Appalachian State University
Appalachian State University is a public university located in
Boone, North Carolina and the sixth-largest institution in the
University of North Carolina system. Appalachian (pronounced app-uh-LATCH-an) State is sometimes referred to as
AppState, or simply
"App". The University has been ranked among the top 15
Southern colleges and universities since the
U.S. News and World Report's
America's Best Colleges Guide began publication in
1986. In 2001, the University was recognized by
TIME Magazine as a
College of the Year.
A Board of Directors elected by the
University of North Carolina's Board of Governors establishes broad, university policy but delegates daily operation of Appalchian State to a
chancellor. The Chancellor likewise delegates some duties to several vice-chancellors, as approved by the Directors, in a
cabinet-like organization, or other administrative offices of the Chancellor. These administrative offices are advised by several university committees on the needs of campus constituents, as represented by a
Faculty Senate, Staff Council and
Student Government Association.
Academic
The University is comprised of five colleges: Arts & Sciences, Fine Arts & Applied Sciences, Business, Music, and Education. These colleges offer 91 undergraduate and 81 graduate courses of study. The Goodnight Family
Sustainable Development Program (SD) is an
interdisciplinary course of study unique to Appalachian State.
*College of Arts and Sciences
**Anthropology
**Biology
**Chemistry
**Computer Science
**English
**Foreign Languages and Literatures
**Geography and Planning
**Geology
**History
**Interdisciplinary Studies
**Mathematical Sciences
**Philosophy and Religion
**Physics and Astronomy
**Political Science/Criminal Justice
**Psychology
**Sociology and Social Work
*College of Fine and Applied Arts
**Art
**Communication
**Family and Consumer Sciences
**Health, Leisure, and Exercise Science
**Military Science and Leadership
**Nursing (Fall 2006)
**Technology
**Theatre and Dance
*
Mariam Cannon Hayes School of Music**Music
*Reich College of Education
**Curriculum and Instruction
**Human Development and Psychological Counseling
**Language, Readings, and Exceptionalities
**Leadership and Educational Studies
**Doctoral Program in Education Leadership
*Walker College of Business
**Accounting
**Computer Information Systems
**Economics
**Finance, Banking, and Insurance
**International Business
**Management
**Marketing
Publications
The University publishes or holds copyrights to several periodicals, including:
*
Appalachian Business Review, Bureau of Business and Economic Research, Walker College of Business
*
Appalachian Journal, Center for Appalachian Studies, College of Arts and Sciences
*
Cold Mountain Review, Department of English
*
Journal of Developmental Education, Center for Developmental Education, Reich College of Education
*
The International Comet Quarterly, Department of Physics and Astronomy (ceded to the
Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory in 1990)
*
Journal of Health Care Marketing, Center for Management Development, Walker College of Business
The University's faculty contribute to a variety of
peer reviewed journals as listed by the
Belk Library's faculty publications database, and members of its Department of Physics and Astronomy serve as editors for the nationally distinguished journal
The Physics Teacher.
Centers and Institutes
The University houses several academic centers and institutes related to its mission. These include:
*
Appalachian Regional Development Institute - outreach and economic development for the Appalachians; includes the ASU Energy Center
*
Center for Appalachian Studies - includes the Appalachian Collection held by Belk Library, the Appalachian Cultural Museum, and publishing editor of the
Appalachian Journal*
National Center for Developmental Education and the Kellogg Institute
* Center for Management Development
* North Carolina
Mathemathics and Science Education Center (NC-MSEC)
*
North Carolina Wind EnergyLocated in the
mountains of northwestern
North Carolina, Appalachian State University has the highest elevation of any
university in the
United States east of the
Mississippi River, at an elevation of 3333 feet above sea level. The University's main campus is in downtown
Boone, a town that supports a population of 14,900, compared to a total ASU enrollment of 14,653 students (2005-2006). The campus encompasses 340 acres (1.4 km²), including a main campus of 250 acres (1 km²) with 17 residence halls, 3 dining facilities, and 15 academic buildings.
