Southern Utah University
Encyclopedia
Southern Utah University, or SUU, is located in Cedar City, Utah
. It was founded in 1897 as an extension of the Agricultural College of Utah, by the citizens of Cedar City.
During its history, the school has been known as:
Southern Utah University hosts the Tony Award-winning Utah Shakespearean Festival
as well as the Utah Summer Games which is held in the Eccles Coliseum
.
and Bob Bennett, in Nevada Senator Harry Reid
's office (Reid graduated from SUU in 1959), with the Smithsonian Institution
, and with local sports teams.
with the call letters KSUU 91.1. Many of the student DJs change from semester to semester, with some being employed by the station. One of the most popular student ran shows is The Morning Brew, which airs Monday through Friday from 8-10am. POWER 91 is also home to SUU Athletics. Football
and Basketball
home and road games and Women's Basketball
and Gymnastic meets are aired on the station.
. Most of the local programs are produced by students enrolled in Communication classes at SUU. Currently airing are programs such as SUTV News, a weekly broadcast of newsworthy local and campus events, and The T-Bird Zone, a showcase of Thunderbird athletics featuring interviews with coaches and players, as well as highlights of games and sports news.
, Sigma Nu
and Sigma Chi
as well as two sororities, Alpha Phi
and local Delta Psi Omega.
. The top three win gift baskets and scholarship money. Past winner Jill Stevens
went on to win the Miss Davis County and Miss Utah
pageants to represent the state at the Miss America pageant. The organization has been currently suspended by school administrators because of a lack of funding from budget cuts. The Student Activities Board is planning on resuming the pageant in the 2010-11 school year.
The university's first building, built in 1898, remains part of campus, and is affectionately known as Old Main. The university also boasts the legend of Old' Sorrel, a horse
who is said to have assisted the citizens in building the school in record-high snow. A statue of the horse is located in front of the Centrum special events center, on the west side of campus. Consistent with its heritage of educating educators, one in three graduates have an education degree.
) and in Division I in other sports (The Summit League and Western Athletic Conference
) SUU also competes in The National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association, in the Rocky Mountain Region. The school will become a full member of the Big Sky Conference
in 2012.
The Thunderbirds compete in the following sports:
Cedar City, Utah
As of the census of 2000, there were 20,527 people, 6,486 households, and 4,682 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,021.8 people per square mile . There were 7,109 housing units at an average density of 353.9 per square mile...
. It was founded in 1897 as an extension of the Agricultural College of Utah, by the citizens of Cedar City.
During its history, the school has been known as:
- Branch Normal School (1897–1913)
- Branch Agricultural College (1913–1953)
- College of Southern Utah (1953–1969)
- Southern Utah State College (1969–1990)
- Southern Utah University (1991–present)
Southern Utah University hosts the Tony Award-winning Utah Shakespearean Festival
Utah Shakespearean Festival
The Utah Shakespeare Festival is a festival of repertory productions of the works of William Shakespeare and other dramatists. The Festival is held during the summer and fall on the campus of Southern Utah University in Cedar City, Utah.-Awards:...
as well as the Utah Summer Games which is held in the Eccles Coliseum
Eccles Coliseum
Eccles Coliseum is an 6,200-seat multi-purpose stadium in Cedar City, Utah. It is home to the Southern Utah University Thunderbirds track & field team and football team. The stadium also hosts the Utah Summer Games opening ceremonies and several events. The facility opened in 1967.-External links:*...
.
