Under the direction of John Bernard, the university was given several elephants for research that were discovered to have been poisoned at a Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus event nearby.

[10] Oglethorpe's collegiate coat-of-arms is emblazoned with three boars' heads and the Latin inscription Nescit Cedere, meaning "He does not know how to give up."

The Oglethorpe University Museum of Art opened in 1984 and is located on the top floor of the Philip Weltner Library.

Oglethorpe University is home to the Crypt of Civilization, the first and most complete time capsule ever created, according to the Guinness Book of World Records.

[1] Fraternities Sororities In early February, the college hosts events to celebrate the anniversary of James Oglethorpe's founding of the colony of Georgia.

The annual "Petrels of Fire" race, an homage to Trinity College's Great Court Run portrayed in the movie Chariots of Fire, features students attempting to run the 270-yard (250 m) perimeter of the Academic Quad before the Lupton Hall belltower finishes its noon chimes.

Festivities include a concert featuring the University Singers, student organizations and performers from the community, as well as the lighting of the college's Christmas tree.

Oglethorpe University teams compete as a member of the Southern Athletic Association (SAA) at the NCAA Division III level and are known as the Stormy Petrels.

Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, golf, lacrosse, soccer, tennis and track & field; women's sports include basketball, cross country, golf, lacrosse, soccer, tennis, track & field, and volleyball.

In 2014, men's assistant coach Ryan Roushandel signed with the Atlanta Silverbacks to play soccer professionally while maintaining his duties with the program at Oglethorpe.

In the fall of 2013, the men's soccer team won its second conference championship in school history with a 3–1 victory over Millsaps College.

The team did not receive a bid into the NCAA national tournament because the Southern Athletic Association was in its second phase of a new-conference transition stage.The men's soccer team won the SAA championship for the second time in 2017 and advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament, losing to host Washington and Lee University in a penalty shootout after beating North Carolina Wesleyan College in the first round.

Thornwell Jacobs chose an unusual mascot to represent Oglethorpe's athletic teams: the Stormy Petrel.

According to popular legend, James Oglethorpe had observed the Wilson's storm petrel during his voyage to the New World and admired the diminutive seabird for its hardiness and courage during stormy weather.