wall Street Journal.{{cite web |url=https://www.timeshighereducation.com/student/best-universities/best-liberal-arts-colleges-united-states |title=Best liberal arts colleges in the United States 2022 |date=September 21, 2021 |work=The Wall Street Journal |access-date=July 31, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220729020501/https://www.timeshighereducation.com/student/best-universities/best-liberal-arts-colleges-united-states |archive-date=July 29, 2022 |url-status=live }}. Forbes ranked Amherst College as the 24th best college or university in the United States for their 2024–25 rankings {{Cite web |title=Forbes America's Top Colleges List 2024-25 |url=https://www.forbes.com/top-colleges/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111028172147/http://www.forbes.com/top-colleges/ |archive-date=October 28, 2011 |access-date=2025-02-19 |website=Forbes |language=English}} and the 16th best college or university in the United States in 2021.{{cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/top-colleges/|title=America's Top Colleges|date=September 8, 2021|work=Forbes|access-date=July 31, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220731020553/https://www.forbes.com/top-colleges/|archive-date=July 31, 2022|url-status=live}}

Kiplinger's Personal Finance places Amherst 11th in its 2016 ranking of best value liberal arts colleges in the United States.{{cite magazine |url=http://www.kiplinger.com/tool/college/T014-S001-kiplinger-s-best-values-in-private-colleges/index.php?table=lib_arts&state_code%5B%5D=ALL&id%5B%5D=none |magazine=Kiplinger's Personal Finance |title=Best Values in Private Colleges |date=December 2015 |access-date=March 28, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130518115307/http://www.kiplinger.com/tool/college/T014-S001-kiplinger-s-best-values-in-private-colleges/index.php?table=lib_arts&state_code%5B%5D=ALL&id%5B%5D=none |archive-date=May 18, 2013 |url-status=live }}

Amherst ranked 6th in the 2021 Washington Monthly liberal arts college rankings, which focus on contribution to the public good in three broad categories: social mobility, research, and promoting public service.{{Cite web |title=2021 Liberal Arts Colleges Ranking |url=http://washingtonmonthly.com/2021college-guide/liberalarts/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220623050155/https://washingtonmonthly.com/2021college-guide/liberalarts/ |archive-date=2022-06-23 |access-date=2022-07-31 |website=Washington Monthly |language=en-US}}

The writings of Amherst College political science Professor Hadley Arkes about homosexuality led to a dispute in 2013 over whether a college seeking to create a diverse, respectful academic community should speak out when a faculty member disparages community members or should instead remain silent as a way to protect academic freedom.{{Cite web|url=http://www.worldmag.com/2015/04/hadley_arkes_the_right_stuff|title=WORLD {{!}} Hadley Arkes: The right stuff {{!}} Marvin Olasky {{!}} April 18, 2015|website=WORLD|access-date=April 21, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924063135/http://www.worldmag.com/2015/04/hadley_arkes_the_right_stuff|archive-date=September 24, 2015|url-status=live}} The issue arose when a group of alumni petitioned the college trustees and President Biddy Martin to "dissociate the institution" from Arkes's "divisive and destructive" views,[http://terrasirradient.org/2013/10/18/petition-to-cullen-murphy-chair-of-amherst-college-board-of-trustees/ Petition to the Amherst College board of trustees | Amherst Against Homophobia] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131103073131/http://terrasirradient.org/2013/10/18/petition-to-cullen-murphy-chair-of-amherst-college-board-of-trustees/ |date=November 3, 2013 }}. Terrasirradient.org (October 18, 2013). Retrieved on 2014-04-12. focusing particularly on his May 2013 comparison of homosexuality to bestiality, pedophilia and necrophilia.[http://www.thecatholicthing.org/columns/2013/the-supreme-court-hears-the-cases-on-marriage.html The Supreme Court Hears the Cases on Marriage] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131102194952/http://www.thecatholicthing.org/columns/2013/the-supreme-court-hears-the-cases-on-marriage.html |date=November 2, 2013 }}. Thecatholicthing.org (March 26, 2013). Retrieved on 2014-04-12.{{Cite web|url=https://amherstmuckrake.com/category/arkes/|title=Arkes {{!}} The Amherst Muck-Rake|website=amherstmuckrake.com|access-date=April 21, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141025114410/http://amherstmuckrake.com/category/arkes/|archive-date=October 25, 2014|url-status=live}} The alumni said, "Amherst College cannot credibly maintain its professed commitment to be an inclusive community as long as it chooses to remain silent while a sitting professor disparages members of its community in media of worldwide circulation and accessibility."

