University Of Vermont

Burlington, Vermont

April 11, 2022

The University of Vermont (UVM),[a] officially The University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, is a public land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont. It was founded in 1791 and is among the oldest universities in the United States as it was the fifth institution of higher education established in the New England region of the U.S. northeast.[6] It is also listed as one of the original eight "Public Ivy" institutions in the United States. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity".[7]

The university's Dudley H. Davis Center was the first student center in the United States to receive a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold certification.[8] The largest hospital complex in Vermont, the University of Vermont Medical Center, has its primary facility on the UVM campus and is affiliated with the Robert Larner College of Medicine.

History

The University of Vermont was founded as a private university in 1791, the same year Vermont became the 14th U.S. state. The university enrolled its first students 10 years later. Its first president, The Rev. Daniel C. Sanders, was hired in 1800, and served as the sole faculty member for seven years. Instruction began in 1801, and the first class graduated in 1804. In 1865, the university merged with Vermont Agricultural College (chartered November 22, 1864, after the passage of the Morrill Land-Grant Colleges Act), emerging as the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College. The university was granted 150,000 acres, which it sold for $122,626.[9] The University of Vermont draws 6.8 percent of its annual budget of about $600 million from the State of Vermont and Vermont residents make up 35 percent of enrollment, while 65 percent of students come from elsewhere.[10]

Much of the initial funding and planning for the university was undertaken by Ira Allen, who is honored as UVM's founder. Allen donated a 50-acre (20 ha) parcel of land for establishment of the university. Most of this land has been maintained as the university's main green, where stands a statue of Allen.[11]

The citizens of Burlington helped fund the university's first edifice, and, when it was destroyed by fire in 1824, also paid for its replacement. This building came to be known as "Old Mill" for its resemblance to New England mills of the time. The Marquis de Lafayette, a French general who became a commander in the American Revolution, toured all 24 U.S. states in 1824-1825 and while in Vermont laid the cornerstone of Old Mill, which stands on University Row, along with Ira Allen Chapel, Billings Library, Williams Hall, Royall Tyler Theatre and Morrill Hall. A statue of Lafayette stands at the north end of the main green.[11]

The University of Vermont was the first American college or university with a charter declaring that the "rules, regulations, and by-laws shall not tend to give preference to any religious sect or denomination whatsoever."[11]

In 1871, UVM defied custom and admitted two women as students. Four years later, it was the first American university to admit women to full membership into the Phi Beta Kappa Society, the country's oldest collegiate academic honor society. Likewise, in 1877, it initiated the first African American into the society.

Named for U.S. Senator Justin Smith Morrill, Morrill Hall was constructed in 1906–07 to serve as the home of the UVM Agriculture Department and the Agricultural Experiment Station.

Justin Smith Morrill, a U.S. Representative (1855-1867) and Senator (1867-1898) from Vermont, author of the Morrill Land-Grant Colleges Act that created federal funding for establishing the U.S. Land-Grant colleges and universities, served as a trustee of the university from 1865 to 1898.

In 1924, the first radio broadcast in Vermont occurred from the college station, WCAX, run by students then, now the call sign of a commercial television station.

For 73 years, until 1969, UVM held an annual "Kake Walk” where students wore blackface.

Academics

The University of Vermont comprises seven undergraduate schools, an honors college, a graduate college, and a college of medicine. The Honors College does not offer its own degrees; students in the Honors College concurrently enroll in one of the university's seven undergraduate colleges or schools.[

Bachelors, masters, and doctoral programs are offered through the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, the College of Arts and Sciences, the College of Education and Social Services, the College of Engineering and Mathematical Sciences, the College of Medicine, the College of Nursing and Health Sciences, the Graduate College, the Grossman School of Business, and the Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources.[17] The University of Vermont is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education.[18]

Rankings

UVM is ranked tied for 118th in U.S. News & World Report's 2021 national university rankings, and is ranked tied for 54th among public universities.[27]

In 2019, Forbes "America's Top Colleges" list ranks UVM 168th overall out of 650 private and public colleges and universities in America, and also ranks it 48th in the "Public Colleges" category and 91st among "Research Universities."

