University of The Ozarks - History

History

University of the Ozarks traces its roots back to 1834, making it the oldest university in Arkansas and one of the oldest institutions of higher education west of the Mississippi River. It was founded by Cumberland Presbyterians in 1834 as Cane Hill College in Cane Hill, Arkansas in Washington County. Its successor, Arkansas Cumberland College, opened in Clarksville in September 1891. The name was changed to College of the Ozarks in 1920.

During the years of World War II, the enrollment decreased to the point that the Board of Trustees decided to find a tenant for the facilities. From January 1944 through May 1945, the United States Navy leased the full campus for operating a Primary School in their Electronics Training Program. An estimated total of 3,000 Navy and Marine servicemen were trained in the three-month course. In this period, classes for the 150 College of the Ozarks students were held off-campus at the First Presbyterian Church; female students were mainly housed in the church's adjoining Manse.

In 1987, the name was changed to University of the Ozarks. The university enrollment has increased signfinificantly since the mid-1990s, and the number of full-time faculty has been increased from 32 to 48. During the past fifteen years, the university's supporters helped increase the school's endowment by 284 percent. During that span, university president Dr. Rick Niece and members of the university advancement staff led a fund-raising effort where university supporters contributed more than $100 million for academic programs, scholarships, faculty and staff benefits, and facilities.