Nevada, Missouri, is the small community Virginia Alice Cottey chose as the home for her college. Today comprising 8,400 citizens, Nevada is the major population center between Kansas City and Joplin. Located in a residential section, Cottey’s campus has 15 buildings on an 11-block tract and a scenic 33-acre wooded area, BIL Hill and Lodge. The Hill is a favorite place for campus gatherings and retreats, and serves as a nature laboratory.
Historic Main Hall, built in 1884, is the College’s original building. Completely renovated in 2002, it currently houses administrative offices and the Service Center.
The Rubie Burton Academic Center is composed of two wings. Alumnae Hall, built in 1974 and renovated in 1998, contains classrooms, faculty offices, the student art gallery, and the computer lab. Offices for Academic Affairs, the Office of Academic Records and the Kolderie Academic Assistance Center are also in this building. Grantham Hall, completed in 1998, houses well-equipped science and computer laboratories, the majority of the classrooms and faculty offices, and student and faculty lounges.
Neale Hall, built in 1922, was renovated in 2015 as part of the construction of the Judy and Glenn Rogers Fine Arts Building. Originally constructed as a gymnasium, today this beautifully repurposed facility houses the studios and offices of the dance program.
The Judy and Glenn Rogers Fine Arts Building, built in 2015, was constructed to bring the fine arts together under one roof. Joined to the renovated Neale Hall by an atrium, the facility houses the music and art departments. It includes studios for the visual arts and practice rooms for the music department as well as classrooms and faculty offices. It is joined to Main Hall by an elevated glass walkway.
The central place for academic research is the Blanche Skiff Ross Memorial Library, constructed in 1963. Newly renovated in 2020, the library houses over 55,000 print books, covering the breadth of the arts and sciences on the undergraduate level, including the Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Collection, the Popular Fiction Collection, and the Juvenile Collection. Access to over 250,000 eBooks, 60 academic research databases, and video and music streaming platforms are available on the library’s webpage. Interlibrary loan borrowing is available through the MOBIUS Network. Textbook reserves and faculty reserves are available at the circulation desk. The main floor lounge includes a coffee and tea station. The conference room and the second-floor study lounge provide a variety of meeting spaces. The lower level of the library houses the Jann Rudd Weitzel Education Lab; the library’s content creation zone for video, audio and social media content creation; and additional library study areas. All three floors have study tables, easy chairs, private study areas, including 20 computers and high quality printing/scanning technology.
The Haidee and Allen Wild Center for the Arts, completed in 1989, provides facilities for the performing arts. It features a 495-seat auditorium, a climate-controlled art gallery, a recital hall with seating for 150, and a large scenery shop and costume shop.
The Chapel, built and donated in 1956 by the BILs and renovated in 2021, seats 380 in the nave and houses the Dysart Memorial organ, a 21-rank Hammer-Reuter organ, and the Nell Farrel Stevenson grand piano. The Chapel, which is nondenominational, also contains a smaller side chapel and prayer and meditation room.
The Susan Bulkeley Butler Center for Campus Life, created in 2021 through the fundraising efforts of the CONNECT initiative, is located in the lower level of the Chapel. The Center for Campus Life houses the Chellie Club and the Spirit Shop, as well as meeting and lounge space for the campus community and its visitors.
Hinkhouse Center, built in 1971 and renovated in 1992, houses two gymnasiums, fitness center, classrooms, Trading Lab/Esports Arena, athletic training facilities, and faculty and coaches’ offices. The complex also includes three tennis courts, softball and recreational fields, and the Vanek Family Memorial Softball Field, dedicated in 2013.
The Student Wellness Center, renovated in 2021, is located west of Robertson Hall. The Wellness Center has offices for health services, counseling, and spiritual life and campus diversity, along with the Cottey Cupboard. A meeting space and relaxation room provides additional student wellness opportunities and is available for all students. The building is accessible on the first floor.
The Cottey House, renovated in 2013 and located to the east of Main Hall on Cherry Street, is used to house guests of the College.
P.E.O. Hall (1939), the first building erected after Cottey was accepted as a gift by the P.E.O. Sisterhood in 1927. Approximately 100 students live in ten suites: Arkansas, California-Gardner, California-Remy, Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Oregon, Pope, and Yellowstone.
Reeves Hall (1949), named for Winona Evans Reeves. Approximately 100 students live in ten suites: California-Weller, Kansas, Michigan, Nebraska, New Mexico, Ohio, Rubie, Seaboard, Texas, and Washington.
Robertson Hall (1959), named for Elizabeth Robertson. The Bessie Raney Dining Room is on the lower level. Robertson Hall houses approximately 150 students in 14 suites: Arizona, Colorado-Minear, Colorado-Thompson, Dakota, Florida, Indiana, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Rosemary-Alumna, Santa Barbara, Southeastern, Hillding, Wheatlake, and Wisconsin. This facility is partially accessible to individuals with physical mobility disabilities.
The Townhomes, acquired by Cottey in 2020, provide housing options for junior and senior students or students over the age of 21. This housing option offers upper-class students the opportunity to experience autonomy while still living on campus. Each Townhome is fully furnished with a kitchen, living room, bath, double and single bedrooms. Each Townhome houses three or four students.
The Helen and George Washburn Center for Women’s Leadership, acquired in 1998, is located south of Hinkhouse Center at 400 S. College. The beautiful home and grounds are used to host campus retreats, seminars, and to house visiting faculty. It is also home to the Serenbetz Institute for Women’s Leadership, Social Responsibility, and Global Awareness.