University of Alabama
In fall 2003, UA had an enrollment of more than 20,000 students. Its president is Dr. Robert Witt. The university has garnered regional renown for its programs in business, communications and law, and its engineering and natural sciences programs are also on the rise, thanks to recent cash infusions from donors.
| Table of contents |
|
2 Organization 3 History 4 Sports, Clubs, and Traditions 5 Noted University of Alabama Alumni 6 External links |
Campus
Campus landmarks include Bryant-Denny Stadium, the President's Mansion, Amelia Gayle Gorgas Library, and Denny Chimes, the clock tower located on the Quad next to University Boulevard. The school is also home to the Paul W. Bryant Museum and the Alabama Museum of Natural History.
Organization
The University is divided into 12 colleges and schools. The eight divisions granting undergraduate degrees are the College of Arts and Sciences, the Culverhouse College of Commerce and Business Administration, the College of Communication and Information Sciences, the College of Education, the College of Engineering, the College of Human Environmental Sciences, the Capstone College of Nursing, and the School of Social Work. Graduate degrees in those eight divisions at the master's, specialist, and doctoral level are awarded through the Graduate School. The School of Law offers J.D and LL.M programs. The College of Community Health Sciences provides advanced studies in medicine and related disciplines and operates a family-practice residency program. The College of Continuing Studies provides correspondence courses and other types of educational opportunities for non-traditional students.
The University is Alabama's oldest institution of higher learning; today, it is one of three major research universities in the state (along with athletics rival Auburn University and the much younger University of Alabama at Birmingham). UA has Alabama's only publicly supported law school. The Cumberland School of Law at Samford University in Birmingham is the state's only other ABA-accredited law school. Academic programs unavailable elsewhere in the state include doctoral programs in anthropology, library and information studies, music, Romance languages, and social work.
In 1820, an "educational seminary" called "The University of the State of Alabama" was created. It set up in Tuscaloosa in 1827, and opened its doors to students in 1831.
The University of Alabama was racially segregated prior to 1963.
On June 11, 1963, George Wallace, the Governor of Alabama, stood in front of a schoolhouse door at the University of Alabama in an attempt to stop integration by the enrollment of two African-American students, Vivian Malone and James Hood; when confronted by federal marshalss, Wallace stepped aside. Later in life Wallace apologized for his views on integration.
In recent years the athletics program has taken a hit, with NCAA sanctions hindering the Crimson Tide's football program. The Tide's football program was hit with a two year post-season ban, which it will be off of in the fall of 2004. Since the Tide's last national championship in 1992 against the Miami Hurricanes, the Alabama football team has had five different head coaches. Following Gene Stallings was defensive cordinator Mike Dubose, who proved to be an excellent recruiter of defensive linemen. He benifited tremendously from the leadership of Shaun Alexander and Chris Samuels, winning the SEC championship in 1999. Expectations quickly rose for the Tide, which started the season as high as No. 3 in some polls. The Tide quickly lowered, ending up 3-8 in a season exemplified by a last-second loss to Central Florida. Dubose was quickly fired and replaced by an up-and-coming coach from TCU, Dennis Franchione. The media-savvy Franchione was quickly popular because of his coaching style and media-friendly press conferences. He led Alabama to two winning seasons from 2001-2002, going 7-6 and 10-3, respectively. After NCAA sanctions hit in 2002, Coach Fran was rumored to be intrested in other jobs, including the University of Kansas opening. One year later, under a pile of media scrutiny, Franchione left for Texas A&M University. After the well-documented Mike Price fiasco, in which the former Washington State University coach was hired and subsequently fired without coaching a game, Miami Dolphins quarterbacks coach Mike Shula received his first head coaching job. Shula went through many first-year pains, ending up 4-9.
The University of Alabama's men's basketball team has also achieved recent success, advancing to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history in 2004, losing to eventual champion UConn in the Phoenix Regional Final (formerly known as the West Regional). Alabama's head coach is former Tide guard Mark Gottfried.
The divide among students often shows up during the school's annual Student Government Association (SGA) elections, which are usually dominated by white Greek candidates backed by a secretive group called the Machine. SGA elections have been marred by violent assaults and death threats in the past, but turnout among so-called "independents" remains low because of apathy.
The university in recent years has developed an image as a "party school," thanks to rankings from The Princeton Review and other publications that cited lots of drinking and drug use on and near campus. University officials responded by starting a series of late-night, on-campus entertainment programs and successfully pushing for a citywide limitation on bar hours.
History
Foundation
Racial segregation
Sports, Clubs, and Traditions
Athletics
The school's athletics teams are known as the Crimson Tide. They compete at the NCAA's Division I level and are members of the 12-member Southeastern Conference. The Tide's football team has brought national attention to the state in recent decades, winning 12 national championships and 21 SEC titles. The football team plays in 83,818-seat Bryant-Denny Stadium, which is named after legendary football coach Paul "Bear" Bryant and former UA President George Denny. The gymnastics team, which, like the school's basketball teams, competes in Coleman Coliseum, has also won four national championships.Student life
Student life at the school is marked by a division between students who are members of traditionally white social fraternities and sororities and students who are not. The university's white sorority system admitted its first black member in fall 2003. A new Christian fraternity admitted a black student in 2001, but the white Greek system otherwise remained largely segregated. Several traditionally black fraternities and sororities have accepted white members.Noted University of Alabama Alumni
External links