Webster University
Encyclopedia
Webster University is an American non-profit private university
Private university
Private universities are universities not operated by governments, although many receive public subsidies, especially in the form of tax breaks and public student loans and grants. Depending on their location, private universities may be subject to government regulation. Private universities are...

 with its main campus in Webster Groves
Webster Groves, Missouri
Webster Groves is an inner-ring suburb of St. Louis, located in St. Louis County, Missouri, United States. The population was 22,995 at the 2010 census. The city is named after New England politician Daniel Webster....

, a suburb of St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...

. Webster University is accredited by The Higher Learning Commission
The Higher Learning Commission
The Higher Learning Commission is part of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. The Higher Learning Commission oversees the accreditation of degree-granting colleges and universities in nineteen Midwestern and South-Central states, including Arkansas, Arizona, Colorado, Iowa,...

 and is a member of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools
North Central Association of Colleges and Schools
The North Central Association of Colleges and Schools , also known as the North Central Association, is a membership organization, consisting of colleges, universities, and schools in 19 U.S. states, that is engaged in educational accreditation...

. Webster University is ranked 24th among regional universities (Midwest), according to college and university rankings
College and university rankings
College and university rankings are lists of institutions in higher education, ordered by combinations of factors. In addition to entire institutions, specific programs, departments, and schools are ranked...

 in US News.

Webster operates as an independent, non-denominational university with more than 100 campus locations around the world, including Webster University Geneva
Webster University Geneva
Webster University Geneva is the Swiss branch of Webster University, and Webster's second biggest campus outside the US. It was founded in 1978...

, Webster University Thailand
Webster University Thailand
Webster University – Thailand is a United States-accredited college located near the resort town of Hua Hin, about two hours south of Bangkok, Thailand...

, Webster University Vienna
Webster University Vienna
Webster University Vienna is the Austrian branch of Webster University, and Webster's biggest campus outside the US. It was founded in 1981, since 9 January 2001 it is accredited as Austria's third private university...

, Regent's American College London
Regent's American College London
Regent's American College London, , is a part of Regent's College, the campus of which was originally built in 1913 in the midst of Regent's Park in central London, UK. Until 2007 the college was known as British American College London. RACL is the official London campus of Webster University,...

, and Webster University Leiden. It offers undergraduate and graduate programs in a wide array of disciplines, including the liberal arts, fine and performing arts, teacher education, business and management.

In Fall 2010, the university enrolled about 21,000 students (16,196 graduate students; 4,895 undergraduate students) around the globe who range from traditional college-age students to adult learners. They represent all 50 US states and more than 129 nationalities.

History

It was founded in 1915 by the Sisters of Loretto
Sisters of Loretto
Sisters of Loretto or the Loretto Community is a Catholic religious institution, which, according to their mission statement, "strive[s] to bring the healing Spirit of God into our world" and is committed "to improving the conditions of those who suffer from injustice, oppression, and deprivation...

 as Loretto College, and as a Catholic women's colleges. The first male students were admitted in 1962. The Sisters of Loretto transferred the university to a Board of Directors in 1967.

Webster participated in early racial integration
Racial integration
Racial integration, or simply integration includes desegregation . In addition to desegregation, integration includes goals such as leveling barriers to association, creating equal opportunity regardless of race, and the development of a culture that draws on diverse traditions, rather than merely...

 battles in St. Louis. During the early 1940s, many local priests, especially Jesuits, challenged the segregationist
Racial segregation
Racial segregation is the separation of humans into racial groups in daily life. It may apply to activities such as eating in a restaurant, drinking from a water fountain, using a public toilet, attending school, going to the movies, or in the rental or purchase of a home...

 policies at the city's Catholic colleges and parochial schools. The St. Louis chapter of the Midwest Clergy Conference on Negro Welfare arranged in 1943 for Webster College to admit a black female student, Mary Aloyse Foster, which would make it the city's first Catholic college to integrate. However, in 1943 Archbishop John J. Glennon
John J. Glennon
John Joseph Glennon was an Irish American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of St. Louis from 1903 until his death in 1946, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1946.-Early life and ministry:...

 blocked that student's enrollment by speaking privately with the Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...

