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University of Texas at Austin
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The University of Texas at Austin (often referred to as the University of Texas, UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university located in Austin, Texas, United States, and is the flagship institution of The University of Texas System. The main campus is located less than a mile from the Texas State Capitol. UT Austin was named one of the original eight Public Ivy institutions. Founded in 1883, the university has had the fifth largest single-campus enrollment in the nation as of fall 2007 (and had the largest enrollment in the country from 1997–2003), with over 50,000 undergraduate and graduate students and 16,500 faculty and staff.
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Encyclopedia
The University of Texas at Austin (often referred to as the University of Texas, UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university located in Austin, Texas, United States, and is the flagship institution of The University of Texas System. The main campus is located less than a mile from the Texas State Capitol. UT Austin was named one of the original eight Public Ivy institutions. Founded in 1883, the university has had the fifth largest single-campus enrollment in the nation as of fall 2007 (and had the largest enrollment in the country from 1997–2003), with over 50,000 undergraduate and graduate students and 16,500 faculty and staff. It currently holds the largest enrollment of all colleges in the state of Texas.
The university operates various auxiliary facilities aside from the main campus, most notably the J. J. Pickle Research Campus. UT Austin is a major center for academic research, annually exceeding $400 million in funding. In addition, the university's athletic programs were recognized by Sports Illustrated as "America's Best Sports College" in 2002.
History
Establishment
The first mention of a public university in Texas can be traced to the 1827 constitution for the Mexican state of Coahuila y Tejas. Although an article promised to establish public education in the arts and sciences, no action was ever taken by the Mexican government. After Texas obtained its independence from Mexico in 1836, the Congress of Texas adopted the Constitution of the Republic, which included a provision to establish public education in republic, including two universities or colleges. On January 26, 1839, the Congress of Texas agreed to eventually set aside fifty leagues of land towards the effort; in addition, in the new capital of Austin were reserved and designated "College Hill."
In 1846, Texas was annexed into the United States. The state legislature passed the Act of 1858, which set aside $100,000 in United States bonds towards construction. In addition, the legislature designated land, previously reserved for the encouragement of railroad construction, toward the universities' fifty leagues. However, Texas's secession from the Union and the American Civil War prevented further action on these plans.
The passing of the Morrill Act in 1862 facilitated the creation of Texas A&M University, which was established in 1876 as the Agricultural & Mechanical College of Texas. The Texas Constitution of 1876 mandated that the state establish a university "at an early day," calling for the creation of a "university of the first class," The University of Texas. It revoked the endowment of the railroad lands of the Act of 1858 but appropriated one million acres (4000 km²) in West Texas. In 1883, another two million were granted, with income from the sale of land and grazing rights going to The University of Texas and Texas A&M.
In 1881, Austin was chosen as the site of the main university, and Galveston was designated the location of the medical department. On the original "College Hill," an official ceremony began construction on what is now referred to as the old Main Building in late 1882. The university opened its doors on September 15, 1883.
Expansion and growth
The old Victorian-Gothic Main Building served as the central point of the campus's site, and was used for nearly all purposes. However, by the 1930s, discussions rose about the need for new library space, and the Main Building was razed in 1934 over the objections of many students and faculty. The modern-day tower and Main Building were constructed in its place.
In 1910, George Brackenridge donated 500 acres (2 km²) to the university located on the Colorado River. A vote by the regents to move the campus to the donated land was met with outrage, and the land has only been used for auxiliary purposes such as graduate student controversy. Part of the tract was sold in the late-1990's for luxury housing, and there are controversial proposals to sell the remainder of the tract.
As a result of the controversy, in 1921, the legislature appropriated $1,350,000 for the purchase of land adjacent to the main campus. Expansion, however, was hampered by the constitutional restriction against funding the construction of buildings. With the discovery of oil on university-owned grounds in 1923, the institution was able to put its new wealth towards its general endowment fund. These savings allowed the passing of amendments to make way for bond issues in 1931 and 1947, with the latter expansion necessary from the spike in enrollment following World War II. The university built 19 permanent structures between 1950 and 1965, when it was given the right of eminent domain. With this power, the university purchased additional properties surrounding the original .
