University at Albany
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University at Albany
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Ualbanylogo.jpg
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Sapientia et sua et docendi causa
(Wisdom both for its own sake and for the sake of teaching)
| Established | 1844 |
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| School type | Public |
| President | Kermit L. Hall |
| Location | Albany, NY |
| Enrollment | 11,819 undergraduate, 5,219 graduate and professional |
| Faculty | 927 |
| Campus | Suburban, 560 acres (2.3 km²) |
| Sports teams | 20 |
| Mascot | Great Danes |
| Homepage | www.albany.edu |
The University at Albany, located in Albany, New York, USA, is a university center of the State University of New York. Established in 1844 as a normal school, it evolved into a four-year teacher training institution and was officially renamed to the New York State College for Teachers in 1914. As enrollment increased, the college became a full-fledged university in 1962. Currently, the University is comprised of three campuses, 11,953 undergraduates, 5,473 graduate students, and a faculty of about 650.
The school's name is abbreviated as UAlbany.
Colleges and schools
The university comprises nine colleges and schools:
College of Arts and Sciences
The College of Arts and Sciences, comprising 25 departments and 59 programs, forms the largest academic division at the university.
Departments of the College of Arts and Sciences include Africana Studies, Anthropology, Art, Biological Sciences, Chemistry, Classics, Communication, Computer Science, Earth and Atmospheric Science, East Asian Studies, Economics, English, Geography and Planning, History, Judaic Studies, Languages, Literatures, and Cultures, Latin American and Caribbean Studies, Mathematics and Statistics, Music, Philosophy, Physics, Psychology, Sociology, Theater, and Women's Studies.
Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy
The Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy, named for former US Vice President and Governor of New York Nelson Rockefeller, is home to the university's Departments of Political Science and Public Administration and Policy.
School of Business
The School of Business is accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business.
School of Criminal Justice
The School of Criminal Justice was formed in 1966, and covers all aspects of criminal justice.
School of Education
The School of Education is home to the Departments of Educational Administration and Policy Studies, Educational and Counseling Psychology, Educational Theory and Practice, and Reading.
School of Information Science and Policy
The School of Information Science and Policy offers programs in library and information science, including an American Library Association-accredited Master's-level program suitable for later work as a librarian.
School of Nanosciences and Nanoengineering
The School of Nanosciences and Nanoengineering deals with the growing field of nanotechnology.
School of Public Health
The School of Public Health was created in 1985, and offers programs in biomedical sciences, biometry and statistics, environmental health and toxicology, epidemiology, and health policy, management, and behavior.
School of Social Welfare
The School of Social Welfare was created in 1965, and offers programs in Social Work.
Campuses
Uptown campus
Ualbany_uptown_front_01.jpg
The main (Uptown) campus, located at 1400 Washington Avenue, is Modernist in style and based on a symmetrical plan. All of the campus' academic buildings are on the "Podium" in the center of campus (which is the second-largest poured concrete structure in the world). The uptown campus is also known for its large fountain centerpiece.
The uptown campus is home to six of the university's seven dormitory complexes. Four of these — Indian Quad, Dutch Quad, Colonial Quad, and State Quad — sit at the Podium's corners; each consists of eight three-story low-rise buildings encircling a 22-story tower. The other two, Freedom Quad and Empire Commons, are reserved for juniors, seniors, graduate students, or those at least 21 years of age; these are "apartment-style" and include kitchens.
The uptown campus is also home to two of the university's three libraries, the University Library and the Science Library.
Downtown campus
The Downtown campus, located at 135 Western Avenue, is the site of the original New York State College for Teachers. It is home to the university's College of Public Affairs and Policy, School of Criminal Justice, School of Information Science and Policy, and School of Social Welfare.
Alumni Quad, one of the university's seven dormitory complexes, is a short distance away from the downtown campus; the university tends to reserve it for transfer students.
The downtown campus is home to one of the university's three libraries, the Thomas E. Dewey Graduate Library.
East campus
The East campus, located in Rensselaer, New York, is home to the School of Public Health.
Noted faculty
- Toni Morrison - Pulitzer Prize and Nobel Prize for Literature-winning author.
- William Kennedy - Pulitzer Prize-winning professor, William Kennedy, taught creative writing and journalism as an instructor from 1974 to 1982 at the University. In 1983, Kennedy was awarded the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Fellowship. Part of that award went to the institution of Kennedy’s choice, which was UAlbany. The University made a commitment to match the funds he donated — fifteen thousand dollars for five years (each), to create a writers institute. The following year, Governor Mario M. Cuomo signed into law the legislation creating the New York State Writers Institute.
- Richard E. Stearns - Turing award winner for computational complexity theory.
- Bernard Vonnegut - Atmospheric scientist. Older brother of author Kurt Vonnegut.
Athletics
The school's sports teams are called the Great Danes.
They participate in the NCAA Division I and in the America East Conference.
The school's colors are purple and gold.
During the summer months since 1996, the University's campus plays host and acts as a training ground to National Football League team, The New York Giants.
Libraries
The University at Albany Libraries (http://library.albany.edu/) provide over two million volumes and rank among the nation's top one hundred research libraries. Users from around the world can access services and collections through the Libraries' online systems and award-winning Web site. Albany's Libraries offer an impressive program of information literacy and user education with instruction that ranges from a focus on traditional bibliographic access to innovative collaborative classes integrated into the curriculum.
Miscellaneous
Transportation on the uptown campus, and between campuses, is partially facilitated by buses run by the university and by the Capital District Transportation Authority.
In academic years ending in 1998 and 2004, the Princeton Review ranked UAlbany as "The #1 Party School in America." This ranking is contested by the University which claims that the ranking is based upon a non-scientific survey, and that the reality of the school is more academic (http://www.albany.edu/main/announcement/jrr082004.htm).
On the University Seal is Minerva, the Roman goddess of crafts and wisdom. But because Minerva was also identified with the Greek goddess Athena, she also became the goddess of war and victory. This famous statue and landmark for all at the University at Albany is presently on display in the Uptown Campus' Electronic Library foyer. While there is no official record of where the statue of Minerva came from, remembrances have it that the statue was purchased with funds from a $1 student fee collected for make-up exams.
As UAlbany is located in the capital city of New York State, and is one of the four University Centers of New York, its unofficial nickname is the "College of the Empire State," which is in the first line of the University's Alma Mater.
External links
- University at Albany (http://www.albany.edu/)
- Downtown Campus (http://www.albany.edu/downtown/)
- East Campus (http://www.albany.edu/eastcampus/)
- UAlbany Athletics (http://www.albany.edu/sports/) - Website of the Great Danes, UAlbany's sports teams.
- The New York State Writers Institute (http://www.albany.edu/writers-inst/), located and housed at UAlbany.