Everything about The University Of North Dakota totally explained
The
University of North Dakota (
UND) is a
public university in
Grand Forks, North Dakota,
USA. Established by the
Dakota Territorial Assembly in 1883 — six years before the establishment of the
state of
North Dakota — UND now enrolls over 12,500 students and is the oldest and largest university in the state.
Roughly half of the student body is from North Dakota with the remainder coming from around the nation and the world. Recently, UND has put an emphasis on research and currently specializes in research involving health sciences, nutrition, energy and environmental protection, aerospace, and engineering.
The UND athletic teams are called the
Fighting Sioux. The men's
ice hockey team, which plays in the
Ralph Engelstad Arena, has won seven national championships. The Fighting Sioux ice hockey teams compete at the
Division I level and all other teams currently compete at the
Division II level, but all teams will be at the Division I level starting in 2008. Grand Forks native
George H. Walsh submitted a bill to the Territorial Legislature of
Dakota Territory that called for the new state of North Dakota's university to be located in Grand Forks. In the 1880s, UND consisted of only a few acres of property surrounded by farms and fields.
20th century
Gradually, more buildings were constructed on campus and a trolley system was built to connect the growing university to
downtown Grand Forks. However, there were several major interruptions in the life of the university. In 1918, UND was the hardest-hit single institution in the country by the flu epidemic which killed 1,400 people in North Dakota alone. Later that year, classes were suspended so the campus could become an army base for soldiers during
World War I. "Camp Depression," as it was called, consisted of railroad
cabooses that housed eight male students each. A large amount of housing had to be built on campus as well as several new academic buildings. In the 1960s and 1970s, many student protests occurred at UND. The largest occurred in May of 1970 when over 1,500 students gathered to protest the
Kent State shootings. However, the devastating
1997 Red River Flood inundated numerous buildings on campus and forced the cancellation of the remainder of the school year.
21st century
The start of the 21st century was marked by the opening of two major athletic venues for UND athletics. The
Ralph Engelstad Arena which is used for hockey and the
Alerus Center which is used for football both opened in 2001. Millions of dollars worth of construction and renovation projects have dotted the campus landscape in recent years. As part of a plan to improve student facilities on campus, UND has recently constructed a Wellness Center, a parking garage, and a new apartment-style housing complex. In January of 2007, UND president
Charles Kupchella announced that he'd be retiring in 2008.Kupchella will be replaced by incoming president Dr.
Robert Kelley effective
July 1,
2008. Today, issues facing UND include a move of its entire athletic program to
Division I, ongoing discussions regarding the Fighting Sioux nickname, the fact that UND is located in a state with a shrinking population of potential students, and efforts to increase external contributions and funding.
Campus
Main campus
The main campus of the University of North Dakota sits in the middle of
Grand Forks on University Avenue. The campus is made up of 223 buildings (5.33 million square feet) on . This area is home to most academic buildings on campus. At the heart of campus sits the
Chester Fritz Library, the largest library in
North Dakota. The tower of the library is a familiar landmark on University Avenue. The English Coulee flows along the western edge of the central campus area and on the western bank of the Coulee sits the
Chester Fritz Auditorium and the Hughes Fine Arts Center. The historic 1907 Adelphi Fountain is located next to the Coulee as is the new Spiritual Center.
On the eastern edge of the central campus area sits
Memorial Stadium, the old
Ralph Engelstad Arena, and the Hyslop Auditorium. These structures are all old athletic venues which have been replaced with new structures located elsewhere on campus. The eastern part of campus is also the home of the
Energy and Environmental Research Center complex which includes the
National Center for Hydrogen Technology. The Grand Forks Human Nutrition Research Center, which is operated by the
United States Department of Agriculture, is also found in this part of campus. University Village is anchored by the $100+ million dollar
Ralph Engelstad Arena which is used by the UND
Fighting Sioux ice hockey teams. University Village is also home to the
Betty Engelstad Sioux Center, the new Student Wellness Center, a
Barnes & Noble College Booksellers store, a condo development, a medical clinic, and several commercial properties.
The western part of the UND campus is a newer area with modern styles of architecture. The western part of campus is also the location of most residence halls and student apartments. A new $20 million dollar student housing project called University Place recently opened on University Avenue.
