Union College (Kentucky)
Encyclopedia
Union College is a four-year private college located in Barbourville, Kentucky
. The college, founded in 1879, is affiliated with the United Methodist Church
. Union College is a small liberal arts
college in the Appalachian Mountains
. Barbourville was a thriving and progressive town of 450 citizens and three brick buildings at the time of the college's establishment.
Union's approximately 1200 undergraduate and graduate students represent 23 states and many countries. The College's academic program fulfills the goal of a liberal arts education. It also provides students with the skills necessary to complete in a diverse job market. The undergraduate liberal arts curriculum makes available a body of knowledge drawn from the applied sciences, humanities, natural sciences and social sciences. Majors and areas of study in pre-professional, technical and skills-oriented fields enhance postgraduate employment opportunities.
Union's 100 acre (0.404686 km²) campus is in southeastern Kentucky. The newest of the College's 20 buildings include a state-of-the-art technology center, academic center and student apartment building. Approximately 44 percent of the students live in three residence halls and the apartments on campus. Dozens of student organizations offer many opportunities for participation in a wide range of extracurricular activities. Union's full-time campus minister organizes various religious activities, including weekly voluntary chapel services.
Intercollegiate sports include basketball
, cross country
, golf
, mountain biking
, tennis
, track & field, swimming
, bowling
and soccer for men and women; softball
and volleyball
for women; and baseball
and football
for men. The College has a coed varsity cheerleading
squad, as well as junior varsity
teams for men's and women's basketball and men's soccer. Intramural sports vary according to student request. The College recently completed new tennis courts, a softball field, and refurbished the baseball, soccer and football fields.
, the town of Barbourville sits in the Appalachian Mountains surrounded by four state park
s filled with falls, lakes and streams. The campus
itself includes more than 100 gently rolling acres covered in overhanging elms, mountain laurel and Georgian architecture. The famous Wilderness Road
spans the east side of the campus, and Cumberland Gap National Historical Park
is just 30 miles (48.3 km) away.
and the Bachelor of Science
degrees. Majors are available in accounting, biology
, business administration, chemistry
, Christian
ministry, criminal justice
, education
(elementary, middles grades, physical, secondary and special), English
/communication, health
, history
, history/political science
, mathematics
, psychology
, recreation management, religious studies, sociology and sports management.
In addition to majors in the pure disciplines of biology, chemistry, mathematics and their education counterparts, Union has programs in place for professional and health science careers. These programs combine the advantages of the small private college and those of the large university and include dentistry
, medicine, optometry
, pharmacy
, physical therapy
, law
and veterinary medicine
.
The college also offers Master of Arts
in Psychology and Education. The Department of Psychology offers master of arts degrees in General, in both traditional and online formats, Clinical, Counseling and School Psychology. The Graduate Education Program offers the Master of Arts degrees in Elementary Education P-5, Health/PE P-12, LBD (Special Education) P-12, Middle School 5-9, Principalship, Reading and Writing Endorsement P12, Secondary 8-12 and Rank I degrees in Elementary Education P-5, LBD (Special Education) P-12, Middle School 5-9, Reading and Writing Endorsement P-12, Supervisor of Instruction P-12.
The College operates on a two-semester calendar, with a May interim session and two summer terms. Students must successfully complete a total of 128 semester hours to earn a bachelor's degree, including 43 hours of required core classes from the four major divisions of study.
(KIIS). The College joins with a number of other Kentucky colleges and universities to provide summer study opportunities in ten different locations. The programs in Argentina
, France
, Spain
, Mexico
, Germany
, Austria
, Italy
and Ecuador
are open to all Union College students, who may earn credits toward their degree at Union.
The Academic Resource Center (ARC) provides free services to Union College students in several academic support areas. Individual tutoring is available in a variety of subject areas in both upper and lower division classes. Students may work with a tutor to review for classes, refresh study skills
, or prepare for professional examinations such as GMAT, LSAT, MCAT, GRE and NTE. Each semester, courses that have been deemed academically challenging are selected for Supplemental Instruction
(SI). Students attend group study sessions, which are held a minimum of three times a week with a student leader who has already excelled in that particular course. The SI leaders model good study strategies and encourage collaborative learning.
Barbourville, Kentucky
Each year in early October, Barbourville hosts the Daniel Boone Festival commemorating the American pioneer Daniel Boone who explored the area in 1775. The festival features open air concerts, carnival attractions, a beauty pageant, a parade, and other events....
. The college, founded in 1879, is affiliated with the United Methodist Church
United Methodist Church
The United Methodist Church is a Methodist Christian denomination which is both mainline Protestant and evangelical. Founded in 1968 by the union of The Methodist Church and the Evangelical United Brethren Church, the UMC traces its roots back to the revival movement of John and Charles Wesley...
