its name in 1917 to identify donors Mary Culver and Robert Stockton. Stockton was Culver's husband's business partner.
=== Presidents ===
The first was James Shannon. Shannon served as president of State College of Louisiana, Bacon College in Kentucky, and the University of Missouri before coming to Christian University in August 1856. He served as president until his death in 1859.
Since Shannon's tenure, 27 presidents have served the university:
In 2012, Richard Valentine launched the first capital campaign in 20 years which increased the endowment from $15.8 million in 2009 to $21.0 million.
Kelly M. Thompson (hired in 2014) was the college's first woman president. Highlights of her tenure were the construction of the Carolyn L. and Robert W. Brown Residence Hall and the completion of a comprehensive campaign designed to raise $25 million in eight years, but it only took six years to raise $34 million. Enrollment grew from 752 in 2011 to 1,134 in 2017.
== Campus ==
=== Buildings ===
Most of the buildings …
