University of Arizona

Old Main in 1889

After the passage of the Morrill Land-Grant Act of 1862, the push for a university in Arizona grew. The Arizona Territory's "Thieving Thirteenth" Legislature approved the University of Arizona in 1885 and selected the city of Tucson to receive the appropriation to build the university. Tucson hoped to receive the appropriation for the territory's mental hospital, which carried a $100,000 allocation instead of the $25,000 allotted to the territory's only university (Arizona State University was also chartered in 1885, but it was created as Arizona's normal school, and not a university). Flooding on the Salt River delayed Tucson's legislators, and by they time they reached Prescott, back-room deals allocating the most desirable territorial institutions had been made. Tucson was largely disappointed with receiving what was viewed as an inferior prize.

With no parties willing to provide land for the new institution, the citizens of Tucson prepared to return the money to the Territorial Legislature until two gamblers and a saloon keeper decided to donate 40 acres to the Board of Regents.^[13] Construction of Old Main, the first building on campus, began on October 27, 1887, and classes met for the first time in 1891 with 32 students in Old Main, which is still in use today.^[14] Because there were no high schools in Arizona Territory, the university maintained separate preparatory classes for the first 23 years of operation.

In 1924, during Cloyd Marvin's tenure as president, the university was recognized by the Association of American Universities.^[15]

Modern times

On April 17, 2020, the University of Arizona announced temporary pay cuts and furloughs to its 15,000 employees as its Tucson campus shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic. All employees making up to $150,000 per year were furloughed, with the length determined by each employees' salary. For employees making more than $150,000 per year, pay cuts of 17% or 20% were instituted.^[16] Also in 2020, the University of Arizona announced it had purchased Ashford University from Zovio and renamed it The University of Arizona Global Campus.^[17]

Discover more about History related topics

Morrill Land-Grant Acts

Morrill Land-Grant Acts

The Morrill Land-Grant Acts are United States statutes that allowed for the creation of land-grant colleges in U.S. states using the proceeds from sales of federally-owned land, often obtained from indigenous tribes through treaty, cession, or seizure. The Morrill Act of 1862 was enacted during the American Civil War, and the Morrill Act of 1890 (the Agricultural College Act of 1890 expanded this model.

Normal school

Normal school

A normal school or normal college is an institution created to train teachers by educating them in the norms of pedagogy and curriculum. In the 19th century in the United States, instruction in normal schools was at the high school level, turning out primary school teachers. Many such schools are now called teacher training colleges or teachers' colleges, but in Mexico continue to be called normal schools, with student-teachers being known as normalistas. Many schools currently require a high school diploma for entry, and may be part of a comprehensive university. Normal schools in the United States, Canada and Argentina trained teachers for primary schools, while in Europe, the equivalent colleges typically educated teachers for primary schools and later extended their curricula to also cover secondary schools.

Salt River (Arizona)

Salt River (Arizona)

The Salt River is a river in Gila and Maricopa counties in Arizona, United States, that is the largest tributary of the Gila River. The river is about 200 miles (320 km) long. Its drainage basin is about 13,700 square miles (35,000 km2) large. The longest of the Salt River's many tributaries is the 195-mile (314 km) Verde River. The Salt's headwaters tributaries, the Black River and East Fork, increase the river's total length to about 300 miles (480 km). The name Salt River comes from the fact that the river flows over large salt deposits shortly after the merging of the White and Black Rivers.

Prescott, Arizona

Prescott, Arizona

Prescott is a city in Yavapai County, Arizona, United States. According to the 2020 Census, the city's population was 45,827. The city is the county seat of Yavapai County.

Old Main, University of Arizona

Old Main, University of Arizona

Old Main, University of Arizona, originally known as the University of Arizona, School of Agriculture building, was the first building constructed on the University of Arizona campus in Tucson, Arizona, United States. Old Main is one of the oldest surviving educational structures in the western United States. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1972.

Cloyd H. Marvin

Cloyd H. Marvin

Cloyd Heck Marvin was the longest serving president of the George Washington University, from 1927 to 1959, and previously the then-youngest American university president from 1922–1927 at the University of Arizona. He was a freemason.

