Southern Utah University

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
Question book-new.svg
 This article relies on references to primary sources. Please add references to secondary or tertiary sources. (September 2009)
Southern Utah University
SUU Academic Logo.png
Motto Learning Lives Forever
Established 1897
Type Public
President Michael T. Benson
Academic staff 223
Students 8,297 (Fall 2012)[1]
Undergraduates 7,634 (Fall 2012)
Postgraduates 663 (Fall 2012)
Location Cedar City, Utah, USA
Campus 129 acres (0.52 km²)
Former names Branch Normal School (1897–1913)
Branch Agricultural College (1913–1953)
College of Southern Utah (1953–1969)
Southern Utah State College (1969–1990)
Mascot Thunderbirds
Colors Red & White (Black Accent)            
Website www.suu.edu

Southern Utah University, or SUU, is a public university located in Cedar City, Utah. It was founded by the citizens of Cedar City in 1897 as an extension of the Agricultural College of Utah.

Southern Utah University hosts the Tony Award-winning Utah Shakespearean Festival as well as the Utah Summer Games which is held in the Eccles Coliseum.

Contents

Academics [edit]

The university's enrollment is 8,297 students as of Fall semester 2012,[1] with approximately 223 faculty members, The university awards Associate Degrees, Bachelor's Degrees, and Master's Degrees, and is divided into four colleges and three schools:

  • College of Education & Human Development
  • College of Humanities & Social Sciences
  • College of Performing & Visual Arts
  • Walter Maxwell Gibson College of Science & Engineering
  • School of Computing & Technology (part of the College of Science & Engineering)
  • School of Business
  • School of Continuing & Professional Studies

Rankings [edit]

Fall Statistics[2][3][4][5][6]

  2012 2011 2010 2009 2008
Freshman Applicants 6,375 4,249 3,876 3,276 3,282
Admits 3,655 3,071 3,003 2,662 2,359
 % Admitted 57.33 72.27 77.47 81.25 71.87
Enrolled 1,281 1,249 1,319 1,316 1,244
GPA 3.50 3.47 3.49 3.42 3.43
ACT Composite 23 23 22 22 22
SAT Composite 1025 1035 1005 1025 1025
*SAT out of 1600
(50th percentile)
  • Consumer's Digest: Top Ten Best Value in America (2004, 2007 and 2009) [7][8]
  • National Research Center for College & University Admissions: Ninth best admissions website in nation (2006)[9]
  • Princeton Review: America’s Best Value Colleges (2007, 2008, 2009) [10]
  • U.S. News & World Report: America’s Best Colleges (2007)[11]
  • Princeton Review: Best in the West (2004, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2011) [12][13]

ESL program [edit]

In 2011, the university started a fast-track ESL program previously operated by an unaccredited private business, Internexus.[14] The program permitted students to take ESL classes a the same time they were enrolled as regular Freshman, rather than the usual arrangement by which they must first pass ESL. In response to complaints about the quality of program, the Saudi Arabian Cultural Mission barred students from that country from the program; previously, they comprised 158 of the program’s 182 students.[15]

  1. 1

Campus [edit]

Braithwaite Liberal Arts Center and Old Main

The university's first building, built in 1898, remains part of campus, and is affectionately known as Old Main. The university also boasts the legend of Old' Sorrel, a horse who is said to have assisted the citizens in building the school in record-high snow. A statue of the horse is located in front of the Centrum special events center, on the west side of campus. Consistent with its heritage of educating educators, one in three graduates have an education degree.

Students [edit]

Adams Memorial Theater at SUU, a replica of the Globe Theatre and home of the Utah Shakespearean Festival.

Southern Utah University currently draws students from 45 states, 25 foreign countries, and all of Utah's 29 counties. Of the total enrollment, 58 percent are women and 42 percent are men, a 1.4 to 1 ratio. 11% are of other than caucasian background. About 70 percent of all students live on campus or near the campus. The student-faculty ratio is 22 to 1.

Student activities [edit]

Student activities range from the typical collegiate involvement of student government and clubs & organizations to the uniquiness of the Entertainment Bureau, Leavitt Center, and Outdoor Rec Center.

Southern Utah University Student Association [edit]

The Southern Utah University Student Association (SUUSA) is governed by four Executive Council members , elected each March, along with one representative per college to the Student Senate, by the general student body. Event Directors, members of the President's Cabinet, and Club Directors are appointed by the Executive Council through an application and interview process. They are then investigated and ratified by the Academic Senate.