Academics
The university's enrollment is 8,024 students as of Spring semester 2011 , with approximately 223 faculty members teaching in four colleges and three schools:- College of Education & Human Development
- College of Humanities & Social Sciences
- College of Performing & Visual Arts
- College of Science & Engineering
- School of Computing & Technology (part of the College of Science & Engineering)
- School of Business
- School of Continuing & Professional Studies
Recognition
- Consumer's Digest: Top Ten Best Value in America (2004, 2007 and 2009)
- National Research Center for College & University Admissions: Ninth best admissions website in nation
- Princeton Review: America’s Best Value Colleges (2007, 2008, 2009)
- U.S. News and World Report: America’s Best Colleges
- Princeton Review: Best in the West (2004, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2011)
Students
Southern Utah University currently draws students from 45 states, 25 foreign countries, and all of Utah's 29 counties. Of the total enrollment, 58 percent are women and 42 percent are men, a 1.4 to 1 ratio. 11% are of other than caucasian background. About 70 percent of all students live on campus or near the campus. The student-faculty ratio is 22 to 1. The university awards Associate Degrees, Bachelor's Degrees, and Master's Degrees.Student Involvement & Activities
Students have many opportunities to get involved in a number of activities and organizations while attending Southern Utah University. Ranging from the typical collegiate involvement of Student Government and Clubs & Organizations to the uniquiness of the Entertainment Bureau, Leavitt Center, and Outdoor Rec Center.Southern Utah University Student Association
The Southern Utah University Student Association(SUUSA) is governed by the four Executive Council members (Student Body President, Academic Vice President, Clubs & Student Leadership Vice President, and Activities Vice President) which each have their own branch under them. These positions are voted into office each March, along with one representative per college to the Student Senate, by the general student body. Event Directors, members of the President's Cabinet, and Club Directors are appointed by the Executive Council through an application and interview process. They are then investigated and ratified by the Academic Senate. All SUUSA student leaders' term of office lasts for one year.Michael O. Leavitt Center for Politics and Public Service
The Michael O. Leavitt Center for Politics and Public Service (typically referred to as simply the 'Leavitt Center')the name sake of the center is after famous alum Michael O. Leavitt (Former Utah Governor and George W. Bush Cabinet member). Student leaders in the Leavitt Center engage the student body through voter registration drives, public policy awareness, and public service. The mission of the center is to provide a foundation for student to prepare themselves in a life of public service, regardless of profession and career. Students can receive funding from the Leavitt Center to spend a semester participating in a Washington, DC internship. Internships include positions in the offices of either of Utah senators, Orrin HatchOrrin Hatch
Orrin Grant Hatch is the senior United States Senator for Utah and is a member of the Republican Party. Hatch served as the chairman or ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee from 1993 to 2005...
and Bob Bennett, in Nevada Senator Harry Reid
Harry Reid
Harry Mason Reid is the senior United States Senator from Nevada, serving since 1987. A member of the Democratic Party, he has been the Senate Majority Leader since January 2007, having previously served as Minority Leader and Minority and Majority Whip.Previously, Reid was a member of the U.S...
's office (Reid graduated from SUU in 1959), with the Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its retail operations, concessions, licensing activities, and magazines...
, and with local sports teams.
SUU Presidential Ambassadors
The Presidential Ambassadors at SUU are the students many see on the front lines of recruiting High School seniors, transfer students, and others. Ambassadors give tours of the campus to prospective students, host overnight weekends for prospective students, and provide service to the campus community. The typical Ambassador generally is in their Freshmen and Sophomore years, have served in leadership capacities while in High School, and love to talk. Ambassadors can be found in many organizations around campus as they typically get involved.Service & Learning Center
Many students that get involved in the Service & Learning Center do so with in the many student-run organizations operated under the philosophy of the service learning concept. Between 50-100 students per academic year spend their Spring and/or Winter Breaks in Mexico or other locations in the U.S. (recently Colorado, Washington state, and New Orleans) providing service to orphanages, schools, and even Habitat for Humanity. Other programs include Sub for Santa, Make A Difference Day, After School Program, and Adopt a Grandparent program. On location in the center is the HOPE Pantry where students can unanimously donate or receive food as needed, the pantry is typically filled through the center's popular Bread and Soup Nite held in the Sharwan Smith Center's Ballroom on the first Monday of each month. Students can also participate in the Service-Learning Scholar and AmeriCorps programs through the center. In the fall semester of 2011 the Service and Learning Center officially changed its name to the Community Engagement Center.POWER 91
POWER 91 is a student operated radio station in Cedar City, UtahCedar City, Utah
As of the census of 2000, there were 20,527 people, 6,486 households, and 4,682 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,021.8 people per square mile . There were 7,109 housing units at an average density of 353.9 per square mile...
with the call letters KSUU 91.1. Many of the student DJs change from semester to semester, with some being employed by the station. One of the most popular student ran shows is The Morning Brew, which airs Monday through Friday from 8-10am. POWER 91 is also home to SUU Athletics. Football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
and Basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
home and road games and Women's Basketball
Women's basketball
Women's basketball is one of the few women's sports that developed in tandem with its men's counterpart. It became popular, spreading from the east coast of the United States to the west coast , in large part via women's colleges...
and Gymnastic meets are aired on the station.