Association of American Universities

Association of American Universities

The Association of American Universities (AAU) is an organization of American research universities devoted to maintaining a strong system of academic research and education. Founded in 1900, it consists of 63 universities in the United States and two universities in Canada—the University of Toronto and McGill University. AAU membership is by invitation only and requires an affirmative vote of three-quarters of current members.

Zovio

Zovio

Zovio, formerly Bridgepoint Education, Inc. (BPI), was a publicly held, American for-profit education services company. It is no longer in operation. It was the online program manager for one online university, the University of Arizona Global Campus, until the contract termination was announced August 1, 2022. In April 2019, the company changed its name to Zovio, moving its headquarters to Chandler, Arizona. In 2020, the company sold Ashford University to the University of Arizona. Zovio also owns Waypoint Outcomes and Fullstack Academy and trades on NASDAQ under the ticket symbol ZVO.

The University of Arizona offers bachelor's, master's, doctoral, and professional degrees. Grades are given on a strict 4-point scale with "A" worth 4, "B" worth 3, "C" worth 2, "D" worth 1 and "E" worth zero points.^[18]

Rankings

The Center for World University Rankings in 2017 ranked Arizona No. 52 in the world and 34 in the U.S.^[30] The 2018 Times Higher Education World University Rankings rated University of Arizona 161st in the world^[31] and the 2017/18 QS World University Rankings ranked it 230th.^[32]

In 2015, Design Intelligence ranked the College of Architecture and Landscape Architecture's (CALA) undergraduate program in architecture 10th in the nation for all universities, public and private. The same publication ranked UA ranked 20th in overall undergraduate architecture programs.^[33]

Admissions

The UA is considered a "selective" university by U.S. News & World Report.^[37] In the 2014–2015 academic year, 68 freshman students were National Merit Scholars.^[38]

UA students hail from all states in the U.S. While nearly 69% of students are from Arizona, nearly 11% are from California, and 8% are international, followed by a significant student presence from Texas, Illinois, Washington, Colorado and New York (fall 2013).^[39]

Tuition

Tuition for both fall and spring semesters at the University of Arizona is $12,700 for full-time undergraduate residents and $37,200 for non-residents.^[40] As in other states, the cost of tuition has been rising due to the reduction in government support and large increase in administrative staff over teaching staff.^[41] Undergraduate students who enrolled in the UA's optional tuition guarantee program in 2014 will remain at $11,591 for residents and $30,745 for non-residents through the 2018–19 academic year. Incoming students enrolled in a bachelor's degree program are automatically eligible for the Guaranteed Tuition Program and will not be subject to tuition increases for 8 continuous semesters (four years).^[42] The Guaranteed Tuition Program does not apply to rates for summer and winter sessions.

Honors College

The University of Arizona W.A. Franke Honors College provides a program for over 4,500 students that creates a smaller community feel like that of a liberal arts college within a large research institution. It started in 1962 with an acceptance of seventy-five students and has grown to 5,508 in the academic year 2016–2017.^[43] The main offices for the University of Arizona Honors College are at N Fremont Ave and E Mabel St, inside the newly constructed Honors Village. It was renamed from the Honors College to the W.A. Franke Honors College in recognition of a $25 million gift commitment made by William A. "Bill" Franke, his wife, Carolyn, and the Franke family.^[44]

Research

Arizona is classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity".^[45] The university's research expenditure in fiscal year 2018 was $687.1 million.^[46][47] Arizona is the fourth most awarded public university by NASA for research.^[48] The UA was awarded over $325 million for its Lunar and Planetary Laboratory (LPL) to lead NASA's 2007–08 mission to Mars to explore the Martian Arctic, and $800 million for its OSIRIS-REx mission, the first in U.S. history to sample an asteroid. The LPL's work in the Cassini spacecraft orbit around Saturn is larger than any other university globally. The U of A laboratory designed and operated the atmospheric radiation investigations and imaging on the probe.^[49] The UA operates the HiRISE camera, a part of the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. While using the HiRISE camera in 2011, UA alumnus Lujendra Ojha and his team discovered proof of liquid water on the surface of Mars—a discovery confirmed by NASA in 2015.^[50] UA receives more NASA grants annually than the next nine top NASA-Jet Propulsion Laboratory-funded universities combined.^[51] As of March 2016^[update], the UA's Lunar and Planetary Laboratory is actively involved in ten spacecraft missions: Cassini VIMS; Grail; the HiRISE camera orbiting Mars; the Juno mission orbiting Jupiter; Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO); Maven, which will explore Mars' upper atmosphere and interactions with the Sun; Solar Probe Plus, a historic mission into the Sun's atmosphere for the first time; Rosetta's VIRTIS; WISE; and OSIRIS-REx, the first U.S. sample-return mission to a near-Earth asteroid, which launched on September 8, 2016.^[52][53]

