University of Connecticut

The University of Connecticut (UConn) is a public research university in Connecticut. Founded in 1881 as a land-grant university, UConn serves more than 30,000 students on its six campuses, including more than 8,000 graduate students in multiple programs.

UConn's main campus is in Storrs, Town of Mansfield. The university's president is Susan Herbst.

UConn is one of the founding institutions of the Hartford, Connecticut/Springfield, Massachusetts regional economic and cultural partnership alliance known as New England's Knowledge Corridor. UConn is accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges and a member of the Big East Conference.

History
UConn was founded in 1881 as the Storrs Agricultural School. It was named after Charles and Augustus Storrs, two brothers who donated the land for the school as well as initial funding. Women began attending classes in 1891 and were officially admitted in 1893, when the name was changed to Storrs Agricultural College and it became Connecticut's land grant college. In 1899, the name changed again to Connecticut Agricultural College; in 1933, to Connecticut State College; and finally in 1939, to the University of Connecticut.

In 1940, the school was first divided into individual colleges and schools, reflecting its new university status. This was also the year that the School of Social Work and School of Nursing were first established. The graduate program was also started at this time, and existing schools of law and pharmacy were absorbed into the university. Ph.D.s have been awarded since 1949.

During the 1960s, the University of Connecticut Health Center was established in Farmington as a home for the new School of Medicine and School of Dental Medicine. John Dempsey Hospital was opened in Farmington in 1975 and has been operated by UConn ever since.

In 1995, a state-funded program called UCONN 2000 was passed by the Connecticut General Assembly and signed into law by then-Gov. John G. Rowland. This 10-year program set aside $1 billion to upgrade campus facilities, add faculty, and otherwise improve the university. An additional $1.3 billion was pledged by the State of Connecticut in 2002 as part of a new 10-year improvement plan known as 21st Century UConn.

Academics
UConn offers about 100 majors, seven undergraduate degrees, 17 graduate degrees and five professional degree programs. Students can choose from 87 different minors at UConn, including some areas of study that are not offered as formalized majors. Some areas of study offered formally only as minors at UConn include Asian American Studies, Bioinformatics, Criminal Justice, Film Studies, Human Rights, Middle Eastern Studies, Native American and Indigenous Studies, and Slavic and East European Studies.

Bachelor's, master's, and doctoral programs are offered through the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources , the College of Continuing Studies , the Graduate School , the Neag School of Education , the School of Nursing , the School of Business , the School of Dental Medicine , the School of Medicine , the School of Engineering ,  the School of Social Work , the Ratcliffe Hicks School of Agriculture , the School of Pharmacy , the School of Law, and the School of Fine Arts.

UConn is the only public university in New England with its own Schools of Law, Social Work, Medicine, and Dental Medicine.

Admissions and rankings
The admission rate to the University of Connecticut is about 50% and has been steadily decreasing, with about 28,000 prospective students applying for admission to the freshman class in recent years. Approximately 40,000 prospective students tour the main campus in Storrs annually. UConn's retention rate is among the best for public universities in the nation, with 93% of students returning for their sophomore year.

According to the U.S. News & World Report's America's Best Colleges listings, the University of Connecticut is a "Tier 1" university. The university's undergraduate programs are ranked 58 among all 280 national universities, tying with the University of Pittsburgh and the University of Florida, and placing it well ahead of the other public national universities in New England. In fact, the University of Connecticut was ranked 19th among 172 public universities in the United States by U.S. News & World Report's. UConn has repeatedly been ranked the top public university in New England by U.S. News and World Report.

UConn participates in the New England Board of Higher Education's Regional Student Program (NERSP), which allows students from the five other New England states to enroll at the university at a reduced out-of-state tuition rate if their intended major is not provided by one of their in-state universities.

The university participates in a special guaranteed admissions program with the Connecticut Community Colleges (CCC) that is designed for academically qualified students who are attending a Connecticut community college and who are planning to transfer to the University of Connecticut in Liberal Arts & Sciences, Agriculture & Natural Resources, Business, or Engineering. Each year, more than 1,000 transfer students are admitted to the university.

