North Carolina State University

North Carolina State University is a public, coeducational, extensive research university located in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Also known as NC State or NCSU, the university is the principal technological institute of the University of North Carolina System. The North Carolina General Assembly founded NC State in 1887 as a land-grant college. Today, NC State has an enrollment of over 30,000, making it the largest university in North Carolina. While NC State has historical strengths in design, agriculture, engineering, and textiles, it offers over 100 Bachelor degree areas of study including mathematics, meteorology, economics, political science, forestry, physics, and education.

History

Main Article: History of North Carolina State University

First freshman class at North Carolina College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts in 1889.

The North Carolina General Assembly founded NC State in 1887 as a land-grant college under the name North Carolina College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts. As a land-grant college, NC State would provide a "liberal and practical education" while focusing on military tactics, agriculture and the mechanical arts without excluding classical studies. Since its founding, the university has maintained these objectives while building on them.

After opening its doors in 1889, NC State saw its enrollment fluctuated and its mandate expand. Due to the Great Depression, the North Carolina government administratively combined the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the Women's College at Greensboro, and NC State. This conglomeration later became the University of North Carolina system in 1971. After World War II, the university has constantly grown and changed.

Currently, NC State has over 7,000 employees, over 30,000 students, an $820 million annual budget, and a $380 million endowment. It is also widely recognized as one of the three anchors of North Carolina's Research Triangle, together with Duke University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Academics

Academic units

NC State offers bachelor's degrees in 100 areas of study, master's degrees in 109 areas and doctorate degrees in 55 areas. Only the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences offers associate's degrees.

NC State is known for its programs in engineering and design. The textile and paper science programs are notable, given the University's location near active textile and paper producers. NC State also provides a First Year Program for incoming freshmen to give incoming freshmen an opportunity to experience several disciplines before selecting a major.NC State Profile as provided by the UNC System Office[http://www.brevard.edu/fyc/ruproject/ncstate/cooped.htm Co-op information Page

Admission

Considered a more selective university, NC State accepts fewer than 60% of those who apply. Out of the 3,175 students in the 2004 freshmen class, 43% were ranked in the top 10% of their high school class and 48% scored greater than 1200 on the SAT. Twenty-five percent were in both categories. State law limits the admission of students from outside North Carolina, so there is strong competition among non-residents for admissions.

Uniquely, NC State requires admission candidates to choose a preferred college of study. After determining that an applicant meets the overall university requirements, the individual college must also agree to accept the student. Due to this process, some colleges have significantly higher admission requirements than others. For example, the College of Engineering has higher admission standards than the College of Natural Resources. In addition, students might have a difficult time transferring between colleges. Transferring to the College of Design from another college could be difficult due to lack of design experience.

Library

The library system at NC State, ranked 27th out of 113 North American research libraries, includes 3.4 million volumes and 54 thousand journal subscriptions (as of 2005). The library system has an annual budget of over $20 million and consists of 5 libraries. The largest library, D.H. Hill Library, located on Main Campus is over 11 stories tall and covers over 119 thousand square feet (11 thousand square meters). NC State as a member of the Triangle Research Libraries Network (TRLN), has interlibrary loan services with Duke University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and North Carolina Central University.

Rankings, reputation and classifications

Media and ranking organizations generally recognize NC State as a university with world class status and quality educational programs. US News and World Report places NC State 78th out of 248 national universities in the US (34th out of public colleges). The Shanghai Jiao Tong University's Academic Ranking of World Universities positions NC State 101st among 500 world universities. The Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education designated the university as a "Doctoral/Research Universities-Extensive", a category given to only 96 research universities in the US. [1]Carnegie Foundation

Due to its relatively low tuition rates, media organization rank NC State high in the value of its education. US News selected NC State 2nd in the US in quality of the education for the money. Prinston Review put the university on its "Best Value Colleges".

NC State's rankings are significantly hurt by its 29.7% four year graduation rate (for freshmen entering in 1998), as compared to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill's 66.7% rate for the same class. The administration of NC State claims that this rate is a product of high participation in the cooperative education program (which adds a year to an undergraduate's tenure) and the difficulty of the engineering degrees.

Student life

D.H. Hill Library stands 11 stories tall and is named for NC State's first librarian.