UA students have been selected as Truman, Rhodes, Goldwater, and Fulbright Scholars.^[54] According to The Chronicle of Higher Education, UA is among the top 25 producers of Fulbright awards in the U.S.^[55]

UA is a member of the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, a consortium of institutions pursuing research in astronomy. The association operates observatories and telescopes, notably Kitt Peak National Observatory just outside Tucson. UA is a member of the Association of American Universities, and the sole representative from Arizona to this group. Led by Roger Angel, researchers in the Steward Observatory Mirror Lab at UA are working in concert to build the world's most advanced telescope. Known as the Giant Magellan Telescope, it will produce images 10 times sharper than those from the Earth-orbiting Hubble Space Telescope. The telescope is set to be completed in 2021. GMT will ultimately cost $1 billion.^[56][57] Researchers from at least nine institutions are working to secure the funding for the project. The telescope will include seven 18-ton mirrors capable of providing clear images of volcanoes and riverbeds on Mars and mountains on the Moon at a rate 40 times faster than the world's current large telescopes. The mirrors of the Giant Magellan Telescope will be built at the U of A and transported to a permanent mountaintop site in the Chilean Andes where the telescope will be constructed.^[58]

Reaching Mars in March 2006, the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter contained the HiRISE camera, with Principal Investigator Alfred McEwen as the lead on the project. This NASA mission to Mars carrying the UA-designed camera is capturing the highest-resolution images of the planet ever seen. The journey of the orbiter was 300 million miles. In August 2007, the UA, under the charge of Peter Smith, led the Phoenix Mars Mission, the first mission completely controlled by a university.^[59] Reaching the planet's surface in May 2008, the mission's purpose was to improve knowledge of the Martian Arctic. The Arizona Radio Observatory, a part of Steward Observatory, operates the Submillimeter Telescope on Mount Graham.

The National Science Foundation funded the iPlant Collaborative in 2008 with a $50 million grant.^[60] In 2013, iPlant Collaborative received a $50 million renewal grant.^[61] Rebranded in late 2015 as "CyVerse", the collaborative cloud-based data management platform is moving beyond life sciences to provide cloud-computing access across all scientific disciplines.^[62]

In June 2011, the university announced it would assume full ownership of the Biosphere 2 scientific research facility in Oracle, Arizona.^[63] Biosphere 2 was constructed by private developers (funded mainly by Texas businessman and philanthropist Ed Bass) with its first closed system experiment commencing in 1991. The university had been the official management partner of the facility for research purposes since 2007.

In 2018 UA received funding from the Pioneer Fund, a non-profit institute which promotes scientific racism^[64] and eugenics. The funds were applied for by Aurelio Jose Figueredo, who directs the graduate program on human behavior and evolutionary psychology. Funds from the grant were used by Figueredo to attend the 2016 London Conference on Intelligence, where presentations on eugenics are given. Figueredo has also reviewed papers for Mankind Quarterly, a journal which has advocated for racial hierarchy. Figueredo has disavowed eugenics and racial inferiority.^[65][66]

Publications

Since 1945 the university has published Arizona Quarterly, an academic literary journal.^[67][68]

Global teaching and research

Arizona partnership with Universidad de Sonora was renewed in August 2017, focusing on a partnership in geology and physics.^[69]

Arizona has been part of both theoretical and experimental research in particle and nuclear physics in the framework of the CERN program since 1987. The collaboration was initiated by the theoretician Peter A. Carruthers, head of the physics department, and Johann Rafelski who initiated the quark-gluon-plasma program at CERN. Arizona officially joined the CERN-LHC ATLAS Collaboration in 1994.^[70]

Arizona has a strategic program to attract foreign scholars, in particular from China.^[71]

Libraries

Entrance to the U of A main library, before renovation work began in 2019.