Martin disagreed, citing past debates over the college's position on the Vietnam War and apartheid in South Africa—issues on which the college initially remained silent but eventually took a public position. In such times, she said, colleges should "avoid taking institutional positions on controversial political matters, except in extraordinary circumstances" and should simultaneously both "protect their communities from discrimination and disrespect" and "cherish a diversity of viewpoints".[https://www.amherst.edu/aboutamherst/president/reflections President's Reflections | Amherst College] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131106021848/https://www.amherst.edu/aboutamherst/president/reflections |date=November 6, 2013 }}. Amherst.edu. Retrieved on April 12, 2014.

File:Kirby amherst.jpg

Amherst is a member of the Five Colleges consortium, which allows its students to attend classes at four other Pioneer Valley institutions. These include Mount Holyoke College, Smith College, Hampshire College, and the University of Massachusetts Amherst. In addition to the 850 courses available on campus, Amherst students have an additional 5,300 classes to consider through the Consortium (without paying additional tuition) and access to 8 million library volumes. The Five Colleges are geographically close to one another and are linked by buses that run between the campuses.{{Cite web|url=https://www.fivecolleges.edu/libraries|title=Libraries|access-date=April 21, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160422052314/https://www.fivecolleges.edu/libraries|archive-date=April 22, 2016|url-status=live}}

The Five Colleges share resources and develop common academic programs. Museums10 is a consortium of local art, history and science museums. The Five College Dance Department is one of the largest in the nation.{{cite web|url=https://www.fivecolleges.edu/dance/|title=Five College Dance Department |website=Five College Consortium |access-date=December 17, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130125015005/https://www.fivecolleges.edu/dance|archive-date=January 25, 2013|url-status=live}} The joint Astronomy department shares use of the Five College Radio Astronomy Observatory, which contributed to work that won the 1993 Nobel Prize in Physics.{{cite web|url=http://www.astro.umass.edu/~fcrao/telescope/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060617043407/http://www.astro.umass.edu/~fcrao/telescope/|archive-date=June 17, 2006|title=The Five College Radio Astronomy Observatory|access-date=January 1, 2012}}

The Five College Coastal and Marine Sciences Program offers an interdisciplinary curriculum to undergraduates in the Five Colleges.{{cite web|title=Five College Coastal & Marine Sciences Program |url=http://www.fivecolleges.edu/sites/marine/ |access-date=January 1, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120111163016/http://www.fivecolleges.edu/sites/marine/ |archive-date=January 11, 2012 }}

{{Infobox U.S. college admissions

|year = 2022

|ref = {{cite web |title=Common Data Set 2022 |url=https://www.amherst.edu/about/facts/common_data_sets/2022 |publisher=Amherst College |access-date=26 September 2023}}

|change ref = {{cite web |title=Common Data Set 2017 |url=https://www.amherst.edu/about/facts/common_data_sets/2017 |publisher=Amherst College |access-date=26 September 2023 |archive-date=September 26, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230926020542/https://www.amherst.edu/about/facts/common_data_sets/2017 |url-status=live }}

|admit rate = 7.2%

|admit rate change = -5.7

|yield rate = 43%

|yield rate change = +4

|test optional = recent

|SAT EBRW = 700–760

|SAT EBRW change =

|SAT Math = 720–790

|SAT Math change =

|ACT = 32–35

|ACT change =

|top decile = 90%

|top decile change = +7

|top quarter = 96%

|top quarter change = +2

|top half = 100%

|top half change = 0

}}

U.S. News & World Report classifies Amherst as being "most selective" of liberal arts colleges in the United States;{{cite magazine |title=National Liberal Arts College Rankings |url=http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/rankings/national-liberal-arts-colleges/data/sort+r_c_accept_rate/sortdir+asc |magazine=U.S. News & World Report |access-date=May 31, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150509133121/http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/rankings/national-liberal-arts-colleges/data/sort+r_c_accept_rate/sortdir+asc |archive-date=May 9, 2015 |url-status=live }} the Carnegie Foundation classifies Amherst as one of the "more selective" institutions whose first-year students' test scores places these institutions in roughly the top fifth of baccalaureate institutions.{{cite web |url=http://carnegieclassifications.iu.edu/lookup/view_institution.php?unit_id=164465 |title=More Selective Institution – Amherst College |access-date=September 12, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180913002545/http://carnegieclassifications.iu.edu/lookup/view_institution.php?unit_id=164465 |archive-date=September 13, 2018 |url-status=live }} For the class first enrolled in fall 2021, Amherst received 13,999 applications and accepted 1,224 (an 8.7% acceptance rate). 514 students ultimately enrolled; 91% were in the top 10% of their high school classes, and the middle 50% scored between 1440 and 1540 on the SAT and between 32 and 35 on the ACT. 38 states and 23 countries were reflected among the first-year class, 55% received financial aid and 11% were first-generation college students. In addition, 16 transfer students enrolled.{{cite news|last1=Zhang|first1=Jingwen|title=Class of 2021 Arrives for Orientation Week|url=http://amherststudent.amherst.edu/?q=article/2017/09/01/class-2021-arrives-orientation-week|newspaper=The Amherst Student|access-date=September 14, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170927123009/http://amherststudent.amherst.edu/?q=article%2F2017%2F09%2F01%2Fclass-2021-arrives-orientation-week|archive-date=September 27, 2017|url-status=live}}

