The Sibleys borrowed money and began clearing the overgrown property to convert it into a farm with livestock brought from Fort Osage.

[11] Mary took charge of the boarding school and developed a strict curriculum that included literature, grammar, writing, spelling, and diction.

The continued improvements created a financial strain on the school and Mary Sibley traveled to the East Coast to solicit additional funding.

[22] At the time, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals staged a small protest in Saint Charles in response to the program.

[19][22] The Spellmann administration's focus on enrollment growth made Lindenwood the fastest-growing university in the Midwest during the time from the mid-1990s into the early 2000s.

The university was notified of the accrediting decision in November by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools.

[30] Lindenwood plans to construct a new administrative building, as well as additional dorms and campus facilities, and expand enrollment to over 20,000 students.

[37] The university formerly owned the Daniel Boone historic site in Defiance, Missouri 26 miles (42 km) southwest of the St. Charles campus.

[39][40] The school also made large cutbacks removing nine staff positions and ten sports programs including men's tennis, lacrosse, and wrestling.

This area is located near the site of the original log cabin where Mary Sibley began the Linden Wood School for Girls.

[45] It was the original building for the Linden Wood School for Girls,[44] and is still used as a women's dormitory today; it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Built in 1976 by the St. Louis Cardinals NFL football team as a training camp location, the stadium opened in 1979 and was renovated in 1988, 2004, and 2009.

[55] The period of growth at Lindenwood started by Spellmann included the opening of regional centers for adult evening education programs in various locations around Greater St. Louis.

[57] Lindenwood also operates regional centers in Daniel Boone Campus, Florissant, Moscow Mills, O'Fallon, South County, Downtown St. Louis, Westport, Weldon Spring, Wildwood, and the former Southern Air Restaurant in Wentzville.

[59] Starting in the fall of 2009, LU–Belleville began offering courses in business administration, communications, criminal justice, and health management.

The Lindenwood University at Belleville sports teams were known the "Lynx" and competed in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and its American Midwest Conference (AMC) until 2020.

[citation needed] In 2019, citing "ongoing financial and enrollment challenges", the Lindenwood University Board of Trustees announced that LU–Belleville will cease to offer traditional semester-based undergraduate programs after the 2019–20 academic year.

Wall, a former vice president and economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, who joined Lindenwood in 2011 as director of the Institute for the Study of Economics and the Environment.

[79][80] Past speakers include: Tamim Ansary author and Islamic expert;[81] Dan Cathy, President and COO of Chick-fil-A restaurants;[82] Arun Gandhi, peace activist and grandson of Mahatma Gandhi;[83] Temple Grandin, doctor of animal science and Autism advocate;[84] Stanley Andrisse, endocrinologist and campaigner for education for incarcerated people;[85] former Navy SEAL, disgraced former Missouri Governor, and author, Eric Greitens;[81] Hill Harper, actor;[86] former MLB pitcher Jim Morris;[87] P. J. O'Rourke, political satirist, journalist, and writer;[81] and Reed Timmer, storm chaser and Meteorologist;[88] Along with the speaker series, Lindenwood has hosted various speakers and political candidates throughout its history.

Alpha Sigma Lambda, a general scholarship honor society for nontraditional undergraduate students who achieve and maintain outstanding scholastic standards and leadership characteristics.

[43][96] The Lindenwood University Honors College offers students an opportunity to be recognized for academic excellence at graduation and on official transcripts and diplomas.

The university is a member of the NCAA Division I ranks, primarily competing in the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) for most of its sports since the 2022–23 academic year.

During the university's time in the NAIA it had a total of 46 varsity sports teams making LU one of the largest athletic departments in the United States.

[105][106] On July 12, 2010, Lindenwood was accepted into NCAA Division II and was approved as a member of the MIAA on September 24, 2010, with the affiliation taking place in 2012–2013 academic year.

CAB (Campus Activities Board) hosts lectures, movie nights, dances, performances, and a wide variety of other events.

The LSGA, as well as all organizations, sponsor various academic, social, spiritual, and physical events on campus to add to well-being of the student body.

[117] ROTC provides officer training and education for LU students in conjunction with WashU and a number of other universities that make up the Battalion.

[121] The modern era of the Greek system at Lindenwood began in 1992, when the college announced that two sororities and three fraternities would be established on campus.

Lindenwood University has a number of student media outlets that serve the campus and surrounding communities of St. Charles County.

LUTV runs educational and cultural, and LU athletic programming and serves as a learning experience for communications students.