University of Nebraska at Omaha

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University of Nebraska Omaha
Motto Connect-Collaborate-Create
Established 1908
Type Public Space Grant University
Chancellor John Christensen, PhD
Academic staff 842
Students 14,903
Location Omaha, Nebraska, United States
Campus Urban, 158 acres (64 ha)
Colors Crimson and Black         
Athletics NCAA Division I
Nickname Mavericks
Mascot Durango
Affiliations Summit League, NCHC
Website www.unomaha.edu
University of Nebraska at Omaha

Coordinates: 41°15′34.49″N 96°0′18.19″W / 41.2595806°N 96.0050528°W / 41.2595806; -96.0050528 The University of Nebraska Omaha (UNO) is a four-year state university located in Omaha, Nebraska. Founded in 1908 as Omaha University, the institution became the public Municipal University of Omaha in 1931. It assumed its current name in 1968 following a merger into the University of Nebraska. The institution has a strong tradition of serving commuter students from within Omaha, but in recent years has developed student housing. On October 8, 2008, the University of Nebraska Omaha celebrated its 100th year of existence.[1]

History[edit source | edit]

Omaha University[edit source | edit]

The original Omaha University was founded in 1908 in the Kountze Place neighborhood of North Omaha. The first classes were located in the Redick Mansion, once at North 24th and Pratt Streets, from 1909 through 1917. Established a few blocks north of the Presbyterian Theological Seminary, most of the early faculty were recruited from Seminary teachers, as well as the faculty of Bellevue College. There were 26 students in the first year, most of whom graduated from Omaha Central High School. Three of the University's first four presidents were ordained Presbyterian ministers.[2][3] Two other buildings on the original campus included Jacobs Hall, a gymnasium erected in 1910, and Joslyn Hall, a classroom building erected in 1917.

Jacobs Hall was a gymnasium facing North 24th Street built with $14,000 from the sale of land donated by Lillian Maul. The land, the first donation to the university, was near the present West Dodge campus of the university. It was the first new building constructed on the university campus. Joslyn Hall was built with funds donated by a well-known Omahan, George A. Joslyn. Donating $25,000 toward the building, he stipulated the school identify another $25,000 in a year. The building was located just north of Redick Hall and was finished in January 1917. Joslyn Hall had three stories and a basement with a total of thirty classrooms that accommodated 750 students. The building included chemistry and physics laboratories, an auditorium and music department.[4] Redick Hall was sold and moved in February 1917, to Minnesota where it became a resort.

In the early 1920s a proposed "magnificent campus" was slated for development between 21st and 25th Avenues, bounded by Kountze Park and the Carter Lake Park. In 1927, businessmen formed the North Omaha Activities Association in order to redevelop Saratoga School's playing field into a football field for the University's football team. With new bleachers built to accommodate a crowd of a thousand, the Saratoga Field was home to OU's football team until 1951.[5] The school also served as OU's science call from 1917 to 1926.[6]

Dr. Milo Bail became president of Omaha University in 1948 and served until 1965. During that time Omaha hotel magnate Eugene C. Eppley's foundation gave more than $1.2 million to the university. After Eppley's passing, the Eppley Foundation donated another $50,000 to recruit distinguished professors. The Eugene C. Eppley Administration Building, designed by John Latenser, Sr.,[6] at the university was named in recognition of the gifs.[7][8] In 1952 the national Silver Wings student organization was founded at UO. In June 1964 Jacobs and Joslyn Halls were the last two original OU buildings at 24th & Pratt Streets to be demolished. In 1976 the Dr. C.C. and Mabel L. Criss Library replaced the Eppley Library.

The university moved from the North Omaha campus to its present main location at 60th and Dodge Street in 1938. The old campus buildings were then used as apartments and offices, but were demolished to make way for a 12-story Omaha Housing Authority apartment building for the elderly, which was completed in 1965.[4]

Academics[edit source | edit]

UNO is classified as a doctoral/research university in the latest Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. UNO is the home of the Peter Kiewit Institute a $70 million state-of-the-art computer science facility and engineering facility, giving the university one of the premier computer science, management information systems (MIS) and bioinformatics programs in the region. PKI houses UNO's College of Information Science and Technology, UNL's College of Engineering and Technology, and the Holland Computing Center, which houses the Firefly supercomputer.[9] The College of Information Science and Technology offers undergraduate/graduate degrees in Computer Science, Management Information Systems, Bioinformatics (graduate degree offered in collaboration with UNMC's Pathology's graduate program), Information Assurance, and Information Technology Innovation.

The College of Business Administration's Masters in Business Administration students ranked in the top 5% nationally, while the undergraduate students ranked in the top 15% on a 2007 standardized exam on business topics conducted by the Educational Testing Service.[10]

UNO maintains a widely regarded online film journal called the Journal of Religion and Film.

Modern Campus[edit source | edit]

Kaneko-UNO Library Study space

The University of Nebraska Omaha is located in midtown Omaha, with a campus separated in two by Elmwood Park (The campus north of Elmwood is referred to as 'North Campus' and the campus south of Elmwood as 'South Campus'). UNO also operates the Kaneko-UNO Library, at 12th and Jones streets in downtown Omaha, and focuses on and offering research scientists, business leaders, teachers, visual artists, and students access to resources and materials not in their day-to-day environment.

North Campus[edit source | edit]

The North Campus is the largest and primary campus for the University of Nebraska Omaha. The following colleges and their associated facilities are located on the North Campus:

University of Nebraska Omaha North campus
  • College of Arts and Sciences
  • College of Communication, Fine Arts, and Media
  • College of Education
  • College of Public Affairs and Community Service
  • Graduate Studies
  • International Studies
  • Service-Learning Academy

Additionally, the North Campus is also the home to the Dr. C.C. and Mabel L. Criss Library, the Strauss Performing Arts Center, the UNO Art Gallery, and the Black Box Theater, a state-of-the-art facility with mobile seating units that allow a customizable and trans-formative space.