. Union College is a small liberal arts
Liberal arts
The term liberal arts refers to those subjects which in classical antiquity were considered essential for a free citizen to study. Grammar, Rhetoric and Logic were the core liberal arts. In medieval times these subjects were extended to include mathematics, geometry, music and astronomy...
college in the Appalachian Mountains
Appalachian Mountains
The Appalachian Mountains #Whether the stressed vowel is or ,#Whether the "ch" is pronounced as a fricative or an affricate , and#Whether the final vowel is the monophthong or the diphthong .), often called the Appalachians, are a system of mountains in eastern North America. The Appalachians...
. Barbourville was a thriving and progressive town of 450 citizens and three brick buildings at the time of the college's establishment.
Union's approximately 1200 undergraduate and graduate students represent 23 states and many countries. The College's academic program fulfills the goal of a liberal arts education. It also provides students with the skills necessary to complete in a diverse job market. The undergraduate liberal arts curriculum makes available a body of knowledge drawn from the applied sciences, humanities, natural sciences and social sciences. Majors and areas of study in pre-professional, technical and skills-oriented fields enhance postgraduate employment opportunities.
Union's 100 acre (0.404686 km²) campus is in southeastern Kentucky. The newest of the College's 20 buildings include a state-of-the-art technology center, academic center and student apartment building. Approximately 44 percent of the students live in three residence halls and the apartments on campus. Dozens of student organizations offer many opportunities for participation in a wide range of extracurricular activities. Union's full-time campus minister organizes various religious activities, including weekly voluntary chapel services.
Intercollegiate sports include basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
, cross country
Cross country running
Cross country running is a sport in which people run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open country, and include hills, flat ground and sometimes gravel road...
, golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
, mountain biking
Mountain biking
Mountain biking is a sport which consists of riding bicycles off-road, often over rough terrain, using specially adapted mountain bikes. Mountain bikes share similarities with other bikes, but incorporate features designed to enhance durability and performance in rough terrain.Mountain biking can...
, tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
, track & field, swimming
Swimming (sport)
Swimming is a sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation .-History: Competitive swimming in Europe began around 1800 BCE, mostly in the form of the freestyle. In 1873 Steve Bowyer introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native...
, bowling
Bowling
Bowling Bowling Bowling (1375–1425; late Middle English bowle, variant of boule Bowling (1375–1425; late Middle English bowle, variant of boule...
and soccer for men and women; softball
Softball
Softball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of 10 to 14 players. It is a direct descendant of baseball although there are some key differences: softballs are larger than baseballs, and the pitches are thrown underhand rather than overhand...
and volleyball
Volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
for women; and baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
and football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
for men. The College has a coed varsity cheerleading
Cheerleading
Cheerleading is a physical activity, sometimes a competitive sport, based on organized routines, usually ranging from one to three minutes, which contain the components of tumbling, dance, jumps, cheers, and stunting to direct spectators of events to cheer on sports teams at games or to participate...
squad, as well as junior varsity
Junior varsity
Primarily in North America, junior varsity or JV players are the members of a team who are not the main players in a competition , usually at the high school and college levels in the United States and Canada. The main players comprise the varsity team...
teams for men's and women's basketball and men's soccer. Intramural sports vary according to student request. The College recently completed new tennis courts, a softball field, and refurbished the baseball, soccer and football fields.
Location
Just 17 miles (27.4 km) east of Interstate 75Interstate 75
Interstate 75 is a major north–south Interstate Highway in the Great Lakes and Southeastern regions of the United States. It travels from State Road 826 and State Road 924 in Hialeah, Florida to Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, at the Ontario, Canada, border...
, the town of Barbourville sits in the Appalachian Mountains surrounded by four state park
State park
State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the federated state level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural beauty, historic interest, or recreational...
s filled with falls, lakes and streams. The campus
Campus
A campus is traditionally the land on which a college or university and related institutional buildings are situated. Usually a campus includes libraries, lecture halls, residence halls and park-like settings...
itself includes more than 100 gently rolling acres covered in overhanging elms, mountain laurel and Georgian architecture. The famous Wilderness Road
Wilderness Road
The Wilderness Road was the principal route used by settlers for more than fifty years to reach Kentucky from the East. In 1775, Daniel Boone blazed a trail for the Transylvania Company from Fort Chiswell in Virginia through the Cumberland Gap into central Kentucky. It was later lengthened,...
spans the east side of the campus, and Cumberland Gap National Historical Park
Cumberland Gap National Historical Park
Established on June 11, 1940, Cumberland Gap National Historical Park is a United States National Historical Park located at the border between Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia. The Cumberland Gap is a sizable natural break in the Appalachian Mountains....
is just 30 miles (48.3 km) away.
