The University
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THE UNIVERSITY Vanderbilt, founded 130 years ago by a $1 million gift by Commodore Cornelius Vanderbilt, is one of the nation’s leading institutions of higher learning, a mid-size, private comprehensive research university that emphasizes undergraduate learning and living experiences. Since its inception, the university has taken great pride in the quality of education – and the quality of life – its students enjoy. Each of the four undergraduate colleges – College of Arts and Science, School of Engineering, Blair School TBALL of Music and Peabody College – attracts students with varying goals and dreams. Whichever school they enroll in, students receive a valuable and versatile education and are an integral part of the University’s community of scholars. Members of the undergraduate student body, including Vanderbilt student-athletes, are outstanding academic achievers and active participants in Vanderbilt’s 350-plus extracurricu- FOO lar organizations. The University attracts students from many ethnic, cultural, socio-economic, geographic and religious facilities. Off campus, undergraduates have all the urban conveniences backgrounds, and all are encouraged to listen to and learn from one offered by one of America’s foremost cities, Nashville. The city, located on another. The incoming freshman class of 2004 features the greatest the scenic Cumberland River, possesses a rare blend of big-city amenities diversity in Vanderbilt history. and small-town charm. Its collection of cultural activities, attractions, restaurants, parks and sporting events is unmatched in the region. RE At Vanderbilt, professors know their students’ names, and take an interest in students’ ideas. Recognized globally for their research and Though located within walking distance of downtown activities, the scholarship prowess, fac- quality of Vanderbilt life is reflected in much smaller, less public ways – running into friends while walking across campus, researching papers from O ulty members believe in the importance of balancing a dorm room, grabbing a late-night snack, choosing a public policy lecture professional pursuits with or an athletic event or having dinner with classmates at a professor’s D classroom instruction, and home. These are all part of the Vanderbilt experience, from which students they value their relationships draw long after leaving, and indeed for life. with students. Some of the world’s leading scholars HISTORY OF THE UNIVERSITY teach Vanderbilt undergradu- With Commodore Cornelius Vanderbilt’s gift, the university was founded ates as early as the freshman in 1873. It was his hope that building a world-class university in the South year in intimate classrooms would “contribute to strengthening the ties which should exist between all that average nine students to sections of our common country.” each professor. Originally affiliated with the Methodist Episcopal Church South, the At Vanderbilt, faculty campus became independent in 1914. The University’s student body has advisers do more than sign been coeducational since 1875. The original campus, which opened in a course schedules for the next single building on 75 acres, expanded to 330 acres in 1979 when Vanderbilt semester. They help merged with the neighboring George Peabody College for Teachers. students develop an academic program that meets indi- vidual objectives, and they encourage students to enhance primary areas of study by choosing among hundreds of elective courses, course-related internships, off-campus study and accelerated degree programs. Through the Honor Code, student-directed service opportuni- ties and campus programs, Vanderbilt students also consider moral and ethical issues and put the many facets of their lives 2007 intoCOMMO a personal framework of values. At Vanderbilt, the big material resources are in place – beauti- ful grounds and buildings, well-equipped classrooms and labs, various options for housing and ample athletic and recreational VANDERBILT UNI V ERSITY VANDERBILT UNI V ERSITY 190 THE UNIVERSITY 2007 COMMO THE UNDERGRADUATE COLLEGES COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCE The heart of Vanderbilt beats in the College of Arts and Science, encouraging students to think deeply, inquire broadly and imagine creatively. Twenty-five undergraduate degrees, ranging from economics and theatre to English, mathematics and cel- lular biology, are offered in the multi-dimensional College of Arts VANDERBILT STUDENTS, FACULTY & CLASSROOMS and Science. The college com- The student community at Vanderbilt consists of 6,378 undergraduate bines eager students and a highly students and more than 4,000 graduate/professional students. The under- graduate enrollment is 52 percent female. Every state and more than 100 acclaimed faculty ranging from foreign countries