Recent history
On August 1, 1966, UT student, Charles Whitman barricaded himself in the observation deck of the tower of the Main Building with a sniper rifle and various other weapons, killed 14 people on campus, and wounded many more. Following the Whitman incident, the observation deck was closed until 1968, and then closed again in 1975 following a series of suicide jumps during the 1970s. In 1998, after installation of security and safety precautions, the tower observation deck reopened to the public.
Completed in 1969, Jester Center was the largest residence hall in North America and was the largest building project in university history. It includes two towers: a 14-level and 10-level residences with a capacity of 3,200.
The first presidential library on a university campus was dedicated on May 22, 1971 with former President Johnson, Lady Bird Johnson and then-President Richard Nixon in attendance. Constructed on the eastern side of the main campus, the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum is one of twelve presidential libraries administered by the National Archives and Records Administration.
UT has experienced a wave of new construction recently with several significant buildings. On April 30, 2006, UT opened a new 155,000 square foot (14,000 m²) facility on the university's campus named the Blanton Museum of Art. The museum is the largest university art museum in the United States and is home to more than 17,000 works from Europe, the United States and Latin America. In August, 2008, the AT&T Executive Education and Conference Center opened for conferences, seminars and continuing and executive education programs. The hotel and conference is part of a new gateway to the university extending the South Mall. Later the same month, after three-years of renovations were completed, Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium became the largest stadium by capacity in the state of Texas. In addition to numerous improvements, DKR now seats 94,113 from the previous 85,123.
Campus
UT property totals 850 acres (3.4 km²), comprised of the 350 acres (1.4 km²) for the main campus and other land for the J. J. Pickle Research Campus in north Austin and the other properties throughout Texas.
One of the university's most visible features is the Beaux-Arts Main Building, including a tower designed by Paul Philippe Cret. Completed in 1937, the Main Building is located in the middle of campus. The tower usually appears illuminated in white light in the evening but is lit orange for various special occasions, including athletic victories and academic accomplishments; it is conversely darkened for solemn occasions. At the top of the tower is a carillon of 56 bells, the largest in Texas. Songs are played on weekdays by resident carillonneur Tom Anderson, in addition to the usual pealing of Westminster Quarters every quarter hour between 6 a.m. and 9 p.m. The tower went through a few periods of being closed to the public (due to the 1966 Whitman Massacre and multiple suicide jumps); however, in 1998, after the installation of security and safety measures, the observation deck reopened to the public indefinitely for weekend tours.
The university is home to 7 museums and 17 libraries, which hold over eight million volumes. The holdings of the university's Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center include one of only 21 remaining complete copies of the Gutenberg Bible and the first permanent photograph, View from the Window at Le Gras, taken by Nicéphore Niépce. The newest museum, the Blanton Museum of Art, opened in April 2006 and hosts approximately 17,000 works from Europe, the United States, and Latin America.
UT has an extensive underground tunnel system that links many of the buildings. The tunnel system is used for communications and utility service, is closed to the public and is guarded by silent alarms. The university also operates a 1.1 megawatt TRIGA nuclear reactor at the J.J. Pickle Research Campus.
The university continues to expand its facilities on campus. In February 2006, the Board of Regents voted to update and expand the football stadium, and in March 2006 the student body passed a referendum to build a new Student Activities Center next to Gregory Gym on the east side of campus, pending final approval by the Board of Regents. According to The Daily Texan, the project is estimated to cost $51 million and is set to open between fall 2010 and fall 2012. Funding will primarily come from students, raising tuition by a maximum of $65 per semester.
The university operates a public radio station, KUT, which provides local FM broadcasts as well as live streaming audio over the Internet. The university uses Capital Metro to provide bus transportation for students around the campus and throughout Austin.
Academic profile
Rankings
UT Austin is well recognized both nationally and internationally for the quality of its graduate as well as undergraduate programs. In 2004, the Times Higher Education Supplement (THES) ranked UT as the 15th best school in the world. The only public American school to rank ahead was University of California, Berkeley. More recently, UT Austin placed 70th and 51st in the THES rankings in 2008 and 2007, respectively.