University Village and Maverick Village student housing complexes, each composed of multiple buildings, are spread across the western edge of the North Campus, and additional housing is present on South Campus.

The HPER (Health, Physical Education, and Recreation) building is a recently renovated complex that houses the Athletic Department for the Division I Nebraska-Omaha Mavericks as well as student fitness areas. Attached is the Sapp Field House and Al F. Caniglia Field. The Pep Bowl is located near Caniglia Field.

Pacific Campus[edit source | edit]

The Pacific Campus(formerly South Campus) houses the primary facilities for the College of Business Administration and the College of Information Science and Technology, which includes the Peter Kiewit Institute, the Charles W. Durham School of Architectural Engineering, and the Firefly supercomputer. The Scott Technology Center incubator, which aims to assist start-up enterprises, is also located on the Pacific Campus. The Scott Data Center and Scott Conference Center are other features of Pacific Campus.

Additional on-campus housing is provided on the Pacific Campus via Scott Hall, and the multiple units which comprise Scott Village and Scott Court. UNO plans to expand the Pacific Campus via Aksarben Village. UNO has also recently purchased property south of Center Street, with possible intentions of developing further on-campus housing and for on-campus athletic facilities.[citation needed]

Athletics[edit source | edit]

Nebraska-Omaha's sports teams, currently being rebranded as "Omaha", have been nicknamed the Mavericks since 1971.[11] In 2011, 13 of the 16 sports that the university then sponsored moved from NCAA Division II to Division I and The Summit League. The exceptions were men's ice hockey, which already competed in Division I, and football and wrestling, which UNO dropped. Wrestling had been the school's most successful sport with national championships in 1991, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2010 and 2011.[12] The Omaha men's ice hockey team, the state's only Division I ice hockey program, will become charter members of the National Collegiate Hockey Conference in the 2013–14 season, following a major conference realignment. Previously, Omaha had been in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association since 2010–11. Omaha added teams in men's golf and men's soccer in 2011.

Men's sports at UNO include tennis, baseball, basketball, soccer, golf and hockey. Women's sports include basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, softball, swimming and diving, tennis, track and volleyball. The women's softball team won the Women's College World Series national championship in 1975 as a member of the Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women .

Fraternities/Sororities[edit source | edit]

Fraternitites:

Sororities:

Media[edit source | edit]

KVNO 90.7 FM is produced and broadcast from UNO's North Campus. The station's format is primarily classical music, although approximately 10% of its broadcast time is devoted to athletic and campus events. MavRadio (HD FM 90.7-2) is a student produced college/indie station also produced and broadcast from UNO's North Campus. The Gateway is the school's student newspaper, published bi-weekly during the spring and fall academic semesters.

Administration[edit source | edit]

As of 2012, the Chancellor of UNO is John Christensen, Ph.D., the Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic and Student Affairs is B.J. Reed, Ph.D., and the Vice Chancellor for Business and Finance is Bill Conley, MBA

The deans are:

  • College of Arts and Sciences - J. David Boocker, Ph.D.
  • College of Business Administration - Louis G. Pol, Ph.D.
  • College of Communication, Fine Arts and Media - Gail F. Baker, Ph.D.
  • College of Education - Nancy A. Edick, Ed. D.
  • College of Information Science and Technology - Hesham H. Ali, Ph.D '
  • College of Public Affairs and Community Service - John Bartle, Ph.D.
  • Criss Library - Audrey DeFrank, M.L.S. (acting)
  • Graduate Studies - Deborah S. Smith-Howell, Ph.D.
  • International Studies and Programs - Thomas E. Gouttierre,

Fight song[edit source | edit]

UNO Fight

We will fight, fight, fight for our Mavericks,
We will fight, fight, fight for our team.
Everyone knows when that old whistle blows,
We will shout, we will yell, we will scream.
GO MAVS! GO MAVS!
We will fight, fight, fight for our Mavericks,
we will cheer so all fans will know.
Be it win or lose or draw,
Everyone for Omaha,
We will fight for U-N-O.

Composer, Dr. James Saker

Notable alumni[edit source | edit]

See also[edit source | edit]

References[edit source | edit]

  1. ^ (2008) University of Nebraska Omaha Celebrates 100 Years.
  2. ^ "History of Omaha at a glance", Douglas County Historical Society. Retrieved 4/10/08. p 65.
  3. ^ (1993) A History of UNO. University of Nebraska Omaha. Retrieved 5/29/07.
  4. ^ a b "Old campus fades into oblivion", UNO Alumni Newsletter. August 1964. Retrieved 4/29/08.
  5. ^ Saratoga Field University of Nebraska Omaha website.
  6. ^ a b (1960) "West Dodge Campus Choice Gave Unique Building Design", The Gateway - UNO. Retrieved 3/26/08.
  7. ^ "There's more to UNO buildings that just a name", Gateway. July 10, 2004. Retrieved 2/3/08.
  8. ^ "University buildings", UNO Gateway. Retrieved 2/4/08.
  9. ^ Holland Computing Center. Holland Computing Center Website Retrieved November 14, 2010.
  10. ^ Press Release. University of Nebraska Omaha.
  11. ^ UNO Alumni.org - excerpt from Summer 1971 yearbook, Tomahawk
  12. ^ http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/yb/156765564

Additional reading[edit source | edit]

  • Oliver B. Pollak and Les Valentine, University of Nebraska at Omaha: The Campus History Series (Chicago: Arcadia Publishing, 2007).

External links[edit source | edit]