BRIEF HISTORY OF UND
The University of North Dakota at Grand Forks was founded in 1883 by the Dakota Territorial
Assembly, six years before
North Dakota became a state. The cornerstone for the first building was laid that autumn. Four
faculty members met the
11 students who entered the University on opening day, September 8, 1884. The first class was
graduated in 1889.
Unlike most state institutions of higher education west of the Mississippi, UND did not begin as
an agricultural school
or only as a teachers college. Organized initially as a College of Arts and Sciences, with a
Normal School for the
education of teachers, UND soon evolved into a full-fledged multi-purpose university.
Instruction of graduate students
(the first master's degree was awarded in 1895) and the conducting of research were under way
before the end of the 19th
century. Depressions, drought, wars and financial crises have more than once threatened its
future, but the University
has been able to withstand these challenges and to prosper as an institution of national caliber.
The University of the 1990s would be recognizable to its founders. UND was the only institution
of higher education in
the state to be originally established as a university, with all of the implications of that title. A
university has an
obligation to preserve knowledge, to disseminate knowledge, and to create new knowledge. The
University of North Dakota
has served as a capstone for the entire system of public education in the state, and from its
earliest year has embraced
all levels of higher education--undergraduate, professional and graduate--and maintained an
active program of research
and
service. Through these eleven decades the University has created a tradition in instruction,
research, and service which
has served as a model for other institutions. Consistent with the intent of the founding legislators,
the University has
served as a standard-bearer and leader for higher education in the state.
THE STUDENT BODY
The fall 1996 enrollment, 11,300, included 9,351 undergraduate students, 1,511 graduate
students, 204 law and 234
medical students. About 57 percent of the on-campus students identified themselves as North
Dakotans, 22 percent as
Minnesotans. Non-residents represented all of the states and 44 foreign countries. About half of
the students were older
than age 21. Forty-nine percent were women and about 11 percent were married.
In the fall of 1996, the University enrolled 1,654 new freshmen, 741 new transfer students and
485 new graduate and
graduate professional students, bringing the total number of students matriculated during its
history to more than
186,000. Degrees granted during fiscal 1993-94 included 1,565 undergraduate degrees, 440
graduate degrees, and 125
graduate professional degrees, 67 law and 58 in medicine. The number of degrees granted since
the first commencement in
1889 total 83,012.
MISSION OF THE UNIVERSITY
The following mission statement is on file with the State Board of Higher Education:
The University of North Dakota serves the state, the country and the world community through
teaching, research,
creative activities, and service. State-assisted, the University's work depends also on federal,
private, and corporate
sources. With other research universities, the University shares a distinctive responsibility for the
discovery,
development, preservation and dissemination of knowledge. Through its sponsorship and
encouragement of basic and applied
research, scholarship, and creative endeavor, the University contributes to the public well-being.
The University maintains its legislatively enacted missions in liberal arts, business, education,
law, medicine,
engineering and mines; and has also developed special missions in nursing, fine arts, aerospace,
energy, human resources
and international studies. It provides a wide range of challenging academic programs for
undergraduate, professional,
and graduate students through the doctoral level. The University encourages students to make
informed choices, to
communicate effectively, to be intellectually curious and creative, to commit themselves to
lifelong learning and the
service of others, and to share responsibility both for their own communities and for the world.
The University promotes
cultural diversity among its students, staff, and faculty.
In addition to its on-campus instructional and research programs and its branch campuses, the
University of North Dakota
separately and cooperatively provides extensive continuing education and public service
programs for all areas of the
state and region.
ACCREDITATION
The University of North Dakota has been accredited by the North Central Association of
Colleges and Schools since the
Association was organized in 1913. UND received its most recent NCA accreditation in 1994.
Many individual colleges,
schools and departments are members of accrediting associations in their respective fields.
THE ACADEMIC YEAR
The academic year is divided into two semesters, each approximately 16 weeks in length: the
first, beginning near the
end of August and ending prior to Christmas; the second, beginning in mid-January and
extending to mid-May. A Summer
Session begins in May and concludes in August. The UND Summer Session offers the variety of
four-week, six-week,
eight-week, and twelve-week courses and choices of credit and non-credit workshops, institutes,
and special programs of
various lengths. See the academic calendar on page iv.