University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff

University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff

File:University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff seal.jpg University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff Seal
Type	Public, HBCU
Established	1873
Chancellor	Calvin Johnson (Interim)
Undergraduates	3,232
Postgraduates	100
Location	Pine Bluff , Arkansas , United States 34°14′32″N 92°01′13″W
Campus	Urban
Colors	Black and Gold
Nickname	Golden Lions
Affiliations	Southwestern Athletic Conference
Website	www.uapb.edu
File:ArkansasPBGoldenLions.png

The University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (UAPB) is a historically black university located in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, United States. Founded in 1873, it is the oldest HBCU and the second oldest public institution in the state of Arkansas (after the University of Arkansas). UAPB is a member-school of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund. It is known popularly by its moniker the "Flagship of the Delta."

History

The University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, was founded in 1873 as the Branch Normal College; it was nominally part of the "normal" (education) department of Arkansas Industrial University, later the University of Arkansas, but was operated separately due to segregation. It later became a land-grant college under the 1890 amendments to Morrill Land-Grant Colleges Act, which required states which did not open their land-grant university to all races to establish a separate land-grant university for each race. The school severed its ties with the University of Arkansas and became Arkansas Agricultural, Mechanical & Normal (AM&N) College in 1927; it moved to its current campus location in 1929. The school re-joined what is now the University of Arkansas System in 1972, this time as a full-fledged campus, gaining its current name and university status in the process.

Since 1988, the university has gained recognition as a leading research institution in aquaculture studies, offering the state's only comprehensive program in this field, and supporting a growing regional industry throughout the Mid-South (according to the school, aquaculture is a $167 million industry in Arkansas alone and approximately $1.2 billion in the Mississippi Delta region). Recently the program got enhanced with the addition of Aquaculture/Fisheries PhD program to its belt.

Athletics

Main article: Arkansas–Pine Bluff Golden Lions

See also: Arkansas–Pine Bluff Golden Lions football and Arkansas–Pine Bluff Golden Lions men's basketball

UAPB's colors are black and gold and their nickname is the Golden Lions.

Arkansas–Pine Bluff's sports teams have participated in NCAA Division I in the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) since re-joining the conference in 1998, and competes in the Football Championship Subdivision (formerly I-AA) for football. Home football games are held at Golden Lion Stadium. Men's sports also include baseball, basketball, cross country, golf, tennis and track & field; while women's sports include basketball, cross country, soccer, softball, tennis, track & field and volleyball.

The Lions participated in the SWAC Championship Game for the first time in 2006 after recording a 7–2 conference record. The Alabama A&M Bulldogs defeated the Lions (22–13) in the championship game. The Lions finished that season with an overall record of 8–4.

The lions won the Swac Championship on December 8, 2012 against Jackson State in Birmingham, Alabama. UAPB finished the 2012 season 10-2 and are the 2012 Southwestern Athletic Conference champions.

In 2009–2010, for the first time in school history, the women's soccer team won the SWAC tournament and made it to the NCAA tournament for the first time ever. Also the men's basketball team received an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament as champions of the SWAC conference. The Golden Lions won the opening round game against Winthrop and were awarded the #16 seed in the South Region. The team was eliminated from the tournament in the following round by Duke who utimately became the NCAA Champions.

Student life

Residential life

The University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff houses over 1000 students on its campus. Hunt Hall and the Harrold Complex each feature rooms on double loaded corridors with common area bath facilities. They also all feature computer labs, snack kitchens, laundry facilities, study rooms, telephones and cable television in all rooms, study rooms, and lobbies. Internet access is available in all rooms as well. Hunt Hall houses male students. The Harrold Complex, consisting of four halls, Johnson, Copeland, Fischer, and Stevens is for females with freshman males assigned to Johnson and Copeland.

The Johnny B. Johnson Complex; JBJ, as it is referred to by its residents, can house 288 students. 8 students are assigned to a 4 bedroom suite which includes 2 baths, a living and dining area, and a small kitchen with a full sized refrigerator and microwave oven. JBJ has its own dining and laundry facilities that are exclusively for the use of its residents. The Upperclassmen Honor Suites are located at JBJ. Occupancy at JBJ is limited to those students with a minimum of 30 hours and a minimum GPA of 2.0. Preference is given to those students with at least two semesters of on-campus residency.