Majors and degrees
Union College offers the Bachelor of ArtsBachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
and the Bachelor of Science
Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...
degrees. Majors are available in accounting, biology
Biology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
, business administration, chemistry
Chemistry
Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....
, Christian
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
ministry, criminal justice
Criminal justice
Criminal Justice is the system of practices and institutions of governments directed at upholding social control, deterring and mitigating crime, or sanctioning those who violate laws with criminal penalties and rehabilitation efforts...
, education
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
(elementary, middles grades, physical, secondary and special), English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
/communication, health
Health
Health is the level of functional or metabolic efficiency of a living being. In humans, it is the general condition of a person's mind, body and spirit, usually meaning to be free from illness, injury or pain...
, history
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
, history/political science
Political science
Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...
, mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
, psychology
Psychology
Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...
, recreation management, religious studies, sociology and sports management.
In addition to majors in the pure disciplines of biology, chemistry, mathematics and their education counterparts, Union has programs in place for professional and health science careers. These programs combine the advantages of the small private college and those of the large university and include dentistry
Dentistry
Dentistry is the branch of medicine that is involved in the study, diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of diseases, disorders and conditions of the oral cavity, maxillofacial area and the adjacent and associated structures and their impact on the human body. Dentistry is widely considered...
, medicine, optometry
Optometry
Optometry is a health care profession concerned with eyes and related structures, as well as vision, visual systems, and vision information processing in humans. Optometrists, or Doctors of Optometry, are state licensed medical professionals trained to prescribe and fit lenses to improve vision,...
, pharmacy
Pharmacy
Pharmacy is the health profession that links the health sciences with the chemical sciences and it is charged with ensuring the safe and effective use of pharmaceutical drugs...
, physical therapy
Physical therapy
Physical therapy , often abbreviated PT, is a health care profession. Physical therapy is concerned with identifying and maximizing quality of life and movement potential within the spheres of promotion, prevention, diagnosis, treatment/intervention,and rehabilitation...
, law
Law
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
and veterinary medicine
Veterinary medicine
Veterinary Medicine is the branch of science that deals with the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of disease, disorder and injury in non-human animals...
.
The college also offers Master of Arts
Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
in Psychology and Education. The Department of Psychology offers master of arts degrees in General, in both traditional and online formats, Clinical, Counseling and School Psychology. The Graduate Education Program offers the Master of Arts degrees in Elementary Education P-5, Health/PE P-12, LBD (Special Education) P-12, Middle School 5-9, Principalship, Reading and Writing Endorsement P12, Secondary 8-12 and Rank I degrees in Elementary Education P-5, LBD (Special Education) P-12, Middle School 5-9, Reading and Writing Endorsement P-12, Supervisor of Instruction P-12.
Academic program
Upon admission to the College, students begin a process whereby career counselors and academic advisors help them articulate career goals, select academic courses of study appropriate to those goals, and achieve suitable placement upon completion of their studies.The College operates on a two-semester calendar, with a May interim session and two summer terms. Students must successfully complete a total of 128 semester hours to earn a bachelor's degree, including 43 hours of required core classes from the four major divisions of study.
Off-campus arrangements
Union College is a cooperating member of the Kentucky Institute for International StudiesKentucky Institute for International Studies
The Kentucky Institute for International Studies or KIIS is a consortium of public and private Kentucky colleges and universities which administers a variety of international studies programs in Central America, Europe, South America, and China...
(KIIS). The College joins with a number of other Kentucky colleges and universities to provide summer study opportunities in ten different locations. The programs in Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and Ecuador
Ecuador
Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
are open to all Union College students, who may earn credits toward their degree at Union.
Academic facilities
The Weeks-Townsend Memorial Library contains more than 160,000 books, periodicals, government documents , media materials and on-line reference and full-text databases. Library functions, including the public catalog access (OPAC), circulation and reserves are fully automated through the Sirsi Unicorn Collection Management System. The 20-seat computer lab is the center of campus access to the Internet, including email and the World Wide Web. The College also has a variety of computers accessible to students. The library and Centennial computer labs each contain 20 workstations and a laser printer connected to the campus network. A third lab, the Hensley lab, provides the same type of access with 17 computers. The labs are open a variety of hours each week to support the academic programs and provide student access to the campus network.The Academic Resource Center (ARC) provides free services to Union College students in several academic support areas. Individual tutoring is available in a variety of subject areas in both upper and lower division classes. Students may work with a tutor to review for classes, refresh study skills
Study Skills
Study skills or study strategies are approaches applied to learning. They are generally critical to success in school, are considered essential for acquiring good grades, and are useful for learning throughout one's life....
