Founded in 1821 as an attempt to relocate Williams College by its then-president Zephaniah Swift Moore, Amherst is the third oldest institution of higher education in Massachusetts.

[11] The academy incorporated in 1816,[12] and eventually counted among its students Emily Dickinson, Sylvester Graham, and Mary Lyon (founder of Mount Holyoke College).

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".

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.

This parallel course focused less on Greek and Latin, instead emphasizing contemporary English, French, and Spanish languages, chemistry, economics, etc.

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.

[18] 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.

Religious conservatism persisted at Amherst until the mid-nineteenth century: students who consumed alcohol or played cards were subject to expulsion.

Amherst College is reducing its energy consumption through a computerized monitoring system for lighting and the use of an efficient cogeneration facility.

[29] Amherst also operates a composting program, in which a portion of the food waste from dining halls is sent to a farmer in Vermont.

[37] Its most popular majors, by 2021 graduates, were:[38] The Amherst library is named for long-time faculty member, poet Robert Frost.

[40] 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.

[54] 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.

[55] 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,[56] focusing particularly on his May 2013 comparison of homosexuality to bestiality, pedophilia and necrophilia.

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".

[68] Despite its high cost of attendance – comprehensive tuition, room, and board fee for the 2022–23 academic year was $80,250[69] – Amherst College meets the full demonstrated need of every admitted student.

[71][72] In July 2007, Amherst announced that grants would replace loans in all financial aid packages beginning in the 2008–09 academic year.

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.

[25] Amherst's resources, faculty, and academic life allow the college to enroll students with a range of talents, interests, and commitments.

[80][81] This review was sparked by several factors, including an underground fraternity's T-shirt design that critics alleged was misogynist[82] 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.

[85] After a complaint was filed by Epifano and an anonymous former student in November 2013,[86] the US Department of Education opened an investigation into the college's handling of sexual violence and potential violations of Title IX.

[89][90] 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.

[93] The page grew rapidly in popularity, receiving over 900 "likes" in under two weeks,[93] and inspiring both a Twitter and Tumblr account for the newly proposed mascot.

[94] 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".

[97][98] Mammoths beat the other finalists "Valley Hawks", "Purple and White", "Wolves", and "Fighting Poets" in a ranked-choice election process.

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.

[105] Amherst fields several club athletic teams, including ultimate, soccer, crew, rugby union, water polo, equestrian, mountain biking, fencing, sailing and skiing.

[106][107] 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[108] 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.

[111] President Calvin Coolidge, Chief Justice Harlan F. Stone, and other notable writers, academics, politicians, entertainers, businesspeople, and activists have been graduates as well.