The center of campus is generally considered to be Sanford Mall, an open grass area between the student union,
dining halls, and library; students play amateur sports on the Mall, read on benches on its edges, or use the area for
free speech. River Street, a thoroughfare for town and university traffic, essentially divides the campus into east and west sections. The eastern side of campus includes Sanford Mall, Plemmons Student Union, Welborn Dining Hall (soon to be replaced by a new facility), and Belk Library, along with two communities of residence halls, Eastridge and Pinnacle. The campus on the west side has Trivette Dining Hall, the Quinn Recreation Center, Kidd-Brewer Stadium, and Stadium Heights and Yosef Hollow, the two remaining residence hall communities. The east and west sides of campus are connected by two underground tunnels that travel under River Street and several crosswalks through campus. At the north end of campus, Bodenheimer Drive crosses over River Street and leads to the Appalachian Heights (an apartment-style residence hall open only to upperclassmen), Mountaineer Apartments (housing for non-traditional students), the Chancellor's House, and the Broyhill Inn and Conference Center.
New to campus is the
Carol Grotnes Belk Library & Information Commons, commonly referred to as
Belk Library, which opened in a newly-constructed five story building September
2005 in the former parking lot of Whitner Hall. The Belk Library features computer stations and study tables on every floor,
wireless computer access on all floors, group study rooms, conference and viewing rooms, and lockers available for checkout. The Library holds varying collections, including the University's archives, an Instructional Materials Center for teachers, and the Appalachian Collection for regional studies. Besides serving University patrons, the Library also serves as a public library for the local community, although circulation is available only to registered patrons.
The
Turchin Center for the Visual Arts, located on the edge of main campus and expanded in the spring of 2005, is the University's visual art center. The Turchin Center is largest visual arts center in northwestern North Carolina, eastern Tennessee, and southwestern Virginia; it displays rotating exhibits indoors and outdoors, some exhibits being culturally specific to the Appalachians, and offers community outreach programs through art courses.
Student Life
The hub of student life, especially for on-campus students, is the Plemmons Student Union, located near the center of campus. The
student union features a
solarium with tables for studying or eating, two coffee shops, a film screening room, a cafe adjacent to an
atrium with study spaces, a computer lab with study rooms, and several rooms reserved for conferences and meetings. Offices of several student affair programs are housed in the Union, such as the Student Government Association,
The Appalachian -- the student edited newspaper, Judicial Affairs, and
outreach programs. The Applachian Popular Programming Society (A.P.P.S.), a student-run organization that selects and runs almost all of the on-campus entertainment, is also headquartered there. The Union also includes amenities such as a game room and fitness center. Appalachian also has an on-campus nightclub, Legends, located on the east campus.
Total enrollment as of 2006 is 14,653, including
distance-learning programs. Freshman enrollment is 2,543 with an average SAT of 1130. The student-to-faculty ratio is on average 19-to-1.
Appalachian's sports teams are nicknamed the Mountaineers and the university operates 20 intercollegiate athletics programs which compete in the
Southern Conference NCAA
Division I-A or I-AA, such as football.
Appalachian State won the
NCAA Division I-AA national football championship over the
University of Northern Iowa 21-16 on
December 16,
2005. It is the first National Championship for Appalachian State in any team sport; and the first National Championship in football for any North Carolina university or college.
An Appalachian Summer Festival, hosted by
Appalachian State University, has been named one of the "Top 20 Events in the Southeast" by the Southeast Tourism Society for more than a decade.
In 2004, a committee for the Appalachian Family Caravan tour created a promotional video titled "
Hot Hot Hot," shown throughout the area by Chancellor Kenneth E. Peacock. The video became an inadvertent
internet phenomenon and was featured on
VH1's
Web Junk 20 program in early 2006. [
1] The video is no longer used by the University. [
2]
In 2001,
MTV's program
Road Rules visited ASU to produce an episode called
Campus Crawl, aired on-campus during an annual, winter student swimming event called the "polar plunge". The show's participants also crossed a high-wire strung between Coltrane and Gardner Halls.
Appalachian State University began in the summer of
1899 when a group of citizens of
Watauga County, NC, under the leadership of D.D. Dougherty and B.B. Dougherty, began a movement to establish a good school in
Boone, NC. Land was donated by D.B. Dougherty, father of the leaders in the enterprise, and by Mr. J.F. Hardin. On this site a wood frame building was erected by contributions from other citizens of Boone and
Watauga County.
 |
B.B. and D.D. Dougherty |
In the fall of 1899 Mr. Dauphin D. Dougherty and Blanford B. Dougherty, acting as co-principals, began the school which was named
Watauga Academy. These co-principals operated for four years until the school was made a state institution.