The University of Vermont is ranked 40th on a list published by BusinessWeek.com of the top 50 U.S. colleges and universities whose bachelor's degree graduates earn the highest salaries.

In 2014, an analysis of federal data found The University of Vermont to be among the top ten schools in the United States with the highest total rape reports. There were 27 total rape reports on their main campus.[30]

Athletics[edit]

The athletic teams at UVM are known as the Catamounts. The university offers 18 varsity sports. Women's teams include basketball, cross country, field hockey, ice hockey, lacrosse, skiing, soccer, swimming and diving, and track and field (indoor and outdoor). Men's teams include basketball, cross country, ice hockey, lacrosse, skiing, soccer, and track and field (indoor and outdoor). All teams compete at the NCAA Division I level. Most teams compete in the America East Conference. Men's and women's hockey teams compete in the Hockey East Association. The alpine and Nordic ski teams compete in the E.I.S.A. (Eastern Intercollegiate Ski Association).

UVM's athletic teams won seven straight America East Academic Cups (2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011) for the best overall combined GPA among its student-athletes. UVM is the first school in the America East Conference to win three straight years and four times overall.

Highlights of recent varsity athletic seasons include the men's hockey teams trip to the Frozen Four in 2009; the women's and men's basketball teams advancing to the 2010 NCAA Tournament following America East Tournament titles; the ski team winning its sixth NCAA National Championship in 2012 in Bozeman, MT; in 2014, the men's hockey team earned its third trip to the NCAA Tournament since 2009 and the men's basketball team won the America East Regular Season title for the sixth time. The university has discontinued several major sports programs in its history, including football, softball and baseball. The softball and baseball programs were eliminated in 2009.[40]

Thirty-six former UVM athletes have competed in 16 Olympic Games (13 winter, 3 summer) and combined have won six Olympic medals.[41] The UVM fight song was written in 1938 and is entitled "Vermont Victorious."[42]

Student life[edit]

Student clubs and organizations, totaling more than 100, span student interests and receive sponsorship from the Student Government Association. Clubs with longstanding history and the largest memberships include: Volunteers in Action, the UVM Outing Club, Ski & Snowboard Club. Hillel also has a strong presence on the UVM campus; it is estimated that around 2,000 UVM students are Jewish, making up about 20 percent of the undergraduate student body.[45][46][47] UVM also is home to the oldest FeelGood chapter in the nation, started in 2006, with the chapter raising over $100,000 since its inception for the end of extreme poverty by 2030 through on-campus grilled cheese delis.[48]

In 2015, the university launched a wellness program called the Wellness Environment, or WE, a substance-free residential program that gives interested students access to fitness and nutrition coaches, has daily yoga instruction, round-the-clock meditation sessions, and a mentorship program that pairs them with a Burlington youth.[49] In the fall of 2017, the Central Campus Residence Hall completed construction, and now houses nearly 700 residents in the Wellness Environment.

Thanks to an organization known as GIRT, or Gender Inclusive Restroom Taskforce, the University of Vermont has a growing number of single-occupancy, gender-neutral bathrooms for use by non-binary and gender non-conforming students, faculty, and visitors. One such example is in the Central Campus Residence Hall, which includes gender-neutral, single-occupancy bathrooms only on the residential floors.[50]

Dining

The University of Vermont is home to four unlimited dining halls, as well as various other dining options.[51] The unlimited dining halls consist of Simpson Fine Dining on Redstone Campus, Northside Unlimited Dining on Trinity Campus, the Central Campus Dining Hall (CCRH), and Harris Millis Dining on the Athletic Campus.

Greek life

The University of Vermont Greek Community is one of the oldest in the nation with the first fraternal organization starting in 1836. The 5 pillar values of the University of Vermont Greek Community are citizenship, leadership, lifelong learning, friendship, and social justice. The University of Vermont values its Greek Community for their strong commitment to collaboration and relationship building. More than 8 percent of students at UVM join Greek Life organizations. Fraternity and sorority members are very involved on campus in roles including Student Government (SGA), Orientation Leaders, advocates, and Residence Assistants.