100,000 STORIES - UMKC WordPress (info.umkc.edu) - University
Transcript of 100,000 STORIES - UMKC WordPress (info.umkc.edu) - University
1920sOur storyBringing the university’s history to life.
A roaring time of social change
By the numbers
Scopes trial. Women’s suffrage. Charles Lindbergh. Golden age of radio. Josephine Baker. Wall Street crash. Flappers. Buster Keaton. Fedoras. Babe Ruth. In Kansas City, it was the age of jazz and of Tom Pendergast. And although the market crashed, the city’s leaders were determined to move forward and cement the region’s future with several bold moves.
The story of a university is told by its people. Those who founded it. Those who built it brick by brick. Those who have stood by it. Those who taught within its walls. And those who left its grounds to make their mark on the world.
The story of this university is one of obstacles becoming opportunities. It’s a tale of triumph over turmoil. It’s a testament to the power of partnerships, where the whole becomes greater than the sum of its parts.
The small group of 260 students who began classes at the University of Kansas City on Oct. 1, 1933, paved the way for the more than 100,000 graduates who would join the alumni ranks. And on that opening day, more than 2,000 community members celebrated the campus’ opening in what would become a hallmark of this university’s story: civic engagement.
The university’s history is far more than the mile markers of buildings and programs. It’s a story perhaps best told by the more than 100,000 Kangaroos who now cover the globe. Enjoy this look back — and forward — at the impact and history of Kansas City’s university.
“Among the things I have tried to do in this city,
I am sure the university will pay the greatest
dividends to the most people…certainly it is the
best investment I have ever made.”— William Volker,
founding father and patron
1925n A Chamber of Commerce committee recommends the establishment of a university in Kansas City.
1925 1926 1927 1928 1929
1929n A charter for UKC is granted on June 10.
A list of university sponsors
President and Mrs. E.H. Newcomb
4 existing schools joined UKC after 1933: Law, Dentistry, Pharmacy and the Conservatory ...
... many of the earliest
alumni are dental graduates who
completed their degrees as their college joined
UKC.
1930sA worldwide economic crisis
By the numbers
Amelia Earhart. The Hindenberg disaster. Al Capone. Parker Brothers’ “Monopoly” game. Joe Louis. The Wizard of Oz. Bonnie and Clyde. Joe DiMaggio. The end of Prohibition. Charlie Chaplin. Mao’s long march. Bessie Smith. The rise of Adolf Hitler.
The university’s early days were a time of transition and sweeping change in the country. And despite the Great Depression, which defined the decade, the city’s leaders were undeterred in establishing a university in Kansas City. Roosevelt’s words during his inaugural address expressed it best: “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.”
The university’s first years drew students from across the region and the nation. By 1940, more than 1,100 students had earned their degrees from the University of Kansas City.
1930n William Volker purchases 40-acre tract that would become the Volker campus.
1934n Students protest the firing of three popular professors.
n Students name blue and gold as the official school colors.
1935n The new science building, known as the Geology-Physics building, is completed.
n Students establishHobo Day.
1931n Volker acquires the Dickey mansion and the surrounding 10 acres for UKC.
1937n Contracts are awarded to begin building a liberal arts building, which today is known as Haag Hall.
n Campus population:Faculty: 46Students: 700
n The Kangaroo, penned by Walt Disney, becomes the official UKC mascot.
1938n The Kansas City School of Law (est. 1895) joins the university to become the UKC School of Law.
n Accreditation is granted by the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools.
1936n The new library building is dedicated.
n William Volker purchases what will be the president’s residence at 51st Street and Rockhill Road.
n UKC’s Alumni Association is established.
1933n The University of Kansas City is officially dedicated on Oct. 1, with 260 students and 18 faculty.
UKC basketball team in 1933
University faculty
William Volker
Students from UKC’s entering class of 1933
Hobo Day
Early publication of The Kangaroo
magazine in 1937
Walt Disney’s Roo from 1937
President’s residence
1930 1931 1933 1934 1935 1937 1938 1939
More than
1,100alumni…
… hailing from 44states, Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia.
1940sA world at war
By the numbers
The first McDonald’s hamburger. The first multi-lane superhighway. The first color televisions. Big band music. Hollywood. Jukeboxes. But nothing shaped the decade more than World War II.
The university made headlines when the Dental School became one of the only schools to open its doors to students of Japanese descent, many of whom had been expelled from dental schools on the West Coast and forced into internment camps. That story is kept alive by today’s alumni, most of whom are concentrated in Hawaii. The Dental School’s Hawaiian Alumni group was awarded the Chancellor’s Medal in 2008 for outstanding service and dedication to the university, a relationship with its roots firmly in this decade.