Thirty-three percent of all students live on campus in one of twenty different residence halls. Most residence halls provide academic and social events as well as host programs that acclimate incoming students to the college experience. Each residence hall or residence hall area has an elected council to provide for local event programming and an outlet for student concerns. Collectively, representatives from each hall make up the Inter-Residence Council which represents the on-campus residence-life community as a whole. NC State has a growing Greek presence, and the university plans to renovate and improve many of the fraternity or sorority houses located on campus.

While Greeks do offer some social events, many residence halls host their own events, though alcohol policies are strictly enforced. One significant party is the "Design School Halloween Bash" hosted by the College of Design every October. By far the largest party and social events are those associated with sporting events.

The student center of the University includes an African-American Cultural Center which has an art gallery and a library. There is also a multicultural student affairs office.

Student life at North Carolina State University includes opportunities in a diverse range of activities and organizations. Besides fraternities and sororities, there are multicultural groups, arts groups, political and social action groups, service and professional groups, religious groups, sports and recreation groups, academic and professional groups, and special interest groups such as the Clogging Team, the Film Society, the Judo Club, the Equestrian Club, and the Black Finesse Modeling Troupe.

Student government

The Student Government at NCSU is composed of 3 branches. Founded in 1921, the Student Government is a student-run organization that serves as the official voice of the student body and attempts to better the student experience at the University. Both a governing body and an advocacy group, Student Government is involved in policy-making, adjudication, programming, advocating, community service, and countless other activities. The organization is a clearinghouse for concerns from students and answers from administrators.

Student media

Technician has been NC State's student newspaper since 1920.

Technician has been North Carolina State University's student-run newspaper since 1920. It employs more than 100 students throughout the year and reports on campus news, sports, entertainment, and state and national news. Technician is published Monday through Friday when school is in session with a circulation of about 15,000. The paper is funded by advertisement and the student government; it is distributed for free at numerous locations on campus and at area merchants.

NC State's oldest student publication, the Agromeck yearbook, celebrated its 100th birthday with the 2002 edition. It acts as a compendium of student life on campus including sporting events, social activities, and day-to-day living. The Agromeck serves as a historian of campus and is a reminder of the way things used to be. Each year, nearly 1,000 copies are printed and sold.

NC State has its own student-run radio station, WKNC. WKNC is a non-commercial station and cannot run traditional advertisements. It does seek sponsors, who can be acknowledged on the air, but 90% of the station's funding is from the university. The radio station broadcasts at 25,000 watts and reaches around 200,000 people. The station host several formats run by student disc jockies.

Athletics

The red block ‘S' with ‘N' and ‘C' has been in use since 1890.

As an Atlantic Coast Conference founding member, NC State competes in 24 intercollegiate varsity sports. Also known as the Wolfpack, NC State has won eight national championships: two NCAA championships, two AIAW championhips, and four titles under other sanctioning bodies.

Campus

Main

Holladay Hall, the first building built on NC State's campus in 1889, now houses the Chancellor's Office.

NC State's Main Campus has three general areas: North Main Campus, Central Main Campus, and South Main Campus. North Main Campus is the oldest part of NC State and is home to most academic departments and a few residence halls. Central Main Campus is mainly residence halls, cafeterias, gymnasiums and student support departments. North and Central Main Campus are separated by a rail road track. Pedestrian and road tunnels are used to cross the tracks. Western Boulevard separates Central and South Main Campuses. Greek Court and a large conference center are found on South Main Campus. Main Campus is also divided into West, Central, and East Campus. West and Central campuses are divided by Dan Allen Drive, while Central and East are divided by Morill Drive and Reynolds Coliseum.

NC State's PULSTAR Reactor is a 1 MW pool-type nuclear research reactor.

Architecturally, Main Campus is known for its distinctive red brick buildings. Due to oversupply, odd brick statues dot the landscape, a large section of main campus is paved over with brick (University Plaza, a.k.a. "the brickyard"), and most sidewalks are also made with brick. These sidewalks are also dotted with white brick mosaics.

The Memorial Bell Tower, located in the Northeast corner of North Main Campus, serves as the signature of NC State and appears in the NC State Official Seal. It was constructed as a monument to alumni killed in World War I. The granite tower, completed in 1937, is 115 feet (35 meters) tall. As a tradition, the Bell Tower is lighted in red at night immediately following athletic victories and certain academic achievements.[2]

The upper portion of the historic Court of North Carolina below the 1911 Building, named for the first class of students to ban systematic hazing of underclassmen.