Campuses
The main university campus is located in Storrs, a division of the Town of Mansfield, approximately 28 miles (45 km) east of Hartford, the state's capital. It is situated between North Eagleville Road and South Eagleville Road. Storrs Road (CT Route 195) cuts through the campus from north to south. In addition to the main campus in Storrs, there are five regional campuses: Avery Point (in Groton), the Greater Hartford campus (West Hartford), Stamford, Torrington, and Waterbury.

The University of Connecticut School of Law is located in Hartford, the School of Social Work is on the Greater Hartford Campus in West Hartford, and the School of Medicine and the School of Dental Medicine are both located at the University of Connecticut Health Center in Farmington. There is a downtown Hartford branch that houses teaching and research facilities for the School of Business.

Health Center Campus
The University of Connecticut Health Center campus in Farmington is home to the School of Medicine, the School of Dental Medicine, John Dempsey Hospital and faculty practices in medical and dental health care.

The Lyman Maynard Stowe Library, which is housed at the University of Connecticut Health Center, was one of eight federally funded National Network of Libraries of Medicine libraries from 1991 to 2001.

Avery Point Campus
The Avery Point (Groton) Campus was formerly the summer estate of Morton Plant, a railroad, steamship and hotel magnate. Branford House, the mansion overlooking Long Island Sound, was reportedly worth $3 million when it was completed in 1904. Also located on the estate was a caretaker's house (the current police station) and a barn and horse stable (the current physical plant buildings). The estate included what is now the Shennecossett Public Golf Course located just north of the campus.

The Plant estate was turned over to the State of Connecticut in the 1930s. During World War II, it was leased to the Coast Guard as a training center. During that period, the Coast Guard built the present cinder block buildings. In 1967, the estate was converted to the Southeastern Campus of the University of Connecticut, later renamed the University of Connecticut at Avery Point.

In the last few years, the Avery Point campus has undergone a major transformation. Included in a recent $50 million renovation project is a new Marine Sciences and technology building, the renovation of the Branford House, the gym, and classrooms in the Academic Building, a new Project Oceanology building, a new research vessel and new landscaping for our campus-by-the-sea.

Students have access to classes for all UConn's traditional majors as well as the Bachelor of General Studies. In addition to the Bachelor of General Studies degree, there are three other majors that students are able to complete at the Avery Point campus. Coastal Studies is a new marine-science based major, Maritime Studies is a humanities based major focused on marine topics, and American Studies deals with all aspects of the Western Hemisphere. All this plus dedicated faculty and staff and small class size provides students who choose Avery Point a unique experience and a quality education.

Greater Hartford Campus
UConn's Greater Hartford campus, as its name indicates, serves a broad section of the area’s populace. Opened in 1939 in the City of Hartford, the University of Connecticut’s Greater Hartford Campus moved in 1970 to its present park-like location in West Hartford. The Greater Hartford Campus offers students from the Hartford Metropolitan Region the flexibility of balancing family, work, and other personal commitments while receiving the full benefit of the University of Connecticut’s high quality education and resources.

The Greater Hartford Campus offers a wide range of Liberal Arts and Sciences courses and degrees to over 1,400 undergraduate and more than 600 graduate students. Students pursue undergraduate degrees in American Studies, Business and Technology, Business Administration, English, General Studies, Human Development and Family Studies, Psychology, and Urban and Community Studies. The Center for Continuing Studies provides a number of certificate program options, in addition to the Bachelor of General Studies, an interdisciplinary degree program tailored to meet individual needs and goals of returning, non-traditional, part-time adult students. Due to the Greater Hartford Campus’ proximity to the State Capitol and legislative offices, the University’s Department of Public Policy is based on the Greater Hartford Campus and offers a Master of Arts in Survey Research and a Master of Arts in Public Administration, as well as certificate programs. The University’s School of Social Work is also located at the Greater Hartford Campus and offers a Master of Social Work and Ph.D in Social Work. The Greater Hartford Campus also offers the popular one-year Master of Education with Teacher Certification Program for College Graduates.

