Ripon College is celebrating 175 years of learning, leadership and community — and the year ahead is full of meaningful moments. We’ll kick things off with three signature events today: our 175th Celebration, the first of three Rally Days — our annual Giving Day that supports today’s students — and Founders’ Day, a day to honor our beginnings and recognize the people and principles that shaped Ripon.
These milestones invite us to look back with pride, celebrate the present and invest in what’s next — honoring an exemplary past and building an extraordinary future.
Join us on social media today as the events unfold or at one of our Rally Hours as we honor our history and build the future of Ripon College — together.
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Today, we continue to celebrate our 2026 graduates — both our bachelor's degree and master's degree candidates. Check ripon.edu for the full schedule of events today and tomorrow. #RiponCollege175
Did you know that ceremonial maces originated as lethal weapons? They evolved into symbols of rank and authority. At colleges and universities, the mace represents the institution’s autonomy and the protection of its academic processes.
Ripon College’s Commencement ceremony is full of other significant symbols and traditions. Swipe to familiarize yourself with some of the common conventions ahead of Sunday’s big event.
Did you know that Warren Burger's Commencement address in 1967 led to him becoming a Chief Justice on the Supreme Court? This year's Founders' Day Award recipient Robert Abendroth ’51 invited Burger to speak. President Richard Nixon later read Burger's speech from that day and nominated the judge to the high Court. There is a plaque on Harwood Memorial Union, and you can read all about it in this week's Ripon Commonwealth Press online edition.
Julie Johnson arrived at Ripon College as a 24-year-old basketball coach and physical education teacher in 1990. She would remain to spend her entire career here, serving as a professor and chair in the physical education and exercise science departments and as a head coach of golf, softball and, most notably, women’s basketball. In 23 years at the helm of the basketball program, she amassed 303 wins and four Midwest Conference championships.
In 2010, she became the College’s first female athletic director — a position she held for nine years until her untimely death related to ovarian cancer in 2019. The women's basketball team annually honors Johnson's legacy and "Team JJ" by wearing teal uniforms on alumni day.
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If the weather cooperates, Harwood Memorial Union will once more provide the backdrop to Commencement. Completed in 1944, Harwood has long been the hub for campus events, and its porch has hosted College graduation ceremonies for 70 years. #RiponCollege175
Kurt R. Dietrich taught in the Department of Music for 39 years (1980-2019). He directed the Symphonic Wind Ensemble and Jazz Ensemble, taught brass instruments and a variety of courses, and coordinated performances for the Chamber Music and Jazz at Ripon Series. An active trombonist to this day, he performed with Matrix, an Appleton-based jazz fusion group that performed at the Monterey and Newport jazz festivals in the 1970s, and released five recordings with the ensemble. He also has written several books about music, including “Duke’s ’Bones: Ellington’s Great Trombonists”; “Jazz ’Bones: The World of Jazz Trombone”; “Wisconsin Riffs: Jazz Profiles from the Heartland”; and “Never Givin’ Up: The Life and Music of Al Jarreau,” about the 1962 Ripon College graduate.
Ripon College is a family venture for Kurt — his wife, Maria, has been a long-time accompanist and adjunct instructor of music; his son, Paul, and his wife, Jessica, are both adjunct instructors in the music department; and his son, Erik, has worked in the College's IT department for more than 10 years.
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We are heartbroken to share the loss of Mary Elliott ’26, a cherished senior and beloved member of our Ripon College community.
Join us tomorrow (Tuesday, May 12) at 9 a.m. on the pool deck at the Willmore Center for brief remarks and an opportunity to share your stories and memories of Mary.
Throughout the week, a remembrance station on the pool deck will be available for the entire campus community to leave a message, share a memory or leave a trinket in her memory.
Our hearts are with her family, her swimming and diving teammates and coaches, her ADPi sisters and all who knew her.
Ripon College Counseling Services is available to all students. To schedule an appointment, contact [email protected]