, or prepare for professional examinations such as GMAT, LSAT, MCAT, GRE and NTE. Each semester, courses that have been deemed academically challenging are selected for Supplemental Instruction
Supplemental Instruction
Overview=Supplemental Instruction is an academic support model developed by Dr. Deanna Martin] at the in 1973 that uses peer-assisted study sessions to improve student and success within targeted historically difficult courses.] The SI program provides by having students who succeeded in...
(SI). Students attend group study sessions, which are held a minimum of three times a week with a student leader who has already excelled in that particular course. The SI leaders model good study strategies and encourage collaborative learning.
Costs
Tuition for the 2010 - 2011 academic year is $20,004.00; room and board is $6,000. Books and supplies are estimated at $900 per year.Financial aid
In 2003-04, 98% of Union's undergraduate students received financial assistance. Students wishing to be considered for aid must file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) by March 15. The Federal Pell Grant, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant and Federal Work-Study programs of the federal government are sources of aid. Non-need-based academic scholarships range from $1,000 to full tuition. Kentucky residents may apply for the Kentucky State Tuition Grant.Union College Student Government Association
Union College students have a vital role and a distinct responsibility in the governance of the College. Union College students, through SGA, have the responsibility to be self-governing, to seek representation from all sectors of the campus community, to create fair representative government, to project the best aspirations of the community, to provide support to the administration for effective enrichment of college life and to assure the welfare of the student community by identifying important community projects, needs, problems and solutions. Governance shared with the students, faculty, staff and administration is how Union College succeeds in its commitment to being student-centered. They also give a special gift to the college and student body every year, such as a new pavilion by the football field, a sand volleyball court, and an outdoor basketball court for the students to enjoy.Notable alumni
- G. Lindsey DavisG. Lindsey DavisG. Lindsey Davis is an American Bishop of the United Methodist Church, elected in 1996.-Birth and Family:Davis was born in Durham, North Carolina. He married Jennifer Mink of Pineville, Kentucky on 20 May 1972...
, an American BishopBishopA bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
of the United Methodist ChurchUnited Methodist ChurchThe United Methodist Church is a Methodist Christian denomination which is both mainline Protestant and evangelical. Founded in 1968 by the union of The Methodist Church and the Evangelical United Brethren Church, the UMC traces its roots back to the revival movement of John and Charles Wesley... - Flem D. SampsonFlem D. SampsonFlemon Davis "Flem" Sampson was the 42nd Governor of Kentucky, serving from 1927 to 1931. He graduated from Valparaiso University in 1894, and opened a law practice in Barbourville, Kentucky. He formed a political alliance with future congressmen Caleb Powers and John Robsion, both prominent...
, the 42nd Governor of KentuckyGovernor of KentuckyThe Governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky is the head of the executive branch of government in the U.S. state of Kentucky. Fifty-six men and one woman have served as Governor of Kentucky. The governor's term is four years in length; since 1992, incumbents have been able to seek re-election once... - Dr. Phillip Allen SharpPhillip Allen SharpPhillip Allen Sharp is an American geneticist and molecular biologist who co-discovered RNA splicing. He shared the 1993 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with Richard J...
, who earned the Nobel PrizeNobel PrizeThe Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
for work that altered scientists' understanding of the structure of geneGeneA gene is a molecular unit of heredity of a living organism. It is a name given to some stretches of DNA and RNA that code for a type of protein or for an RNA chain that has a function in the organism. Living beings depend on genes, as they specify all proteins and functional RNA chains...
s, received his undergraduate degree at Union College. - Derek SmithDerek Smith (soccer)Derek Smith is an American soccer player who currently plays for Cincinnati Kings in the USL Premier Development League.-College and Amateur:...
, an American soccer player who currently plays for Cincinnati KingsCincinnati KingsCincinnati Kings is an American soccer team based in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. Founded in 2005, the team plays in the USL Premier Development League , the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, in the Great Lakes Division of the Central Conference.The team plays its home games at the...
in the USL Premier Development LeagueUSL Premier Development LeagueThe USL Premier Development League is the amateur league of the United Soccer Leagues in the United States, Canada, and Bermuda, forming part of the American Soccer Pyramid...
. - William A. StanfillWilliam A. StanfillWilliam Abner Stanfill was briefly a member of the United States Senate from Kentucky.Stanfill attended Union College and received a law degree from the University of Kentucky in 1912. He practiced law in Barbourville, Kentucky and Hazard, Kentucky...
, a member of the United States SenateUnited States SenateThe United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
from Kentucky