Located on a 58 acre campus, the Greater Hartford facilities include the Harleigh B. Trecker Library, which is fully integrated with and linked to the University Library System, including Storrs, all regional campuses, the Law School, and the UConn Health Center; a state-of-the-art Information Technology Center, which features high-tech computer labs and distance learning facilities; the Writing and Quantitative Center, a peaceful study environment for tutorial help and assistance in writing, math, accounting, chemistry, biology, and statistics; the UConn Co-op; and an art gallery. The Hartford County Cooperative Extension Center delivers objective, research-based information to help manage resources in the community.

The Greater Hartford Campus serves the Metropolitan Region through extensive community outreach programs, which connect the university with those who are underrepresented or disadvantaged in the community. Through ongoing partnerships with schools, businesses, government, national, and neighborhood organizations, the Greater Hartford Campus outreach provides hands-on learning experiences and serves as a model of community service, opportunity, and success for urban campuses.

Stamford Campus
The Stamford Campus of the University of Connecticut was founded in 1951, to provide education for GIs returning from the Korean War. It is currently located at One University Place, at the corner of Washington Boulevard and Broad Street in downtown Stamford and is easily accessible by car, train, or bus.

The campus offers four-year undergraduate degrees in American Studies, Business and Technology, Economics, English, General Studies, Human Development and Family Studies, History, Political Science, and Psychology.

At the graduate level, the campus offers the Master of Business Administration (MBA) and the Executive Master of Business Administration (EMBA) degrees. The Stamford campus' location in lower Fairfield County provides access to internships, field placements, and jobs with Fortune 500 companies, investment and banking institutions, non-profit organizations, and civic, education, and community agencies.

Torrington Campus
The University of Connecticut at Torrington was founded in 1957; it opened on its own campus in 1965 with the construction in a quiet rural setting in the western outskirts of the city. The 100 acre campus consists of the M. Adela Eads Classroom Building (named after the late long-time Senate Republican Leader, a champion of the campus) and the Litchfield County Extension Service Building. The facility includes a high-tech classroom, a learning center, an art studio, computer rooms, a UConn Co-op bookstore, a 250-seat auditorium, a student lounge, and a cafeteria. The Julia Brooker Thompson Library comprises a collection of about 17,000 books and videos and 25 print journals and newspapers, and provides access to all other UConn libraries as well as to public libraries and libraries of other schools. Approximately 400 students matriculate at the campus, enjoying a student-faculty ratio of about 10 to 1. UConn Torrington offers the following undergraduate degree programs: American Studies, Human Development and Family Studies, English, General Studies, Business and Technology, Psychology, and Urban and Community Studies. Also noteworthy is the Litchfield County Writers Project, a focus for cultural activity in the region. Since 2009, UConn Torrington has been the site of the northwest Connecticut regional competition for History Day. It has also sponsored Locally Grown History, a program designed to showcase the historical and cultural treasures and organizations of the region. The campus's Academic Plan (drafted in 2007) envisions an increasing focus on the arts and humanities. Dr. Michael Menard serves as campus director.

Waterbury Campus
The University of Connecticut's Waterbury campus serves more than 1,000 students annually. In its 60 years of operation, UConn Waterbury has opened the doors to educational access and excellence to thousands of Connecticut residents, many of whom have distinguished themselves in the fields of community service, business, education, law and politics. Today, the campus is located in a modern, state-of-the-art facility in the heart of downtown Waterbury.

Students at UConn Waterbury enjoy smaller classes and a more intimate campus environment. With a low student to faculty ratio, students are able to engage in frequent classroom discussions with the school's distinguished faculty. Professors come from diverse academic backgrounds and are actively involved in scholarly research. Many serve as student advisors and mentors. Uconn Waterbury offers a variety of campus resources and support services. Students can use the library, writing center, math center, peer tutoring assistance, computer labs and counseling services.

Through the generous support of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institutes (OLLI), the Waterbury campus houses the OLLI at UConn program, which is an academic cooperative that provides mature adults 50 and over with opportunities for intellectual development, cultural stimulation, and social interaction. The programs are centered around classes developed and taught by members who volunteer their time and talents to share their knowledge and interests with other members. A diversified program of courses is offered from the fields of art, computers, culture and language, health and wellness, history, horticulture, literature and writing, math and science, music, performing arts, personal development, social sciences, visual arts, and more.