Michael O. Leavitt Center for Politics and Public Service [edit]

The Michael O. Leavitt Center for Politics and Public Service (typically referred to as the "Leavitt Center") is after alumnus Michael O. Leavitt (Former Utah Governor and George W. Bush Cabinet member). Student leaders in the Leavitt Center engage the student body through voter registration drives, public policy awareness, and public service. The mission of the center is to help student prepare for a life of public service. Students can receive funding from the Leavitt Center to spend a semester in a Washington, DC internship. Internships include positions in the offices of either of Utah senators, Orrin Hatch and Bob Bennett, in Nevada Senator Harry Reid's office (Reid graduated from SUU in 1959), with the Smithsonian Institution, and with local sports teams.

SUU Presidential Ambassadors [edit]

The Presidential Ambassadors at SUU are students who assist in recruiting High School seniors, transfer students, and others. They give tours of the campus to prospective students, and host overnight weekends for prospective students.

Community Engagement Center (Formerly Service & Learning Center) [edit]

Many students that get involved in the Service & Learning Center do so within the many student-run organizations operated under the philosophy of the service learning concept. Between 50-100 students per academic year spend their Spring and/or Winter Breaks in Mexico or other locations in the U.S. (recently Colorado, Washington state, and New Orleans) providing service to orphanages, schools, and even Habitat for Humanity. Other programs include Sub for Santa, Make A Difference Day, After School Program, and Adopt a Grandparent program. On location in the center is the HOPE Pantry where students can unanimously donate or receive food as needed, the pantry is typically filled through the center's popular Bread and Soup Nite held in the Sharwan Smith Center's Ballroom on the first Monday of each month. Students can also participate in the Service-Learning Scholar and AmeriCorps programs through the center. In the fall semester of 2011 the Service and Learning Center officially changed its name to the Community Engagement Center.

SUUNEWS.COM [edit]

The student-designed and run integrated news website which carries streaming and archived debates and news stories from the Cedar City area. The site is a digital-first news delivery system, tying the student newspaper (The University Journal,) the campus radio station (Power 91) and the student operated television station, which features student-produced news broadcasts twice a week. The website has ranked within the top three collegiate news websites in the nation by the Society of Professional Journalists.[16]

The University Journal [edit]

The student run twice-a-week broadsheet newspaper delivers news and comment from students majoring in journalism as well as students from almost every other college on campus. It can be read online at suunews.com. It is consistently named one of the top three student-produced newspapers in Region 9 of the Society of Professional Journalists. Its Twitter handles are @SUUNEWS, @SUUNews_sports and @CWilliamsSUU, which is considered the top sports Twitter feed in Utah.[16]

Power 91 [edit]

KSUU 91.1 FM (Power 91) is a student operated radio station at the university. Many of the student disc jockeys change from semester to semester, with some being employed by the station. It airs games by SUU Athletics teams in Football and men's and women's basketball and women's gymnastics.

SUTV [edit]

SUTV is a cable TV channel operated by the university's Department of Communication. It is operated on an Educational-access television channel of the Bresnan Communications Cable TV system in Cedar City, Utah. It is affiliated with the Classic Arts Showcase. Most of the local programs are produced by students enrolled in communication classes at the university. The include SUTV News, a weekly broadcast of newsworthy local and campus events, and The T-Bird Zone, a showcase of Thunderbird athletics featuring interviews with coaches and players, as well as highlights of games and sports news.

Greek Life [edit]

There are four recognized Greek organizations on campus, the fraternities, Chi Phi, and Sigma Chi and the sororities, Alpha Phi and local Delta Psi Omega.

Student traditions [edit]

The Scream [edit]

The Scream, previously known as the Howl, is the largest one night event held by the Student Activities Board and attracts students from all over the state of Utah.[citation needed] Entertainment varies from year to year, but has generally included bands, hypnotists, mentalists, costume contests, comics, acrobats, caricature artists, photo booths, and a dance in the Centrum Basketball Arena. The event usually occurs on a Friday within a week of Halloween.

Miss SUU Pageant [edit]

The Miss SUU Pageant is a pageant that has been held every February since the early 1950s.[citation needed] The winner is crowned as the Homecoming Queen and representative of SUU at the Miss Utah pageant. Past winner Jill Stevens went on to represent the state at the Miss America pageant. The ties to the Miss America association were broken in 2010 due to budget cuts but the Student Activities Board still continues hosting a pageant as a Homecoming Week activity.