SUTV
SUTV is a cable TV channel operated by Southern Utah University's Department of Communication. It is operated on an Educational-access television channel of the Bresnan Communications Cable TV system in Cedar City, Utah. It is affiliated with the Classic Arts ShowcaseClassic Arts Showcase
Classic Arts Showcase is a television channel in the United States promoting the fine arts. The television program content includes prepared media and recorded live performances...
. Most of the local programs are produced by students enrolled in Communication classes at SUU. Currently airing are programs such as SUTV News, a weekly broadcast of newsworthy local and campus events, and The T-Bird Zone, a showcase of Thunderbird athletics featuring interviews with coaches and players, as well as highlights of games and sports news.
Greek Life
There are five recognized Greek service organizations on campus. Three fraternities, Chi PhiChi Phi
The Chi Phi ' Fraternity is an American College Social Fraternity that was established as the result of the merger of three separate organizations that were each known as Chi Phi. The oldest active organization that took part in the union was originally founded in 1824 at Princeton...
, Sigma Nu
Sigma Nu
Sigma Nu is an undergraduate, college fraternity with chapters in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. Sigma Nu was founded in 1869 by three cadets at the Virginia Military Institute in Lexington, Virginia...
and Sigma Chi
Sigma Chi
Sigma Chi is the largest and one of the oldest college Greek-letter secret and social fraternities in North America with 244 active chapters and more than . Sigma Chi was founded on June 28, 1855 at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio when members split from Delta Kappa Epsilon...
as well as two sororities, Alpha Phi
Alpha Phi
Alpha Phi International Women's Fraternity was founded at Syracuse University on September 18, 1872. Alpha Phi currently has 152 active chapters and over 200,000 initiated members. Its celebrated Founders' Day is October 10. It was the third Greek-letter organization founded for women. In Alpha...
and local Delta Psi Omega.
Other Notable Student Organizations
- The University Journal
- SUTV
- The POWER 91 Club
- T-Bird Rugby Club
- Alpha Sigma Pi, The National Society of Leadership & Success
- Lambda Pi EtaLambda Pi EtaLambda Pi Eta is the official communication studies honor society of the National Communication Association . As a member of the Association of College Honor Societies , Lambda Pi Eta has over 400 active chapters at four-year colleges and universities worldwide.Lambda Pi Eta was founded in 1985 at...
- The Hip Hop Club
- Miss Southern Utah University Organization (Suspended Indefinitely)
- Multicultural Center
- Black Student Alliance (BSA)
- Queer Straight Alliance (QSA)
- Native American Student Association
- Polynesian Club
- The Buttercream Gang
- Students for eGrace International
- FEMS (Feminist Education and Motivation Society)
- T-Bird Team Karate/ RUFF club
- Philosophy Club
- International Club of Pancakes (ICOP)
- Rodeo Team and Club
- Volley Ten Sock Pong ball Club
The Howl
The largest event held by the Student Activities Board. The event usually occurs on a Friday within a week of Halloween. Entertainment varies from year to year, but has generally included Bands, Hypnotists, Mentalists, Comics, etc. Additionally a Halloween costume contest is held with prizes. The main focus of the night is the dance held in the Student Rotunda.True T-Bird
To become a true T-Bird students must kiss their true love near the Old Sorrel statue (located north of the Centrum) at midnight on the night of a Full Moon. The event is also held the night before the Homecoming Football game and is hosted by the SUU Student Alumni Association and POWER 91.Miss SUU Pageant
The Miss SUU Pageant is a pageant that has been held every February since the early 1950s. The winner of the pageant is crowned as the Homecoming Queen and representative of SUU at the Miss Utah pageantMiss Utah
The Miss Utah competition is the pageant that selects the representative for the state of Utah in the Miss America pageant. Utah has twice won the Miss America crown.- Winners :- External links :**...
