Centre College in the 21st Century
In 2000, Centre made history as the smallest institution ever to host a General Election debate when the two vice presidential candidates, Sen. Joe Lieberman and Dick Cheney, faced one another in the College's Norton Center for the Arts. CBS news anchor Dan Rather later described the debate at Centre as "the best vice presidential debate ever held." In 2012, Centre again hosted the nation's only vice presidential debate, between Vice President Joe Biden and Rep. Paul Ryan. "They aced it in 2000," said Janet Brown, executive director of the Commission on Presidential Debates, after the 2012 debate, "and this year was even better." A thriving study abroad program attracts about 85 percent of Centre students.
The first Posse students arrived from Boston in 2006. The first Grissom Scholars, first-generation college students awarded a highly competitive scholarship, arrived in 2015. The first Lincoln Scholars, who possess "the capacity and deep desire to change the world," arrived in 2016. In 2019, the College celebrated its bicentennial and the end of the Third Century Campaign which raised $210 million. Centre’s 21st president, Milton Moreland, began July 1, 2020.
Today, the campus includes approximately 178 acres. Many of Centre’s buildings are new or newly renovated. In 2024, the College completed Champions Hall, a remarkable athletic and wellness complex that includes a 10-lane, 50-meter pool, a 200-meter indoor track, and a 5,000-square-foot strength and wellness center. Andy Frye stadium was completed in 2023 and Gary Wright Field at Fishman Park, the home of Centre Baseball, was completed in 2022. Northside Residence Hall opened in August 2019. A major renovation and expansion to Olin Hall (science and mathematics) opened in 2021. Centre also renovated the Grace C. Doherty Library on the main floor of Crounse Hall, creating a new center for student success known as the Centre Learning Commons (CLC) in 2020-21. Renovations to Old Quad residence halls, including Cooper Ganfield Hall, Stevenson Vinson Hall, and LaMotte Tyler Hall were completed in 2023 and include well-being spaces such as yoga and meditation space and a functional fitness room, both with streaming guided instruction on demand.