Western Kentucky University Informations

Western Kentucky University is a public university in Bowling Green, Kentucky, United States. It was founded by the Commonwealth of Kentucky in 1906, though its roots reach back a quarter-century earlier. In the fall 2016 semester, enrollment was approximately 20,000.

The main campus, which has been undergoing expansion and renovation since the 1990s, sits atop a hill overlooking the Barren River valley.

WKU operates regional campuses in Glasgow, Elizabethtown-Fort Knox and Owensboro.

The roots of Western Kentucky University go back to 1876 with the founding by A. W. Mell of the privately owned Glasgow Normal School and Business College in Glasgow, Kentucky. This moved to Bowling Green in 1884 and became the Southern Normal School and Business College. In 1890, Potter College was opened as a private women's college by Pleasant J. Potter. In 1906, Henry Hardin Cherry sold the Southern Normal School and became president of the Western Kentucky State Normal School, which had just been created by an act of the Kentucky General Assembly. Southern's student body and its building became the new school, with classes beginning on January 22, 1907. In 1909 Potter College closed and Western bought the buildings and property of the school. In 1911, Western relocated to its present site on the property that had been Potter College.

In 1922, the school was authorized by the state to grant four-year degrees and was renamed "Western Kentucky State Normal School and Teachers College". The first four-year degrees were awarded in 1924. In 1927, the school merged with Ogden College, which occupied an adjacent campus. The name changed again in 1930 to "Western Kentucky State Teachers College". The school was authorized to offer the Master of Arts degree in 1931. Another name change took place in 1948, when the school became simply "Western Kentucky State College".

WKSC merged with the Bowling Green College of Commerce, which had formerly been the Bowling Green Business University, in 1963. Bowling Green Business University had originally been a part of the Southern Normal School and had been sold off by Henry Hardin Cherry when Southern Normal School was transferred to the state. The structure of the institution changed at this time, dividing into separate colleges. Bowling Green College of Commerce maintained its identity in this way. The Graduate School also became a constituent college. In 1965, three additional colleges were created. In 1966, Western Kentucky State College became Western Kentucky University.

For many years, the college was popularly known as "Western," as indicated in its fight song, "Stand Up and Cheer." However, in recent years it has indicated it prefers to be called by its initials.

On July 1, 2017, Timothy C. Caboni became the university's 10th president.

WKU is divided into the following academic colleges:

An academic range of eighty majors and seventy minors are offered, toward the following degrees:

WKU also offers fifteen associate degree programs and five certificate programs.

The Graduate School is now the Office of Graduate Studies and Research, which offers:

WKU has been repeatedly named one of the top producers of Fulbright scholars in the US.

As of 2007[update], twenty-seven alumni of WKU's photo and print journalism programs have been awarded thirteen Pulitzer Prizes, including eleven alumni recognized for their coverage of the Carrollton bus crash. The school publishes a twice-weekly newspaper, the College Heights Herald.

Western Kentucky University's forensics (speech and debate) team is consistently ranked as one of the country's best. They have won the American Forensic Association (AFA) and National Forensic Association (NFA) national championships multiple times since 2003. It has also won the International Forensic Association's (IFA) international championship every year it has attended. They remain the nation's only team to win the AFA, NFA, IFA, and NFA debate championship in the same year, a feat it has accomplished multiple times. The team hosts several tournaments for junior high and senior high students each fall, as well as a large speech and debate summer camp each July.

WKU is home to a master's degree program in folklore. It is unique among American folklore programs for its public folklore program and is one of the few schools in Kentucky to offer a focus in historic preservation.

A doctoral program (EdD) in educational leadership has been offered at WKU since 2009.

Western Kentucky University was ranked the 26th top college in the United States by Payscale and CollegeNet's Social Mobility Index college rankings. In the rankings of "America's Best Colleges 2009," WKU is No. 10 among public master's universities in the South, up from No. 12 in the 2008 rankings. According to Forbes 2009 rankings of America's top 600 colleges, Western Kentucky University is ranked No. 434, making it Kentucky's second highest ranked public college.

WKU's Regional Campuses are in Glasgow, Elizabethtown-Fort Knox and Owensboro.

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