-based superior of the Sisters of Loretto. The Pittsburgh Courier
Pittsburgh Courier
The Pittsburgh Courier was an American newspaper published in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, which was published from 1907 to 1965. Once the country's most widely circulated Black newspaper, the legacy and influence of the Pittsburgh Courier is unparalleled.A pillar of the Black Press, it rose...

, an African-American newspaper with national circulation, discovered Glennon's actions and ran a front-page feature on the Webster incident in February 1944. The negative publicity toward Glennon's segregationist policies led Saint Louis University
Saint Louis University
Saint Louis University is a private, co-educational Jesuit university located in St. Louis, Missouri, United States. Founded in 1818 by the Most Reverend Louis Guillaume Valentin Dubourg SLU is the oldest university west of the Mississippi River. It is one of 28 member institutions of the...

 to begin admitting African American students in summer 1944. In fall 1945, Webster College responded to pressure by admitting Irene Thomas, a Catholic African-American woman from St. Louis, as a music major.

Academics

Colleges include the College of Arts & Sciences, the Leigh Gerdine College of Fine Arts, the George Herbert Walker School of Business & Technology, the School of Communications, and the School of Education.

Webster University is accredited by The Higher Learning Commission
The Higher Learning Commission
The Higher Learning Commission is part of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. The Higher Learning Commission oversees the accreditation of degree-granting colleges and universities in nineteen Midwestern and South-Central states, including Arkansas, Arizona, Colorado, Iowa,...

 (North Central Association), the Association of Collegiate Business Schools and Programs
Association of Collegiate Business Schools and Programs
The Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs , formerly the Association of Collegiate Business Schools and Programs, is a U.S. organization offering accreditation services to business programs focused on teaching and learning....

 (ACBSP), the National Association of Schools of Music
National Association of Schools of Music
The National Association of Schools of Music is an association of post-secondary music schools in the United States and the principal U.S. accreditor for higher education in music...

 (NASM), the National League for Nursing
National League for Nursing
The National League for Nursing is a national organization for faculty nurses and leaders in nurse education. It offers faculty development, networking opportunities, testing services, nursing research grants, and public policy initiatives to more than 25,000 individual and 1,200 education and...

 (NLN), the Council on Accreditation (COA), the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education
National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education
The National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education was founded in 1954 to accredit teacher certification programs at U.S. colleges and universities. NCATE is a council of educators created to ensure and raise the quality of preparation for their profession. NCATE is recognized by the U.S....

 (NCATE), the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education or DESE, autonomous of the governor and the Missouri State Legislature, administers primary and secondary public education in the state of Missouri. Local municipalities and their respective school districts operate individual public...

, and the National Board for Certified Counselors
National Board for Certified Counselors
The National Board for Certified Counselors, Inc. and Affiliates is a national certifying organization for professional counselors in the human services in the United States. It is an independent, not-for-profit credentialing organization based in Greensboro, North Carolina...

.

Webster University also hosts a speaker series, originally titled The Success to Significance Speaker Series and now known as the Walker Speaker Series, that has featured business professionals including Twitter founder Jack Dorsey, Edward Whitacre, Jr.
Edward Whitacre, Jr.
Edward Earl "Ed" Whitacre, Jr. is the former Chairman and CEO of General Motors. He is also a former chairman of the board and chief executive officer of AT&T Inc., previously SBC. He served as national president of the Boy Scouts of America from 1998 to 2000...

, former chairman of the board and chief executive officer of AT&T Inc., and August A. Busch IV, President & CEO of Anheuser-Busch
Anheuser-Busch
Anheuser-Busch Companies, Inc. , is an American brewing company. The company operates 12 breweries in the United States and 18 in other countries. It was, until December 2009, also one of America's largest theme park operators; operating ten theme parks across the United States through the...

.

Campus

Webster University's "home campus" is located in Webster Groves
Webster Groves, Missouri
Webster Groves is an inner-ring suburb of St. Louis, located in St. Louis County, Missouri, United States. The population was 22,995 at the 2010 census. The city is named after New England politician Daniel Webster....

, a suburb of St. Louis
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...

. The university maintains nearly 100 campuses across the U.S. and abroad. Many of the domestic campuses are located near military bases; some are located in various metropolitan areas. The international campuses are located in several European countries including Switzerland
Webster University Geneva
Webster University Geneva is the Swiss branch of Webster University, and Webster's second biggest campus outside the US. It was founded in 1978...