The university has ranked #12 among public schools (U.S. News & World Report, 2008), #19 nationally (The Washington Monthly, 2007), and #38 in an academic ranking of world universities (Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 2007). Seven UT Austin doctoral programs ranked in the top 10 in the nation for 2008, with 22 departments also in the top 25.
UT Austin is well-known for its all around strength in sciences, engineering, business and art education. One of the most renowned schools at the university is the McCombs School of Business, which comprises national rankings of the #1 undergraduate and graduate accounting programs, the #3 undergraduate and graduate MIS programs, the #2 undergraduate marketing program, the #4 management research productivity, the #10 overall-undergraduate business program (#3 among public universities), and the #18 (full-time) MBA program. A 2005 Bloomberg survey also ranked the school #5 among all business schools and #1 among public business schools for the largest number of alumni who are S&P 500 CEOs. Similarly, a 2005 USA Today report ranked the university as "the number one source of new Fortune 1000 CEOs".
While UT Austin does not have a medical school, it houses medical programs associated with other campuses and allied health professional programs, which has contributed to the College of Pharmacy's #2 2008 national ranking by U.S. News and World Report. Other programs highly ranked by U.S. News and World Report include the #10 College of Education, the #11 Cockrell School of Engineering, and the #16 School of Law. Additionally, the university's library system—its main campus library the Perry-Castañeda Library—ranks #6 among academic libraries in the nation.
Colleges and schools
The university contains sixteen colleges & schools and two academic units, each listed with its founding date:
UT Austin offers more than 100 undergraduate and 170 graduate degrees. In the 2003-2004 academic year, the university awarded a total of 13,065 degrees: 68.6% bachelor's degrees, 21.7% master's degrees, 5.2% doctoral degrees, and 4.5% other professional degrees. UT Austin also offers numerous undergraduate honors programs, such as Dean's Scholars, Turing Scholars, Business Honors, Plan II, and Liberal Arts Honors.
Admission
As a state public university, UT Austin is subject to Texas House Bill 588 (aka HB 588, the top ten percent law, or the percent plan), which guarantees graduating Texas high school seniors in the top 10% of their class admission to any public Texas university. Roughly 2/3 of admitted applicants are admitted in this manner. For others who go through the traditional application process, selectivity at UT Austin is deemed "more selective" according to the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. In fall 2006, a total of 27,315 applications were received and 13,305 were admitted. In fall 2007, 27,232 applications and 13,781 students were admitted.
Faculty and research
In Fall 2007, UT Austin employed 2,300 full-time faculty members, 51% who were tenured. The student-to-faculty ratio is 19.23. The university's faculty includes winners of the Nobel Prize, the Pulitzer Prize, the National Medal of Science, the National Medal of Technology, the Turing Award and numerous other awards.
The university exceeds $446 million in annual research funding and has earned more than 400 patents since its founding. (Licensing deals generate more than $5 million annually for the university.)
Endowment
The university has an endowment of $7.2 billion, out of the $15.6 billion available to the University of Texas system.
30% of the university's endowment comes from Permanent University Fund (PUF), with nearly $15 billion in assets as of 2007. Proceeds from lands appropriated in 1839 and 1876, as well as oil monies, comprise the majority of PUF. At one time, the PUF was the chief source of income for Texas's two university systems, The University of Texas System and the Texas A&M University System; today, however, its revenues account for less than 10 percent of the universities' annual budgets. This has challenged the universities to increase sponsored research and private donations. Privately funded endowments contribute over $2 billion to the University's total endowment value.
Student life
The university enrolls 37,377 undergraduate, 11,533 graduate and 1,467 law students. The student population includes students from all 50 states and more than 100 foreign countries, most notably, South Korea, followed by India, the People's Republic of China, Mexico and the Republic of China, are represented. The average SAT score for entering Fall 2004 freshmen was a 1230 out of 1600.