The Court of North Carolina, just West of the Memorial Bell Tower, is surrounded by the 1911 Building; the College of Humanities and Social Sciences in Tompkins, Caldwell, Winston Halls and Poe Hall; Page Hall, home to College of Engineering offices; and Leazar Hall, former location of the Computer Science Teaching Labs. It was once home to 100 trees (one for every county in North Carolina), but damage caused by Hurricane Fran in 1996 reduced the number significantly, including the destruction of a particularly old and large tree which was some 12 feet in diameter. Some replanting has occurred, but the Court's former appearance is far from being restored.

Completed in 1937, the Memorial Bell Tower was built to honor thirty-three NC State alumni who died in World War I. It stands 115 ft. tall (35 m).

Southwest of the Court of North Carolina is another landmark, the Free Expression Tunnel. The Free Expression Tunnel functions as one of three pedestrian tunnels underneath the railroad tracks separating North Main Campus and Central Main Campus. This particular tunnel is the site of sanctioned graffiti; anyone may paint there, and it is often the place for political statements, personal messages, and unique art. The tunnel was closed in June 2005 and has been partially demolished to be rebuilt with wheelchair accessibility. After numerous delays the tunnel completed construction and was reopened in May of 2006.

Centennial

NC State's main campus is augmented by the 1,334 acre (5.4 km²) mixed-use Centennial Campus. Located 1 mile (1.6 km) south of the Memorial Bell Tower, this campus houses university, corporate, and government research, in addition to classrooms and non-student residences. The College of Textiles is based on this campus and long-term plans have the majority of the College of Engineering relocating to the new campus. The offices of Red Hat and the Raleigh branch of the National Weather Service are also on the Centennial Campus, as well as Centennial Campus Middle School.

As of 2006, the departments of Electrical and Computer Engineering, and Computer Science have all completed the move to Centennial Campus. This was facilitated by progress in construction of Engineering Building II. Fall semester courses were taught in both EB I and EB II, while ongoing construction continued until the final days of examinations of Spring 2006.

Centennial will soon host the Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering departments. Considerable percentages of other departments have already transitioned to new facilities. Graduate research buildings including Monteith Engineering Graduate Research Center (M.R.C.) also span much of the non-academic sections of the campus.

West

West Campus is located 2.5 miles (4 km) west of the Memorial Bell Tower. The campus's 182 acres (0.73 km²) is bordered by the stadiums and the North Carolina State Fairgrounds to the west and Meredith College to the east. Situated on this campus is the University Club and North Carolina's only Veterinary School. Since most of the campus is rolling pastoral land, part of it is converted to parking space during the North Carolina State Fair and NC State football games.

JC Raulston Arboretum is an 8 acre (32,000 m²) arboretum and botanical garden operated by NC State, and located just south of West Campus. It is open daily without charge.

Stadiums

The Stadium property is 3.4 miles (5.5 km) northwest of the Memorial Bell Tower. Both Carter-Finley Stadium and the RBC Center are located there. Aside from the two stadiums, the property is mainly open space used for event parking. The property borders the North Carolina State Fair to the North and hosts tailgating parties before NC State football games.

People

Henry H. Shelton, Former chairman of the U.S. Armed Forces Joint Chiefs of Staff

John Edwards, U.S. Senator and 2004 vice-presidential candidate

James B. Hunt, Jr., 4-term Governor of North Carolina

A great number of people have made their way through NC State University. NC State has conferred 185,663 degrees (as of 2005) since opening its doors and has an estimated 145,000 living alumni. In addition, as of Fall 2005, the university employs 2,020 part and full time faculty members. Out of these two groups, several notable individuals have emerged.

Notables

Academics

*William Brantley Aycock (B.S. Education 1936) former University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Chancellor
*Albert Carnesale (Ph.D. Nuclear Engineering 1966, Faculty member 1962-1969) UCLA Chancellor
*William C. Friday (B.S. Textile Engineering 1941) Former President of the University of North Carolina
*Tom Regan (Professor 1967-Present) Philosopher and animal rights activist
*M. Thomas Hester (Professor 19??-Present) Renaissance English literature scholar and co-founder of the John Donne Journal
*George Kennedy (Professor 1976-Present) Entomologist
*John Kessel (Professor 1982-Present) science-fiction author
*R. V. Young (Professor 19??-Present) Renaissance English literature scholar and co-founder of the John Donne Journal

Science and technology

*Donald Bitzer (Professor 1989-Present) Father of Plasma Television
*Marshall Brain (M.S. Computer Science 1989, Instructor 1986-1992) Founder of HowStuffWorks
*James Goodnight (B.S. Applied Mathematics 1965, M.S. Experimental Statistics 1968, Ph.D. Statistics 1972, Faculty member 1972-1976) CEO of SAS Institute
*Wes Jackson (Ph.D. Genetics 1967) Founder of The Land Institute.
*C. Clark Cockerham (Emeritus Professor, deceased) Father of DNA fingerprinting.