Despite its high cost of attendance – comprehensive tuition, room, and board fee for the 2022–23 academic year was $80,250{{Cite web |title=Tuition, Fees & Other Costs {{!}} Amherst College |url=https://www.amherst.edu/tuition |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220706055638/https://www.amherst.edu/tuition |archive-date=July 6, 2022 |access-date=2022-07-31 |website=www.amherst.edu}} – Amherst College meets the full demonstrated need of every admitted student.{{cite web|url = https://www.amherst.edu/admission/financial_aid|title = Financial Aid & Costs: Can I Afford Amherst|access-date = April 14, 2010|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100527194102/https://www.amherst.edu/admission/financial_aid|archive-date = May 27, 2010|url-status = live}} Sixty percent of current students receive scholarship aid, and the average financial aid package award amounts to $62,071; college expenditures are approximately $109,000 per student each year.{{Cite web |title=Common Data Set 2021 – Financial Aid |url=https://www.amherst.edu/system/files/H%2520Financial%2520Aid_5.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220731022840/https://www.amherst.edu/system/files/H%20Financial%20Aid_5.pdf |archive-date=July 31, 2022 |access-date=August 1, 2022 |publisher=Amherst College}}{{Cite web |title=Frequently Asked Questions {{!}} First-Year & Transfer Students {{!}} Amherst College |url=https://www.amherst.edu/offices/financialaid/firstyear_transfer/faq |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801190439/https://www.amherst.edu/offices/financialaid/firstyear_transfer/faq |archive-date=August 1, 2022 |access-date=August 1, 2022 |publisher=Amherst College}}

In July 2007, Amherst announced that grants would replace loans in all financial aid packages beginning in the 2008–09 academic year. Amherst had already been the first school to eliminate loans for low-income students, and with this announcement it joined Princeton University, Cornell University and Davidson College, then the only colleges to eliminate loans from need-based financial aid packages. Increased rates of admission of highly qualified lower income students has resulted in greater equality of opportunity at Amherst than is usual at elite American colleges.{{cite news|last=Leonhardt |first=David |title=Top Colleges, Largely for the Elite |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/25/business/economy/25leonhardt.html |access-date=May 25, 2011 |newspaper=The New York Times |date=May 24, 2011 |quote=The result of these changes is that Amherst has a much higher share of low-income students than almost any other elite college. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110527020916/http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/25/business/economy/25leonhardt.html |archive-date=May 27, 2011 |url-status=live }}

In the 2008–2009 academic year, Amherst College also extended its need-blind admission policy to international applicants.{{Cite web|url=https://www.amherst.edu/news/news_releases/2008/04/node/44842|title=Amherst College to Extend Need-Blind Admission Policy to International Students |website=Amherst College|access-date=April 22, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160411084752/https://www.amherst.edu/news/news_releases/2008/04/node/44842|archive-date=April 11, 2016|url-status=live |date=April 9, 2008}} In 2021, it also eliminated preferences for students whose parents are alumni ("legacies").

Amherst's resources, faculty, and academic life allow the college to enroll students with a range of talents, interests, and commitments. Students represent 48 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and sixty-six countries. The median family income of Amherst students is $158,200, with 51% of students coming from the top 10% highest-earning families and 24% from the bottom 60%.{{cite news |last1=Aisch |first1=Gregor |last2=Buchanan |first2=Larry |last3=Cox |first3=Amanda |last4=Quealy |first4=Kevin |title=Economic diversity and student outcomes at Amherst |url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/projects/college-mobility/amherst-college |access-date=9 August 2020 |work=The New York Times |date=18 January 2017 |archive-date=November 12, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112003134/https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/projects/college-mobility/amherst-college |url-status=live }} Ninety-eight percent of students live on campus. Ninety-eight percent of Amherst freshmen enrolled in Fall 2020 returned for their sophomore year; ninety-two percent of the most recent cohort graduated within six years.{{cite web |title=Common Data Set 2021 |url=https://www.amherst.edu/system/files/B%2520Enrollment%2520and%2520Persistence_8.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220731022834/https://www.amherst.edu/system/files/B%20Enrollment%20and%20Persistence_8.pdf |archive-date=July 31, 2022 |access-date=July 31, 2022 |publisher=Amherst College}} There are more than 200 student groups at Amherst. More than a third of the student body are members of a varsity athletics team.{{cite news|title=Fast Facts|url=http://amherststudent.amherst.edu/?q=article/2017/02/08/college-releases-report-state-athletics-program|newspaper=The Amherst Student|access-date=January 31, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181013052959/http://amherststudent.amherst.edu/?q=article%2F2017%2F02%2F08%2Fcollege-releases-report-state-athletics-program|archive-date=October 13, 2018|url-status=live}}