Athletics [edit]

Main article: Southern Utah Thunderbirds
See also: Southern Utah Thunderbirds football and Southern Utah Thunderbirds men's basketball

The university's sports teams are known as the Thunderbirds. The colors are red, white and black. Teams compete in The NCAA Football Championship Subdivision (FCS, formerly known as division I-AA) in football (Great West Football Conference) and in Division I in other sports (The Summit League and Western Athletic Conference) SUU also competes in The National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association, in the Rocky Mountain Region. The school became a full member of the Big Sky Conference in 2012.[17] With the move, SUU discontinued its baseball program and will establish a men's tennis team in its place. The baseball program ends with an overall record of 571–970.[18]

The Thunderbirds compete in:

Southern Utah University Alumni Association [edit]

The Southern Utah University Alumni Association supports the University by fostering a lifelong spirit of loyalty, service, and fellowship among alumni, faculty, students, parents and friends of SUU.

SUU Alumni website

SUU In View Alumni Magazine

News from the Nest enews

Alumni chapters amd networks [edit]

Chapters [edit]

Iron County, UT, Northeast, Northwest, Salt Lake City, UT, Southern Arizona, Southern California, Southern Nevada, Utah County, UT, Washington County, Washington, D.C.[19]

Networks [edit]

Boston, MA, Central Utah, Chicago, IL, Davis County, UT, Florida, Fresno, CA, Juab County, UT, Lincoln County, NV, Logan, UT, Michigan, North Carolina, Nebraska/Iowa, San Francisco, CA, Texas, Weber County, UT.[19]

Notable Alumni [edit]

 This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (November 2012)

References [edit]

  1. ^ a b http://suu.edu/general/ir/fact12/enrollment.html
  2. ^ http://suu.edu/general/ir/pdf/cds2012-13.pdf
  3. ^ http://suu.edu/general/ir/pdf/cds2011-12.pdf
  4. ^ http://suu.edu/general/ir/pdf/cds2010-11.pdf
  5. ^ http://suu.edu/general/ir/pdf/cds2009-10.pdf
  6. ^ http://suu.edu/general/ir/pdf/cds2008-09.pdf
  7. ^ SUU - Marketing & PR: An Official Top Ten Best Value in America
  8. ^ SUU - News: 6/22/2007 - SUU Again Ranked in Consumers Digest Top Ten
  9. ^ SUU - News: 10/16/2006 - SUU Has Top-Ten Website in Nation
  10. ^ SUU - Marketing & PR: Princeton Review 2007
  11. ^ SUU - Marketing & PR: U.S. News and World Report Ranking 2007
  12. ^ SUU - News: 11/3/2005 - The Princeton Review Names SUU One of the Best, Again!
  13. ^ SUU - News: 7/30/2008 - SUU Ranked as “Best in the West” by The Princeton Review
  14. ^ Brian Maffly, "Is SUU rushing foreign students into college classes? Saudi mission bans its students from entering troubled program with unorthodox fast track." The Salt Lake Tribune Dec. 2, 2012 [1] Accessed Dec 7, 2012
  15. ^ Charles Huckabee "Saudi Mission Bans Its Students From Troubled Program at Southern Utah U." The Chronicle of Higher Education December 2, 2012 [2] Accessed Dev 7, 2012
  16. ^ a b http://spj.org/a-moe.asp
  17. ^ "Big Sky Conference - Southern Utah, North Dakota Join Big Sky". Bigskyconf.com. Retrieved 2012-11-30. 
  18. ^ "Southern Utah baseball program comes to an end". Deseret News. 2012-05-25. Retrieved 2012-06-04. 
  19. ^ a b SUU Alumni Representatives

External links [edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Southern Utah University
Full members (all sports)
Associate members (football-only)
Future full member (non-football)
Public research
Public comprehensive
Public junior colleges
Technical colleges
Private
Other
Sports teams based in Utah
Baseball
Flag of Utah.svg
Basketball
Football
Hockey
Roller derby
Rugby
Soccer
Major College athletics
(NCAA Div. I)
(NCAA Div. II)
(NAIA)
(NJCAA)

Coordinates: 37°40′32″N 113°04′18″W / 37.675448°N 113.071632°W / 37.675448; -113.071632

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Southern_Utah_University&oldid=552774895"