In 1903, after interest in the school had spread to the adjoining counties, Hon. W.C. Newland of Caldwell County introduced a bill in the North Carolina House of the General Assembly to make this a state school, with an appropriation for maintenance and for building. The measure was adopted and passed to the Senate. Captain E.F. Lovill of Watauga, R.B. White of Franklin County, Clyde Hoey of Cleveland County, E. J. Justice of McDowell County spoke in favor of the measure. On March 9th, 1903, the bill became law, and the
Appalachian Training School for Teachers was established.
The new trustees met in June 1903 and elected Mr. B.B. Dougherty, Superintendent and D.D. Dougherty, Principal. For twenty-two years there was a period of steady growth, academic development, and valuable service to the State. In 1925, the Legislature changed the name to the Appalachian State Normal School and appropriated additional funding for maintenance and permanent improvement. Superintendent B.B. Dougherty was elected President, and Principal D.D. Dougherty was elected Business Manager and Treasurer. Four years later, in
1929, the Legislature again changed the name to
Appalachian State Teachers College, increased the appropriation for the maintenance and authorized the College to confer "such degrees as are usually conferred by American Colleges."
 |
Appalachian State Teachers College Seal |
The college property had reached a value of more than $2,000,000. Dr. B.B. Dougherty was continued as President. Professor D.D. Dougherty was continued as Business Manager and Treasurer, but he did not enjoy the larger institution for long. He died June 10th,
1929, the very first day of registration for the new college.
In
1930, the first four year class was graduated. That year 158 young men and young women were graduated in June and approximately 80 more graduated at the August Commencement. ()
In
1948 a Graduate School was formed. Enrollment was up to 1,100 students, including 23 graduate students, with 65 faculty. President B.B Dougherty retired after 56 years of serving the school in
1955. Dr. J.D. Rankin became interim president until Dr. William H. Plemmons was installed.
Appalachian offered programs in areas other than teaching in
1965. This change led to a more appropriate name for the school in 1967, Appalachian State University. Afterwards, three degree granting undergraduate colleges were created: Arts and Sciences, Fine and Applied Arts, and Education. In
1972 ASU became part of
UNC system.
Notable alumni
*
Stephen J. Dubner - writer, co-author of
Freakonomics*
Dexter Coakley - NFL (St. Louis Rams - Linebacker)
*
Franklin Graham - evangelist and missionary, son of
Billy Graham*
Daniel Wilcox - NFL (Baltimore Ravens - Tight End)
*
Chris Swecker - Assistant Director,
FBI [
3]
*
Melissa Morrison-Howard - Two-time Olympic
hurdler bronze medalist ('00 & '04)
*
Howard Coble - longtime Republican 6th District US Congressman from
Greensboro, NC*
Mary Ellen Snodgrass - author
*
J. Bradley Wilson - chairman, University of North Carolina Board of Governors [
4]
*
Jennifer E. Alley - former head coach and first female women's basketball coach, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill women's basketball team [
5]
*
Darren Dailey - artistic director,
Boston Children's Chorus and
Treble Chorus of New England [
6]
*
Lucas Meachem -
opera singer (
baritone) [
7]
*
Amber Opheim -
opera singer (
soprano) [
8]
*
Linda M. Combs - Controller,
Office of Management and Budget*
Brian Estridge - Play-by-play announcer for Texas Christian University and former play-by-play announcer for ASU.
*
Mary Jayne Harrelson - track athlete, two-time NCAA Outdoors 1500m Champion, [
9]
*
Eric Church - country music singer [
10]
*
Gloria Houston - author, The Year of the Perfect Christmas Tree [
11]
*
Official site of Appalachian State University*
Official site of ASU athletics*
Appalachian Student Ambassadors*
University Admissions*
Appalachian Alumni Association*
Interview with Dr. Kenneth Peacock, Chancellor, Appalachian State University*
What's hAPPening, the Appalachian alumni blog*
MySpace page for Appalachian State University