Students pursue their interests through student-led organizations funded by a student fee and distributed by the student government, including a variety of cultural and religious groups, publications, fine and performing arts and political advocacy and service groups. Groups include a medieval sword-fighting club, a knitting club, and a club devoted to random acts of kindness, among others.{{Cite web|url=https://www.amherst.edu/campuslife/aas/clubs|title=Clubs |website=Amherst College|access-date=April 22, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160213030916/https://www.amherst.edu/campuslife/aas/clubs|archive-date=February 13, 2016|url-status=live}} Community service groups and opportunities (locally—through the Center for Community Engagement, nationally, and internationally) have been a priority at Amherst and for former President Anthony Marx, who helped start a secondary school for black students in apartheid South Africa.{{cite magazine |url=http://www.businessweek.com/stories/2006-02-26/campus-revolutionary |title=Campus Revolutionary |magazine=Business Week |access-date=July 12, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120704151637/http://www.businessweek.com/stories/2006-02-26/campus-revolutionary |archive-date=July 4, 2012 |url-status=dead }}

One of the longstanding traditions at the college involves the Sabrina statue. Even year and odd year classes battle for possession of the historic statue, often engaging in elaborate pranks in the process.{{Cite web|url=http://amherststudent.amherst.edu/?q=article/2013/10/09/question-sabrina|title=On the Question of Sabrina {{!}} The Amherst Student|access-date=April 22, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220193858/http://amherststudent.amherst.edu/?q=article%2F2013%2F10%2F09%2Fquestion-sabrina|archive-date=December 20, 2016|url-status=live}}

In 2012, President Biddy Martin began a community-wide review of the sexual misconduct and disciplinary policies at the college.{{cite web|last=Baker|first=Katie J. M.|title=Amherst Sweeps Sexual Assault Allegations Under the Rug|url=http://jezebel.com/5952784/amherst-sweeps-sexual-assault-allegations-under-the-rug|publisher=Jezebel|access-date=October 19, 2012|date=October 18, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121018191600/http://jezebel.com/5952784/amherst-sweeps-sexual-assault-allegations-under-the-rug|archive-date=October 18, 2012|url-status=live}}{{cite web|last=Martin|first=Biddy|title=President Martin's Statement on Sexual Assault|url=https://www.amherst.edu/campuslife/letters_president/node/436469|access-date=October 19, 2012|date=October 18, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130727165350/https://www.amherst.edu/campuslife/letters_president/node/436469|archive-date=July 27, 2013|url-status=live}} This review was sparked by several factors, including an underground fraternity's T-shirt design that critics alleged was misogynist{{cite news|last=Lee|first=Jisoo|title=Students Voice Concerns About Sexual Misconduct Policy|url=http://amherststudent.amherst.edu/?q=article/2012/10/17/students-voice-concerns-about-sexual-misconduct-policy|access-date=October 19, 2012|newspaper=The Amherst Student|date=October 17, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121021140936/http://amherststudent.amherst.edu/?q=article%2F2012%2F10%2F17%2Fstudents-voice-concerns-about-sexual-misconduct-policy|archive-date=October 21, 2012|url-status=live}} and an essay by Angie Epifano published in The Amherst Student, wherein she accused the college of inappropriate handling of a case of sexual assault.{{cite news|last=Epifano|first=Angie|title=An Account of Sexual Assault at Amherst College|url=http://amherststudent.amherst.edu/?q=article/2012/10/17/account-sexual-assault-amherst-college|access-date=October 19, 2012|newspaper=The Amherst Student|date=October 17, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121020144901/http://amherststudent.amherst.edu/?q=article%2F2012%2F10%2F17%2Faccount-sexual-assault-amherst-college|archive-date=October 20, 2012|url-status=live}} In January 2013, a college committee published a report noting Amherst's rate of sexual assault as similar to other colleges and universities, and making recommendations to address the problem.{{cite news|last=Corey|first=Ethan|title=Oversight Committee Releases Report on Sexual Misconduct|url=http://amherststudent.amherst.edu/?q=article/2013/02/05/oversight-committee-releases-report-sexual-misconduct|access-date=April 24, 2013|newspaper=The Amherst Student|date=February 5, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130531153341/http://amherststudent.amherst.edu/?q=article%2F2013%2F02%2F05%2Foversight-committee-releases-report-sexual-misconduct|archive-date=May 31, 2013|url-status=live}} In May 2014, the Amherst board of trustees banned students from joining any underground or off-campus fraternity.{{Cite news|title=Board Bans Off-Campus Fraternities|last=Muguia|first=Sophie|newspaper=The Amherst Student|date=7 May 2014|url=https://amherststudent.amherst.edu/article/2014/05/07/board-bans-campus-fraternities.html}}

