Carroll University, often called Wisconsin’s pioneer college, is the oldest four-year institution of higher education in the state. In 1841, settlers living in the Wisconsin Territory community of Prairieville established the academy that five years later would become Carroll College. Soon after its founding, Carroll affiliated with the Presbyterian Church and adopted the motto, "Christo et Litteris," which means "for Christ and Learning."

Carroll's early patrons believed that higher education would serve as an instrument for civilizing the wilderness, spreading the Gospel and planting the roots of democracy deep in the prairie soil. They also sought to provide for the prosperity of their children and future generations.