Athletics

*Thurl Bailey (1983) former NBA basketball player
*Bill Cowher (B.S. Education 1979) football, head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers.
*David Fox (B.S. Civil Engineering 1994) 1996 Olympic swimmer.
*Roman Gabriel (B.S. Education 1962) football player.
*Julius Hodge (B.A. Communications 2005, theater minor) NBA Basketball player, Denver Nuggets, #20 pick in the 2005 NBA Draft.
*Terrence Holt (B.A. Sociology 2004, attended 1999-2001) football player, Detroit Lions.
*Torry Holt (Attended 1995-1998) football player, St. Louis Rams.
*Pablo Mastroeni (Attended 1994-1997), Soccer player, Miami Fusion and Colorado Rapids. Represented United States in the FIFA World Cup in 2002 and 2006.
*Nate McMillan (Attended 1985-1986) former NBA Basketball player, now head coach of the Portland Trail Blazers.
*Philip Rivers (B.S. Business 2003) football player, San Diego Chargers.
*Cedric Simmons (Attended 2004-2006), NBA Basketball player, New Orleans Hornets, #15 pick in the 2006 NBA Draft.
*Doug Strange, retired Major League Baseball player
*David Thompson (B.A. Sociology 2003, attended 1971-1975) retired NBA and ABA basketball player.
*Mario Williams (Attended 2003-2005), football player, Houston Texans, #1 pick in the 2006 NFL Draft.

Media

*Richard Curtis (Bachelors 1972) A founder and managing editor of graphics and photography for USA TODAY
*Terry Gannon (B.A. History 1985) ABC Sports commentator
*Roy H. Park (Bachelors 1931) Communications executive
*Jerry Punch (B.S. Pre-Med 1975) Sideline reporter & auto racing analyst for ESPN and ABC
*John Tesh (B.A. Communication 1975) Musician
*Zach Galifianakis (Communication and film major circa 1987, did not graduate) Comedian

Politics

*John Edwards (B.S. Textile Technology 1974) U.S. Senator and 2004 vice-presidential candidate
*J.D. Hayworth (B.A. Speech Communications and Political Science 1980) Member, United States Congress, 6th District, Arizona
*James B. Hunt Jr. (B.S. Agricultural Education 1959, M.S. Agricultural Economics 196?) 4-term Governor of North Carolina
*Walter B. Jones (Attended 1962-1965) Member, United States Congress, 3rd District, North Carolina
*Burley Mitchell (B.A. 1966) Former North Carolina Supreme Court Chief Justice

Military

*Gen. Hugh Shelton (B.S. Textile Technology 1963) Former chairman of the U.S. Armed Forces Joint Chiefs of Staff

Chief executives

President *Alexander Q. Holladay 1889-1899 *George T. Winston 1899-1908 *Daniel H. Hill, Jr. 1908-1916 *Wallace Carl Riddick 1916-1923 *Eugene C. Brooks 1923-1934 Dean of Administration *John W. Harrelson 1934-1945 Chancellor *John W. Harrelson 1945-1953 *Carey Hoyt Bostian 1953-1959 *John T. Caldwell 1959-1975 *Jackson A. Rigney (interim) 1975 *Joab Thomas 1975-1981 *Nash Winstead (interim) 1981-1982 *Bruce Poulton 1982-1989 *Larry K. Monteith 1989-1998 *Marye Anne Fox 1998-2004 *Robert A. Barnhardt (interim) 2004 *James L. Oblinger 2005-present

Alexander Q. Holladay, first President of NC State (1889-1899) Dr. Marye Anne Fox, first female NC State Chancellor (1998-2004) Dr. James L. Oblinger, NC State Chancellor (2005- )

External links

* Official Pages:
** NC State Home Page
** Official NC State athletics site
** North Carolina Cooperative Extension
** NC State Student Organizations
* Publications:
** Technician - NC State Student Newspaper
** Undergraduate Research Journal of N.C. State University
** Student Messageboard (Wolfweb)
** The Agromeck
* Maps:
** Official Campus Map
** Google Map
** Yahoo! Map
* External Reviews:
** US News & World Report Graduate School Reviews

Notes and references