Residential life
The campus is currently home to fourteen residence halls, the last of which opened for residence in Spring 2007. On-campus housing can hold more than 7,100 students. Jester Center is the largest residence hall with its capacity of 2,945. Academic enrollment exceeds the capacity of on-campus housing; as a result, most students must live in private residence halls, housing cooperatives, apartments, or with Greek organizations and other off-campus residences. The Division of Housing and Food Service, which already has the largest market share of 7,000 of the estimated 27,000 beds in the campus area, plans to expand to 9,000 beds in the near future.
Student organizations
The university recognizes more than 1,000 student organizations. In addition, it supports three official student governance organizations that represent student interests to faculty, administrators, and the Texas Legislature. Student Government, established in 1902, is the oldest governance organization and represents student interests in general. The Senate of College Councils represents students in academic affairs and coordinates the college councils, and the Graduate Student Assembly represents graduate student interests. The Texas Union Student Events Center serves as the hub for student activities on campus. The Friar Society serves as the oldest honor society at the university.
Greek life
The University of Texas at Austin is home to an active Greek community. The first UT Greek chapter, was the Texas Rho chapter of Sigma Alpha Epsilon and was founded in 1882; the year before the university first opened its doors. Over 11 percent of undergraduate students make up the nearly 4,500 members. With more than 50 national fraternity and sorority chapters, the university's Greek community is one of the largest in the nation. These chapters are under the authority of one of UT Austin's five Greek council communities, Interfraternity Council, National Pan-Hellenic Council, Texas Asian Pan-Hellenic Council, United Greek Council and University Panhellenic Council. Other registered student organizations also name themselves with Greek letters and are called affiliates. They are not a part of one of the five councils but have all of the same privileges and responsibilities of any other organization. According to the Office of the Dean of Students' mission statement, Greek Life promotes the principles of cultural appreciation, scholarship, leadership, and service. While there are no fraternity and sorority houses located on-campus, the majority are located west of The Drag in the neighborhood called West Campus.
Media
Students express their opinions in and outside of class through periodicals including Study Breaks Magazine, The Daily Texan (the most award-winning daily college newspaper in the United States), and the Texas Travesty. Over the airwaves students' voices are heard through K09VR and KVRX.
Traditions
Traditions at UT Austin are perpetuated through several school symbols and mediums. At athletic events, students frequently sing "Texas Fight," the university's fight song while displaying the Hook 'em Horns hand gesture—the gesture mimicking the horns of the school's mascot, Bevo the Texas longhorn.
Athletics
The University of Texas offers a wide variety of varsity and intramural sports programs. As of 2008, the university's athletics program ranked fifth in the nation among Division I schools, according to the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics. Due to the breadth of sports offered and the quality of the programs, Texas was selected as "America's Best Sports College" in a 2002 analysis performed by Sports Illustrated. Texas was also listed as the number one Collegiate Licensing Company client for the second consecutive year in regards to the amount of annual trademark royalties received from the sales of its fan merchandise. However this ranking is based only on clients of the Collegiate Licensing Company which does not handle licensing for approximately three dozen large schools such as Ohio State, USC, UCLA, Michigan State, and Texas A&M.
Varsity sports
The university's men's and women's athletics teams are nicknamed the Longhorns. A charter member of the Southwest Conference until its dissolution in 1996, Texas now competes in the Big 12 Conference (South Division) of the NCAA's Division I-FBS. Texas has won 47 total national championships, 39 of which are NCAA national championships.
The University of Texas has traditionally been considered a college football powerhouse. At the start of the 2007 season, the Longhorns were ranked third in the all-time list of both total wins and winning percentage. The team experienced its greatest success under coach Darrell Royal, winning three national championships in 1963, 1969, 1970, and winning a fourth title under head coach Mack Brown in 2005 after the 41-38 victory over previously undefeated Southern California in the 2006 Rose Bowl.
In recent years, the men's basketball team has gained prominence, advancing to the NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen in 2002, the Final Four in 2003, the Sweet Sixteen in 2004, and the Elite Eight in 2006 and 2008.
The university's baseball team is considered one of the best in the nation with more trips to the College World Series than any other school, with wins in 1949, 1950, 1970, 1983, 2002 and 2005.
