University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh

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University of Wisconsin Oshkosh
Established: 1871
Type: State university
Chancellor: Richard H. Wells
Undergraduates: 11,070 (2006)
Postgraduates: 1,257 (2006) [1]
Location: Oshkosh, Wisconsin, United States
Campus: Urban
Nickname: Titans
Website: http://www.uwosh.edu

The University of Wisconsin Oshkosh (also known as UW Oshkosh or UWO) is a public university located in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. It is part of the University of Wisconsin System and offers both bachelor and master degrees. University of Wisconsin Oshkosh has the third largest undergraduate headcount in the UW System. [2]

Contents

[edit] History

Welcome sign
Welcome sign

In 1871 the university began as Oshkosh State Normal School. The university was Wisconsin's third teacher-training school. Oshkosh Normal began the first state normal school in the United States to have a kindergarten.

From 1927 to 1951 the university was called Oshkosh State Teachers College. The university was called Wisconsin State College Oshkosh from 1951 to 1964 and Wisconsin State University Oshkosh from 1964 to 1971. It became part of the University of Wisconsin System in 1971.

Today, it offers seven baccalaureate and seven masters degrees in 48 programs spanning four colleges. The college is widely known to be strong in accounting, nursing, business, teaching, and fine arts. Enrollment in the fall of 2002 was 11,245, and enrollment in 2005 was 11,465.

[edit] Sports

Kolf Sports Center
Kolf Sports Center
Titan Stadium
Titan Stadium

Since 2003 the men's club volleyball team has finished in the top five every year at the National Intramural Recreational Sports Association (NIRSA) championships. In 2005, the team finished second[3], while in 2006[4] and 2007[5], finished first. The team is coached by Brian Schaefer, who has a .756 winning percentage.[6]

Both the baseball and basketball programs have been quite successful, making several recent appearances at the Division III championship level. There have been 8 baseball players to play in Major League Baseball.

The school's gymnastics program also won multiple NCAA Division II-III and NAIA men's gymnastics championships before the sport was dropped at small-college levels.

Both Men's and Women's track teams are quite successful. The women have won an unprecedented 7 national titles in Division III Outdoor Track and Field while the men consistently place in the top 10 teams in the nation.

The only on-campus sports facility is Kolf Sports Center, which features the main basketball/indoor track/volleyball gymnasium. Other events held here include commencement ceremonies and concerts. Both Titan Stadium (the football/soccer/outdoor track venue) and Tiedemann Field (the baseball/softball field) are located across the Fox River, making them somewhat inaccessible from campus. Despite a recent multi-million dollar renovation, the best attended sporting events at Titan Stadium are for the two local Oshkosh public high school football teams, both of whom use it as their home field.

[edit] Student media

Arts & Communications building
Arts & Communications building

The school's newspaper is the Advance-Titan. The school has a radio station, WRST-FM 90.3 in the Arts & Communications building. The call letters stand for "Radio Station of the Titans." The station carries Wisconsin Public Radio and student programming.

The school's student-media outlets are known across the country for producing young sports writing and broadcasting talent. Titan TV, the school's television channel,for a while was the only NCAA Division III school to telecast all home football and men's and women's basketball games complete with live pre-game, halftime, and post-game shows.

[edit] Historic places

There are three locations on the campus that have been listed on Registered Historic Places. A fourth historical site, Buckstaff Observatory, is located on campus but is no longer owned by the university.

Buckstaff Planetarium

[edit] Oshkosh State Normal School Historic District

Three buildings on the original campus make up this historic district. Dempsey Hall serves as the administration center of the campus. Harrington Hall hosts geology classes. Swart Hall, completed in 1928, is used by the mathematics, economics, and sociology departments. It was originally used as a place where student teachers taught kindergarten through ninth grade students.