. The top three win gift baskets and scholarship money. Past winner Jill Stevens
Jill Stevens
Jill Stevens is Miss Utah 2007.She was chosen as Miss Southern Utah University and Miss Davis County. She is a combat medic in the Utah Army National Guard and served as a medic in Afghanistan in 2004 – 2005....
went on to win the Miss Davis County and Miss Utah
Miss Utah
The Miss Utah competition is the pageant that selects the representative for the state of Utah in the Miss America pageant. Utah has twice won the Miss America crown.- Winners :- External links :**...
pageants to represent the state at the Miss America pageant. The organization has been currently suspended by school administrators because of a lack of funding from budget cuts. The Student Activities Board is planning on resuming the pageant in the 2010-11 school year.
Campus
Horse
The horse is one of two extant subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is a single-hooved mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today...
who is said to have assisted the citizens in building the school in record-high snow. A statue of the horse is located in front of the Centrum special events center, on the west side of campus. Consistent with its heritage of educating educators, one in three graduates have an education degree.
Athletics
The university's sports teams are known as the Thunderbirds. The colors are red, white and black. Teams compete in The NCAA Football Championship Subdivision (FCS, formerly known as division I-AA) in football (Great West Football ConferenceGreat West Football Conference
The Great West Conference is an NCAA college athletic conference in the continental United States. Formerly a football-only conference, in 2008 it became an all-sports conference...
) and in Division I in other sports (The Summit League and Western Athletic Conference
Western Athletic Conference
The Western Athletic Conference is an American collegiate athletic conference, which was formed on July 27, 1962, making it the sixth oldest of the 11 college athletic conferences currently participating in the NCAA's Division I FBS...
) SUU also competes in The National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association, in the Rocky Mountain Region. The school will become a full member of the Big Sky Conference
Big Sky Conference
The Big Sky Conference is an intercollegiate college athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA's Division I, with football competing in the Football Championship Subdivision. The BSC was founded in 1963. Member institutions are located in the western United States in the states of Arizona,...
in 2012.
The Thunderbirds compete in the following sports:
- FootballAmerican footballAmerican football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
- GymnasticsGymnasticsGymnastics is a sport involving performance of exercises requiring physical strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, and balance. Internationally, all of the gymnastic sports are governed by the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique with each country having its own national governing body...
- BaseballBaseballBaseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
- BasketballBasketballBasketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
- Cross CountryCross country runningCross country running is a sport in which people run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open country, and include hills, flat ground and sometimes gravel road...
- GolfGolfGolf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
- Soccer
- SoftballSoftballSoftball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of 10 to 14 players. It is a direct descendant of baseball although there are some key differences: softballs are larger than baseballs, and the pitches are thrown underhand rather than overhand...
- TennisTennisTennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
- Track and FieldTrack and fieldTrack and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...
- VolleyballVolleyballVolleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
- RodeoRodeoRodeo is a competitive sport which arose out of the working practices of cattle herding in Spain, Mexico, and later the United States, Canada, South America and Australia. It was based on the skills required of the working vaqueros and later, cowboys, in what today is the western United States,...
Chapters
Iron County, UT, Northeast, Northwest, Salt Lake City, UT, Southern Arizona, Southern California, Southern Nevada, Utah County, UT, Washington County, Washington, D.C.Networks
Boston, MA, Central Utah, Chicago, IL, Davis County, UT, Florida, Fresno, CA, Juab County, UT, Lincoln County, NV, Logan, UT, Michigan, North Carolina, Nebraska/Iowa, San Francisco, CA, Texas, Weber County, UT.Notable Alumni
- Michael O. Leavitt, the 14th Governor of Utah and former Secretary of Health and Human ServicesUnited States Secretary of Health and Human ServicesThe United States Secretary of Health and Human Services is the head of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, concerned with health matters. The Secretary is a member of the President's Cabinet...
in the George W. Bush presidential administrationGeorge W. Bush administrationThe presidency of George W. Bush began on January 20, 2001, when he was inaugurated as the 43rd President of the United States of America. The oldest son of former president George H. W. Bush, George W...
