Arizona State University

 

Arizona State University (commonly referred to as ASU or Arizona State) is a public flagship metropolitan research university located on five campuses across the Phoenix, Arizona, metropolitan area,and four regional learning centers throughout Arizona. The 2016 university ratings by U.S. News & World Report rank ASU No. 1 among the Most Innovative Schools in America.

ASU is the largest public university by enrollment in the U.S.It has approximately 82,060 students enrolled in the year 2014 including 66,309 undergraduate and 15,751 graduate students.ASU's charter, approved by the board of regents in 2014, is based on the "New American University" model created by ASU President Crow. It defines ASU as "a comprehensive public research university, measured not by whom it excludes, but rather by whom it includes and how they succeed; advancing research and discovery of public value; and assuming fundamental responsibility for the economic, social, cultural and overall health of the communities it serves."

ASU is classified as a research university with very high research activity (RU/VH) by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. Since 2005 ASU has been ranked among the top research universities, public and private, in the U.S. based on research output, innovation, development, research expenditures, number of awarded patents and awarded research grant proposals. The Center for Measuring University Performance currently ranks ASU 31st among top U.S. public research universities.ASU was classified as a Research I institute in 1994, making it one of the newest major research universities (public or private) in the nation.

Students compete in 25 varsity sports.The Arizona State Sun Devils are members of the Pac-12 Conference and have won 23 NCAA championships. Along with multiple athletic clubs and recreational facilities, ASU is home to more than 1,100 registered student organizations, reflecting the diversity of the student body.To keep pace with the growth of the student population, the university is continuously renovating and expanding infrastructure. The demand for new academic halls, athletic facilities, student recreation centers, and residential halls is being addressed with donor contributions and public-private investments.

Arizona State University was established as the Territorial Normal School at Tempe on March 12, 1885, when the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature passed an act to create a normal school to train teachers for the Arizona Territory. The campus consisted of a single, four-room schoolhouse on a 20-acre plot largely donated by Tempe residents George and Martha Wilson. Classes began with 33 students on February 8, 1886. The curriculum evolved over the years and the name was changed several times; the institution was also known as Arizona Territorial Normal School (1889–1896), Arizona Normal School (1896–1899), Normal School of Arizona (1899–1901), and Tempe Normal School (1901–1925). The school accepted both high school students and graduates, and awarded high school diplomas and teaching certificates to those who completed the requirements.

In 1923 the school stopped offering high school courses and added a high school diploma to the admissions requirements. In 1925 the school became the Tempe State Teachers College and offered four-year Bachelor of Education degrees as well as two-year teaching certificates. In 1929, the legislature authorized Bachelor of Arts in Education degrees as well, and the school was renamed the Arizona State Teachers College.Under the 30-year tenure of president Arthur John Matthews the school was given all-college student status. The first dormitories built in the state were constructed under his supervision. Of the 18 buildings constructed while Matthews was president, six are still currently in use. Matthews envisioned an "evergreen campus," with many shrubs brought to the campus, and implemented the planting of Palm Walk, now a landmark of the Tempe campus. His legacy is being continued to this day with the main campus having been declared a nationally recognized arboretum.

In 1933, Grady Gammage, then president of Arizona State Teachers College at Flagstaff, became president of ASU, a tenure that would last for nearly 28 years. Like his predecessor, Gammage oversaw construction of a number of buildings on the Tempe campus. He also oversaw the development of the university, graduate programs. The school's name was changed to Arizona State College in 1945, and finally to Arizona State University in 1958.

By the 1960s, with the presidency of G. Homer Durham, the University began to expand its academic curriculum by establishing several new colleges and beginning to award Doctor of Philosophy and other doctoral degrees.

The next three presidents—Harry K. Newburn, 1969–71, John W. Schwada, 1971–81, and J. Russell Nelson, 1981–89—and Interim President Richard Peck, 1989, led the university to increased academic stature, creation of the West campus, and rising enrollment.

Under the leadership of Lattie F. Coor, president from 1990 to 2002, ASU grew through the creation of the Polytechnic campus and extended education sites. Increased commitment to diversity, quality in undergraduate education, research, and economic development occurred over his 12-year tenure. Part of Coor's legacy to the university was a successful fundraising campaign: through private donations, more than $500 million was invested in areas that would significantly impact the future of ASU. Among the campaign's achievements were the naming and endowing of Barrett, The Honors College, and the Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts; the creation of many new endowed faculty positions; and hundreds of new scholarships and fellowships.

In 2002, Michael M. Crow became the university's 16th president. At his inauguration, he outlined his vision for transforming ASU into a "New American University" — one that would be open and inclusive, and set a goal for the university to meet Association of American Universities criteria and to become a member.Crow initiated the idea of transforming ASU into "One university in many places" — a single institution comprising several campuses, sharing students, faculty, staff and accreditation. Subsequent reorganizations combined academic departments, consolidated colleges and schools, and reduced staff and administration as the university expanded its West and Polytechnic campuses. ASU's Downtown Phoenix campus was also expanded, with several colleges and schools relocating there. The university established learning centers throughout the state, including the ASU Colleges at Lake Havasu City and programs in Thatcher, Yuma, and Tucson. Students at these centers can choose from several ASU degree and certificate programs.