University of North Carolina at Pembroke
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Image:Uncp.gif The University of North Carolina at Pembroke (known colloquially as UNC Pembroke or UNCP) is a public university in the town of Pembroke in Robeson County, North Carolina.
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History
The school was created by the General Assembly on March 7, 1887 in response to a local petition. Originally known as the Croatan Normal School, fifteen students and one teacher composed the initial complement. With the goal of educating Native American teachers, enrollment was limited to the Native American Indians of Robeson County.
In 1909, the school moved to its present location, about a mile east of the original site. The name was changed in 1911 to the Indian Normal School of Robeson County, and again in 1913 to the Cherokee Indian Normal School of Robeson County. In 1926 the school became a two-year post-secondary normal school; until then it had provided only primary and secondary instruction.
In 1939 it became a four-year institution, a change followed in 1941 by a new name: Pembroke State College for Indians. The next year, the school began to offer bachelor's degrees in disciplines other than teaching. In 1945 the college was opened to members of all federally recognized tribes. A change of name to Pembroke State College in 1949 presaged the admission of white students, which was approved in 1953 up to forty percent of total enrollment; the Brown v. Board of Education decision of the following year eliminated all race restrictions.
In 1969 the college became Pembroke State University, a regional university which was incorporated into the University of North Carolina System in 1972. The first master's degree program was implemented in 1978. On July 1, 1996, Pembroke State University became the University of North Carolina at Pembroke.
As of 2003, UNCP has 204 full-time faculty members and an enrollment of 4,472 students engaged in fifty-five undergraduate programs and fifteen graduate programs. The university's profile and attention has increased recently as the result of an aggressive statewide advertising campaign, in which billboards and radio advertisements have touted UNCP as a place "where learning gets personal."
Athletics
UNC Pembroke's athletic teams are known as the Braves. The school is a member of the NCAA's Division II and competes in the Peach Belt Conference. With the addition of a men's football program in 2007, the school will field a total of sixteen varsity sports teams. Due to its legacy as a Native American school, the Braves are typically not targeted in movements to change or ban Indian team names.[1]
Chancellors (since 1972)
- English E. Jones (1972-1979)
- Paul R. Givens (1979-1989)
- Joseph B. Oxendine (1989-1999)
- Allen C. Meadors (1999- )
External links
Template:Peach Belt Conference
