University of South Carolina Upstate
Encyclopedia
The University of South Carolina Upstate is a public university
Public university
A public university is a university that is predominantly funded by public means through a national or subnational government, as opposed to private universities. A national university may or may not be considered a public university, depending on regions...

 located in Spartanburg, South Carolina
Spartanburg, South Carolina
thgSpartanburg is the largest city in and the county seat of Spartanburg County, South Carolina, United States. It is the second-largest city of the three primary cities in the Upstate region of South Carolina, and is located northwest of Columbia, west of Charlotte, and about northeast of...

, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. Formerly known as the University of South Carolina Spartanburg, the school changed its name in the summer of 2004. The University of South Carolina Upstate is the fastest growing university in South Carolina offering both undergraduate and graduate programs for students in the Upstate and surrounding areas. One of four accredited four-year schools in the University of South Carolina System, it is home to approximately 4,851 students and 220 full time faculty. It is fully accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools
Southern Association of Colleges and Schools
The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools is one of the six regional accreditation organizations recognized by the United States Department of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation...

.

Colleges and schools

  • College of Arts and Sciences
  • Mary Black School of Nursing
  • George Dean Johnson Jr., College of Business Administration and Economics
  • School of Education

History

After the Spartanburg General Hospital decided to discontinue its degree program for nurses, local politicians, led by Dr. G.B. Hodge, decided to create a separate University for the region. In 1967 the Spartanburg Regional Campus was opened as a two-year college with an initial enrollment of 177 students. Because of increased popularity, the school became a four-year institution in 1975 and was renamed the University of South Carolina-Spartanburg. During the following years, both the campus and the scope of the University expanded. In the summer of 2004 the USC Board of Trustees voted to change the name to University of South Carolina Upstate to better reflect its mission to educate the people of South Carolina's upstate region. Aside from its presence in Spartanburg, University of South Carolina Upstate has become the largest educational provider in the University Center of Greenville, a consortium of seven institutions of higher learning in Greenville, South Carolina
Greenville, South Carolina
-Law and government:The city of Greenville adopted the Council-Manager form of municipal government in 1976.-History:The area was part of the Cherokee Nation's protected grounds after the Treaty of 1763, which ended the French and Indian War. No White man was allowed to enter, though some families...

. In recent years the U.S. News and World Report has ranked
College and university rankings
College and university rankings are lists of institutions in higher education, ordered by combinations of factors. In addition to entire institutions, specific programs, departments, and schools are ranked...

 the University of South Carolina Upstate as one of the top four public comprehensive colleges in the South.

Clubs, organizations, and teams

University of South Carolina Upstate has many clubs and organizations as well as academic teams whose main goals are the intellectual and interpersonal growth of students through community service and wide ranging cultural activities.

Sororities

  • Alpha Kappa Alpha
    Alpha Kappa Alpha
    Alpha Kappa Alpha is the first Greek-lettered sorority established and incorporated by African American college women. The sorority was founded on January 15, 1908, at Howard University in Washington, D.C., by a group of nine students, led by Ethel Hedgeman Lyle...

  • Delta Sigma Theta
    Delta Sigma Theta
    Delta Sigma Theta is a non-profit Greek-lettered sorority of college-educated women who perform public service and place emphasis on the African American community. Delta Sigma Theta Sorority was founded on January 13, 1913 by twenty-two collegiate women at Howard University...

  • Zeta Phi Beta
    Zeta Phi Beta
    Zeta Phi Beta is an international, historically black Greek-lettered sorority and a member of the National Pan-Hellenic Council.Zeta Phi Beta is organized into 800+ chapters, in eight intercontinental regions including the USA, Africa, Europe, Asia and the Caribbean...

  • Sigma Gamma Rho
    Sigma Gamma Rho
    Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc. was founded on the campus of Butler University on November 12, 1922, by seven school teachers in Indianapolis, Indiana...



Organizations

Campus organizations and clubs are exceptionally diverse and include many clubs, such as the Campus Activity Board,
The Carolinian news blog, Student Government Association, and many academic and social clubs.