1941n The dental department of the Kansas City Medical College (est. 1881) and the Western Dental College (est.1890), which merged in 1919, join the university as the UKC School of Dentistry.
n Swinney gymnasium opens on campus.
1947n UKC opens admissions to all students regardless of race.
n Harold L. Holliday becomes the first African-American admitted to the university, entering the School of Law in 1947.
1948n A temporary military theater is brought to campus from Camp Crowder in Neosho, Mo., and dedicated as the University Playhouse with a performance by Broadway star Jane Cowl.
n A barracks building is relocated to campus and turned into the student union.
1942n The new chemistry building is constructed as a gift from Volker.
n Epperson House is donated to the university.
1943n The pharmacy department (est. 1886) of the old medical school joins the university as UKC’s School of Pharmacy.
1945n President Harry Truman receives the university’s first honorary degree on the Quad.
1946n Postwar enrollment surges 60 percent in one year to 3,350.
Epperson House
Swinney gymnasium is unveiled in 1941
The February 1940 edition of the KCU Kangaroo
Student Union
Nearly
3,000alumni… … hailing from 50
states, Guam, Puerto Rico, the District of
Columbia and
5 countries.
1940 1941 1945 1946 1948 1949
Students from the School of Dentistry
University Playhouse
1950sA new era of optimism
By the numbers
The GI Bill. Elvis. Sputnik. Jackie Robinson. The polio vaccine. Rosa Parks. The Korean War. Leave It to Beaver. Rock ‘n’ roll. Saddle shoes. Jazz. The Red Scare. This decade shaped the strides for civil rights as the movement grew and Jim Crow laws were struck down. Internationally, it saw high tensions between the world’s powers as the Cold War took hold. The post-World War II years meant not only an economic upswing and the Baby Boom, but a surge in enrollment at the university.
1950n A new building is constructed
for the School of Law.
n Liaquat Ali Khan, prime minister of Pakistan, receives an honorary degree.
1953n Four hundred forty-four graduates receive diplomas on the Quad.
n The School of Business Administration is established.
1954n The School of Education is founded.
n Intercollegiate athletics take hold. The Kangaroos open against Rockhurst College in basketball.
1958n David Beals, chairman of the Board of Trustees, is the first recipient of the Chancellor’s Medal.
n The University Associates are founded as a civic group dedicated to university support that would continue until 2007.1955
n Ground is broken for a new, four-story brick dormitory.
n Eleanor Roosevelt speaks at the University Playhouse.
n Fraternities and sororities are established on campus.
n The College of Liberal Arts changes its name to the College of Arts and Sciences in 1953.
n The KCUR radio station begins broadcasting in 1953.
1959n The Kansas City Conservatory of Music (est. 1906) joins the university.
Students at the KangaRoost, a popular hangout
Children attend art classes on campus
UKC float in the annual American Royal Parade
Cherry Street Hall
Kansas Citian magazine
features a story on UKC
Students from the nursing program
More than
6,000alumni… … hailing from 50
states, Guam, Puerto Rico, the District of
Columbia and
6 countries.
1950 1951 1952 1956 19581957 1959
1960sLove and peace
By the numbers
Vietnam. Martin Luther King Jr. The Beatles. Sesame Street. Cuban missile crisis. Bell bottoms. Batman. Motown. The pill. JFK. The space race. Stonewall. Star Trek. Mickey Mantle. Woodstock. Peace signs.
The 1960s was a time of growing political awareness, student movements and cultural trends. After three decades as a private institution, the university’s financial instability led it to join the University of Missouri System, changing the campus’ name to the University of Missouri-Kansas City in 1963.
1960n The Carolyn Benton Cockefair Chair in Continuing Education is established.
1961n The University Center, with Pierson Hall donated by Elmer Pierson, opens after construction is financed by federal loan.
1964n Civil and mechanical engineering master’s programs begin.
n The Missouri Repertory Theatre is started and houses UMKC’s professional theater in residence.
n Forty-seven new faculty members are hired to accommodate an enrollment jump from 4,394 to 6,114 students.
1965n Oxford Hall becomes the home of UMKC’s School of Business and Public Administration.
1966n The School of Graduate Studies is established.
n The university’s new library and chemistry buildings open.
n University enrollment increases to 7,891 students.
1968n Robert F. Kennedy Symposium is established; the principal speaker is Muhammed Ali.
1969n TAASU, the African American Student Union, is founded.