. - Harry ReidHarry ReidHarry Mason Reid is the senior United States Senator from Nevada, serving since 1987. A member of the Democratic Party, he has been the Senate Majority Leader since January 2007, having previously served as Minority Leader and Minority and Majority Whip.Previously, Reid was a member of the U.S...
, Senate Majority Leader, 110th Congress - Jill StevensJill StevensJill Stevens is Miss Utah 2007.She was chosen as Miss Southern Utah University and Miss Davis County. She is a combat medic in the Utah Army National Guard and served as a medic in Afghanistan in 2004 – 2005....
, Miss SUU 2006, Miss Davis CountyDavis County, UtahDavis County is a county located in the U.S. state of Utah. As of 2010 the population was 306,479, a 28.2% increase over the 2000 figure of 238,994. It was named for Daniel C. Davis, captain in the Mormon Battalion. The county is part of the Ogden–Clearfield Metropolitan Statistical Area as...
2007, Miss UtahMiss UtahThe Miss Utah competition is the pageant that selects the representative for the state of Utah in the Miss America pageant. Utah has twice won the Miss America crown.- Winners :- External links :**...
2007, Miss America 2008Miss America 2008Miss America 2008, the 87th Miss America pageant, was held at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in Las Vegas on January 26, 2008.The pageant was broadcast live on TLC from the Theatre for the Performing Arts at the Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino, only the third time that the pageant has been...
"People's Choice" semifinalist. - Nick MillerNick Miller (American football)Nick Miller is an American football who is currently a member of the St. Louis Rams. He was signed by the Oakland Raiders as an undrafted free agent in 2009. He played college football at Southern Utah.-Early years:...
, NFL wide receiver for the Oakland RaidersOakland RaidersThe Oakland Raiders are a professional American football team based in Oakland, California. They currently play in the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
, SUU wide receiver from 2007-2008. 2008 Great West Special Teams Player of the Year. - DeWayne LewisDeWayne LewisDeWayne Lewis is an American football cornerback who is currently a free agent. He was drafted by the Jacksonville Jaguars in the seventh round of the 2009 NFL Draft. He played college football at Southern Utah. Former Southern Utah University cornerback DeWayne Lewis of Denver, Colo., has been...
, NFL Cornerback, Lewis was a 2 Time Conference Athlete of the Year. - Lonnie MayneLonnie MayneRonald Doyle "Lonnie" Mayne was an American professional wrestler in the 1960s and 1970s who frequently went by the name Moondog Mayne. Mayne wrestled in various NWA territories as well as the WWWF...
, Professional wrestler in the 60's and 70's. NWA United States Heavyweight Champion. - Ricardo DominguezRicardo Dominguez (professor)Ricardo Dominguez is an artist and associate professor of visual arts at UC San Diego. He has been the subject of controversy over a number of acts of electronic civil disobedience on his own and with the Electronic Disturbance Theater, which he co-founded.Dominguez, the founder of the Electronic...
, professor and cyber activist - Parley Parker Christensen, Utah and California politician, Esperantist
- Neil Hjorth
External links
- Official website
- Official SUU athletics website
- Official website for the Michael O. Leavitt Online Archive
Academic Programs
- College of Education
- College of Humanities & Social Sciences
- College of Performing & Visual Arts
- College of Science & Engineering and School of Computing & Technology
- School of Business
- School of Continuing & Professional Studies
Student Activities & Involvement
- SUUSA Southern Utah University Student Association Government
- Leavitt Center Michael O. Leavitt Center for Politics and Public Service
- Presidential Ambassadors SUU Presidential Ambassadors
- Service & Learning Center SUU Service and Learning Center
- Clubs & Organizations SUU Clubs and Organizations
- SUU Outdoors SUU Outdoor Recreation Center
Student Resources
- suunews.com Online Student News Journal
- SUUSA SUU Student Association
- Utah Shakespearean Festival official website
- Utah Summer Games official website