According to the 2015-2016 Association of Research Libraries' "Spending by University Research Libraries" report, UA libraries are ranked as the 37th overall university library in North America (out of 114) for university investment.^[72]

As of 2012^[update], the UA's library system contains over six million print volumes, 1.1 million electronic books, and 74,000 electronic journals.^[73] The Main Library, opened in 1976, serves as the library system's reference, periodical, and administrative center; most of the main collections are housed here. The Main Library is on the southeast quadrant of campus near McKale Center and Arizona Stadium.

In 2002, the Integrated Learning Center (ILC) was completed as a $20 million, 100,000-square-foot (10,000 m²) computer facility intended for use by incoming students.^[74] The ILC features classrooms, auditoriums, a courtyard with vending machines, and an expanded computer lab with several dozen workstations and 3D printing. Computers and 3D printing are available for use by the general public (with some restrictions) as well as by UA students, faculty and staff.^[75] Much of the ILC was constructed underground, underneath the east end of the Mall. The ILC connects to the basement floor of the Main Library. As part of the project, additional new office space for the library was constructed on the existing fifth floor.

The Special Collections Library is adjacent to the Main Library. It was established in 1958, and it houses materials primarily concerned with Arizona and Southwestern history, borderlands studies, and literature.

The Weaver Science and Engineering Library is in a nearby building from the 1960s that houses volumes and periodicals from those fields. The Music Building (on the northwest quadrant of campus where many of the fine arts disciplines are clustered) houses the Fine Arts Library, including reference collections for architecture, music (including sheet music, recordings and listening stations), and photography. There is a small library at the Center for Creative Photography, also in the fine arts complex, devoted to the art and science of photography. The Law Library is in the law building (James E. Rogers College of Law) at the intersection of Speedway Boulevard and Mountain Avenue.

The Arizona Health Sciences Library, built in 1996, is on the Health Sciences Center on the north end of campus and in Phoenix on the Phoenix Biomedical Campus, in the Health Sciences Education Building (HSEB). The library serves the Colleges of Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Public Health, and Veterinary Medicine, the University of Arizona Health Network, and is a resource for health professionals and citizens across the state.

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QS World University Rankings

QS World University Rankings

QS World University Rankings is an annual publication of university rankings by Quacquarelli Symonds (QS). QS World University Rankings have been praised as "the most authoritative" of the various university ranking publications.

Arizona

Arizona

Arizona is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th-largest and the 14th-most-populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Four Corners region with Utah to the north, Colorado to the northeast, and New Mexico to the east; its other neighboring states are Nevada to the northwest, California to the west and the Mexican states of Sonora and Baja California to the south and southwest.

Illinois

Illinois

Illinois is a state in the Midwestern United States. It shares borders with Wisconsin to its north, Iowa to its northwest, Missouri to its southwest, Kentucky to its south, and Indiana to its east. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other metropolitan areas include Peoria and Rockford, as well as Springfield, its capital. Of the fifty U.S. states, Illinois has the fifth-largest gross domestic product (GDP), the sixth-largest population, and the 25th-largest land area.

Colorado

Colorado

Colorado is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains. Colorado is the eighth most extensive and 21st most populous U.S. state. The 2020 United States census enumerated the population of Colorado at 5,773,714, an increase of 14.80% since the 2010 census.

New York (state)

New York (state)

New York, often called New York state to distinguish it from its largest city, New York City, is a state in the Northeastern United States. With 20.2 million people enumerated at the 2020 United States census, its highest decennial count ever, it is the fourth-most populous state in the United States as of 2021, approximately 44% of the state's population lives in New York City, including 25% in the boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens; and 15% of the state's population is on the remainder of Long Island, the most populous island in the United States. With a total area of 54,556 square miles (141,300 km2), New York is the 27th-largest U.S. state by area. The state is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to its south, and Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Vermont to its east; it shares a maritime border with Rhode Island, east of Long Island; and an international border with the Canadian provinces of Quebec to its north and Ontario to its northwest.