1963n After several years of financial turmoil and depleted funds, the university joins the University of Missouri System and becomes the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
1967n University enrollment increases to 8,418 students.
n Family Study Center, later renamed the Women’s Council, is founded by Martha Jane Starr.
Conservatory Accordian Orchestra at Pierson Hall, January 1962
African American Week, 1969
Student working with an adding machine in 1967
Oxford Hall
More than
11,000alumni… … hailing from 50
states, Guam, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, the District of Columbia and
14 countries.
1960 1961 1964 1966 19681967 1969
1970sA decade of opportunity
By the numbers
The energy crisis. The Brady Bunch. Disco. Margaret Thatcher. Platform shoes. The Munich Olympics. The Jackson 5. Apollo 13. Watergate. Jonestown. Hippies. The ERA. Star Wars. Leisure suits. M*A*S*H. Hip hop.
Economic times were tough as the country struggled through an energy and oil crisis. The feminist movement and environmentalism gained momentum. At the university, the student body continued to grow larger and more diverse as new programs and schools were added.
1970n The School of Dentistry moves into a new building.
n The School of Medicine opens with 40 students enrolled in its new six-year program.
n Communiversity, UMKC’s adult education program,begins.
1973n The School of Education moves to a new $2.8 million building.
n Ground is broken for Truman Medical Center on Hospital Hill.
1978n Six hundred thirty-four African-American students are enrolled at UMKC.
1971n The Women’s Council Graduate Assistance Fund is established.
n The Women’s Resource Center is founded.
1974n The School of Medicine’s building is completed adjacent to Truman Medical Center.
n UMKC’s Edgar Snow Memorial Fund is founded to advance the legacy of Edgar Snow and friendship with China.
1977n Jazz great William “Count” Basie receives an honorary degree.
1979n The School of Nursing is established.
n The Performing Arts Center, now the James C. Olson Performing Arts Center, is dedicated. (Ground was broken in 1974.)
n The new Law School building opens.
n KCUR increases its power to 100,000 watts and began broadcasting around the clock.
More than
26,000alumni… … hailing from 50
states, Guam, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, the District of Columbia and
21 countries.
1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 19781977 1979
Inside a typical 1970s classroom
Looking west above Hospital Hill
1980sThe Reagan Revolution
By the numbers
Tiananman Square. Perestroika. Live Aid. The Berlin Wall. ET: The Extra-Terrestrial. Personal computers. Marvin Gaye. Mount St. Helens. Shoulder pads. Boom boxes. The space shuttle. Nelson Mandela. AIDS. MTV. Rubik’s Cube. Pac-Man. Michael Jordan.
By the close of the 1980s, change was sweeping the former communist nations in Europe. UMKC saw steady growth of its international student body and growing relationships with China, India, Malaysia, Thailand and Taiwan.
1982n The Toy & Miniature Museum of Kansas City (left) opens on campus in the former Tureman mansion.
n The first electronic billboard is installed at the intersection of Cherry Street and Rockhill Road.
n Handicapped access on campus is challenged and installed, well ahead of ADA laws.
1984n The Program for Adult College Education (PACE) begins to help nontraditional students earn bachelor’s degrees.
n The university opens the Center for Business Innovation.
1983n UMKC celebrates its 50th Jubilee.
n Haag Hall Annex is renamed Royall Hall.
n The New Horizons Campaign, UMKC’s first capital campaign, finishes early and surpasses its goal by $3.2 million.
1986n The Board of Curators approves the university’s move to the NCAA.
n Henry W. Bloch provides an endowment to support and name the business school.
1987 n Campus is expanded along Troost.
n Malcolm Forbes receives an honorary doctorate.
n The Eye Foundation, under the leadership of Felix Sabates, is established.
n 1987-88: First year of Division I basketball opens for men and women.1985
n Construction on a multi-purpose facility is started at Swinney Recreation Center and finished in 1988.
n The School of Basic Life Sciences is established and later renamed the School of Biological Sciences.
1988n The Office of Multicultural Student Affairs opens.
n The former Hospital Hill home of E. Grey Dimond, M.D., and the late Mary Clark Dimond becomes Diastole Scholars Center.
1989n The Nelson School is renamed Grant Hall.
n The International Student Affairs Office is founded.
More than
43,000alumni… … hailing from 50
states, Guam, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, the District of Columbia and
33 countries.
1982 1983 1984 198819871985 1989
Grant Hall
Brochure from the 50th Jubilee celebration
Swinney Recreation Center under construction
UMKC basketball moves to Division I
1990sThe electronic age gears up
By the numbers
Oklahoma City. Friends. Rwanda. DVDs. The Internet. Seinfeld. Grunge. Princess Diana. The X-Files. Rodney King. Hong Kong. The end of apartheid. The European Union. Dolly the sheep. Microsoft Windows. Forrest Gump.