Other facilities
UND operates a small campus consisting of several buildings at
Grand Forks International Airport where aviation students train. UND Aerospace also operates flight training centers in
Lumberton, North Carolina,
Crookston, Minnesota,
Duluth, Minnesota,
Phoenix, Arizona,
Spokane, Washington, and
Williston, North Dakota. UND owns and operates the Ray Richards 9-hole golf course south of the main UND campus. The
Fighting Sioux football team is a major tenant of the city of Grand Forks-owned
Alerus Center. The School of Medicine operates several clinics throughout the state.
Academics
UND has ten academic divisions:
Altogether, UND offers 89 undergraduate majors, 63 undergraduate minors, 57 master's programs, 23 doctoral programs, two professional programs (
medicine and
law), and a specialist diploma program in educational leadership. UND also has an interdisciplinary program that allows students to obtain a degree in virtually any course of study. A collection of online classes and degree programs are offered for students around the nation and world. UND is one of only 47 public universities in the United States that has both accredited schools of law and medicine. The
Chester Fritz Library is the largest library in the state. It houses 1.4 million volumes, provides access to approximately 28,000 electronic journal subscriptions, and owns over 20,000 electronic books. It also serves as a U.S. patent and trademark depository and a government document depository. Branches of the Chester Fritz Library include the Energy and Environmental Research Library, the F.D. Holland Geology Library, and the Gordon Erickson Music Library. and the
School of Medicine operates the Harley E. French Library of the Health Sciences.
Division of Continuing Education
The division offers many distance learning and online degree programs. It offers undergraduate level programs in
Chemical Engineering,
Civil Engineering,
Electrical Engineering and
Mechanical Engineering.
It also offers graduate level programs like
MBA,
Applied Economics,
Educational Leadership,
Forensic Psychology,
Social Work,
Public Administration and
Nursing.
They also offer a
Doctoral level program in
Educational Leadership, with some on campus face to face requirements.
Research
UND is classified by the
Carnegie Foundation as a doctoral/research-intensive institution. This level of research activity is shown in UND's research statistics which, in fiscal year 2006, included program awards that reached $94.3 million, sponsored program expenditures that reached $81.2 million, and an overall research portfolio that included $315 million in total ongoing and committed accounts. Research activity at UND focuses on health sciences, nutrition, energy and environmental protection, aerospace, and engineering. The Energy and Environmental Research Center — located on the eastern fringes of the UND campus — has been recognized as a leader in researching cleaner, more efficient forms of energy. The EERC operates a number of research units at UND including the
National Center for Hydrogen Technology.
In May 2006, students from UND unveiled a new
space suit that they'd developed to be used by
astronauts that may someday travel to
Mars. The students were working off of a $100,000 grant from
NASA and the suit was tested in the
Badlands of western North Dakota. The suit weighs 47 pounds and costs only a fraction of the standard $22 million cost for a NASA spacesuit. The suit was developed in just over a year by the students.
Athletics
UND's athletic teams bear the name of the Fighting
Sioux, which isn't without some controversy. The official colors of UND are green and pink.
The men's ice hockey team has won seven national championships and has been runner-up five times. Both the men's and women's ice hockey teams play home games at
Ralph Engelstad Arena. The Ralph, as it's commonly known, has been called one of the finest hockey arenas in the world. The
football team, which plays home games in the
Alerus Center, won the national championship in 2001 and was the runner-up in 2003. The
basketball teams play in the
Betty Engelstad Sioux Center. The women's team has won three national championships in 1997, 1998, and 1999 and was runner-up in 2001. One notable UND athletic alumnus is
NBA coach and former player
Phil Jackson. Many UND alumni have played in the
NHL as well, including
Carolina Hurricanes Defenceman
Mike Commodore,
Chicago Blackhawks forward
Jonathan Toews,
Toronto Maple Leafs forward
Jason Blake and former
NHL goalie
Ed Belfour.
Student life
Historic enrollments:>
| 1890 |
24 |
| 1900 |
124 |
| 1910 |
490 |
| 1920 |
1,124 |
| 1930 |
1,765 |
| 1940 |
1,757 |
| 1950 |
2,653 |
| 1960 |
4,491 |
| 1970 |
8,129 |
| 1980 |
10,217 |
| 1990 |
11,885 |
| 2000 |
11,031 |
| 2007 |
12,559 |
Student body
Currently, over 12,500 students attend classes on the UND campus each year. The ratio between male and female students is about even. and 800 student apartment units, as well as twelve
fraternities and six
sororities. There are over 230 student organizations at UND as well as an
intramural sports program called RecSports.
