The University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, serves as the major center of liberal and professional education and as the primary land-grant campus in the state. In addition, it is Arkansas' major source of theoretical and applied research and the provider of a wide range of public services to people throughout the state and nation. In serving its threefold mission of teaching, research, and public service, the University strives to be recognized for excellence and continues to expand and strengthen its nationally and regionally competitive programs while maintaining a high level of competence in all programs.
The University offers a broad spectrum of academic programs leading to baccalaureate, master's, doctoral, and professional degrees, not only in traditional disciplines within arts, humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences, but also in the core professional areas of agricultural, food and life sciences; architecture; business, education; engineering; human environmental sciences; and law. Through its faculty and its student body, the campus seeks to have all of its programs regionally competitive and, in addition, to offer nationally competitive programs in selected areas.
To complement the strong, broad-based undergraduate program, the University offers graduate education leading to the master's degree in more than 70 fields, to the specialist degree in education, and to the doctoral degree in 24 carefully selected areas. In each of these programs, teaching activities are integrated with research activities.
The campus has statewide responsibility to provide research leadership
in advancing the frontiers of knowledge. The research programs serve three
primary purposes. First, as part of graduate instruction, research promotes
students' abilities to appreciate and to implement, to discover, and to
teach. Second, research programs serve as vital sources of information on
the economic and social needs of Arkansas. Third, in selected areas, research
on the Fayetteville campus serves a national and even an international scholarly
community. The campus is committed to a future which includes sustained
growth in its research and
scholarship.
The University provides extensive technical and professional services to varied groups and individuals throughout the state, helping to further Arkansas' economic growth. In addition, the Fayetteville campus serves as a significant resource to the state. It operates nationally respected high school and college level correspondence programs; it assists other institutions in developing educational programs; it offers graduate programs, both cooperatively and singly, throughout the state; and it makes specialized campus resources such as computing services and library resources available to other institutions in the state. The campus will continue to serve this unique role and may expand these services to continue providing statewide education through an uplink/downlink network as well as through additional cooperative graduate education programs.
The University of Arkansas was established at Fayetteville in 1871. It opened its doors to students on January 22, 1872.
There were few facilities and practically no money for the beginning of that first academic year more than a century ago, but the new institution had a distinct advantage which has been of increasing importance throughout the years. It was established under provisions of the Morrill Act as both the State University and the Land-Grant College of Arkansas. This gave the new university an academic heritage from universities of the past and at the same time bestowed the educational responsibilities in "agriculture and mechanic arts" as envisioned by Senator Justin Smith Morrill of Vermont. The Morrill Act set aside federal land-grant money to help states in their efforts to establish programs of higher education.
The location of Fayetteville for the University was determined by elections held throughout the state for the purpose of voting bonds or subscriptions to establish the University. The largest bid came from the County of Washington and the City of Fayetteville for a combined total of $130,000. To this amount and the Congressional land grant of 150,000 acres, the state added an appropriation of $50,000 for the benefit of the institution.
The 160-acre homestead of William McIlroy was selected as the campus site and purchased for $12,000. The McIlroy home was converted into classrooms, and a new two-story frame building was constructed with one classroom on each floor.
From a small beginning of eight students and three faculty members on the opening day of classes, the University of Arkansas has developed into a mature institution with eight schools and colleges. It is the major center in Arkansas for graduate-level instruction as well as basic and applied research. In addition, its public service activities reach every county in Arkansas.
All units of the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, except those indicated below, are located in Fayetteville, a community of more than 50,000 residents in Washington County, situated in the northwestern part of the state in the heart of the Ozark Mountains at an elevation of 1,400 feet. The surroundings are of great natural beauty, and the climate of the region is pleasant in all seasons.
The academic units on the Fayetteville campus include eight colleges and schools: the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences, the School of Architecture, the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, the College of Business Administration, the College of Education and Health Professions, the College of Engineering, the School of Law, and the Graduate School.
The state office of the Cooperative Extension Service is located in Little Rock. The Division of Agriculture's Experiment Station operates the Main Station located in Fayetteville; research programs in the Division of Agriculture at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, Arkansas State University, and the department of forestry at the University of Arkansas at Monticello; four research and extension centers, and 10 outlying stations.
1. Maintain a high quality faculty, including the provision of a supportive climate for professional development.
2. Attract and retain undergraduate, graduate, and professional students of high quality.
3. Build and maintain library holdings and services and other information resources sufficient to support academic programs, research, and service.
4. Identify, promote, and support teaching effectiveness.
5. Maintain a faculty of sufficient size to support the academic program, research programs, and professional development.
6. Increase research, scholarly, and creative achievement and its dissemination.
7. Offer a comprehensive range of challenging academic programs.
Other Goals
(Not in priority order)
Attract and retain diverse student populations.
Promote a campus climate that supports the academic, personal, and physical development of students.
Attract and maintain a diverse faculty.
Offer nationally recognized graduate and professional programs.
Identify and meet state needs for educational programs, collaboration, and leadership.
Encourage faculty and student participation and leadership in national and international academic communities.
Improve the quality of life in the workplace for University employees.
Provide high quality service throughout the state by means of educational, professional, and technological programs.
Expand cultural opportunities both on campus and in Arkansas communities.
Develop and implement a campus master plan for buildings and ground improvement.
Develop and implement a plan for maintenance and operation of facilities, and acquisition, maintenance, and operation of equipment to support the academic program.
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