 Urbana University Student Center | |
| Type | Private |
|---|---|
| Active | 1850–2020 |
| Location | , U.S. 40°06′02″N83°45′36″W / 40.1006°N 83.7600°W |
| Campus | 128 acres (0.52 km2) |
| Colors | Blue and white |
| Nickname | Blue Knights |
Sporting affiliations | Division II MEC |
| Mascot | Knitro the Blue Knight |
| Website | www |
Urbana University was a private university specializing in liberal arts education and located in Urbana, Ohio. In its final few years, it was purchased by Franklin University and was a branch campus of that university.
Urbana University was founded in 1850 as Urbana College by followers of the 18th century Swedish philosopher and scientist, Emanuel Swedenborg. The university was the second institution of higher learning in Ohio to admit women; the first was Oberlin College.
The groundwork for the founding of the university was in part laid by John Chapman, better known as Johnny Appleseed, who became the inspiration for the Johnny Appleseed Museum founded for his extraordinary history. While more famous for spreading apple seeds throughout the East, Chapman was also a Swedenborgian missionary and helped spread this faith among the early settlers around Urbana. [1] Chapman encouraged his friend and fellow Swedenborgian, John Hough James, to donate the land on which Urbana University was built. [1] To this day, the university maintains an informal relationship with the Swedenborgian General Convention of the Church of the New Jerusalem in the United States of America. [1] The university is also home to the Johnny Appleseed Educational Center & Museum to honor John Chapman. [2]
Classes for elementary and secondary students under the name Urbana Seminary began in the fall of 1850 in a rented room in a building in downtown Urbana. [1] College level classes were first held in the fall of 1854, following the construction of Bailey Hall, the first building on the campus. [1] Less than 10 years after the college opened it suspended operations from 1861 to 1866 during the Civil War. [1] The college experienced a number of changes in the early 20th century when the college's curriculum was shortened to a two-year junior college format in 1907. [1] The school later shut down the primary school in 1911; and the secondary school was closed in 1928. [1]
Urbana operated as a two-year college until 1968, when it returned curriculum to a four-year format. [1] In 1975, Urbana was granted full membership in the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools. [1] In 1985, the institution changed its name from Urbana College to Urbana University. [1] Until 2014, in addition to having been a traditional liberal arts college, Urbana University's School of Adult and Graduate Education offered associate degree and Bachelor of Science degree completion programs in Business Management, Education, Criminal Justice Leadership, Human Services Leadership, and many more. In addition to these programs, Master's programs were available in Business Administration, Education, Nursing, and Criminal Justice. Classes met on the Urbana University main campus, and at several off-campus locations throughout Western Ohio. These locations were in Bellefontaine, Dayton, Kettering, Marysville, Piqua, and Springfield. [3]
In 2014, the university was purchased by Franklin University after undergoing significant budget shortfalls. [4] Under the agreement, Urbana would retain its name, and act as a physical campus for both Urbana and Franklin students. [4] On August 1, 2017, Franklin University received approval for its change of status application by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) to bring Urbana University under Franklin's accreditation as a "branch campus." The campus closed in 2020, transferring records to Franklin University in Columbus, Ohio. Urbana cited the coronavirus pandemic and declining enrollment. [5]
The 128-acre (51.8 ha) main campus was located on the southwest side of Urbana in west central Ohio. Its buildings ranged from historic 19th-century buildings styled in traditional architecture to modern structures. Bailey Hall, Oak Hall, and Barclay Hall are the three oldest buildings on the campus. All three are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. [6] The university had undergone various changes in the early 21st century with the construction of Sycamore Hall in 2004, the Urbana University Stadium, [7] the Student Center in 2006, McConnell Hall in 2007, and Ross Hall in 2019. [8]
Urbana University offered 28 undergraduate majors and Graduate programs in Nursing (MSN), Education (MEd), Business Administration (MBA), Criminal Justice Administration (MA), and a Post-Baccalaureate in Teacher Licensure [9]
The Urbana athletic teams were called the Blue Knights. Their athletic colors were blue and white. The university was a member of the NCAA Division II ranks, primarily competing in the Mountain East Conference (MEC) from 2013–14 to 2019–20. The Blue Knights previously competed in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) as a provisional member only during the 2012–13 school year; as an NCAA D-II Independent from 2008–09 to 2011–12; and in the defunct American Mideast Conference (AMC) of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) from 1971–72 to 2007–08.
