Missouri Western State University
Motto | Everything is Possible |
---|---|
Type | Public |
Established | 1915 |
President | Robert A. Vartabedian |
Provost | Jeanne Daffron |
Students | 5,795 (Fall 2014)[1] |
Undergraduates | 5,616 (Fall 2014)[1] |
Postgraduates | 179 (Fall 2014)[1] |
Location |
Saint Joseph, Missouri, U.S. 39°45′29″N 94°47′08″W / 39.7581°N 94.7856°WCoordinates: 39°45′29″N 94°47′08″W / 39.7581°N 94.7856°W |
Campus | Urban, 744 acres (301.1 ha) |
Colors |
Black and Gold[2] |
Nickname | Griffons |
Mascot | Max the Griffon |
Sporting affiliations | NCAA Division II – MIAA |
Website |
missouriwestern |
Missouri Western State University is a public, co-educational university located in Saint Joseph, Missouri, United States. The school enrolls 6,010 undergraduate students and 124 graduate students.
History
Missouri Western State University was founded in 1915 as a two-year institution called St. Joseph Junior College and held courses in the original location of Central High School (St. Joseph, Missouri) at 13th and Patee. In 1933 when Central High School moved to its current location the junior college relocated to the Robidoux Polytechnic High School building at 10th Street between Edmond and Charles. In 1917 it adopted the Griffon as its mascot.[3]
The establishment of a four-year school was a central campaign issue in the 1964 Missouri Governor's race. Warren Hearnes from southeast Missouri who was challenging Hilary A. Bush who was from western Missouri for governor. Hearnes promised to transform the school into a four-year school despite the presence of another state university (Northwest Missouri State University) 40 miles (64 km) to the north in Maryville, Missouri.
Hearnes narrowly won the primary and then won general election. The college became a four-year school in 1969 during Hearnes second term.[4]
School officials, saying the four-college would never have occurred without Hearnes, named the school's library for him.[5]
Shortly after the conversion, the school acquired the farm of St. Joseph State Hospital #2, on the east side of Interstate 29, for its campus on the east edge of St. Joseph. The original plan had called for it to be built across from the hospital, just west of Bishop LeBlond High School and closer to downtown St. Joseph.[6]
In 1988 Shalia Aery, commissioner of higher education under Governor John Ashcroft recommended Northwest should close and leave Missouri Western as the surviving school.[7] That plan was ultimately dropped.
Legislation in 2005[8] changed the institution's name to Missouri Western State University. That legislation designated Missouri Western as Missouri's Applied Learning Institution and allowed it to grant master's degrees. The university hooded its first 12 master's degree recipients in May 2009.[9] In its first six years offering graduate degrees, graduate enrollment at Western has grown by 100% or more each year. As of 2011, Western has graduate programs in 14 areas.[10]
In 2010, the Stephen L. Craig School of Business was accredited by AACSB International.[11]
The school's most visible corporate affiliation is with Hillyard, Inc., a cleaning supplies company. The school's Spratt Memorial Stadium is named for Elliot "Bub" Spratt, an executive at the company. Leah Spratt Hall is named for a sister of Elliot. The school hosts the Hillyard Tip Off Basketball Classic tournament.
