| University of Arkansas at Monticello | |
| Former Names: | Fourth District Agricultural School (1910–1925) Arkansas Agricultural and Mechanical College (1925–1971) |
| Motto: | Veritate Duce Progredi |
| Mottoeng: | To Advance with Truth as our Guide |
| Motto Lang: | Latin |
| Faculty: | 373 |
| Students: | 3,925 (as of Fall 2016) |
| Chancellor: | Peggy Doss |
| Country: | United States |
| Endowment: | US$22,764,898[1] |
| Colors: | Green and White |
The University of Arkansas at Monticello (UAM) is a public university in Monticello, Arkansas with Colleges of Technology in Crossett and McGehee. UAM is part of the University of Arkansas System and offers master's degrees, baccalaureate degrees, and associate degrees. The city is in the Arkansas Timberlands, and UAM is home to the state's only School of Forest Resources.
The university is governed by the University of Arkansas Board of Trustees, which also oversees the operation of universities and other post-secondary educational institutions in Batesville, DeQueen, Fayetteville, Fort Smith, Helena, Hope, Little Rock, Morrilton, and Pine Bluff, Arkansas.
UAM offers in-state tuition rates not only to Arkansas residents but also to regional residents of Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri, and Tennessee.
The University of Arkansas at Monticello was established in 1909 by an act of the Arkansas General Assembly to serve the educational needs of southern Arkansas. Originally called the Fourth District Agricultural School, the school opened its doors September 14, 1910. In 1925, the General Assembly authorized the school's name to be changed to the Arkansas Agricultural and Mechanical College. Arkansas A&M received accreditation as a junior college in 1928, and as a four-year institution in 1940.
During World War II, Arkansas A&M College was one of 131 colleges and universities nationally that took part in the V-12 Navy College Training Program, which offered students a path to a Navy commission.[2]
Arkansas A&M became part of the University of Arkansas System on July 1, 1971. It then became designated as the University of Arkansas at Monticello. From 1969 to 1972, the University of Arkansas System increased its racial diversity and serving the state population by adding three new campuses: in Little Rock, Pine Bluff, and Monticello. These cities either already had numerous Black students, or, which in the case of the new campus in Little Rock, would soon admit Black students.
On July 1, 2003, the University of Arkansas at Monticello expanded its mission to include vocational and technical education. The UAM College of Technology-Crossett and the UAM College of Technology-McGehee became part of the University of Arkansas at Monticello, creating a larger system of post-secondary education in Southern Arkansas.
In July 2018, the School of Agriculture merged with the School of Forestry and Natural Resources to become the School of Forestry, Agriculture, and Natural Resources.[3]
See main article: Drew Central School District. The Drew County School Board established the A & M Training School #5 as a laboratory school for the college. In 1934 school district's name changed to Drew Central School District #5. A fire destroyed the school buildings, and growth in the population of both the school district and the college resulted in the school district becoming independent of the college. The college gave the school district a 99-year lease to a plot of land. Originally that land was 20acres large. In 1983 the district added 11acres to the lease.[4]
UAM is composed of eight distinct schools and colleges:
UAM also has one specialized division, the Division of Music.
The main campus in Monticello has two single-sex dormitories and two coeducational suite dormitories. The former are Horsfall Hall for women and Royer Hall for men, and the latter two are Bankston Hall and Maxwell Hall. University Apartments is for single upperclassman students. There is also a complex for married students, students with families, and university faculty,[5] HHFA Apartments.[6] The family housing is in the boundary of the Drew Central School District, which operates three schools that serve dependent minors living in the UAM family complex: Drew Central Elementary School, Drew Central Middle School, and Drew Central High School.[7] [8]
See main article: Arkansas–Monticello Boll Weevils and Cotton Blossoms. University of Arkansas at Monticello athletic teams are known as the Boll Weevils and Cotton Blossoms. UAM is a member of the NCAA Division II and currently competes within the Great American Conference (GAC) for ten sports, including: baseball, men's and women's basketball, men's and women's cross country, football, men's and women's golf, softball, and women's volleyball. In 2011 the university left the Gulf South Conference to become a charter member of the Great American Conference (GAC) with six other GSC member schools.[9]