From cable television to the ever-decreasing size of computers and phones, students in this decade were shaped by rapidly changing technology more than any generation before them. Classrooms, study spaces, labs and residence halls would soon reflect evolving technologies as the way students learned and communicated.
1990n Archbishop Desmond Tutu is granted an honorarydoctorate.
1992n The Edgar L. and Rheta A. Berkley Early Childhood Development Center opens.
n University Center renovations are completed, costing $3.2 million.
1993n A new Student Government Constitution is created and approved.
n First Lady Hillary Clinton visits Hospital Hill.
1997n The UMKC Debate team makes history – UMKC becomes the first school to top both the CEDA National Sweepstakes and the NDT national Ranking Report.
1999n UMKC achieves Carnegie-level Research II status.
1995n The UMKC Debate Team wins the 1995 CEDA National Sweepstakes Championship.
n University Center builds the first computer lab on campus.
1991n UMKC becomes one of the first recycling sites in Kansas City.
n The library is rededicated, after Phase II of its completion, and is renamed in honor of longtime civic leader and trustee Miller Nichols.
1998n UMKC purchases Twin Oaks apartments, which is later razed for the new residence halls.
1994n The UMKC Debate Team wins the 1994 Cross Examination Debate Assocation (CEDA) National Tournament.
More than
57,000alumni… … hailing from 50
states, Guam, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, the District of Columbia and
40 countries.
1990 1991 1992 199619951994 1997
UMKC cheerleaders
Miller Nichols Library
University Center
A Halloween party in University Center
2000sThe turn of the century
By the numbers
Human Genome Project. Sept. 11. American Idol. Flash drives. NASA Mars rover. War on Terror. Katrina. Google. Swine flu. The dot-com bubble. GPS. Y2K.
Although the markets and economy tumbled, this decade marked significant growth for the university. Through public/private partnerships, UMKC opened several new residence halls to accommodate the growing undergraduate student body and the desire for an on-campus college experience.
2000n Flarsheim Hall opens on the Volker campus.
2004n Oak Hall opens on the Volker campus as a new suite-style residence hall.
2007n The Health Sciences Building opens on Hospital Hill, housing the schools of Nursing and Pharmacy.
n The KC Rep’s Copaken Stage opens downtown, adjacent to the H&R Block World Headquarters.
2002n The Rockhill Parking Structure opens.
2003n The LGBT Office is established to serve gay, lesbian and transgender students.
2001n The Trustees’ Scholars program begins, providing the first full-ride scholarship program.
n The School of Computing and Engineering is created via the combination of the Civil and Mechanical Engineering Department and the Computer Science Electrical Engineering Department.
2006n Tulips on Troost neighborhood beautification project begins.
n Twin Oaks apartments is razed and ground is broken for the Oak Street West Residence Hall, apartment-style housing. 2009
n The remodeled Miller Nichols Library opens with an automatic retrieval system.
n The Herman and Dorothy Johnson Residence Hall opens.
n The UMKC Foundation is established.
n The Durwood Soccer Stadium and Recreational Field opens.
More than
75,000alumni… … hailing from 50
states, Guam, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, the District of Columbia and
51 countries.
2003 20082007 2009
Tulips on Troost
Oak Hall
Miller Nichols Library
Flarsheim Hall
Health Sciences Building
2010sLarge and small
By the numbers
Social media, Arab Spring. Cloud computing. Usain Bolt. Global economic crisis. MP3s. UMKC attracts a growing number of students thanks to on-campus housing. Students entering UMKC from high school in this decade were born in 1992 or later — they’ve never needed to use a card catalog to find a book in a library. As the campus grows to accommodate the enrollment goal of 20,000 students by the year 2020, technology has also evolved. Perhaps no place is this more evident than in the library, where the automatic retrieval system (or “RooBot”) enables the stacks to take up less room and opens up creative study space. The Bloch School’s new Executive Hall also incorporates the latest technology to support internationally ranked entrepreneurship programs.
2010n UMKC experiences a dramatic increase in enrollment and rises to 13,500 students.
n The new 10,000-square-foot Student Union opens.
2011n UMKC’s Bloch School of Management is ranked No. 1 in the world for innovation management research.
n The Atterbury Student Success Center, formerly the University Center, opens in 2012.
