Former name | Martin Female College (1870–1908) Martin College (1908–1986) Martin Methodist College (1986–2021) |
---|---|
Motto | Cognito, Opportunitas, Veritas |
Motto in English | Knowledge, Opportunity, Truth |
Type | Public college |
Established | 1870 |
Parent institution | University of Tennessee system |
Endowment | US$9.28 million |
Chancellor | Linda C. Martin (interim) |
Academic staff | 51 |
Students | 934 |
Location | , U.S. 35°12′01″N87°02′11″W / 35.2002°N 87.0364°W |
Campus | Rural, 55 acres (220,000 m2) |
Colors | Red & Orange |
Nickname | FireHawks |
Sporting affiliations | NAIA – SSAC |
Website | www |
The University of Tennessee Southern (UT Southern, formerly Martin Methodist College) is a public college in Pulaski, Tennessee. Founded in 1870, for over 150 years it was a private institution until joining the University of Tennessee system in 2021. For many years it was a junior college but is now a baccalaureate institution providing more than thirty academic majors. The college also has an MBA program.
UT Southern was originally founded as Martin Methodist College in 1870. The college was named for Thomas Martin (1799–1870), former mayor of Pulaski, who left in his will an endowment of $30,000 to establish a college for the education of the white girls and women of Giles County. [1] [2] [3] It is sometimes suggested that Martin did so in fulfilment of a promise to his daughter Victoria, who died at the age of twenty. [3] [4] In 1938, the college became coeducational. [2] Originally founded as a whites-only institution, in 1966 it became racially integrated. [4] The college was originally named Martin Female College; in 1908, its name was changed to Martin College; in April 1986, its name was changed to its final name as a private institution of Martin Methodist College. [2]
The college joined the University of Tennessee system in 2021. [5] [6] [7] When it joined the system, it was renamed UT Southern and became the first new primary campus in the University of Tennessee System in over 50 years. The former president of the college, Mark La Branche, remained as chancellor of the campus. [8] The name University of Tennessee-Southern was chosen because the campus serves the 13 counties of southern Middle Tennessee. [9]
The Tennessee–Southern (UT Southern) athletic teams are called the FireHawks (previously they were known as the RedHawks before the UT system merger). The university is a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), primarily competing in the Mid-South Conference (MSC) since the 2020–21 academic year. [10] The FireHawks (back then the Martin Methodist RedHawks) previously competed in the Southern States Athletic Conference (SSAC; formerly known as Georgia–Alabama–Carolina Conference (GACC) until after the 2003–04 school year) from 2013–14 to 2019–20 (to which the school will return in 2023–24); and in the defunct TranSouth Athletic Conference (TranSouth or TSAC) from 1996–97 to 2012–13 (when the conference dissolved); and in the Tennessee Collegiate Athletic Conference (TCAC) from 1986–87 to 1995–96.
UT Southern competes in 19 intercollegiate varsity sports: Men's sports include baseball, basketball, bowling, cross country, golf, soccer, swimming and tennis; while women's sports include basketball, bowling, cross country, golf, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis and volleyball. Competitive cheerleading is offered as a co-ed sport. Competitive trap and skeet shooting was added as the department's 15th varsity sport in the fall of 2013.
Some of the sport teams' accomplishments include:
Pulaski is a city in and the county seat of Giles County, which is located on the central-southern border of Tennessee, United States. The population was 8,397 at the 2020 census. It was named after Casimir Pulaski, a noted Polish-born general on the Patriot side in the American Revolutionary War.
The Mid-South Conference (MSC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). Member institutions are located in Kentucky and Tennessee. The league is headquartered in Bowling Green, Kentucky, and the commissioner is Eric Leach.
Cumberland University is a private university in Lebanon, Tennessee. It was founded in 1842. The oldest campus buildings were constructed between 1892 and 1896.
The University of Tennessee at Martin is a public university in Martin, Tennessee. It is one of the five campuses of the University of Tennessee system. UTM is the only public university in West Tennessee outside of Memphis.
Lambuth University was a private Methodist university in Jackson, Tennessee. It was active from 1843 to 2011 and was supported by the Memphis Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church. The university began as the Memphis Conference Female Institute in 1843 and was later renamed in honor of Walter Russell Lambuth (1854–1921), a Methodist missionary who traveled globally.
Iowa Wesleyan University was a private university in Mount Pleasant, Iowa, United States. It was Iowa's first co-educational institution of higher learning and the oldest of its type west of the Mississippi River. The institution was affiliated with the United Methodist Church. It closed at the end of the 2022–23 academic year due to financial challenges.
The University of Tennessee System is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is one of two public university systems, the other being the Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR). It consists of four primary campuses in Knoxville, Chattanooga, Pulaski and Martin; a health sciences campus in Memphis; a research institute in Tullahoma; and various extensions throughout the state.
Texas Wesleyan University is a private Methodist university in Fort Worth, Texas. It was founded in 1890 by the Methodist Episcopal Church, South. The main campus is located in the Polytechnic Heights neighborhood of Fort Worth. Its mascot is the ram.
The Volunteer State Athletic Conference (VSAC) was a college athletic conference which was predominantly for smaller colleges in the U.S. state of Tennessee.
The TranSouth Athletic Conference (TSAC) was a college athletic conference for smaller colleges and universities located in the Southern United States. It was affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and competes in that organization's Region XI.
Hiwassee College was a private liberal arts college in Madisonville, Tennessee. Founded in 1849, the college offered associate degrees as well as bachelor's degrees. The majority of its associate degree graduates went on to complete bachelor's degrees elsewhere. The college closed on May 10, 2019 due to financial issues.
Tennessee Wesleyan University (TWU) is a private Methodist university in Athens, Tennessee. It was founded in 1857 and is affiliated with the Holston Conference of the United Methodist Church. It maintains a branch campus in Knoxville, where it offers evening programs in business administration. It also conducts its nursing classes in Knoxville.
Shorter University is a private Baptist university in Rome, Georgia. It was founded in 1873 and offers undergraduate and graduate degrees through six colleges and schools. In addition Shorter operates the Robert H. Ledbetter College of Business and the School of Nursing at off-campus facilities in the Rome area.
The Tennessee Collegiate Athletic Conference (TCAC) was a former college athletic conference affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA); which was predominantly for smaller, private colleges in Western and Middle Tennessee.
The Southern States Athletic Conference (SSAC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). The 13 member universities that compete in 19 sports are located in Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Tennessee. Basketball teams compete as a single division in the NAIA.
The University of Tennessee, Knoxville is a public land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 1794, two years before Tennessee became the 16th state, it is the flagship campus of the University of Tennessee system, with ten undergraduate colleges and eleven graduate colleges. It hosts more than 30,000 students from all 50 states and more than 100 foreign countries. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity".
The Benedictine Ravens are the athletic teams that represent Benedictine College, located in Atchison, Kansas, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), primarily competing in the Heart of America Athletic Conference (HAAC) since the 1991–92 academic year. The Ravens previously competed as an NAIA Independent from 1962–63 to 1990–91; in the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (CIC) from 1937–38 to 1961–62; as an Independent from January 1929 to 1936–37; and in the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC) from 1902–03 to 1927–28.
The UT Martin Skyhawks are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Tennessee at Martin (UTM) in Martin, Tennessee, United States. The Skyhawks athletic program is a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) and competes at the NCAA Division I level including the Football Championship Subdivision. The UTM mascot is Captain Skyhawk. The school colors are navy and orange.
Sam Winterbotham is a British college tennis coach and former college player. He was the head coach of the Tennessee Volunteers men's tennis team of the University of Tennessee. Winterbotham was previously an assistant coach for the Baylor Bears where he helped guide the team to the 2004 national title with the team that he had previously recruited. His first stint as a head coach came in 2002 when he became the head coach for the Colorado Buffaloes men's tennis team.