Bill Franke

Bill Franke

William Augustus Franke is an airline investor and a co-founder and Managing Partner of Indigo Partners LLC, a private equity fund focused in air transportation. He has been the President at Franke and Company, Inc. since 1987. Franke has been Chairman of Wizz Air since 2004, and serves as Chairman of Frontier Airlines. He also serves as the President and Chairman of Bristol Group SA.

Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education

Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education

The Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education, or simply the Carnegie Classification, is a framework for classifying colleges and universities in the United States. It was created in 1970 by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. It is managed by the American Council on Education.

NASA

NASA

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research.

Lunar and Planetary Laboratory

Lunar and Planetary Laboratory

The Lunar and Planetary Laboratory (LPL) is a research center for planetary science located in Tucson, Arizona. It is also a graduate school, constituting the Department of Planetary Sciences at the University of Arizona. LPL is one of the world's largest programs dedicated exclusively to planetary science in a university setting. The Lunar and Planetary Lab collection is held at the University of Arizona Special Collections Library.

Phoenix (spacecraft)

Phoenix (spacecraft)

Phoenix was an uncrewed space probe that landed on the surface of Mars on May 25, 2008, and operated until November 2, 2008. Phoenix was operational on Mars for 157 sols. Its instruments were used to assess the local habitability and to research the history of water on Mars. The mission was part of the Mars Scout Program; its total cost was $420 million, including the cost of launch.

HiRISE

HiRISE

High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment is a camera on board the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter which has been orbiting and studying Mars since 2006. The 65 kg (143 lb), US$40 million instrument was built under the direction of the University of Arizona's Lunar and Planetary Laboratory by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. It consists of a 0.5 m (19.7 in) aperture reflecting telescope, the largest so far of any deep space mission, which allows it to take pictures of Mars with resolutions of 0.3 m/pixel, resolving objects below a meter across.

Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter

Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter

Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) is a spacecraft designed to search for the existence of water on Mars, as part of NASA's Mars Exploration Program. It was launched from Cape Canaveral on August 12, 2005, at 11:43 UTC and reached Mars on March 10, 2006, at 21:24 UTC. In November 2006, after six months of aerobraking, it entered its final science orbit and began its primary science phase.

Student Union, Old Main, and Forbes building

Alumni Plaza

UA McClelland Hall, Eller College of Management

The main campus' 179 buildings sit on 380 acres (1.5 km²) in central Tucson, about one mile (1.6 km) northeast of downtown. Roy Place, a prominent Tucson architect, designed many of the early buildings, including the Arizona State Museum buildings (one of them the 1927 main library) and Centennial Hall. Place's use of red brick set the tone for the red brick facades that are a basic part of nearly all UA buildings: almost every UA building has red brick as a major component of the design, or at the very least, a stylistic accent to harmonize it with the other campus buildings.^[76][77] In the early 1930s, Place updated the campus master plan, conceived by his architectural partner John Lyman in 1919 and modeled after the University of Virginia.^[78]

The campus is roughly divided into quadrants. The north and south sides of campus are delineated by a grassy expanse called the Mall, which stretches from Old Main eastward to the campus' eastern border at Campbell Avenue (a major north–south arterial street). The west and east sides of campus are separated roughly by Highland Avenue and the Student Union Memorial Center (see below).

The science and mathematics buildings tend to be clustered in the southwest quadrant; the intercollegiate athletics facilities to the southeast; the arts and humanities buildings to the northwest (with the dance department being a major exception as its main facilities are far to the east end of campus), with the engineering buildings in the north central area. The optical and space sciences buildings are clustered on the east side of campus near the sports stadiums and the (1976) main library.

University of Arizona Mall

Speedway Boulevard, one of Tucson's primary east–west arterial streets, traditionally defined the northern boundary of campus but since the 1980s, several university buildings have been constructed directly on, and north of, this street, expanding into a neighborhood traditionally filled with apartment complexes and single-family homes. The university has purchased a handful of these apartment complexes for student housing in recent years. Sixth Street typically defines the southern boundary, with single-family homes (many of which are rented out to students) south of this street.