2013n UMKC is ranked a Best Value College for the second consecutive year by the Princeton Review.
n UMKC opens two buildings on campus: The Miller Nichols Learning Center and the Henry Bloch Executive Hall for Entrepreneurship and Innovation.
n UMKC joins the Western Athletic Conference.
2012n The Cherry Street
Parking Structure opens.
UniversityleadershipSince the university first opened its doors, it has attracted a pool of talented leaders.
1938–1953
1961–1965
1991–1999
1953
1965–1967
2000–2005
1953–1956
1968–1976
2006–2008
1933–1936
1956–1961
1977–1991
2008–present
1936–1938
Ernest H. NewcombExecutive Secretary of the Board of Trustees
Dr. Clarence DeckerPresident
Dr. Carlton F. ScofieldActing Chancellor and Chancellor as of 1963
Dr. Eleanor Brantley Schwartz Chancellor
Dr. John Duncan SpaethPresident
Dr. Roy RinehartChief Executive Administrator
Dr. Randall Whaley Chancellor
Dr. Martha Gilliland Chancellor
Dr. Earl McGrathPresident
Dr. James C. Olson Chancellor
Dr. Guy Bailey Chancellor
Dr. Richard DrakeActing Chancellor and Chancellor as of 1957
Dr. George Russell Chancellor
Leo E. Morton Chancellor
More than
100,000alumni…
… hailing from 50states, Guam, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, the District
of Columbia and
52 countries.
20112010 2012 2013
Atterbury Student Success Center
Henry W. Bloch
View a map of our alumni density around the world at perspectives.umkc.edu.
Proposed retail/housing development at 51st and Oak streets
Parking Garage
Parking Garage
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E 25TH ST
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UMKCMedicineBuilding
UMKCDentistryBuilding
UMKCHealth SciencesBuilding
TrumanMedicalCenter
Children’s MercyHospital
HospitalHill MedicalPavillion
Center forBehavioral Medicine
Children’s MercyHospitalModularBuildings
EyeFoundationof KC
HospitalHill Center
DiagnosticandTreatmentCenter
DavitaDialysisCenter
TMCBehavioralHealthNetwork
RonaldMcDonaldHouse
Safety Street
Kansas CityHealth Dept.
DiastoleCompound
UMKC Hospital Hill Annex
JacksonCountyMedicalExaminer
Planned Hospital Hill residential housing on the east side of Troost Avenue near 25th Street
57
Brush Creek
Brush Creek
KauffmanLegacyLake
JohnsonResidence Hall
Oak St.Residence Hall
AdministrativeCenter
Student Union
SwinneyRecreation Center
Atterbury Student Success Center
DurwoodSoccerStadium &RecreationalField
LawBuilding
Oak PlaceApartments
Oak PlaceApartments
Olson Performing Arts Center
Fine ArtsBuilding
Flarsheim Hall
Newcomb Hall
ManheimHall
RoyallHall
Haag Hall
GrantHall
Toy &MiniatureMuseum
EducationBuilding
Katz Hall Biological
SciencesBuilding
UniversityHouse
General Services
CockefairHall
Berkley Center
Old MaintenanceBuilding
SpencerChemistryBuilding
Cherry Hall
RockhillParking Garage
BlochManagementBuilding
Playhouse
NicholsLibrary
BlochExecutiveHall
NicholsLearningCenter
Looking aheadNew opportunitiesUMKC’s story continues to be one of risks, strategy and opportunities as the campus evolves to serve current students, the city and the region. The move toward on-campus, residential experiences for students is extending to Hospital Hill, where housing construction is under way. The city and the university are exploring a phased-in development of a downtown arts campus that would house the Conservatory of Music and Dance, theater programs and place student and faculty in proximity to the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts. New retail and university growth along the west side of the Volker campus border also is in planning. UMKC’s future promises one where the whole is truly more than the sum of its parts. Nothing underscores that more than its product: the 100,000-plus alumni who honed their skills here and are transforming their communities and professions — one journey, 100,000 stories.
Hospital Hill campus
Volker campus
Bloch Executive Hall completed August 2013
The Miller Nichols Learning Center completed August 2013
Future plans call for a prototyping center on the Volker campus that would
function as a one-stop shop for entrepreneurs to take their ideas from concepts to products.
CREDITS Special thanks to the following people for their assistance with photographs and archival information:
Tonya Crawford, University Archives
Chris Wolff, University Bookstore
Strategic Marketing and Communications
Many thanks also to UMKC Advancement Services for its assistance in compiling alumni records by decade, and to Brent Never of the UMKC Bloch School of Management for his work on creating the online map via ESRI software through the University of Missouri.
ADV1305317UMKC is an equal opportunity/affirmative action institution.