are represented by the student body. prize-winning poets to pioneering The Vanderbilt classroom features a favorable student-faculty ratio of 9:1, research scientists. Many of the college’s graduates go on to careers by far the lowest in the SEC. Average class size at Vanderbilt hovers under in law, medicine, business, education and public policy. Arts and 20 students, with 75 percent of Vanderbilt’s undergraduate courses featur- Science graduates are recruited for careers as diverse as investment ing less than 25 students. banking, international relief and journalism. The university faculty is among the finest in the nation. Undergraduate and postgraduate students at Vanderbilt are served by nearly 2,500 faculty members at the forefront of their academic disciplines, drawn to Vanderbilt PEABODY COLLEGE from every region of the globe. Faculty members have won countless pres- One of America’s leading tigious awards, including Nobel, Fulbright, Guggenheim, MacArthur, Mellon, education schools, Peabody D National Endowment for the Humanities and National Science Foundation. College offers 10 degrees. Peabody, established in 1867, O A TOP 20 has produced numerous NIVERSITY U premier educators. The Vanderbilt RE student is getting a top educa- SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING tion. Numerous Eight degrees, ranging from respected publica- electrical engineering to tions, such as U.S. computer science, are offered FOO News & World in the prestigious School of Report, include Engineering. This is the oldest Vanderbilt among the top schools school of its kind in the South. in America. The Graduates are highly sought after magazine, in its by more than 300 corporations “America’s College that actively recruit the school. Rankings 2007” edition, ranked Vanderbilt tied for 18th among national uni- Faculty professors teach undergraduate classes and frequently use versities – and second among universities in the Southeast. The magazine students in important research projects. also listed Peabody College as the nation’s fifth best graduate school of TBALL education, the Vanderbilt Law School 17th overall, and the Vanderbilt School of Medicine 17th in the nation. Several others, including Business BLAIR SCHOOL OF MUSIC Week, Wall Street Journal and Forbes, list Vanderbilt’s Owen School of Vanderbilt is one of three Top 25 Management among the nation’s top graduate business programs. universities to boast a highly acclaimed school of music. Students at the Blair ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT BY STUDENT-ATHLETES School are among the finest in America, Vanderbilt is renowned for its focus on academic success through expecting to train with an impressive roster commitment, effort and integrity. The athletic community also celebrates of professors. academic achievement. Commodore student-athletes are among the lead- ers in graduation success. In recent years, the graduation success rate of Vanderbilt’s newest school also features Vanderbilt’s student-athletes has approached 90 percent, far ahead of other the acclaimed Martha Rivers Ingram Center Southeastern Conference schools. Twice since 1996, the Commodore for the Performing Arts. football program has topped the nation with a 100 percent graduation rate of its senior class. VANDERBILT UNI V ERSITY VANDERBILT UNI V ERSITY 191 VANDERBILT ALUMNI ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT James Neal John Ingram John Bloom Watergate Counsel President, Ingram Dist. Holdings Creator of “Joe Bob Briggs” Roy Neel Mark P. Mays Hollywood movie critic Former White House Deputy Chief President/COO, Clear Channel Amy Grant of Staff (Clinton Admin.) Entertainment Award-winning recording artist; Bill Purcell Ann S. Moore Primetime TV series host Mayor, Metropolitan Nashville- CEO/Chairman, Time Inc. Delbert Mann Davidson County Douglas Parker Oscar-winning director James Sasser CEO, US Air Group Inc. Daniel Roumain Former U.S. Senator, Tennessee; H. Ross Perot, Jr. Composer Former U.S. ambassador to China CEO, Perot Systems Corporation Tom Schulman Fred Thompson Catherine Reynolds TBALL Oscar-winning screenwriter Former U.S. Senator, Tennessee Former CEO, EduCap Molly Sims Skip Bayless Molly Sims John W. Rich Supermodel, actress AUTHORS Chairman, Delta Coals Fred Thompson James Patterson Joe L. Roby Movie, TV actor Best-selling suspense novelist Chairman Emeritus, The late Robert Penn Warren Credit Suisse First Boston EDUCATION Three-time Pulitzer Prize winner Bill Samuels, Jr. The late Susan Walton Gray President, Maker’s Mark Founder, Project Head Start MEDIA Cal Turner, Jr. Thomas K. Hearn, Jr. Skip Bayless Former CEO/President, President, Wake Forest ESPN Cold Pizza commentator Dollar General Corporation FOO Earl Bruce Heilman Roy Blount, Jr. Muhammad Yunus Chancellor, University of Richmond Best-selling author 2006 Nobel Peace