Park Avenue has traditionally defined the western boundary of campus, and there is a stone wall which runs along a large portion of the east side of the street, leading to the old Main Gate, and into the driveway leading to Old Main. Along or adjacent to all of these major streets are a wide variety of retail facilities serving the student, faculty and staff population (as is the case in other similar university neighborhoods throughout the United States): shops, bookstores, bars, banks, credit unions, coffeehouses and major chain fast-food restaurants such as Chipotle, Panera Bread and Pei Wei. The area near University Boulevard and Park Avenue, near the Main Gate, has been a major center of such retail activity going back to the university's early decades; many shops dating from the 1920s have been renovated since the late 1990s, other new retail shops have been built in recent years, and a nine-story Marriott hotel was built in this immediate district in 1996.

The Stevie Eller Dance Theater, opened in 2003 (across the Mall from McKale Center) as a 28,600-square-foot (2,660 m²) dedicated performance venue for the UA's dance program, one of the most highly regarded university dance departments in the United States. Designed by Gould Evans, a Phoenix-based architectural firm, the theater was awarded the 2003 Citation Award from the American Institute of Architects, Arizona Chapter.^[79]

The Computer Science department's webcam provides a live feed^[80] of the campus as seen from the top of the Gould-Simpson building (the tallest classroom building on campus at 10 stories).^[81] The Berger Memorial Fountain at the west entrance of Old Main honors the UA students who died in World War I, and dates back to 1919.^[82] The University of Arizona generates renewable energy with solar panels (photo voltaic) that have been installed on campus buildings. In 2011, the Sustainable Endowments Institute gave the university a College Sustainability Report Card grade of "B."^[83] In 2015, the university opened the ENR2, housing the University of Arizona School of Geography, Development and Environment set to be one of its "greenest" buildings on campus with features like a cutting edge air conditioning system and 55,000-gallon water-harvesting tank. Designed to resemble a slot canyon in the Sonoran Desert, the 150,000 sq. ft. building focuses on adaptation and reducing our carbon footprint.^[84]

The oldest campus buildings are west of Old Main. Most of the buildings east of Old Main date from the 1940s to the 1980s (a period of tremendous growth on campus and in Tucson in general), with a few recent buildings constructed in the years since 1990.

The Student Union Memorial Center

Student Union Memorial Center

The salvaged USS Arizona Bell. The 1,820-pound bell is one of two salvaged from the USS Arizona and is housed in the "bell tower" of the University of Arizona Student Union Memorial Center.

The Student Union Memorial Center, on the north side of the Mall east of Old Main, was completely reconstructed between 2000 and 2003. It replaced a 270,000-square-foot (25,000 m²) structure originally opened in 1951 with additions during the 1960s and early 1970s.^[85] The student union has 405,000 square feet (37,600 m²) of space on four levels, and includes 14 restaurants, a grocery market, a two-level bookstore with an office supplies section, 23 meeting rooms, eight lounge areas (including one dedicated to the USS Arizona), a computer lab, a U.S. Post Office, and a copy center.

The building was designed to mirror the USS Arizona (BB-39). A variety of sculptures pepper the premises, decorating the air with the chimes of dog tags or the colors of refracted light in honor of those who have served. A bell housed on the USS Arizona, one of the two bells rescued from the ship after the attack on Pearl Harbor, has a permanent home in the clock tower of the Student Union Memorial Center. The bell arrived on campus in July 1946. The bell was rung seven times on the third Wednesday of every month at 12:07 pm – symbolic of the battleship's sinking on December 7, 1941 – to honor individuals at the UA, as well as after home football victories, over any team except other Arizona schools.^[86][87] In December 2020, it was announced that at the request of the U.S. Navy, who still officially owns the bell, and in the interest of preservation of the historic artifact, that the bell would no longer be rung.^[88]

The Arboretum at The University of Arizona

Much of the main campus has been designated an arboretum. Plants from around the world are labeled along a self-guided plant walk. The Krutch Cactus Garden ^[89] includes the tallest Boojum tree in the state of Arizona.^[90] Two herbaria on the university campus are referred to as "ARIZ" in the Index Herbariorum

The campus also boasts hundreds of olive trees many of which were planted by Prof. Robert H. Forbes. Many of these trees are over a hundred years old.^[91]

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Roy Place

Roy Place

Roy Place was a Tucson, Arizona architect.