After a complaint was filed by Epifano and an anonymous former student in November 2013,{{cite news|last=Mishkin|first=Shaina and Daniel Rodriguez|title=Amherst College facing 2 sexual assault complaints|url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2013/11/16/students-file-federal-complaint-against-amherst-college-alleging-mishandling-sexual-assaults/cxRn6t3sWaGKOVBK3hbg5N/story.html|access-date=April 6, 2014|newspaper=The Boston Globe|date=November 16, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140405155817/http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2013/11/16/students-file-federal-complaint-against-amherst-college-alleging-mishandling-sexual-assaults/cxRn6t3sWaGKOVBK3hbg5N/story.html|archive-date=April 5, 2014|url-status=live}} the US Department of Education opened an investigation into the college's handling of sexual violence and potential violations of Title IX. In May 2014, the Department of Education announced a list of 55 colleges and universities (including Amherst) currently under investigation.{{cite web |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/federal-government-releases-list-of-55-colleges-universities-under-title-ix-investigations-over-handling-of-sexual-violence/2014/05/01/e0a74810-d13b-11e3-937f-d3026234b51c_story.html |title=55 colleges under Title IX probe for handling of sexual violence and harassment claims |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=May 1, 2014 |last=Anderson |first=Nick |access-date=August 24, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170817231523/https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/federal-government-releases-list-of-55-colleges-universities-under-title-ix-investigations-over-handling-of-sexual-violence/2014/05/01/e0a74810-d13b-11e3-937f-d3026234b51c_story.html |archive-date=August 17, 2017 |url-status=live }}

A report from Amherst College stated that 2009 to 2011, Amherst reported 35 instances of "forcible sex offenses", a term that encompasses rape, attempted rape, and lesser forms of sexual contact.[https://www.amherst.edu/media/view/122491/original/Clery%20Report%202008.pdf "Amherst College Police: Annual Report, Calendar Year 2011"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140408215901/https://www.amherst.edu/media/view/122491/original/Clery%20Report%202008.pdf |date=April 8, 2014 }}. Retrieved July 2, 2013.

In 2022, in response to the anonymous sharing of sexual assault experiences at Amherst College on the Instagram account [https://www.instagram.com/amherstshareyourstory/ @amherstshareyourstory], then President Biddy Martin announced the launch of a new comprehensive review of the issue of sexual misconduct and assault on campus.{{Cite web |date=2022-02-09 |title=Instagram Account ‘Amherst Share Your Story’ Confronts Sexual Misconduct |url=https://amherststudent.com/article/instagram-account-amherst-share-your-story-confronts-sexual-misconduct/ |access-date=2025-02-24 |website=The Amherst Student |language=en}} According to the 2023 NECHE Interim Crediting Report listening sessions and interviews were conducted, and a website for anonymous reporting of concerns was created.{{Cite web |date=August 15, 2023 |title=2023 NECHE INTERIM (FIFTH-YEAR) ACCREDITATION REPORT |url=https://www.amherst.edu/system/files/Amherst%20College%20Five%20Year%20Report%20FINAL.pdf}} The NECHE interim report also suggested that the review was expected to be published in Spring 2023. However currently there has been no update or public disclosure of the 2022 review.

In the second decade of the 21st century, the original unofficial mascot of Amherst College, Lord Jeffery Amherst, became a cause of concern in the Amherst community.{{cite news|last=Corey|first=Ethan|title=College Weighs Tradition and Inclusivity in Mascot Debate|url=http://amherststudent.amherst.edu/?q=article/2013/04/03/college-weighs-tradition-and-inclusivity-mascot-debate|access-date=May 25, 2014|newspaper=The Amherst Student|date=April 3, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130420021744/http://amherststudent.amherst.edu/?q=article%2F2013%2F04%2F03%2Fcollege-weighs-tradition-and-inclusivity-mascot-debate|archive-date=April 20, 2013|url-status=live}}{{cite news | newspaper = New York Times | access-date = April 5, 2023 | url = https://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/27/us/amherst-college-drops-lord-jeff-as-mascot.html | date = January 26, 2016 | title = Amherst College Drops 'Lord Jeff' as Mascot | first = Jess | last = Bidgood | archive-date = October 26, 2018 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181026064519/https://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/27/us/amherst-college-drops-lord-jeff-as-mascot.html | url-status = live }} Many sought to separate the school from the problematic legacy of Lord Jeffery Amherst, in particular his advocacy of the use of biological warfare against Native Americans.{{cite web|last=d'Errico|first=Peter|title=Jeffrey Amherst and Smallpox Blankets| url= http://www.nativeweb.org/pages/legal/amherst/lord_jeff.html|access-date=May 25, 2014|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120204051344/http://www.nativeweb.org/pages/legal/amherst/lord_jeff.html|archive-date=February 4, 2012|url-status=live}}

