Locations

Founded in 1891, Lenoir-Rhyne University is a co-educational, private liberal arts institution with 45+ undergraduate degree programs and 20+ graduate degree programs.

LR enrolls more than 2,300 undergraduate and graduate students. LR’s main campus is in Hickory, North Carolina, where both undergraduate and graduate degrees are offered.

The university also offers graduate degree programs online and at locations in Asheville, North Carolina, and Columbia, South Carolina.

LR is affiliated with the North Carolina Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and welcomes students from all religious backgrounds.

One University, Multiple Locations

Discover our campuses, visit or connect with us and see for yourself all that LR has to offer.

Two students take a selfie at end of commencement ceremony

2,300⁺

Student enrollment across locations

Professor delivers lecture in front of class

$30M

Financial aid awarded to students annually

Three students in classroom listening to professor lecture

Two counseling students working on assignment in class

Students works with table-based tablet in classroom

News & Events

2026 Aerobears rocket team, 8 members, at IREC with their rocket

We do big things: AeroBears prepare for a new season

Broad knowledge and teamwork are the AeroBears’ superpowers. After a successful 2026 launch season, LR’s rocket team is building toward a new competitive season — and aiming even higher in 2027.

Two students compare written and laptop notes in the audience at an event

Bears Engage explores freedom and responsibility in America at 250

Bears Engage brings music, theater, scholarship and conversation together as Lenoir-Rhyne marks America’s 250th anniversary and considers where we'll go in the years ahead.

October 08 6:30 PM - 7:00 PM / P.E. Monroe Auditorium

Visiting Writers Series: Patrick Ryan

October 22 6:30 PM - 7:00 PM / Belk Centrum

Visiting Writers Series: Marjan Kamali