Today, a statue of Bishop Hamline sculpted by the late professor of art Michael Price stands on campus.

The city of Red Wing pledged about $10,000 to enable construction of a building and the beginning of an endowment, and donated a tract of land on a hillside overlooking the Mississippi River.

[4][14] The first classes at Hamline were held in rooms housed on the second floor of the village general store while the construction of the classroom building was in progress.

[20] When World War I came in April 1917, track and baseball schedules for spring were cancelled as enlistments and applications of officers' training depleted the teams.

Three former students of Hamline University, Wallace Ramstad, Glen Donaldson, and Walter Gammel died in battle.

One of the more notable situations the Hamline ambulance unit, otherwise known as Section 568, was involved in was the fighting in the Meuse-Argonne territory, which lasted 47 days.

In the meantime, the portion of the college endowment invested in farmlands turned unproductive, and the university's income fell following reductions in tuition.

Although males registrations dropped as men entered the armed services, women's enrollment increased as nursing students arrived.

Hamline moved with a growing trend to provide academic training for women preparing for careers in nursing.

The seating capacity of the library was increased to 100 with the completion of a new periodical room, and the old student union was remodeled and turned into a laboratory with classrooms and office space for the language departments.

In the summer of 1966, extensive alterations and improvements were made in Hutton Arena and in the theater of the fine arts center.

[32] The Paul Giddens Alumni Learning Center, linked to the Carnegie library and named for a former university president, opened in October 1972.

The social science and humanities divisions and the department of education are now housed within the center, which also contains classrooms, study areas, and laboratories.

[41] After four years of planning, ground was broken on October 18, 1996, for an $8.5 million sports, recreation, and health complex—Lloyd W. D. Walker Fieldhouse—though construction did not begin until the following spring.

[43] In the autumn of 2012, Hamline students and faculty protested the school's refusal to condemn the proposed Minnesota constitutional amendment that would have banned equal marriage rights for all citizens.

Hamline's attempt to stay neutral on the issue was seen as inconsistent with the university's anti-discrimination policy and its espoused values of diversity and inclusiveness,[44] as well as with its United Methodist heritage and identity, since the Minnesota Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church had voted to publicly oppose the amendment.

[47] On July 1, 2015, Fayneese Miller became the first African American to be the President of Hamline University and the second woman to hold that office.

[49] Notwithstanding an apology from the professor to the students and the entire class, the university administration declined to renew her contract and, a month later, publicly characterized her use of the paintings as "undeniably inconsiderate, disrespectful, and Islamophobic", and "unacceptable".

"[50] Academics criticized Hamline's approach to academic freedom and their understanding of Islam as a monolith which was uniformly condemning the paintings, ignoring that Muslim rulers commissioned them; art historians characterized the paintings to be an indispensable component of any lesson on Islamic art history.

[8][51] Free speech groups have taken a similar stance—PEN America labeled the termination as "one of the most egregious violations of academic freedom in recent memory.

"[8] Scholars have also highlighted how the increasing commercialization of higher education with little security for adjunct faculties allowed for such firings.

[55] In January 2023, the professor sued the university for religious discrimination and defamation;[56] shortly after, President Miller withdrew her accusations of Islamophobia and acknowledged error in subordinating academic freedom to mainstream Islamic norms.

For undergraduates, Hamline students pursue a BA or BS degree in the liberal arts, combined with a co-major in education and a Minnesota teaching license.

[69] Hamline's clubs include organizations with focuses on various academic subjects, the arts, journalism, culture, advocacy/social justice, recreation, and spirituality.

Hamline also has two Greek organizations: Delta Tau sorority and Theta Chi fraternity, both of which are located a block west of campus.

[71] HUPB plans student events, such as the homecoming dance, End of the Semester Party, and the annual lip sync contest.

[74] Osborn, Peterson and Schilling Residence Halls collectively known as the Heights, are identical buildings built in the late 1960s.

Included in the purchase of a meal plan is a certain amount of money that can be used at other facilities on campus ("declining balance" dollars).

The game was played in the basement of the university's old science building using Naismith's original "peach basket" rules, and featured nine players to each side.

Hamline produced a number of NBA players during this time, including Hall of Famer Vern Mikkelsen.