, Austria
Webster University Vienna
Webster University Vienna is the Austrian branch of Webster University, and Webster's biggest campus outside the US. It was founded in 1981, since 9 January 2001 it is accredited as Austria's third private university...

, and The Netherlands; several are also located in Asia, such as in Thailand
Webster University Thailand
Webster University – Thailand is a United States-accredited college located near the resort town of Hua Hin, about two hours south of Bangkok, Thailand...

 and China.

In addition to its own international campuses, Webster has also formed partnerships with a few universities that are based in the country of interest. For example, The Webster Graduate School
Webster Graduate School
The Webster Graduate School in London, England, is the official London campus of Webster University, whose main campus is in St Louis, Missouri, USA.Webster Graduate School is currently based in the Regent's College campus at Regent's Park in central London...

 is tied with Regent's College
Regent's College
Regent's College is located in Regent's Park, London, England. It is one of the two largest groups of buildings in the park, along with the London Zoo, and was built on the site of South Villa, one of the original eight Regent's Park villas....

 in London; and Webster maintains a relationship with Kansai University
Kansai University
, or , is a private non-sectarian and coeducational university located in Suita, Osaka, Japan and in two other locations: Osaka City; and Takatsuki, Osaka.-History:Kansai University was founded as Kansai Law School in November 1886, in Osaka...

 in Osaka, Japan and with The Universidad Autónoma de Guadalajara
Universidad Autónoma de Guadalajara
The Universidad Autónoma de Guadalajara A.C. is a private university in Mexico, the first of its kind.The campuses are located in Zapopan, Jalisco. The university has become one of the most important educational institutions in Latin America, attracting students from Mexico, Europe, South...

 in Guadalajara, Mexico.

Because of the nature of the Webster system worldwide, it is relatively easy for Webster students to study at different campuses. Some students elect to study abroad for an entire semester (16 weeks) at a single campus, or to move to a new campus after a single term (8 weeks). There are also short-term programs to locations that may not be tied to Webster permanently; often, these programs are faculty-led. Also, Webster maintains affiliations with over two dozen American universities that allows students of the affiliate universities to study abroad on international Webster campuses.

Webster University has recently established graduate degree programs that take advantage of the international network of campuses. While enrolled in these programs, students travel between campuses and take classes at each for a short duration of approximately 9 weeks. The Global MBA and the Global M.A.
Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...

 in International Relations
International relations
International relations is the study of relationships between countries, including the roles of states, inter-governmental organizations , international nongovernmental organizations , non-governmental organizations and multinational corporations...

 are the two extant programs.

Athletics

Webster University's athletic mascot is the Gorlok
Gorlok
The Gorlok is Webster University's school mascot. It is a mythical creature that was designed by Webster staff and students through a school contest...

. Athletic teams participate in Division III (NCAA) and in the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC).
  • Men's Sports: Baseball; basketball; cross country; golf; soccer; tennis; and, track and field
  • Women's Sports: Basketball; cross country; soccer; softball; tennis; track and field; and, volleyball

Students

Webster University in the Fall 2008 enrolled 4,887 undergraduate students and 15,823 graduate students. The average SAT composite score for the undergraduate class was 1,194. The average ACT composite score was 24. Students come from 49 states and more than 122 countries.

Webster University St. Louis has a student newspaper
Student newspaper
A student newspaper is a newspaper run by students of a university, high school, middle school, or other school. These papers traditionally cover local and, primarily, school or university news....

 called The Journal and a student radio station called The Galaxy. The Galaxy was re-launched online in 2007. The campus GTV station (Gorlok Television) is operated by students. Webster University has student magazine called The Ampersand, which is published twice a year, as well as other newsletters and departmental publications.

Webster University Vienna has a student newspaper called the "Vienna Review."

Webster University recently allowed the formation of the first Greek organization on its St. Louis campus, with the founding of the 152nd Chapter of Delta Upsilon
Delta Upsilon
Delta Upsilon is the sixth oldest international, all-male, college Greek-letter organization, and is the oldest non-secret fraternity in North America...

 and the founding of the Gamma Zeta Chapter of Delta Phi Epsilon
Delta Phi Epsilon (social)
Delta Phi Epsilon is an international sorority founded on March 17, 1917 at New York University Law School in New York City...