Dempsey Hall

Harrington Hall

Swart Hall

[edit] Oviatt House

Oviatt House
Oviatt House

Moses Hooper moved to Oshkosh in 1863, and he started construction of the house in 1882. The house was located at the north edge of the Wisconsin State Normal School at Oshkosh. The house was estimated to cost approximately $12,000-$15,000 to build. When Hooper moved into his new residence on October 31, 1883 the actual cost had been $20,000. The structure had modern amenities including hot water heat and running water. The interior was painted by local painters Frank Waldo and Gustav Behncke. The house was sold on September 20, 1900 to Dr. Charles W. Oviatt. The surgeon paid $18,000 for the property. After Oviatt's death in 1912, Oviatt's heirs sold the house and grounds to the State Normal School Regents in 1913 with the agreement that the heirs could live in the house until June 1914.[7]

The house was first used by the school as a women's dormitory, the first dormitory on campus. The dormatory operated at a loss, and school president Polk discontinued the venture in 1932. After talking about dismantling the building, Polk started renting the house from the school in 1934. The following three presidents of the school also resided in the house, ending with president Penson in 1989. The University of Wisconsin Oshkosh Foundation moved its office in the house in 1990.[7]

The Oviatt House was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. The application was filed by Dr. Edward M. Noyes, UW Oshkosh professor emeritus in history.[7]

[edit] William E. Pollock Residence

Pollock Alumni House
Pollock Alumni House

William E. Pollock managed OshKosh B'Gosh. He had Fluor Brothers build the house in 1920 for $19,000. The yard included a three car garage, garden, and a fishing pond. Pollock lived in the house from 1920 until 1937. He sold the house on a land contract, but the house was returned to him after the contract was unfulfilled. Pollock donated the house to the Oshkosh State Teachers College in 1943.[8]

The college changed the residence into a women's dormitory which could house up to 32 co-eds. In the 1960s is was used as an honors dormitory until it closed in 1967. From 1967 until 1970 it housed the College of Nursing administrative offices. When the College of Nursing was relocated to a new Nursing/Education building, the Alumni Associate took over the structure. It has been used by the Alumni Association since 1970. It is occasionally used for special functions.[8] Notable visitors have included President Jimmy Carter, United Nations ambassador Jean Kirkpatrick, and Edward Albee.[8]

The house is designed as a Mediterranean Revival style house with Italian and Spanish motif. The entrance has an ornate semi-circular wrought iron door leading into a large foyer. The front entry hall opens into a large living room and a smaller parlor. A formal staircase that rises to an open landing and to a study. The second story bedrooms are used as offices for Alumni and Foundation staff. The rear consists of a formal dining room, kitchen, and pantry. The building has three chimneys that are capped with campaniles that resemble Italian bell towers. The residence's exterior is framed by concrete planters and topped by a wrought iron balcony outside of the second floor French windows. The roof is low-pitched red-barrel tile.[8]

[edit] Notable Alumni

[edit] Business

[edit] Computer Science

[edit] Law & Government

[edit] Radio/TV/Film/Journalism

[edit] Science

Entering UW-Oshkosh on Wisconsin Highway 44
Entering UW-Oshkosh on Wisconsin Highway 44
  • Peter Thompson (1984), geologist with the Department of Defense (Defense Nuclear Agency) in the Treaty Verification Division
  • Craig Culver (1973, Biology), President and cofounder of Culver's

[edit] Sports


[edit] Teaching

[edit] Notable faculty

[edit] References in the media

  • The fictional anchor of the Onion Radio News, Doyle Redland, is a UW-Oshkosh alumnus according to his "biography." [10]

[edit] See also

[edit] References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:
  1. ^ University of Wisconsin Graduate headcount
  2. ^ University of Wisconsin undergrad headcount (PDF File)
  3. ^ NIRSA Final Ranking, 2005
  4. ^ Final NIRSA Ranking, 2006
  5. ^ Final NIRSA Ranking, 2007
  6. ^ OshKosh Volleyball website
  7. ^ a b c History of the Oviatt House; University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh; Retrieved October 26, 2007
  8. ^ a b c d History of the Pollock House; University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh; Retrieved October 29, 2007
  9. ^ 4 named Outstanding Young Alumni, 2006; University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, Retrieved November 5, 2007
  10. ^ The Onion

[edit] External links

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University of Wisconsin System
v • d • e
Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference