University at Tennessee at Martin
Motto	"The Total Collegiate Experience"
Established	1900
Type	State funded
Chancellor	Tom Rakes
President	John D. Petersen[1]
Staff	650
Undergraduates	6,504[2]
Postgraduates	542
Location	Martin, Tennessee, USA
Campus	Rural, 930 acres
Sports Mascot	Skyhawks
Colors	Orange & Blue
Website	www.utm.edu

The University of Tennessee at Martin is a campus in the University of Tennessee system. Other campuses include the flagship campus in Knoxville, the Chattanooga campus, the Center for the Health Sciences in Memphis, and the Space Institute in Tullahoma. UTM is the only public four-year university in West Tennessee outside Memphis.

Contents 1 History 2 Academics 2.1 Colleges & Departments 3 Campus 4 Greek Life 4.1 Honorary Societies 4.2 Interfraternity Council (Fraternities) 4.3 Panhellenic Council (Sororities) 4.4 National Pan-Hellenic Council (Fraternities and Sororities) 4.5 Other Fraternities 5 Athletics 6 Publications 7 Notable alumni 8 Points of interest 9 Related 10 References

[edit] History

UT Martin began in 1900 as Hall-Moody Institute in Martin, Tennessee, a Baptist junior college. In 1927 the school was in danger of closing, and area civic and political leaders asked the state of Tennessee to step in and operate the school under the auspices of the University of Tennessee, which it did, renaming the institution the University of Tennessee Junior College. It operated under this name until 1951, when, with the addition of four-year fields of study leading to a bachelor's degree, it was redesignated the University of Tennessee Martin Branch. In 1967 it was designated as a primary campus of the UT system and given its current name. The school grew greatly from the post-World War II era, largely under the influence of the G. I. Bill of Rights, through the 1960s under the leadership of dean (later chancellor) Paul Meek.^[3] It was noted that the school had almost as many entering freshmen in 1969 as it had overall students in 1961. Current enrollment is approximately 7,000. In 1961, it was the first campus in the University of Tennessee system to practice racial desegregation. A large experimental farm is operated, and there are several satellite campuses in West Tennessee (and one in Middle Tennessee).

[edit] Academics

Given its rural location, much of the focus of the school has been on undergraduate studies in education and agriculture, although many other courses of study are offered, particularly in the liberal arts, and in recent years there has been an increasing emphasis on business and engineering. There is an active ROTC program, and a school of nursing. The school is among the top providers of candidates to the University of Tennessee Health Science Center in Memphis. There is a small graduate school, with most graduate degrees being conferred in education.

[edit] Colleges & Departments

• College of Agriculture and Applied Sciences
• College of Business and Public Affairs
• College of Education and Behavioral Sciences
• College of Engineering and Natural Sciences
• College of Humanities and Fine Arts

[edit] Campus

The campus is noted for being particularly scenic and well-landscaped. Students who live on campus are within walking distance of all academic buildings, the library, food services, the Boling University Center, and all recreational and sports facilities. Recent years have seen the demolition of old double-occupancy dormitory halls in favor of construction of apartment-style housing.

[edit] Greek Life

[edit] Honorary Societies

• Order of Omega
• GAMMA
• Gamma Sigma Alpha
• Rho Lambda
• Gamma Beta Phi
• Alpha Psi Omega

[edit] Interfraternity Council (Fraternities)

• Alpha Gamma Rho
• Alpha Tau Omega - Zeta Pi Chapter
• Kappa Alpha Order - Delta Upsilon Chapter
• Phi Sigma Kappa
• Pi Kappa Alpha
• Sigma Alpha Epsilon- Tennessee Tau Chapter
• Sigma Chi - Kappa Psi Chapter
• Sigma Phi Epsilon - Tennessee Kappa Chapter

[edit] Panhellenic Council (Sororities)

• Alpha Delta Pi
• Alpha Omicron Pi
• Chi Omega
• Zeta Tau Alpha
• Gamma Kappa Pi

[edit] National Pan-Hellenic Council (Fraternities and Sororities)

• Alpha Kappa Alpha - Zeta Lambda Chapter
• Delta Sigma Theta - Eta Xi Chapter
• Kappa Alpha Psi - Zeta Kappa Chapter
• Phi Beta Sigma - Kappa Omicron Chapter
• Omega Psi Phi - Iota Zeta Chapter
• Zeta Phi Beta - Delta Iota Chapter
• Alpha Phi Alpha - Tau Psi Chapter
• Sigma Gamma Rho - Gamma Kappa Chapter

[edit] Other Fraternities

• Phi Mu Alpha - Sigma Psi Chapter
• Sigma Alpha Iota - Epsilon Iota Chapter

[edit] Athletics

Athletic teams participate in the Ohio Valley Conference.