In May 2014, after a wild moose found its way onto the Amherst College campus and into the backyard of the house of the college president,{{cite news|last=Merzbach|first=Scott|title=Wandering Moose Creates a Stir in Amherst, prompts tweet from Amherst College President Biddy Martin|url=http://www.gazettenet.com/home/11984581-95/wandering-moose-creates-a-stir-in-amherst-prompts-tweets-from-amherst-college-president-biddy|access-date=May 25, 2014|newspaper=Daily Hampshire Gazette|location=Northampton, Mass.|date=May 15, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140910071449/http://www.gazettenet.com/home/11984581-95/wandering-moose-creates-a-stir-in-amherst-prompts-tweets-from-amherst-college-president-biddy|archive-date=September 10, 2014|url-status=live}} students organized a Facebook campaign to change the mascot of the school to a moose. The page grew rapidly in popularity, receiving over 900 "likes" in under two weeks, and inspiring both a Twitter and Tumblr account for the newly proposed mascot. At the Commencement ceremony for the class of 2014, the moose mascot was mentioned by Biddy Martin in her address, and the Dining Hall served Moose Tracks ice cream in front of an ice sculpture of a moose.[//scontent-b-lga.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/t1.0-9/59303_10203747867714073_6503822668927316018_n.jpg Photo of ice sculpture of moose.]

In February 2015, discussion of a mascot change continued when the editorial board of the Amherst Student, the college's official student-run newspaper, came out in favor of "the moose-scot".{{cite web|title=Moose-scot: A Call to Arms|work=Amherst Student|url=http://amherststudent.amherst.edu/?q=article%2F2015%2F02%2F04%2Fmoose-scot-call-arms|date=February 4, 2015|access-date=November 30, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161021205825/http://amherststudent.amherst.edu/?q=article%2F2015%2F02%2F04%2Fmoose-scot-call-arms|archive-date=October 21, 2016|url-status=live}} In November 2015 the student body and the faculty overwhelmingly voted to vacate the mascot. That same month, several hundred students who staged a sit-in protest against racism at the college library included among their demands a call for the college to cease use of the Lord Jeff mascot.{{cite news|last=Glaun|first=Dan|title=Amherst College President Biddy Martin addresses student protesters during library sit-in|url=http://www.masslive.com/news/index.ssf/2015/11/amherst_college_president_bidd_2.html |accessdate=January 26, 2016|newspaper=Springfield (Mass.) Republican|date=November 14, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160107061413/http://www.masslive.com/news/index.ssf/2015/11/amherst_college_president_bidd_2.html|archive-date=January 7, 2016|url-status=live}} The decision to drop the mascot was made official by the college's trustees on January 26, 2016.{{cite news|last=Glaun|first=Dan|title=Amherst College trustees vote to drop controversial Lord Jeff mascot| url= http://www.masslive.com/news/index.ssf/2016/01/amherst_college_trustees_vote.html|access-date=January 26, 2016|newspaper=Springfield (Mass.) Republican|date=January 26, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160127092823/http://www.masslive.com/news/index.ssf/2016/01/amherst_college_trustees_vote.html|archive-date=January 27, 2016|url-status=live}}

In April 2017, Amherst announced that their official mascot would be the mammoth.{{cite news|url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2017/04/03/after-sending-lord-jeff-packing-amherst-college-picks-mammoth-mascot/2pT6Etr7n1jrjCwFRANK8M/story.html|title=After sending Lord Jeff packing, Amherst College picks mammoth as mascot|last=Rosen|first=Andy|date=April 3, 2017|newspaper=The Boston Globe|access-date=April 20, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170421092410/https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2017/04/03/after-sending-lord-jeff-packing-amherst-college-picks-mammoth-mascot/2pT6Etr7n1jrjCwFRANK8M/story.html|archive-date=April 21, 2017|url-status=live}}Boswell, Thomas.

