More Than One Kind of Blitzkrieg to Resist: Houghton College’s Response to World War II

Abstract

While male student enrollment diminished dramatically, in many ways the war years at Houghton College were characterized by a surprising level of continuity. Under the youthful leadership of Stephen Paine, the war years brought new facilities and an even more credentialed and cohesive faculty. The college contributed to the war effort far out of proportion to its size. At the same time, students, faculty, and administrators made a concerted effort throughout to focus even more intentionally on the core institutional mission. Members of the college community continued to engage and equip themselves for a perennial conflict between the Kingdom of God and the kingdoms of this world, a conflict in which they believed even more was at stake than in the merely earthly battle.