Institute for Teaching & Learning
The members of the Institute install and maintain high-technology and distance learning classrooms as well as provide guidance on curriculum design and delivery. Faculty can drop by the Instructional Resource Center for help on the university’s learning management system HuskyCT or to develop an electronic portfolio. The Media Designers shoot photography, print posters and produce video for classroom instruction.

Student life
Approximately 75% of all students, including many graduate students, live on campus. The university sponsors many events throughout the year for its students, and also oversees more than 300 student organizations available at UConn for both undergraduates and graduate students.

There is a wide variety of student organizations on campus, including fraternities and sororities, musical groups, and religious, athletic, political, cultural, business, military, artistic, and community service clubs. There are also student organizations set up with the intent of governing student life itself, such as the Student Union Board of Governors, the Undergraduate Student Government, the InterFraternity Council, the Panhellenic Council, UConnPIRG, Residence Hall Association, and the various residence hall councils. The university also has a daily student-run newspaper, The Daily Campus, which is the largest student newspaper in the state of Connecticut. As well as the newspaper, the university has a Huskyvision cable network, channels 14 and 16 at the university. Channel 14 is UCTV, a cable TV network consisting of student-made public-access television shows.

While many area activities are held on campus, the university provides free local bus transportation and also arranges frequent bus trips to Boston, Manhattan, and the Connecticut shoreline. The main university campus also includes a number of museums, theaters, and performing arts venues such as the Jorgensen Center for the Performing Arts, J. Robert Donnelly Husky Heritage Sports Museum, the William Benton Museum of Art, and the Connecticut State Museum of Natural History. The UConn Dairy Bar was started circa 1953. It remains open year-round is well-known for its ice cream, with roughly 200,000 customers visiting annually. Also under way is the construction of the new Storrs Downtown Center, a mixed-use town center slated to include retail shops, restaurants, offices, and housing, situated on Connecticut Route 195 across from the UConn campus.

Spring Weekend
The annual Spring Weekend concert has attracted top artists and bands such as Outkast and Third Eye Blind in 2000, Guster and Nelly in 2001, Fat Joe and Nine Days in 2002, 50 Cent and Busta Rhymes in 2003, Ludacris and Kanye West in 2004, Nas and Fabolous in 2005, O.A.R. in 2006, Dashboard Confessional, Reel Big Fish and The Starting Line in 2007, Method Man, Redman, Flo-Rida, and T-Pain in 2008, 50 Cent and Naughty by Nature in 2009, Jack's Mannequin and KiD CuDi in 2010, and most recently, B.o.B and Far East Movement in 2011. It is also known for sizable outdoor parties that typically draw well over 10,000 attendees, particularly at one of its parking lots (X-Lot), and the privately owned Celeron and Carriage House apartments, located less than a mile off campus.

Some of these parties have led to near-riot situations, characterized by incidents of property destruction and unruliness requiring a sizable police presence every year, thereby giving Spring Weekend a degree of local notoriety. In order to give students more alternative options during that weekend, the Spring Weekend committee advertises all the events occurring for the UConn community. It should be noted that the vast majority of incidents of property destruction and unruliness are perpetrated by individuals not associated with the university (non-students who come to the university for the weekend festivities).

In 2011, the university adopted new measures to de-escalate Spring Weekend including banning guests from campus during the three-day period, instituting numerous police roadblocks and parking lot closures across campus, working with off-campus landlords to limit crowds and calling for a voluntary moratorium by students – instead suggesting they return home for Easter weekend. These actions resulted in dramatically reduced crowds, no major incidents and far fewer arrests than in previous years (although the effectiveness of the measures are up for debate, as Spring Weekend coincided with Easter Weekend).

Greek life
Since 2003, the University has taken much stronger steps towards producing a quality fraternity and sorority experience with the addition of university-operated Greek housing in the "Husky Village" area atop Horsebarn Hill and the hiring of a full-time staff to deal with fraternity and sorority operations. Currently, 30 Greek organizations have chapters at UConn.

