Jacksonville State University

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Jacksonville State University
Established: 1883
Type: Public
President: Dr. William A. Meehan
Location: Jacksonville
Website: http://www.jsu.edu/

Jacksonville State University is a public university serving Northeast Alabama on a 459-acre (1.9 km²) campus with 58 buildings in Jacksonville, Alabama which is in the Appalachian foothills of northeast Alabama. Founded in 1883, as Jacksonville State Normal School, in 1930 the name changed to Jacksonville State Teachers College, and again in 1957 to Jacksonville State College. The present name Jacksonville State University didn't come about until about 1967. In 2008, the university celebrates 125 years of serving northeast Alabama and beyond.

Today, the university offers programs of study leading to Bachelor's, Master's, and Education Specialist degrees in business, communication, education, family sciences, liberal arts and sciences, and nursing, in addition to continuing education programs. Jacksonville State offers many online courses with online programs in emergency management, MBA, education, and others. JSU currently has an enrollment of more than 9,000 students, with 400 faculty members (300 of whom are full-time). The current University President is Dr. William A. Meehan.

With a focus on providing a quality education, Jacksonville State University is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS). In addition, 38 academic programs (79% of programs that can be accredited) earned specialized programmatic accreditations. These programs include business, education, engineering and technology, nursing, social work, drama, art, music, computer science, family and consumer science, and communication.

229 international students were enrolled in the 2005-06 academic year. The University has run its International House program, an international exchange program, for over 60 years. [1] JSU is also nationally recognized for its marching band, the Marching Southerners, which performs before thousands each year at marching exhibitions, football games, and parades.

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[edit] Campus events

In February 2006, Jacksonville State University was named the winner of the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) Speech Code of the Month. At the time, FIRE called the University Code of Conduct “illegally overbroad.” They considered the code to be in violation of the First Amendment of the Constitution which protects offensive speech. The policy has since been changed.

In August 2007, University President Dr. William Meehan was implicated in a plagiarism scandal related to his periodic column entitled "Town & Gown" which was actually written by the school's news bureau. These columns were written by the recently retired Director of JSU’s News Bureau who was working part-time to ghostwrite the weekly “Town & Gown” column. A committee appointed by the President found no wrong-doing on the part of Meehan other than a lack of administrative oversight, and found that responsibility for the plagiarism was that of the writer. [1]

In October 2007, the College of Commerce and Business Administration was named one of the Best 290 Business Schools by the Princeton Review and ranked 2nd in providing the Greatest Opportunities for Women.

The school recently broke ground for the 25,000 square feet (2,300 m²) Little River Canyon Center. The building will house National Park Service offices, an exhibit hall, meeting space, classrooms, and comfort stations and will be the site of the JSU Little River Canyon Field School - which sponsors dozens of activities, seminars and programs each year. In 1992, the canyon was designated a national preserve. During the summer months, the staff includes 15 park rangers.

[edit] Athletics

Athletics logo
Athletics logo

Jacksonville State's athletics teams are nicknamed the Gamecocks. The school is a member of the Ohio Valley Conference in Division I FCS (Football Championship Subdivision) in football, formerly 1-AA, of the NCAA. The university's football team gained national attention in 2001 when Junior placekicker Ashley Martin became the first female football player to score a point in a Division I game tallying 3 points against Cumberland University. The school fields varsity teams in 14 sports: baseball, men's and women's basketball, cross country, football, men's and women's golf, rifle, women's soccer, softball, men's and women's tennis, women's track and field, and volleyball. The football team plays in 15,000-seat Paul Snow Stadium. The men's and women's basketball and volleyball teams play in Pete Mathews Coliseum. Prior to the 1993-94 academic year, Jacksonville State competed in NCAA Division II athletics, winning national championships in men's basketball (1985), baseball (1990 and 1991), and football (1992).

[edit] Greek life

Sororities

Fraternities

[edit] University slogans

  • "The Friendliest Campus in the South"- According to NSSE (National Survey of Student Engagement), Jacksonville State University really does live up to this nickname, which is one that has truly survived the tests of time.. JSU's high scores in the survey's Supportive Campus Environment support this claim.
  • "My JSU"
  • "The Best Kept Secret in the South"

[edit] Notable alumni

Ryan Youngblood - Founder of Jacksonville State University Cycling Club

[edit] External links

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Public Colleges and Universities in Alabama
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