Arizona State Museum

Arizona State Museum

The Arizona State Museum (ASM), founded in 1893, was originally a repository for the collection and protection of archaeological resources. Today, however, ASM stores artifacts, exhibits them and provides education and research opportunities. It was formed by authority of the Arizona Territorial Legislature. The museum is operated by the University of Arizona, and is located on the university campus in Tucson.

Chipotle

Chipotle

A chipotle, or chilpotle, is a smoke-dried ripe jalapeño chili pepper used for seasoning. It is a chili used primarily in Mexican and Mexican-inspired cuisines, such as Tex-Mex and Southwestern United States dishes. It comes in different forms, such as chipotles en adobo.

Panera Bread

Panera Bread

Panera Bread is an American chain store of bakery-café fast casual restaurants with over 2,000 locations, all of which are in the United States and Canada. Its headquarters are in Sunset Hills, Missouri.

Pei Wei Asian Diner

Pei Wei Asian Diner

Pei Wei Asian Diner, LLC, doing business as Pei Wei Asian Kitchen, ) is an American restaurant chain serving Pan Asian fare, operating in at 119 locations in the United States. Pei Wei's dishes are made to order in an open concept kitchen using cooking methods like wok firing. The restaurant offers guest customization that includes vegetarian and gluten-free options.

Marriott International

Marriott International

Marriott International, Inc. is an American multinational company that operates, franchises, and licenses lodging including hotel, residential, and timeshare properties. It is headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland. The company was founded by J. Willard Marriott and his wife Alice Marriott.

McKale Center

McKale Center

McKale Memorial Center is an athletic arena in the southwest United States, located on the campus of the University of Arizona in Tucson, Arizona. As the home of the university's Wildcats basketball team of the Pac-12 Conference, it is primarily used for basketball, but also has physical training and therapy facilities. Its construction is marked with a large copper cap that has oxidized brown.

American Institute of Architects

American Institute of Architects

The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA provides education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to support the architecture profession and improve its public image. The AIA works with other members of the design and construction community to help coordinate the building industry.

Attack on Pearl Harbor

Attack on Pearl Harbor

The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii, just before 8:00 a.m. on Sunday, December 7, 1941. The United States was a neutral country at the time; the attack led to its formal entry into World War II the next day. The Japanese military leadership referred to the attack as the Hawaii Operation and Operation AI, and as Operation Z during its planning.

Arizona Wildcats football

Arizona Wildcats football

The Arizona Wildcats football program represents the University of Arizona (UA) in the sport of American college football. Arizona competes in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the South Division of the Pac-12 Conference (Pac-12). They play their home games at Arizona Stadium, which opened in 1929 on the university's campus in Tucson, Arizona, and has a capacity of 50,782. The team is coached by Jedd Fisch.

Arboretum

Arboretum

An arboretum in a general sense is a botanical collection composed exclusively of trees of a variety of species. Originally mostly created as a section in a larger garden or park for specimens of mostly non-local species, many modern arboreta are in botanical gardens as living collections of woody plants and is intended at least in part for scientific study.

Boojum tree

Boojum tree

Fouquieria columnaris, the Boojum tree or cirio is a tree in the ocotillo family,(Fouquieriaceae) whose other members include the ocotillos. Some taxonomists place it in the separate genus Idria. It is nearly endemic to the Baja California Peninsula, with only a small population in the Sierra Bacha of Sonora, Mexico. The plant's English name, Boojum, was given by Godfrey Sykes of the Desert Laboratory in Tucson, Arizona and is taken from Lewis Carroll's poem "The Hunting of the Snark".

Wildcat Family Statue

The University of Arizona, like its sister institutions Arizona State University and Northern Arizona University, is governed by the Arizona Board of Regents or the ABOR, a 12-member body. Eight volunteer members are appointed by the Governor to staggered eight-year terms; two students serve on the board for two-year appointments, with the first year being a nonvoting apprentice year. The Governor and the Superintendent of Public Instruction serve as voting ex-officio members.^[92] The ABOR provides "policy guidance" and oversight to the three major degree-granting universities, as provided for by Title 15 of the Arizona Revised Statutes.