Presidents
- M. O. Looney (1969–1983)
- Janet Gorman Murphy (1983–2000)
- James Scanlon (2001–2008)
- Robert Vartabedian (2008–present)
Campus buildings
The main buildings of Missouri Western State University are all dedicated to someone who is an important part in MWSU's history.[12]
Building name | Function of building |
---|---|
Agenstein Hall | Math and Science Departments |
Baker Family Fitness Center | Student Fitness Center |
Beshears Hall | Housing |
Blum Union | Bookstore, Dining (Aramark), Center for Multiculture Education, Center for Student Engagement, Health Center, Campus Police |
Commons Building | Housing |
Eder Hall | Admissions, Department of English and Modern Languages,[13] Financial Aid, Student Affairs |
Fulkerson Center | Conference rooms |
Griffon Hall | Housing |
Griffon Indoor Sports Complex | Athletic training facility, coaches' offices |
Hearnes Center | Library, Center for Academic Support, Information Technology Services, Instructional Media Center |
Juda Hall | Housing |
Leaverton Hall | Housing |
Logan Hall | Housing |
Looney Complex | Athletics Department, (HPER)–Health, Physical Education, and Recreation Services |
Missouri Department of Conservation | Missouri Department of Conservation, Biology department |
Murphy Hall | Communication and Journalism; Education; Nursing and Allied Health; Psychology |
Popplewell Hall | Administrative building, Stephen L. Craig School of Business, College of Professional Studies; Department of History, Philosophy, and Geography |
Potter Hall | Art and Music Departments |
Remington Hall | Math and Science Departments |
Scanlon Hall | Housing |
Spratt Hall | Advancement offices, Alumni services, Foundation, Public Relations, Walter Cronkite Memorial |
Vaselakos Hall | Housing |
Wilson Hall | Criminal Justice, Legal Studies, Social Work, Engineering Technology, Military Science, and Law Enforcement Academy |
Athletics
Missouri Western is the home of the Griffons. MWSU competes in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association and is in NCAA Division II. Its highest attended football games are in the Northwest Missouri-Missouri Western football rivalry. The university currently fields 10 sports (Men's baseball, basketball, football, golf; Women's basketball, golf, soccer, softball, tennis, volleyball) as a NCAA Division II school. The University currently fields teams in 10 sports, including:
Men's sports |
Women's Sports |
Kansas City Chiefs Summer Training Camp
The school has been the summer training camp for the Kansas City Chiefs since 2010. The $15.7 million facility was paid for by $10 million from the Chiefs (from state tax credits) and $1.2 million from student fees at Missouri Western, with the rest coming from the City of St. Joseph, Buchanan County and private donations.[14] It was designed by St. Joseph architect firm Ellison-Auxier Architects, Inc., which designed the school's Spratt Hall and clock tower.[15]
A climate-controlled, 120-yard NFL regulation grass indoor field, with a locker room, weight room, training room, classrooms and office space was completed in the summer of 2010.[16] This facility is referred to as the "Griffon Indoor Sports Complex."
Notable alumni
- Roger Allen III, NFL offensive lineman
- David Bass, NFL defensive lineman
- Charles Bruffy, Grammy Award-winning artistic director of the Kansas City Chorale and the Phoenix Chorale and chorus director of the Kansas City Symphony
- Richard Durst, Baldwin-Wallace University president emeritus
- Brice Garnett, PGA Tour golfer
- Esther George, president of Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City
- Elijah Haahr, Missouri state representative[17]
- Michael Hill, NFL running back[18]
- Christel Marquardt, judge on the Kansas Court of Appeals
- Jerry Partridge, Missouri Western football coach
- Travis Partridge, Canadian Football League player
- Paul Rhoads, Iowa State University head football coach
- Gijon Robinson, NFL tight end
- Rob Schaaf, Missouri state senator
- Kenneth Wilson, Missouri state representative[19]
- Greg Zuerlein, NFL kickers
- Keith Hoskins, CAPT, USN Retired, Blue Angel Pilot (1999-2001)
References
- 1 2 3 "Higher Learning Commission". ncahlc.org.
- ↑ MWSU Graphic Standards (PDF). Retrieved 2016-03-23.
- ↑ Robidoux School National Register of Historic Places application
- ↑ "A History of Missouri". google.com.
- ↑ Hearnes instrumental in Western’s BIRTH stjoenews.net - August 18, 2009
- ↑ MWSU Acquires St. Joseph Hospital # 2
- ↑ "ST. Louis Post-Dispatch Newspaper Archives". newsbank.com.
- ↑ "Section 174-251 Missouri Western State University, miss". mo.gov.
- ↑ Inaugural master's students earn degrees at Western - St. Joseph News-Press - May 10, 2009
- ↑ Graduate degrees
- ↑ "AACSB - Page Not Found". aacsb.edu.
- ↑ MWSU Campus Map of Buildings
- ↑ "Department of English and Modern Languages". missouriwestern.edu.
- ↑ Chiefs camp carries heftier price tag St. Joseph News-Press - January 16, 2009
- ↑ "Western makes familiar firm choice for Chiefs training camp facilities". Griffon News.
- ↑ "Chiefs training camp to return to Missouri beginning in 2010". Kansas City Chiefs. 2009-06-18. Retrieved 2009-06-19. Archived October 3, 2009, at the Wayback Machine.
- ↑ "Representative Elijah Haahr". house.mo.gov.
- ↑ "Michael Hill". NFL.com.
- ↑ "Representative Kenneth Wilson". house.mo.gov.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Missouri Western State University. |
- Official website
- Missouri Western Athletics website
- Missouri Western State University at National Center for Education Statistics: College Navigator