Arkansas Tech University Explained

Arkansas Tech University
Former Name:Second District Agricultural School (1909–1925)
Arkansas Polytechnic College (1925–1976)
Enrollment:9,487 (Fall 2023)[1]
Undergrad:8,808
Postgrad:679
President:Russell Jones
Country:United States
Campus:City, 516acres
Colors:Green and gold[2]
Sports Nickname:Wonder Boys (men)
Golden Suns (women)
Mascot:Wonder Boys & Golden Suns

Arkansas Tech University (ATU) is a public university in Russellville, Arkansas, United States. The university offers programs at both baccalaureate and graduate levels in a range of fields. The Arkansas Tech University–Ozark Campus, a two-year satellite campus in the town of Ozark, primarily focuses on associate and certificate education.

History

Early history (1909–76)

In 1909, Act 100, passed by the Arkansas General Assembly and signed by Governor George Donaghey, provided for the creation of one agricultural high school in each of four districts stipulated in the act, with what would eventually become Arkansas Tech University in the Second District.[3] [4] [5]

The schools were to teach horticulture and textile making in addition to agriculture. The location for each of the four schools was to be chosen by that district's five trustees, appointed by the Governor, taking into consideration "the nature of the soil, healthfulness of location, general desirability, and other material inducements offered, such as the donation of buildings, land or money." The four schools eventually evolved into four present-day institutions of higher learning. The First District Agricultural School at Jonesboro evolved into Arkansas State University; the Second District Agricultural School in Russellville is today's Arkansas Tech University; the Third District Agricultural School in Magnolia became Southern Arkansas University; and the University of Arkansas Monticello began as the Fourth District Agricultural School.

After evaluating proposals from Fort Smith, Morrilton, Ozark, and Russellville, on February 10, 1910, Second District Agricultural School trustees announced that the school would be located in Russellville.[6] Construction of the school's Main Building began on April 10, 1910,[7] with contracts for additional buildings let in June 1910.[8] On October 26, 1910, the first classes were held in Russellville. The original purpose of the school was to offer a secondary (or high school) education in agricultural and technical subjects.[9] Later, the school took on the first two years of college instruction, and the school's name was changed to Arkansas Polytechnic College by the General Assembly in 1925 to reflect this change in purpose. The school became a two-year junior college in 1927 and, at the end of the 1929–1930 academic year, stopped offering high school classes.[10]

Recent history (1976–present)

The school took on its current name of Arkansas Tech University on July 9, 1976.

In the fall of 2003, Arkansas Tech University announced it intended to take over the state vocational school, Arkansas Valley Technical Institute, in Ozark, the seat of Franklin County. As of July 1, 2004, the Ozark campus has acted as a satellite campus of Arkansas Tech and has begun offering coursework leading toward an Associate of Applied Science degree in various subjects.

From 1997 to 2015, enrollment at Arkansas Tech increased by 183 percent. The fall of 2015 marked the 17th consecutive year that Arkansas Tech established a new institutional record for largest enrollment, then 12,054 students, making ATU the third largest institution of higher learning in the state.

Term Total students
Fall 2009 8,814
Fall 2010 9,815
Fall 2011 10,464
Fall 2012 10,950
Fall 2013 11,369
Fall 2014 12,002
Fall 2015 12,054
Fall 2016 11,894
Fall 2017 11,830
Fall 2018 12,101
Fall 2019 11,829
Fall 2020 10,829
Fall 2021 9,640
Fall 2022 9,445
Fall 20239,487

Arkansas Tech has invested $180 million in upgrades to its infrastructure since 1995 and the university has added more than 40 new academic programs of study under the leadership of Robert C. Brown, who has served as president of Arkansas Tech since 1993. In April 2014, Robin E. Bowen was selected by the university trustees selected to succeed Brown. When she took office on July 1, 2014, she became the first woman to lead a four-year, public Arkansas university.[11] On September 9, 2023, the Arkansas Tech Board of Trustees voted unanimously to fire Bowen and appoint Russell Jones as interim president.[12]

Facilities on National Register of Historic Places

Several Tech buildings are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[13]

Academics

College of Applied Sciences

College of Arts & Humanities

College of Business

College of Natural & Health Sciences

College of Education

College of Professional Studies and Community Outreach

Academic Centers

Student life

Residential halls

Greek system

Fraternities
Sororities
Service / co-ed
Music Greek fraternities and sororities:

Athletics

See main article: Arkansas Tech Wonder Boys and Golden Suns.

Arkansas Tech participates in NCAA Division II athletics as a charter member of the Great American Conference. Tech was a member of the Gulf South Conference from 1995 to 2011. Previously, Tech was a member of the Arkansas Intercollegiate Conference in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics. The university fields four men's and six women's varsity sports, as well as a club sports program:

Men's sports
Women's sports
Club / recreation sports

Facilities

Arkansas Tech University has dual nicknames: men's athletic teams are called the Wonder Boys, while the women's teams are called the Golden Suns.

Nicknames

On November 15, 1919, John Tucker, a 17-year-old freshman from Russellville, scored two touchdowns and kicks two extra points to lead the Second District Agricultural School Aggies to a 14–0 upset win over Jonesboro. In newspaper accounts following the game, Tucker and his teammates were referred to as "Wonder Boys," and the nickname remains to this day. Tucker was labeled as "The Original Wonder Boy" and was associated with the school for the rest of his life. He went on to play on the University of Alabama's Rose Bowl team in 1931 and served Arkansas Tech in a variety of roles – including coach, athletic director and chemistry professor – between 1925 and 1972. Two buildings on the Tech campus – Tucker Coliseum and Tucker Hall – are named in his honor.[14]

Tired of being referred to as the Wonder Girls or Wonderettes, the female athletes of Arkansas Tech held a contest in the spring of 1975 to determine what their new mascot would be. Several names were nominated, but in the end, the athletes selected Golden Suns as their new nickname.[15]

Notable alumni

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Enrollment Statistics Arkansas Tech University . www.atu.edu . 29 August 2022.
  2. Academic Brand Standards Manual . 2016-12-05.
  3. Act 100 . 1909 . Arkansas General Assembly . AN ACT to provide for the establishment and maintenance of Public Schools of Agriculture in the State of Arkansas . The Second District shall be composed of the following counties: Marion, Boone, Carroll, Benton, Washington, Madison, Newton, Searcy, Van Buren, Conway, Pope, Johnson, Franklin, Crawford, Sebastian, Logan, Yell, Perry, Scott, and Faulkner.
  4. News: Session at Old State House Evokes Memory of Act 100 and A-State's Founding . 18 June 2023 . A-State News . Arkansas State University . July 2, 2014.
  5. News: Smith . Doug . 100 and growing—ASU, Tech, SAU and UAM began humbly. . 18 June 2023 . Arkansas Times . Arkansas Times . August 21, 2009.
  6. Silva . Rachel . Arkansas Listings in the National Register of Historic Places: One Hundred Years of Arkansas Tech University . The Arkansas Historical Quarterly . 2009 . 68 . 4 . 442–450 . 40543604 . 14 November 2022 . A board of trustees for the Second District Agricultural School had been appointed by September 1909 and tasked with finding a location for the school as well as the construction of school buildings, hiring of staff, and development of curriculum. In order to be considered as a site for the school, towns had to pledge at least $40,000 and 200 acres. Fort Smith, Morrilton, Ozark, and Russellville all submitted bids. Russellville's bid included $40,000, 220 acres, and free electricity and water for three years, and on February 10, 1910, the trustees announced that the Second District Agricultural School would be located there..
  7. Silva . Rachel. Arkansas Listings in the National Register of Historic Places: One Hundred Years of Arkansas Tech University . The Arkansas Historical Quarterly . 2009 . 68 . 4 . 442–450 . 40543604 . 14 November 2022 . Designed in the Colonial Revival style, it was a three-and-one-half-story brick building with a tile roof. The building had two front-gabled wings connected by a recessed hipped roof section with dormer windows. The front and side entrances had arched openings accentuated by pilasters, a simple entablature, and a balustrade flush with the wall. When it opened, the Main Building had rooms for cooking, laundry, a soil laboratory, and an auditorium as well as the president's office and classrooms (Old Main was demolished in the 1970s)..
  8. Silva . Rachel. Arkansas Listings in the National Register of Historic Places: One Hundred Years of Arkansas Tech University . The Arkansas Historical Quarterly . 2009 . 68 . 4 . 442–450 . 40543604 . 14 November 2022 . Contracts were let in June 1910 for the construction of two men's dormitories, two women's dormitories, a dining hall, and a heating plant. Each dormitory accommodated thirty-five students..
  9. Silva . Rachel. Arkansas Listings in the National Register of Historic Places: One Hundred Years of Arkansas Tech University . The Arkansas Historical Quarterly . 2009 . 68 . 4 . 442–450 . 40543604 . 14 November 2022 . Initially, the four agricultural schools offered a secondary (or high school) education in agricultural and technical subjects, but by the 1921–1922 school year the Second District Agricultural School offered freshman-level college classes..
  10. Silva . Rachel. Arkansas Listings in the National Register of Historic Places: One Hundred Years of Arkansas Tech University . The Arkansas Historical Quarterly . 2009 . 68 . 4 . 442–450 . 40543604 . 14 November 2022 .
  11. Web site: Election of New Arkansas Tech University President is Historic for State. LAKANA. 22 April 2014. 16 February 2017.
  12. Web site: 2023-09-09 . Arkansas Tech University Board of Trustees vote terminates president without cause, appoints interim president . 2023-09-10 . KLRT - FOX16.com . en-US.
  13. Web site: National Register of Historical Places - ARKANSAS (AR), Pope County. 16 February 2017.
  14. Web site: History of Arkansas Polytechnic College. Arkansas Tech University. 16 February 2017. dead. 20 October 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20141020013347/http://www.atu.edu/centennial/docs/TheHistoryofArkansasPolytechnicCollege.pdf. Turrentine. G. R.. Tucker. John E..
  15. Web site: Arkansas Tech University Athletics. 16 February 2017.
  16. https://www.atualumni.com/ Arkansas Hall of Distinction member
  17. https://www.atu.edu/map/ Doc Bryan Student Services Center
  18. Web site: Robert Dale, R-68. arkansashouse.org. January 1, 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20160304092434/http://www.arkansashouse.org/member/226/robert-e-dale. March 4, 2016. dead.
  19. Web site: Eliah Drinkwitz - Head Coach - Staff Directory. 2020-11-30. University of Missouri Athletics. en.
  20. Web site: Trevor Drown. Project Vote Smart. April 8, 2015.
  21. Web site: Jane English's Biography. votesmart.org. December 7, 2013.
  22. Web site: Jon Eubanks, R-74 . arkansashouse.org . January 4, 2014 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20140105060119/http://www.arkansashouse.org/member/265/ . January 5, 2014 .
  23. Thomas DeBlack. "A Century Forward: The Centennial History of Arkansas Tech University." Walsworth Publishing Company. 2016.
  24. Web site: Kevin Her . Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. October 13, 2023.
  25. Web site: Andrea Lea, R-71 . arkansashouse.org . January 1, 2014 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20140102193934/http://www.arkansashouse.org/member/235/ . January 2, 2014 .
  26. Web site: Kelley Linck, R-99. arkansashouse.org. January 3, 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140104021045/http://www.arkansashouse.org/member/277/kelley-linck. January 4, 2014. dead.
  27. Web site: 2013-09-04. Wonder Boy Tanner Marsh for the Win!. 2021-06-16. Sporting Life Arkansas.
  28. Web site: Eddie Meador Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Draft, College . 2024-05-25 . Pro-Football-Reference.com . en.
  29. Web site: Rebecca Petty's Biography. . April 13, 2015.
  30. Web site: Marcus Richmond's Biography. Project Vote Smart. April 1, 2015.
  31. Web site: Tray Scott - Football Coach .
  32. Web site: Greg Standridge's Biography. . April 17, 2015.
  33. Web site: Boyd Anderson Tackett. Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. June 21, 2013.
  34. Web site: Steve Womack . Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. June 21, 2013.

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