The Marketing Club, which provides students with resume workshops, company visits, and internship opportunities.

The Forensics Team, led by coach and director, Dr. Kevin Sargent, has proved to be able to compete with other top universities.

The Mock Trial Team competes nationally alongside with local rivals, Furman, Duke, and UNC-Chapel Hill. The team has been gaining in experience and in wins since being taken over by Sargent.

Impact, a community service organization on campus.

The Shoestring Players theater group presents several major productions each year, plus smaller presentations and original revues. Membership is open to all students interested in theatrical performance and production.

College Republicans
College Republicans
The College Republican National Committee is a national organization for college and university students who support the Republican Party of the United States...



College Democrats
College Democrats
The College Democrats of America is the official youth outreach arm of the Democratic Party. It consists of over 100,000 college and university students from across the United States. The organization has served as a way for college students to connect with the Democratic Party and Democratic...



CAB (Campus Activities Board)

The Carolinian- Student run publication on campus.

Pi Sigma Alpha
Pi sigma alpha
Pi Sigma Alpha , the National Political Science Honor Society, is the only honor society for college and university students of political science in the United States. Its purpose is to recognize and promote high academic achievement in the field of political science...

-Political Science honor society

Honors program

The University of South Carolina Upstate's Honors Program, directed by Dr. Thomas McConell, actively encourages academic enrichment and achievement by providing superb coursework and opportunities to academically advanced students. The program provides an array of classwork opportunities—from advanced sections of classes to complete honors courses, many taught and facilitated by the University's best faculty and occupied by the school's brightest students. The program also encourages community service and intellectual betterment by placing high standards for honors graduation which include community service and predetermined honors seminars. The Honors Program organizes trips abroad annually. They are offering a 15-day guided tour of Italy and Switzerland in the summer 2008.http://www.uscupstate.edu/academics/international_studies/default.aspx?id=2313

Athletics

University of South Carolina Upstate sponsors 13 collegiate teams known as the Spartans. The athletic department colors are green, white, and black, while the university colors are garnet and black. The teams compete in the Atlantic Sun Conference
Atlantic Sun Conference
The Atlantic Sun Conference is a college athletic conference operating in the Southeastern United States. The conference participates in the NCAA's Division I; it does not sponsor football. The conference was established in 1978 as the Trans America Athletic Conference...

  and Division I of the NCAA
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...

. These sports are men's and women's 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...

, men's and women's soccer, men's and women's 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...

, men's and women's 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....

, 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...

, 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...

, track & field, 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...

, and women's 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...

.

The head coach of the Spartans baseball team is Matt Fincher. He has been the head coach for 11 years and has rebuilt the baseball program. He has taken the Upstate through three winning seasons and has gone to the Peach-Belt Conference many times in a row. "The 2005 Spartans finished with the program's best ever record as a member of NCAA Division II. USC Upstate had a 33-21 overall record and a 14-16 mark in the league in the 2005 season..." http://www.uscupstate.edu/athletics/directory/directory_info.asp?id=130

The head coach of the women's basketball team is Tammy George. She has been the head coach for 4 years. During just four seasons as a head coach, George has established herself in both the NAIA and NCAA, having coached both Brevard and Upstate to berths in their respective national tournaments. She had a tremendous first season with USC Upstate in 2005-06, leading the Spartans to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1994-95 and coaching Yakeeshia Ross to Peach Belt Conference Player of the Year honors. In four years as a head coach, George has compiled a 70-52 career record.

Alumni

The University has a living Alumni base of over 15,500. According to the school, over 80% of them still live and work in the upstate region.

The USC Upstate Alumni Association, an office within University Advancement, is a service organization established by the University to promote the interests of the institution and to develop and maintain a close bond between the University and its alumni.

The Alumni Association keeps members informed about their alma mater and their fellow classmates. The Association notifies alumni of annual events on and off campus, and promotes annual giving to the Carolina Piedmont Foundation.

Membership is open to all former students who have graduated from USC Upstate.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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