Built in 1991, The Johnny B. Johnson Housing Complex was named in honor of Dr. Johnny B. Johnson, former Chancellor of the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff. J.B.J. has nine buildings and houses a total of 288 male & female students.

Built in 1955, Hunt Hall was named in memory of Silas Hunt, the first black law student at the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville. Hunt Hall has two floors and houses 134 male students.

Built in 1964, The Harrold Complex, was named in memory of Mrs. Norma E. Harrold, former Dean of Women, It has 4 halls and houses a total of 512 male and female students. Johnson Hall, named in honor of Ms. Nettie E. Johnson was a graduate of the class of 1903, Copeland Hall, was named in memory of Ernestine Inez Copeland, Fischer Hall, was named in memory of Ms. Rubye G. Fischer a former principal of the J.C. Corbin Laboratory School, and Stevens Hall, was named for the late Maggie R. Stevens a former counselor at Branch Normal College.

The newest residence hall at the University of Arkansas Pine Bluff is the new Delta Housing Complex. Built in 2003, the Delta Housing Complex offers first class living accommodations. This suite style complex has 104 private rooms & 140 double rooms and it houses 388 students.

Fraternities & sororities

Eight of the nine National Pan-Hellenic Council fraternities and sororities are represented on campus. These organizations are:

Organization	Symbol	Chapter	Chapter Symbol
Alpha Kappa Alpha	ΑΚΑ	Alpha Rho	AP
Alpha Phi Alpha	ΑΦΑ	Gamma Delta	ΓΔ
Delta Sigma Theta	ΔΣΘ	Delta Eta	ΔH
Kappa Alpha Psi	ΚΑΨ	Gamma Sigma	ΓΣ
Omega Psi Phi	ΩΨΦ	Tau Sigma	TΣ
Phi Beta Sigma	ΦΒΣ	Beta Theta	BΘ
Sigma Gamma Rho	ΣΓΡ	Alpha Chi	AX
Zeta Phi Beta	ΖΦΒ	Beta Beta	BB

Other Greek organizations include Kappa Kappa Psi, Tau Beta Sigma, Phi Mu Alpha, Sigma Alpha Iota, Mu Alpha Mu, Mu Alpha Nu, and Lambda Alpha Mu.

Marching band

In 2009, the UAPB Band, known as the Marching Musical Machine of the Mid-South (M4), was selected to participate in the United States Presidential Inaugural Parade.

Notable alumni

Name	Class year	Notability	Reference(s)
Martha S. Lewis	1944	government official in New York city and state
Danny K. Davis	1961	U.S. Representative for 7th Congressional District in Illinois
Jamil Nasser	1955	jazz musician, bassist
Frank Burgess	1957	professional basketball player; later an attorney and U.S. federal judge for the Western District of Washington Burgess only attended one year before enlisting in the U.S. Air Force. After serving a four-year tour, he transferred to Gonzaga University, where he eventually earned bachelor's and law degrees.
Joe Gardner	1966	jazz musician, trumpet
Dr. Cleophus Charles	1966	Carter Woodson Professorship in Negro History, 1973–2000 Berea College, Berea KY
David Dewitt Chapple	1966	musician, saxophonist, bandleader
John Stubblefield	1967	jazz musician, sax, recording artist
James Leary	1968	jazz/classical musician, bass, Sammy Davis, Jr., Count Basie Orchestra, Oakland Symphony
L. C. Greenwood	1969	football player; former Pittsburgh Steelers defensive lineman, a member of the famous Steel Curtain defense
Cleo Miller	1973	former football player
Ivory Lee Brown	1991	football player
Smokie Norful	1995	Pastor, gospel singer and pianist
Jamil Snowden	1995	football player
Chris Akins		former NFL defensive back
Big Tuck		rapper
Greg Wesley	2000	current NFL defensive back
Dante Wesley	2002	football player
Courtney Van Buren	2003	former NFL offensive lineman
Charles Ali	2007	football player; former Cleveland Browns
Martell Mallett		football player
Don Zimmerman		former NFL wide receiver

External links

• Official website
• Official athletics website