The University of Central Missouri (UCM), formerly Central Missouri State University (CMSU), is a public state university located in Warrensburg, Missouri, United States. It serves more than 12,000 students from 49 states and 59 countries on its 1,561-acre campus. UCM offers 150 programs of study, including 10 pre-professional programs, 27 areas of teacher certification, and 37 graduate programs. Students also have the ability to study abroad in about 60 different countries in the world through the International Center.
History
The University was founded in 1871 as Normal School No. 2 and became known as Warrensburg Teachers College. The name was changed to Central Missouri State Teachers College in 1919, Central Missouri State College in 1945 and Central Missouri State University in 1972. In 1965, the institution established a graduate school. In 2006, the name was changed to the University of Central Missouri. There are 150 majors and minors, 32 professional accreditations and 37 graduate programs. UCM has off-campus locations in Lee's Summit, Missouri and provides numerous online courses and programs.
Academics
College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences: UCM students take College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences courses that develop critical-thinking, writing, and speaking skills. The current dean is Dr. Gersham Nelson. Accreditations include National Association of Schools of Music and National Council for Social Studies. Departments include:
- School of Visual and Performing Arts
- Music
- Theatre and Dance
- Art and Design
- Government, International Studies and Languages
- Political Science
- English and Philosophy
- History and Anthropology
- Communication and Sociology
Religious Studies Women's Studies
Harmon College of Business and Professional Studies: The Harmon College's accreditation by AACSB International puts it in the nation’s upper echelon of business colleges. U.S. News & World Report has cited UCM’s MBA program in America’s Best Graduate Schools. The current dean is Dr. Roger Best. Other accreditations include Aviation Accreditation Board International and Council on Social Work Education. Departments include:
- School of Business Administration
- Economics, Finance and Marketing
- School of Accountancy and Computer Information Systems
- Management
- School of Professional Studies
- Aviation
- Criminal Justice
- Communication Disorders and Social Work
- Military Science and Leadership
College of Education: UCM’s College of Education prepares students to become teachers. The current dean is Dr. Michael Wright. Departments include:
- Career and Technology Education
- Educational Leadership and Human Development
- Educational Foundations and Literacy
- Elementary and Early Childhood Education
College of Health, Science, and Technology: Combining scientific theory and applied technology, the College of Health, Science, and Technology has a unique focus that sets the university apart from others. The college’s goal is to prepare students to be competent leaders in the rapidly changing global marketplace and to provide a high-quality work force for the future. The current dean is Dr. Alice Griefe. Departments include:
- School of Health and Human Performance
- Nursing
- Nutrition and Kinesiology
- Biology and Earth Science
- School of Environmental, Physical, and Applied Sciences
- School of Technology
- School of Computer Science and Mathematics
- Psychological Science.
The Honors College: First-time incoming freshmen must have a minimum ACT score of 25 (or SAT equivalent) and a minimum cumulative high school GPA of 3.5 to be considered for admission to The Honors College. Once incoming freshmen have completed a semester at UCM as a full-time student and have a college cumulative GPA of 3.5 or higher, they may apply to The Honors College. Current UCM students or students transferring to UCM must have achieved a minimum cumulative college GPA of 3.5 or higher. Benefits of being an Honors College student include, but are not limited to, early enrollment, one-on-one advising with the Dean, smaller classes, Honors-only courses and colloquia. The current dean of the Honors College and International Affairs is Dr. Joseph D. Lewandowski.
GIMPS
The University of Central Missouri continues to hold an important role in the Great Internet Mersenne Prime Search. The GIMPS project at UCM is a university-wide effort managed by Dr. Curtis Cooper and Dr. Steven Boone. Central's team (curtisc) is currently the No. 1 contributor to that project, and is the only GIMPS team that has discovered four Mersenne primes: M43 230402457 - 1 with 9,152,052 digits, M44 232582657 - 1 with 9,808,358 digits, M48 257,885,161-1 with 17,425,170 digits, and M49 274,207,281-1 with 22,338,618 digits.
Student life
The university has more than 200 student organizations with academic, cultural, recreational, community service and special interest clubs and associations. There are also more than 20 intramural sports to compete in, free movie nights on campus and a bowling alley and movie theater in the student union. Freshman and sophomore students are required to live in one of the 16 residence halls their first year to help ease the adjustment from high school to college. Students can also choose to live in a Special Housing Interest Program, which places students with the same program of study together in the residence halls.
Greek life
The University of Central Missouri is home to 26 Greek organizations; recruitment takes place in both the spring and fall semesters. Eleven percent of UCM students are involved in Greek life. Sororities and fraternities contribute not only to enriching campus life at UCM, but also helping improve their community by participating in community service throughout the year. A Greek program, Greeks Advocating Mature Management of Alcohol known as GAMMA, promotes alcohol awareness. It assisted the Student Government Association with bringing the Night Ryder bus to campus. Night Ryder provides students a free ride to and from campus to ensure that students have safe transportation. A list are of fraternity and sorority chapters are presented below.
Media
UCM produces a weekly newspaper focusing on the campus called The Muleskinner and an online publication called digitalburg.com that covers the Johnson County area. Even though these publications are overseen by a faculty advisor, they are entirely student operated and accept article submissions from any student. The university also houses KMOS-TV.
Athletics
UCM athletic teams compete in the Midâ€"America Intercollegiate Athletics Association, or MIAA. The athletic division includes basketball, baseball, women's bowling, American football, golf, women's soccer, softball, cross-country, track, volleyball and wrestling. UCM's athletic teams are called Mules (men) and Jennies (women). UCM has two mascots, Mo the Mule and a live mule named Mancow.
Basketball games are played in the UCM Multipurpose Building. Built in 1976, The Multi, as it is known to students and alumni, has a seating capacity of 6,500 for basketball and volleyball games. Football games are played on Vernon Kennedy Field at Audrey J. Walton Stadium. The stadium was erected in 1928 and underwent a major face-lift in 1995. The stadium officially holds 11,000 people, but crowds often approach 12,000. UCM's campus also includes 18-hole Keth Memorial Golf Course, the home facility for Mules golf, as well as Mules and Jennies cross country.
Library
The James C. Kirkpatrick Library (JCKL) is the library of the University of Central Missouri. At the Library dedication on March 24, 1999, the then Governor of Missouri, Mel Carnahan, was present and gave the keynote address. It was named for former Secretary of State, James C. Kirkpatrick, who was the longest serving Secretary of State in Missouri from 1965 to 1985. Upon retirement, his office was moved from the Missouri State Capitol to Ward Edwards Library, the previous University of Central Missouri library building. It is now located in the James C. Kirkpatrick Library. JCKL is part of the Federal Depository Library Program. There are over 480,000 circulating volumes, in addition to its extensive government document collection. The Ophelia Gilbert Room provides exhibit space for the Philip A. Sadler Research Collection of Literature for Children and Young Adults and General Special Collections. The room is named for Ophelia Gilbert, a longtime University of Central Missouri faculty member, children’s librarian, and co-founder, with Philip Sadler, of the Children’s Literature Festival at the University of Central Missouri. The current Dean of Library Services is Dr. Gail Staines.
The McClure Archives and University Museum, Honors College, Harmon Computer Center, Student Success Center and Technology Enhanced Instructional Design are also located in the building. Also located in the James C. Kirkpatrick Library is the Einstein Bros. Café, which is situated on the ground floor along with the Performance Corner that hosts the Kirkpatrick Performance Series and a grand piano once owned by Clyde Robert Bulla.
Notable alumni and faculty
References
External links
- Official website
- Central Missouri Athletics website
- University of Central Missouri at National Center for Education Statistics: College Navigator