Additionally, the university's highly successful men's and women's swimming and diving teams lay claim to sixteen NCAA Division I titles. In particular, the men's team is under the leadership of Eddie Reese, who served as the head men's coach at the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona, the 2004 Games in Athens and the 2008 games in Beijing.
Rivalries
One of the university's notable rivals in many sports is Texas A&M University Aggies. The two schools have acknowledged the importance of this rivalry by creating the State Farm Lone Star Showdown series, which encompasses all sports where both schools field a varsity team. The football game played between the two schools is the third longest-running rivalry in the nation and is the longest-running rivalry for both schools. The game is traditionally played on Thanksgiving day. Both schools traditionally hold a rally each year before the football game — Texas hosts the Hex Rally, and students at Texas A&M host the Aggie Bonfire (although it is no longer an officially sanctioned Texas A&M event after the deaths of 12 students in 1999).
It has been argued, however, that the Longhorns' biggest rival in football is the University of Oklahoma Sooners. The football game between Texas and Oklahoma is known as the Red River Rivalry (formerly known as the Red River Shootout)and is held annually in Dallas, Texas, at the Cotton Bowl. In recent years, this rivalry has been particularly spirited, in part due to the fact that at least one school has been ranked in the top five nationally at the time of the game.
Other schools, such as Arkansas and Texas Tech, also consider Texas among their rivals.
In addition, the university has numerous practice, training, and intramural facilities.
Alumni
Over 15 UT Austin graduates have served in the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives, such as Lloyd Bentsen '42, who served as both a U.S. Senator and U.S. Representative, as well as being the 1988 Democratic Party Vice Presidential nominee. Cabinet members of American presidents include former United States Secretary of State James Baker '57, former United States Secretary of Education William J. Bennett, and former United States Secretary of Commerce Donald Evans '73. First Lady Laura Bush '73 and daughter Jenna '04 both graduated from UT Austin, as well as former First Lady Lady Bird Johnson '33 & '34 and her eldest daughter Lynda. In foreign governments, the university has been represented by Fernando Belaúnde Terry '36 (42nd President of Peru), Mostafa Chamran (former Minister of Defense for Iran), and Abdullah al-Tariki (co-founder of OPEC).
UT Austin alumni in academia include the 26th President of The College of William & Mary Gene R. Nichol '76, the 10th President of Boston University Robert A. Brown '73 & '75, and the 8th President of the University of Southern California John R. Hubbard. The University also graduated Alan Bean '55, the fourth man to walk on the Moon. Additionally, alumni of the university who have served as business leaders include ExxonMobil Corporation CEO Rex Tillerson '75, Dell founder and CEO Michael Dell, and Gary C. Kelly, CEO of Southwest Airlines.
In literature and journalism, UT Austin has produced Pulitzer Prize winners Gail Caldwell and Ben Sargent '70, as well as CNN anchor Betty Nguyen '95. Alumnus J. M. Coetzee also received the 2003 Nobel Prize in Literature. Novelist Raymond Benson ('78) was the official author of James Bond novels between 1996 - 2002, the only American to be commissioned to pen them.
UT Austin has also produced several musicians and entertainers. Janis Joplin, the American singer who posthumously was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award attended the university, as well as February 1955 Playboy Playmate of the Month and Golden Globe recipient Jayne Mansfield. Additionally, the big screen has carried the talents of actor Matthew McConaughey '93 (star of The Wedding Planner (2001), How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days (2003), Sahara (2005), We Are Marshall (2007), et al.), while Farrah Fawcett (one of the original Charlie's Angels) was featured on the small screen.
A number of UT Austin alumni have found success in professional sports. Seven-time Cy Young Award-winner Roger Clemens entered the MLB after helping the Longhorns win the 1983 College World Series. Several Olympic medalists have also attended the school, including 2008 Summer Olympics athletes Ian Crocker '05 (swimming world record holder and two-time Olympic gold medalist) and 4x400m relay defending Olympic gold medalist Sanya Richards '06. Mary Lou Retton (the first female gymnast outside Eastern Europe to win the Olympic all-around title, five-time Olympic medalist, and 1984 Sports Illustrated Sportswoman of the Year) also attended the university.
See also
External links
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