Culture
There are a number of cultural offerings on the UND campus. The
North Dakota Museum of Art — the official art museum of the state of North Dakota — is located in the heart of campus and offers exhibits throughout the year. The Burtness Theater and the
Chester Fritz Auditorium regularly feature theater and concert events. The
Ralph Engelstad Arena also occasionally features non-athletic events including concerts. The nearby city-owned
Alerus Center hosts several concerts each year as well as other events. In addition to these facilities, the city of Grand Forks is home to other theaters and museums. Each year, UND hosts the
University of North Dakota Writers Conference. This is a week long event that brings together prominent American and foreign writers. Past participants have included
Truman Capote,
Tennessee Williams,
Eudora Welty,
Tom Wolfe,
Allen Ginsberg,
Louise Erdrich, and
Gary Snyder. A film festival is held in conjunction with the conference.
Media
The student newspaper at UND is the
Dakota Student.
Dimensions, a twice-yearly promotional publication, features stories on faculty, staff, and the University.
The University Letter serves as the faculty and staff newsletter of UND.
The Alumni Review is published by the UND Alumni Association and Foundation.
The North Dakota Quarterly, a literary journal, is edited at UND. The
The North Dakota Law Review, published by the
School of Law since 1924, serves as the journal of the State Bar Association of North Dakota. UND currently owns two public radio stations: KUND-FM and
KFJM. KUND-FM rebroadcasts the
Prairie Public radio network, which also carries
National Public Radio programming. KFJM broadcasts some Prairie Public and NPR programming, but also broadcasts some locally-produced programs. KFJM was one of the first college radio stations in the United States and is the second oldest station in North Dakota. UND owns two local cable television channels. One operates as an information billboard and also features a weekly student-produced news program entitled Studio One. The other channel, The
Fighting Sioux Sports Network, is operated in conjunction with local
ABC affiliate
WDAZ-TV. FSSN broadcasts all home hockey games and several away games each year. It also broadcasts several football and basketball games during the school year. The Fighting Sioux Sports Network is carried on cable television in North Dakota, Minnesota, and South Dakota by
Midcontinent Communications. It is also available throughout the entire
North American continent via
Free-To-Air satellite. The campus residence halls include a movie channel, Residence Life Cinema, on cable channel 17. The University separately licenses movies for showing on this channel.
Notable people and alumni
Governors of North Dakota were educated at UND, including
Fred G. Aandahl,
Louis B. Hanna,
Lynn Frazier,
William Langer,
John Moses,
Ragnvald A. Nestos,
Allen I. Olson, and
Ed Schafer. Many U.S. Senators and Representatives of North Dakota are also graduates of UND, including current Senator
Byron Dorgan and current Representative
Earl Pomeroy. Former
United States House of Representatives Majority Leader Dick Armey is a UND graduate.
Ronald Davies, a UND graduate and former federal judge, became a part of history when he ordered the integration of
Little Rock Central High School during the
American Civil Rights Movement. UND alumni who went on to notable careers in the business world include current president and CEO of
Cargill Gregory R. Page, current president and CEO of the
Buffalo Wild Wings restaurant chain
Sally J. Smith, current CEO of
Forum Communications William C. Marcil, and former
Las Vegas casino owner and UND philanthropist
Ralph Engelstad.
In the realm of science, notable UND alumni include important contributor to
information theory Harry Nyquist, pioneer
aviator Carl Ben Eielson, Arctic explorer
Vilhjalmur Stefansson, engineer and 2008
IEEE-USA president Russell Lefevre, and NASA astronaut
Karen L. Nyberg. Alumni who have become notable through literature include the
Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright and author
Maxwell Anderson,
Rhodes scholar and poet
Thomas McGrath, and novelist
Jon Hassler. Two UND graduates have become editors of major magazines — former
Ebony editor
Era Bell Thompson and former
LIFE editor
Edward K. Thompson. Alumni who have become notable in arts and entertainment include actor
Sam Anderson and
America's Next Top Model winner
Nicole Linkletter. Former UND students who have gone on to notable careers in athletics include former
NBA player and current NBA coach
Phil Jackson, ice hockey player who played in the 1980 Winter Olympics "
Miracle on Ice" game
Dave Christian, and current
Minnesota Vikings NFL player
Jim Kleinsasser.
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