Urbana competed in 19 intercollegiate varsity teams: Men's sports included baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, soccer, swimming, volleyball and wrestling; while women's sports included acrobatics & tumbling, basketball, cross country, golf, lacrosse, soccer, softball, swimming, volleyball and water polo.
Urbana University also offered club sport programs in shooting sports, bowling, and cheerleading.
In 2010, Urbana completed the transition from the NAIA to the NCAA in the Division II ranks. [10] Also in that year, the Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) had accepted Urbana as an associate member of the GLVC in football only starting with the 2012 fall season. [11] In 2011, the university and five other schools, many also transitioning to the NCAA from the NAIA, had announced their intentions to form the G-MAC in 2013. [12] The G-MAC ultimately launched a year earlier than planned, in 2012, with Urbana as a member. The school spent only one season in the G-MAC; on August 20, 2012, Urbana was unveiled as a charter member of the MEC, a new Division II conference set to launch for the 2013–14 school year. [13] The MEC is mostly made up of schools leaving the then-soon-to-be dissolved West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WVIAC), but also includes another Ohio school in Notre Dame College. [13]
Urbana University had several recognized student organizations including leadership groups such as Student Government Association, Campus Activities Board, and Student Athlete Advisory Committee. There were organizations with special interest topics around politics, disc golf, and cancer awareness; and there were academic groups for history students and students interested in social sciences.
There were six residence halls on campus (South, East, Francis E. Hazard, McConnell, Sycamore, and Ross halls). Urbana's residence halls emphasized civic responsibility, mutual respect, mature interpersonal relationships, multicultural understanding, and community engagement. Students living on campus forged friendships to last a lifetime while learning about different cultures, backgrounds and ideas, gaining an understanding of being part of a community, and developing their leadership skills. Residential living provides students with life skills that were transferable to careers and other aspects of independent living after graduation. Advice and guidance are available from trained upperclass student resident assistants and professional resident hall directors, as well as an Area Coordinator. Resident assistants lived on each floor of each residence hall and served as a resource for students dealing with any type of issue. The university's Student Conduct programs were recognized as Ohio's most innovative Student Affairs program in 2014 by the Ohio College Personnel Association. [14]
The West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WVIAC) was a collegiate athletic conference which historically operated exclusively in the state of West Virginia, but briefly had one Kentucky member in its early years, and expanded into Pennsylvania in its final years. It participated in the Division II ranks of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), originally affiliated in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) until 1994, but held its final athletic competitions in spring 2013, and officially disbanded on September 1 of that year. Its football-playing members announced in June 2012 that they planned to withdraw to form a new Division II conference at the end of the 2012–13 season; this led to a chain of conference moves that saw all but one of the WVIAC's members find new conference homes.
The Mid-States Football Association (MSFA) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the NAIA. Member institutions are located in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, and Michigan. The MSFA was organized in 1993, and on-field competition began in 1994. The MSFA is divided into two leagues, the Mideast and the Midwest.
The Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level. Its fourteen member institutions are located in the U.S. states of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, and Missouri. There are also four associate members who participate in sports not sponsored by their home conferences.
Kentucky Wesleyan College (KWC) is a private Methodist college in Owensboro, Kentucky. Fall 2018 enrollment was 830 students.
Lewis University is a private Lasallian university in Romeoville, Illinois. It enrolls around 6,500 students in more than 80 undergraduate programs, 35 graduate programs, and accelerated programs for working adults.
Indiana University Southeast is a public university in New Albany, Indiana. It is a regional campus of Indiana University.
McKendree University (McK) is a private university in Lebanon, Illinois. Founded in 1828 as the Lebanon Seminary, it is the oldest college or university in Illinois. McKendree enrolls approximately 1,960 students representing 25 countries and 29 states. In the undergraduate program, on average there are 51% females and 49% males. The institution remains affiliated with the United Methodist Church. The school was renamed McKendree University beginning in the 2007–08 academic year. McKendree University comprises a College of Arts and Science, a School of Business, a School of Health Professions, and a School of Education.