[https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/changing-a-nickname-seems-like-a-seismic-shift-but-its-rarely-a-mammoth-deal/2017/12/14/c4494cba-e0d5-11e7-bbd0-9dfb2e37492a_story.html Changing a nickname seems like a seismic shift, but it's rarely a Mammoth deal] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171217071347/https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/changing-a-nickname-seems-like-a-seismic-shift-but-its-rarely-a-mammoth-deal/2017/12/14/c4494cba-e0d5-11e7-bbd0-9dfb2e37492a_story.html |date=December 17, 2017 }}. Washington Post. December 14, 2017. Mammoths beat the other finalists "Valley Hawks", "Purple and White", "Wolves", and "Fighting Poets" in a ranked-choice election process. {{cite web |url=https://www.masslive.com/news/2017/03/poets_hawks_wolves_on_amherst.html |title=Poets, hawks, wolves on list to replace Lord Jeff as Amherst College mascot |access-date=7 April 2025}} The mammoth is linked to Amherst due to the long-standing presence of a Columbian Mammoth skeleton on display in the Beneski Museum of Natural History on campus dating back to the 1920s excavation of the skeleton by Amherst professor Frederic Brewster Loomis in Melbourne, Florida.{{cite web |title=Frederic Brewster Loomis (AC 1896) Papers |url=https://archivesspace.amherst.edu/repositories/2/resources/29 |website=Amherst College Archives and Special Collections |access-date=12 February 2022 |archive-date=February 12, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220212013752/https://archivesspace.amherst.edu/repositories/2/resources/29 |url-status=live }}

{{see also|Amherst Mammoths football}}

File:Amherst-Cornell Hockey Game on Beebe Lake, Ithaca (January 14, 1922) NYSA A3045-78 10436.tif game on Beebe Lake, Ithaca (January 14, 1922)]]

Amherst participates in the NCAA's Division III, the Eastern College Athletic Conference, and the New England Small College Athletic Conference, which includes Bates, Bowdoin, Colby, Connecticut College, Hamilton, Middlebury, Trinity, Tufts, Wesleyan, and Williams College.{{Cite web|url=http://www.nescac.com/landing/index|title=NESCAC|website=www.nescac.com|access-date=April 22, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160422091645/http://www.nescac.com/landing/index|archive-date=April 22, 2016|url-status=live}} Amherst is also one of the "Little Three", along with Williams and Wesleyan. A Little Three champion is informally recognized by most teams based on the head-to-head records of the three schools, but three-way competitions are held in some of the sports.

Amherst claims its athletics program as the oldest in the nation,"[https://cms.amherst.edu/athletics/quickfacts Amherst College and Amherst Athletics Quickfacts]{{Dead link|date=August 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}", amherst.edu . Retrieved October 31, 2007. pointing to its compulsory physical fitness regimen put in place in 1860 (the mandate that all students participate in sports or pursue physical education has been discontinued)."[http://www.amherst.edu/~rjyanco94/amherst/history/1894tyler-ws/chapter12/menu.html] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080307142220/http://www.amherst.edu/~rjyanco94/amherst/history/1894tyler-ws/chapter12/menu.html|date=March 7, 2008}}", A History of Amherst College During the Administrations of its First Five Presidents. Amherst and Williams played the first college baseball game July 2, 1859.{{cite news|first = Gordon|last = Edes|title = Amherst and Williams re-enact first college game|date = May 4, 2009|work = Yahoo! Sports|url = https://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=ge-amherstwilliams050309|access-date = May 4, 2009|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20121025203006/http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=ge-amherstwilliams050309|archive-date = October 25, 2012|url-status = live}}

Amherst's growing athletics program has been the subject of controversy in recent years{{when|date=December 2018}} due to dramatic contrasts between the racial and socioeconomic makeup of its student athletes and the rest of its student body, the clustering of athletes in particular academic departments, and a perceived "divide" on campus between varsity athletes and other students. Athletic skill plays a factor in the admissions decisions of between 28% and 35% of each incoming class.{{cite news |url=https://amherststudent.amherst.edu/article/2017/02/08/college-releases-report-state-athletics-program.html |title=College Releases Report on State of Athletics Program |newspaper=The Amherst Student |date=2017-02-08 |author=Isabel Tessier |access-date=January 23, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190131045908/https://amherststudent.amherst.edu/article/2017/02/08/college-releases-report-state-athletics-program.html |archive-date=January 31, 2019 |url-status=live }}

Amherst fields several club athletic teams, including ultimate, soccer, crew, rugby union, water polo, equestrian, mountain biking, fencing, sailing and skiing. Intramural sports include soccer, tennis, golf, basketball, volleyball and softball.

The sport of Ultimate was started and named at Amherst College in the mid-1960s by Jared Kass.{{cite web|title=This is How it All Began: An Interview with Jared Kass |date=August 30, 2003 |first=Willie |last=Herndon |orig-date=Winter 2003 |url=http://www.ultimatehalloffame.org/sportstories/august.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070107075156/http://www.ultimatehalloffame.org/sportstories/august.htm |archive-date=January 7, 2007 |work=ultimatehalloffame.org |format=reprinted with permission |publisher=Originally published in the Ultimate Players Association newsletter }}{{cite web|url=http://www.thesportjournal.org/article/origins-and-development-ultimate-frisbee |title=The Origins and Development of Ultimate Frisbee |author=Gerald Griggs |year=2009 |access-date=January 1, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111229214400/http://www.thesportjournal.org/article/origins-and-development-ultimate-frisbee |archive-date=December 29, 2011 }}