.

Faculty

Professors for the university have included Missouri poet laureate David Clewell
David Clewell
-Life:He graduated from University of Wisconsin and Washington University with an M.F.A.He teaches at Webster University.His work has appeared Harper's, Poetry, The Kenyon Review, The Missouri Review, The Georgia Review, Ontario Review, New Letters, and Yankee.He lives in St...

, video artist Van McElwee, United Nations Special Rapporteur for Violence Against Women Rashida Manjoo, activist and writer Sulak Sivaraksa
Sulak Sivaraksa
Sulak Sivaraksa [] is founder and director of the Thai NGO “Sathirakoses-Nagapradeepa Foundation”, named after two authorities on Thai culture, Sathirakoses and Nagapradeepa...

, sound engineer Bill Porter, and former Missouri Governor Bob Holden
Bob Holden
Robert Lee "Bob" Holden, Jr. is an American politician of the Democratic Party who served as the 53rd Governor of Missouri.-Early life:...

.

Alumni

Alumni include Norbert Leo Butz
Norbert Leo Butz
Norbert Leo Butz is an American actor best known for his work in Broadway theatre.-Personal life:Butz was born in St. Louis, Missouri, the son of Elaine and Norbert Butz...

, Tony Award Winner for Best Actor in a Leading Role. William Broad
William Broad
William J. Broad is an author and a Senior Writer at The New York Times.-Awards:Broad has won two Pulitzer Prizes with Times colleagues, as well as an Emmy and a DuPont. He won the Pulitzers for coverage of the space shuttle Challenger disaster and the feasibility of antimissile arms...

, Pulitzer Prize winning reporter for The New York Times; John Boccieri
John Boccieri
John Boccieri is a one-term U.S. Representative for , serving from 2009 until 2011. He was defeated by Republican Jim Renacci on November 2, 2010. He is a member of the Democratic Party. He previously served in the Ohio Senate and the Ohio House of Representatives.-Early life and career:Boccieri...

 former U.S. Congressman; Ann Walsh Bradley
Ann Walsh Bradley
Ann Walsh Bradley is a justice on the Wisconsin Supreme Court. She was elected to the Supreme Court in 1995.Justice Bradley was born in Richland Center, Wisconsin. She earned her bachelor's degree from Webster University in St. Louis...

, Wisconsin State Supreme Court Justice; Lloyd James Austin III
Lloyd J. Austin
Lloyd James Austin III is a United States Army general who currently serves as Commanding General, United States Forces - Iraq. On June 30, 2010, he was confirmed by the Senate to replace General Ray Odierno and to lead Operation New Dawn. -Early years & Education:Lloyd James Austin III was born...

, Army General; Clarence Harmon
Clarence Harmon
Clarence Harmon was the forty-fourth mayor of St. Louis , and the city's second African-American mayor.Prior to serving as Mayor, Harmon had served as St. Louis Police Department police chief. He defeated incumbent Mayor Freeman Bosley, Jr. in the Democratic Primary in 1997 and went on to win...

, former Mayor and Chief of Police for St. Louis; Roderick Royal
Roderick Royal
Roderick V. Royal is the President of the Birmingham City Council.Royal served for two months as the 32nd Mayor of Birmingham, Alabama occupying the office in the absence of former mayor Larry Langford who was removed following a criminal conviction in a federal corruption case...

 former Mayor of Birmingham, Alabama; and Indonesian President
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...

 Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono
Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono
Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono AC , is an Indonesian politician and retired Army general officer who has been President of Indonesia since 2004....

. R. Alan King
R. Alan King
R. Alan King is an American soldier, award winning author and technical advisor. He is a retired colonel, US Army Reserve. He was awarded two Bronze Star Medals with Valor device during "Operation Iraqi Freedom."-Early life:...

 Military Veteran (Panama and Iraq) and author of Twice Armed: An American Soldiers Battle for Hearts and Minds in Iraq – Winner of 2008 William E. Colby Award
Colby Award
The William E. Colby Award was established in 1999 by the William E. Colby Military Writers' Symposium at Norwich University in Vermont in order to recognize "a first work of fiction or non-fiction that has made a major contribution to the understanding of intelligence operations, military history,...

.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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