Notre Dame College is a private Roman Catholic college in South Euclid, Ohio. Established in 1922 by the Sisters of Notre Dame as a women's college, it has been coeducational since January 2001. The Sisters of Notre Dame ended their sponsorship of the college in 2023. Notre Dame College offers 30 majors and individually designed majors and confers undergraduate and graduate degrees through five academic divisions. The college had a total enrollment of 1,106 undergraduate students in fall 2020. The 48-acre (19.4 ha) main academic and residential campus is located 10 miles (16 km) east of Cleveland in South Euclid.
The Great Lakes Football Conference (GLFC) began operations in the 2006 season, with six institutions competing. After the 2011 season the remaining institutions moved into the Great Lakes Valley Conference. A previous incarnation of the conference was disbanded after the 1999 season.
The American Mideast Conference (AMC) was an affiliate of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics that included eight member institutions in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, and Massachusetts. Founded in 1949, it was known as the Mid-Ohio League, and named the Mid-Ohio Conference from 1962 until 1998, when it adopted its final moniker. The name change was the first step in a multi-phase expansion that extended the conference into states beyond Ohio before the league was eventually disbanded in 2012.
Oakland City University (OCU) is a private university affiliated with the General Baptist Church and located in Oakland City, Indiana. It is the only General Baptist Church-affiliated college or university in the United States. Founded in 1885, it has slowly grown to the present student enrollment of about 1,200 on the main campus and, counting all sites, about 2,000 total.
The William Jewell Cardinals women's soccer team represents William Jewell College and competes in the Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) of NCAA Division II. Playing their home games at Greene Stadium on the campus of William Jewell College in Liberty, Missouri.
The Lindenwood Lions and Lady Lions are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Lindenwood University, located in St. Charles, Missouri, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the NCAA Division I ranks, primarily competing in the Ohio Valley Conference for most of its sports since the 2022–23 academic year.
The Kentucky Wesleyan Panthers are the athletic teams that represent Kentucky Wesleyan College, located in Owensboro, Kentucky, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the Division II level of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).
The Southwest Baptist University Bearcats football program represents Southwest Baptist University in college football and competes in the Division II level of the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA). In 2014, Southwest Baptist became a football-only member of the Great Lakes Valley Conference and remains a football-only member through the 2018–19 school year, after which it will become a full GLVC member. Prior to this SBU was in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association from 1988 to 2007 and 2012 to 2013, the rest of the athletic programs are in the MIAA. SBU's home games are played at Plaster Stadium in Bolivar, Missouri.
The Heartland Collegiate Conference (HCC) was an NCAA Division II athletic conference that operated from 1978 to 1990. It was formed in June 1978 as the successor to the Indiana Collegiate Conference (ICC), after the ICC made up for membership losses by adding institutions from Ohio and Kentucky.
The Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level. It was named the 24th NCAA Division II conference and operates in the Great Lakes and East South Central States regions of the United States. The G-MAC began conference play in the 2012–13 academic year hosting 12 championships and continued to work through the educational assessment program. The conference received approval and became an active Division II conference in 2013–14, hosting 17 championships.
The Mountain East Conference (MEC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level and officially began competition on September 1, 2013. It consists of 11 schools, mostly in West Virginia with other members in Maryland and Ohio.
The Cedarville Yellow Jackets represent Cedarville University in intercollegiate sports. The Yellow Jackets compete at the NCAA Division II level as member of in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) and also hold membership with the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA). The official school colors are blue and gold. Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, tennis and indoor track and field, and outdoor track and field. Women's sports include basketball, cross country, soccer, softball, tennis, indoor track and field, outdoor track and field, and volleyball.
The 2020–21 NCAA Division II football season was the component of the 2020 college football season organized by the NCAA at the Division II level in the United States. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, only a few games were played during the traditional fall season. For other teams that chose to play during the 2020–21 school year, the regular season began on February 27, 2021, and culminated on April 25.
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