Touring the College of the Ozarks: Hard Work U

The College of the Ozarks doesn’t charge tuition. Instead, students at this southwest Missouri school are required to work fifteen hours per week. Student workers in many of those jobs create goods or hospitality experiences available for sale to the general public. We visited the College of the Ozarks, located about four miles from Branson, expecting to spend a couple of hours in the Ralph Foster Museum and to grab a bite to eat in the Dobyns Dining Room. We ended up spending a full five hours on campus, discovering there is much more to explore at the College of the Ozarks besides the museum.

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Keeter Center
Start at the Keeter Center, the rustic lodge recreated from Dobyns Hall, a lodge that was displayed at the 1904 World’s Fair. The original lodge was moved to the College of the Ozarks where it stood until 1930.

Keeter CenterThe Keeter Center houses fifteen luxury suites, the Dobyns Dining Room, an ice cream parlor, a gift shop and a small armed services memorial. The Keeter Center is also where you can pick up a map to take a self-guided campus tour.

Plan to eat lunch or dinner in the Dobyns Dining Room (reservations recommended). Many of the ingredients used in the dishes are campus-to-table and some of the other ingredients are sourced locally. All of the vegetables and fruits in my Spinach with Smoked Chicken Salad were raised by the students on campus, and so was my husband’s pork fritter. Yep, they raise pork on campus.

Dobyns Dining RoomDobyns Dining Room Pork FritterHard Work U, as the college has been dubbed, also has a dairy, from which all of the restaurant’s dairy products are made, including the rich, creamy ice cream sold at the College Creamery.

Ice Cream at College of the OzarksIce cream conesThe Maybee Lodge in the Keeter Center offers fifteen suites that accommodate up to six people each. We didn’t stay at the lodge and didn’t see the rooms, but judging from the descriptions and photos on their web site, the suites truly are luxurious. Every room has a fireplace, private balcony and other upscale amenities.

Edwards Mill
A 12-foot water wheel powers the mill where student workers grind whole-grain meal and flour.

Edwads MillYou can purchase the meal and flour in the mill, as well as jellies and apple butter made on campus in the Fruitcake and Jelly Kitchen. Students also bake about 30,000 fruit cakes each year.

Upstairs in the mill we watched basket weaving and rug weaving demonstrations. Baskets, placemats, rugs and tablecloths that the students make are available for sale.

Weaving demo at College of the Ozarks

Collge_of_Ozarks-2614Greenhouses
Over 7,000 plants fill greenhouses, where we spent quite a bit of time photographing the beautiful orchids and other flowers.

Collge_of_Ozarks-2623Collge_of_Ozarks-2626I think this one looks like a rubber duck.

Collge_of_Ozarks-2681The greens for my salad were most likely grown in this hydroponic greenhouse.

Collge_of_Ozarks-2696Williams Memorial Chapel
The campus chapel used to be a Presbyterian church. It’s now non-denominational and the public is invited to attend Sunday morning services.

Collge_of_Ozarks-2720Collge_of_Ozarks-2717

Ralph Foster Museum
The Ralph Foster Museum is named for an Ozark region radio pioneer instrumental in bringing country music to a national level. Besides broadcasting, the museum includes antique and archaeology exhibits.

Collge_of_Ozarks-2728One of the more fun exhibits is the car used in the pilot of The Beverly Hillbillies sitcom.

Collge_of_Ozarks-2725A huge collection of firearms takes up most of the museum’s upper level. I stopped counting after a hundred. I’d guess there is three times that number of firearms in the museum.

Collge_of_Ozarks-2748The upper level also includes natural history exhibits with taxidermied big cats, bears and other animals.

Collge_of_Ozarks-2745Be careful though. You never know what may sneak up behind you.

Collge_of_Ozarks-2749The College of the Ozarks, located southwest Missouri’s Point Lookout is an ideal side trip when visiting Branson. Check the web site for hours of the various campus sights or to make reservations for the Dobyns Dining Room or Mabee Lodge.

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Other articles that may interest you:

Branson, Missouri, Remains the Live Music Show Capital of the World

Visit the World’s Only Precious Moments Chapel, Carthage, Missouri

Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Museum, Branson: Weird but Fascinating

2 thoughts on “Touring the College of the Ozarks: Hard Work U

  • July 26, 2023 at 11:53 am
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    My husband and I are going to Branson for a meeting of the marine unit my husband was in. We decided to go up one day early to tour campus. My grandson will start his Jr year in college in Jan. They were up there this past weekend and my daughter said it made her want to go back to school.

    Reply
    • July 27, 2023 at 10:28 am
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      Hi Chris,
      We’ve always enjoyed our visits to the college including dining at the Keeter Center.
      I hope you enjoy your visit to Branson.
      Skip
      P.S. We thank your husband for his service.

      Reply

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