Athletics
UConn's sports teams, known as the Huskies, participate in the NCAA's Division I-A and in the Big East Conference, except for the men's hockey program, which competes in Atlantic Hockey, and women's hockey, which is a member of Hockey East. Many UConn athletes, including Darin Lewis, Damani Ralph, Ray Allen, Richard Hamilton, Ben Gordon, Emeka Okafor, Rudy Gay, Hilton Armstrong. Caron Butler, Jake Voskuhl, Marcus Williams, Clifford Robinson, Kevin Ollie, Donyell Marshall, Josh Boone, Charlie Villanueva, Rebecca Lobo, Diana Taurasi, Sue Bird, Nykesha Sales, Swin Cash, Tamika Williams, Kara Wolters, Asjha Jones, Svetlana Abrosimova, Jennifer Rizzotti, and Dan Orlovsky, have gone on to success in professional sports.

Approximately 69% of all UConn student-athletes graduate from the university, and almost 50% maintain a 3.0 GPA. The women's lacrosse team had the second-highest team GPA in the country in 2004, and numerous UConn student-athletes, including former basketball star Emeka Okafor, have been named Academic All-Americans. In 2003, the football team was also honored for being one of only seven schools in the U.S. to graduate 80% or better of its members; it was the only public school on the list.

UConn is best known for having its men's and women's basketball teams consistently ranked in or near the top 10 in the nation in their respective divisions. The men's team won NCAA Division I titles in 1999, 2004 and 2011 led to victory by Kemba Walker and the women have won in 1995, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2009, and 2010; between the two programs UConn is a perfect 10-0 in National Championship games played. In 2004, the University of Connecticut became the first and only Division I school to win National Championships in both men's and women's basketball during the same year. The women's basketball team went undefeated in the 1995, 2002, 2009 & 2010 seasons. The Huskies won their 89th consecutive game on December 21, 2010. The team holds the record for consecutive wins with 90.

In addition to its basketball success, UConn is known for its championship soccer teams, which have the highest average attendance in the nation for both men's and women's teams. The men's team has been the national champion three times (1948, 1981, and 2000), while the women's soccer team advanced to the NCAA National Championship title game in 1984, 1990, 1997, and 2003.

UConn also is a national power in Field Hockey, having advanced to the Final Four 9 times and winning the National Championship in 1981 and 1985.

UConn football moved up to Division I-A status in 2000 and became a full Big East member in 2004. The Huskies had their first bowl victory in the 2004 Motor City Bowl. In 2007, the football team recorded their first national ranking, climbing as high as 13th in the BCS standings.

Other intercollegiate sports offered are baseball, men's and women's track and field/cross country, field hockey, men's golf, women's rowing, softball, swimming and diving, tennis, and women's volleyball.

Symbols
Until 1933, the mascot of UConn had been the Aggies. This was because of the original agricultural nature of the University. In 1933, the University changed its name from Connecticut Agricultural College to Connecticut State College. To reflect this change, athletic teams were known as the Statesmen. In December 1934, the Husky was chosen as the mascot. All UConn huskies are named Jonathan in honor of Jonathan Trumbull, and all but the first, a brown and white husky, have been white with one brown eye and one blue eye. The current "real" Jonathan is Jonathan XIII; he is often seen greeting fans and eating dog biscuits at sporting events. Jonathan is one of the few university mascots in the nation to have been selected by students via a popular poll.

"Jonathan's" was the name of a fast food restaurant in the south end of the Student Union building until that section was closed for construction. A statue of Jonathan can also be found outside near the entrances to Gampel Pavilion and the natatorium. This statue, by artist Larry Waisele, was dedicated in 1995. Students are known to rub its nose for good luck, though it is also common to see students climbing on top of the statue to "ride" it.

The UConn fight song, officially titled UConn Husky but commonly called The Husky Fight Song, is one of the most recognizable in the country, due in large part to its frequent playing by the Pride of Connecticut during nationally televised sporting events.

A Macromedia audio presentation of UConn Husky is available on the UConn Alumni Association website. A full history of the song can be found on the UConn Advance website.