The university mascot was changed from "Pacers" to "Skyhawks" in 1995. The reasoning behind the "Skyhawks" moniker was described thus^[4]:

• The first educational institution on the site of UT Martin was Hall-Moody Bible Institute. The school's athletic teams were called "sky pilots", a frontier term for preachers in that day, but perhaps the students were thinking of the glamorous flying aces of World War I.
• During World War II, UT Junior College contracted with the Naval War Training Service to help train pilots, who completed their flight training at an airport located on the current site of Westview High School.
• Red-tail hawks are indigenous to the West Tennessee region.

Prior to being known as "Pacers" the university's teams were called "Volunteers." The name was changed in 1971, largely due to fact that, on account of the former junior college status of the school, the teams were often referred to as the "Baby Vols."

[edit] Publications

Founded in 1928, The Pacer is the name of the student newspaper. The Office of Student Publications publishes The Pacer every Tuesday morning throughout the semester except for holidays and exam periods. As of 2006, the newspaper has a circulation of 3,000 copies. In the spring of 2006, the publication was won the distinction of being named "Best in the South" at the Southeastern Journalism Conference, beating out such schools as Vanderbilt and Mississippi State. Throughout its history, the newspaper has also been named The Checkerboard and The Volette.

[edit] Notable alumni

• Pat Head Summitt (’74) Tennessee Lady Vols head basketball coach, all-time leader for games won among NCAA Division I basketball coaches (men's or women's). The court in the basketball arena and a street on campus are named for Summitt.
• Major General John "Glad" Castellaw ('72) USMC, Chief of Staff, U.S. Central Command
• Leonard Hamilton (’71) Florida State Seminoles head basketball coach
• William C. Rhodes (’87) president and CEO of AutoZone, Inc.
• Van Jones ('90) attorney and internationally-recognized civil and human rights advocate
• Fred Thomas (’96) New Orleans Saints cornerback.
• Jerry Reese ('85) general manager of the 2007 World Champion New York Giants
• Dr. Shirley C. Raines ('67) President of the University of Memphis
• Charlie Neese ('92) NewsChannel5 (WTVF-Nashville) meteorologist
• Wm. Lance Culley, D.D.S. ('92) Founder of the Institute for Periodontics and Implant Dentistry.
• Dr. John Richard Barker ('89) Executive Director of the Department of Research, Evaluation, and Assessment, Memphis City Schools

[edit] Points of interest

• University of Tennessee Botanical Gardens
• Hosts the Tennessee Governor's School For the Humanities and Agricultural Sciences.

[edit] Related

• University of Tennessee at Martin - Official Web Site
• Fast Facts
• UT Martin Skyhawk Athletics - Athletics Web Site
• The Pacer - Student Newspaper
• A Virtual History of the University of Tennessee at Martin

[edit] References

v • d • e Ohio Valley Conference Austin Peay • Eastern Illinois • Eastern Kentucky • Jacksonville State • Morehead State • Murray State • SIUE • Southeast Missouri State • Tennessee State • Tennessee Tech • UT Martin

v • d • e University of Tennessee System University of Tennessee • University of Tennessee at Chattanooga • University of Tennessee at Martin University of Tennessee Health Science Center • University of Tennessee Space Institute

v • d • e Public universities in Tennessee Austin Peay • Chattanooga • East Tennessee • Memphis • Middle Tennessee • Tennessee State • Tennessee Tech Tennessee • UT Health Science Center • UT Space Institute • UT Martin

Coordinates: 36°20′30″N 88°52′02″W / 36.341754°N 88.867097°W / 36.341754; -88.867097