{{Main|List of Amherst College people}}

Although a relatively small college, Amherst has many accomplished alumni, including Nobel, Crafoord Prize and Lasker Award laureates, MacArthur Fellowship and Pulitzer Prize winners, National Medal of Science and National Book Award recipients, and Academy, Tony, Grammy and Emmy Award winners; a U.S. President, the current Sovereign Prince of Monaco, two Prime Ministers and one Foreign Minister of Greece, a President of Kenya, a President of El Salvador, a Chief Justice of the United States, three Speakers of the U.S. House of Representatives, a U.S. Poet Laureate, the legal architect of Brown v. Board of Education{{cite web|url=http://www.naacp.org/pages/naacp-history-charles-hamilton-houston |title=NAACP History: Charles Hamilton Houston |publisher=National Association for the Advancement of Colored People |access-date=July 27, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160807004241/http://www.naacp.org/pages/naacp-history-charles-hamilton-houston |archive-date=August 7, 2016 }} and the inventor of the blood bank; leaders in science, religion, politics, the Peace Corps, medicine, law, education, communications, and business; and acclaimed actors, architects, artists, astronauts, engineers, human rights activists, inventors, musicians, philanthropists, and writers.

Among its alumni, faculty and affiliates are six Nobel Prize laureates{{Cite journal |last=Clynes |first=Tom |date=2016-10-13 |title=Where Nobel winners get their start |journal=Nature News |language=en |volume=538 |issue=7624 |pages=152 |bibcode=2016Natur.538..152C |doi=10.1038/nature.2016.20757 |pmid=27734890 |s2cid=4466329 |doi-access=free}}{{cite web |title=When 0.00019 is a Very High Number | College Row | Amherst College |url=https://www.amherst.edu/news/magazine/issues/2017-winter/college-row/when-0.00019-is-a-very-high-number}} and twenty Rhodes Scholars.{{Cite web |title=Winning Institutions Search {{!}} The Rhodes Scholarships |url=https://www.rhodeshouse.ox.ac.uk/office-of-the-american-secretary/us-winners/winning-institution-search/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200916200956/https://www.rhodeshouse.ox.ac.uk/office-of-the-american-secretary/us-winners/winning-institution-search/ |archive-date=September 16, 2020 |access-date=2020-12-07 |website=www.rhodeshouse.ox.ac.uk |language=en}} President Calvin Coolidge, Chief Justice Harlan F. Stone, and other notable writers, academics, politicians, entertainers, businesspeople, and activists have been graduates as well.

There are approximately 23,000 living alumni, of whom about 45% make a gift to Amherst each year—one of the highest alumni participation rates of any college in the country.{{Cite web |title=Profile of Amherst {{!}} Fast Facts & FAQs {{!}} Amherst College |url=https://www.amherst.edu/amherst-story/facts/profile |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220731022955/https://www.amherst.edu/amherst-story/facts/profile |archive-date=July 31, 2022 |access-date=August 1, 2022 |publisher=Amherst College}}{{cite web |last=Moody |first=Josh |date=December 8, 2020 |title=10 Colleges Where the Most Alumni Donate |url=https://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/the-short-list-college/articles/universities-where-the-most-alumni-donate |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220524021525/https://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/the-short-list-college/articles/universities-where-the-most-alumni-donate |archive-date=May 24, 2022 |access-date=August 1, 2022 |work=U.S. News & World Report}}

{{Reflist}}

• Applegate, Debby , The Most Famous Man in America: The Biography of Henry Ward Beecher (Doubleday, 2006).

• Opal, J. M. "The Making of the Victorian Campus: Teacher and Student at Amherst College, 1850-1880." History of Education Quarterly 42.3 (2002): 342–367.

• Pick, Nancy, and Frank Ward, Curious Footprints: Professor Hitchcock's Dinosaur Tracks & Other Natural History Treasures at Amherst College (Amherst College Press, 2006).

• W. S. Tyler, History of Amherst College during its first half century, 1821–1871 (C. W. Bryan, 1873).
• [https://books.google.com/books?id=3rvruWe45XEC Exercises at the Semi-Centennial of Amherst College] (1871).
• William S. Tyler, [https://web.archive.org/web/20040225095338/http://www.amherst.edu/~rjyanco/amherst/history/1894tyler-ws/toc.html A History of Amherst College] (1894).
• Passages of Time, Narratives in the History of Amherst College, edited and with several selections by Douglas C. Wilson, son of William E. Wilson (Amherst College Press, 2007).
• Pick, Nancy, Eye Mind Heart: A View of Amherst College at 200 [https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0943184223/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1] (Amherst College, 2020).

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• {{oweb}}
• [https://athletics.amherst.edu/ Athletics website]
• {{Cite Americana|wstitle=Amherst College |short=x}}

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