The colors of UConn are white and national flag blue, though small amounts of red often appear on athletic uniforms. The Pantone standard for the exact shade of blue used is #281.

The visual symbol of the university is the oak tree, which is also the state tree of Connecticut. This is because the Latin word for oak, robur, also refers to moral and physical strength, and because of the importance of the Charter Oak to the state's history. The oak leaf appears on the university symbol and next to the word UConn on official letterhead.

Utilities
Because it is situated in a fairly rural area, the UConn campus at Storrs has facilities that allow it to be virtually self-sufficient. All heat on campus is steam, and where possible sidewalks were laid over the underground connectors to keep the snow off. In 2005, a cogeneration plant was activated, which generates most of the electricity for the campus, and uses the exhaust steam for the campus central heating system.

There is also a waste treatment plant, and a water filtration plant which is supplied by the nearby Mansfield Hollow reservoir. Like many UConn facilities, these three are also used for live research and as test environments for students who are engaged in related fields.

Libraries
The University of Connecticut Libraries form the largest public research collection in the state of Connecticut.

The main library is the Homer D. Babbidge Library, formerly the Nathan Hale Library, at the Storrs campus, which underwent a $3 million renovation that was completed in 1998, making it then the largest public research library in New England. The Storrs campus is also home to the university's Music and Pharmacy libraries, as well as the Thomas J. Dodd Research Center, home to the university's archives and special collections, including university records, rare books, and manuscript collections. Each of the regional campuses also have their own libraries, including the Jeremy Richard Library at UConn-Stamford and the Trecker Library in West Hartford. These libraries are tied into the Babbidge library through a shared catalogue.

The Babbidge-based collection, which places UConn among the top 30 universities in the nation for both library holdings and funding, contains more than 2.5 million print volumes; approximately 2,500 current print periodicals; more than 35,000 unique electronic journals available through the eJournal locator; 2.8 million units of microform; 180,000 maps at the Map and Geographic Information Center (New England's largest public map collection); thousands of electronic books; and an array of free electronic information sources. The UCL also license approximately 265 electronic search databases, many of which contain the full-text of research journals, monographs, and historic documents. Members of the UConn community can access these resources from off-campus by logging in to the VPN with their netID and password.

The Lyman Maynard Stowe Library, which is housed at the University of Connecticut Health Center, was one of eight federally funded National Network of Libraries of Medicine libraries from 1991–2001. The University of Connecticut School of Law houses the School of Law Library at its campus in Hartford. The Stowe and Law libraries have catalogues separate from the Babbidge system, making the total library holdings of the University of Connecticut much higher than the 2.5 million print volumes of Babbidge.



Additionally, UConn is the home of the Roper Center for Public Opinion Research, which is the world's most comprehensive survey and public opinion data library.

In addition to their own libraries, UConn participates in outside library consortia, including the New England Law Library Consortium. The Dodd Research Center has also formed a partnership with the African National Congress to share materials with South African scholars.

Athletics
The most notable athletic facilities are:
 * Harry A. Gampel Pavilion on the Storrs campus, the regular home for both men's and women's basketball
 * XL Center in Hartford, the second home for both basketball teams
 * Rentschler Field in East Hartford, home to the football team

Improvement projects
UConn 2000 was a public-private partnership to rebuild, renew and enhance the University of Connecticut from 1995 to 2005. It was paid for by the State of Connecticut, UConn's students, and private donations. UConn 2000 was enacted by the Connecticut General Assembly in 1995 and signed into law by Governor John G. Rowland. The construction projects were overseen by President Philip E. Austin. The legislature continued the construction investment through 21st Century UConn. Several projects resulted in financial problems and many of the new buildings had fire code violations. These problems were investigated by a special committee organized by Governor Jodi Rell.

21st Century UConn is the continuation of UConn 2000 and is another billion dollar construction investment by the state of Connecticut to upgrade facilities at the University of Connecticut. It passed the Connecticut General Assembly and was signed into law by Governor Rowland in 2002. By the time of the project's completion, every building on campus will be either new or completely renovated. Money has also been put into the regional and satellite campuses, such as the new School of Business facility in downtown Hartford.