Robert C. Robbins, M.D., was named the 22nd president of the UA on March 7, 2017.^[4] He began his term on June 1, 2017. Previously, he was the president and CEO of Texas Medical Center in Houston from 2012 to 2017. In prior roles, Robbins was professor and chairman of the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery at Stanford University School of Medicine, founding director of the Stanford Cardiovascular Institute, president of the International Society of Heart and Lung Transplantation and president of the Western Thoracic Surgical Association.

Robbins replaced Ann Weaver Hart, M.A., Ph.D., who was the university's first female president. He was named the lone finalist to succeed as UA president after Hart announced she would not seek to extend to her contract past its June 30, 2018 end date.^[93] During her tenure, Hart led the university's first integrated strategic academic and business plan and agreement with Banner Health to support the UA's biosciences research and medical education initiatives.^[94]

Notable past presidents of the university include: Hart (formerly president of Temple University); interim president Eugene Sander, who retired from the university after 25 years of service as an educator and administrator, including nearly one year in the interim president role;^{[95][96][97][98]} Robert N. Shelton, who began his tenure in 2006 and resigned in the summer of 2011 to accept the presidency of the Fiesta Bowl, (a BCS college football tournament played annually in the Phoenix area).^[99] Shelton's predecessor, Peter Likins, vacated his post at the conclusion of the 2005–06 academic term.^[100] Other past UA presidents include Manuel Pacheco (Likins' primary predecessor; the first person of Hispanic descent to lead the university and for whom the Integrated Learning Center is named), Henry Koffler (Pacheco's predecessor and the first UA alumnus to lead the university),^[101] John Schaefer, Richard Harvill^[102] (who presided over a period of dramatic growth for the UA in the 1950s and 1960s), Homer L. Shantz, Kendric C. Babcock,^[103] and Rufus B. von KleinSmid.^[104]

Discover more about Organization related topics

Arizona State University

Arizona State University

Arizona State University is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the United States.

Northern Arizona University

Northern Arizona University

Northern Arizona University (NAU) is a public research university based in Flagstaff, Arizona. It was founded in 1899 as the final public university established in the Arizona Territory, 13 years before Arizona was admitted as the 48th state.

Arizona Board of Regents

Arizona Board of Regents

The Arizona Board of Regents (ABOR) is the governing body of Arizona's public university system. It provides policy guidance to Arizona State University, Northern Arizona University, the University of Arizona, and their branch campuses.

Arizona Revised Statutes

Arizona Revised Statutes

The Arizona Revised Statutes (ARS) is the name given to the statutory laws in the state of Arizona. The ARS went into effect on January 9, 1956. It was most recently updated in the first regular session of the 53rd legislature. There are currently 49 titles, although three have been repealed.

Ann Weaver Hart

Ann Weaver Hart

Ann Weaver Hart is the 21st, first female chief executive and former president of the University of Arizona. She is the first woman to hold the position, which she assumed on November 30, 2012. Previously, Hart was the ninth president and first female chief executive of Temple University in Philadelphia, a position she held beginning on July 1, 2006.

Eugene G. Sander

Eugene G. Sander

Eugene G. Sander is a former president of the University of Arizona serving from 2011 to 2012. He was appointed after the resignation of Robert N. Shelton to lead the Fiesta Bowl.

Fiesta Bowl

Fiesta Bowl

The Fiesta Bowl is an American college football bowl game played annually in the Phoenix metropolitan area. From its beginning in 1971 until 2006, the game was hosted at the Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona. Since 2007, the game has been played at the State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. Since 2022, it has been sponsored by Vrbo and officially known as the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl. Previous sponsors include PlayStation, BattleFrog, Vizio, Tostitos, IBM (1993–1995) and Sunkist (1986–1990).

Bowl Championship Series

Bowl Championship Series

The Bowl Championship Series (BCS) was a selection system that created four or five bowl game match-ups involving eight or ten of the top ranked teams in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of American college football, including an opportunity for the top two teams to compete in the BCS National Championship Game. The system was in place for the 1998 through 2013 seasons and in 2014 was replaced by the College Football Playoff.

College football

College football

College football refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States.

Hispanic

Hispanic

The term Hispanic refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad.

Henry Koffler

Henry Koffler

Henry Koffler was an Austrian-born American scientist, academic and artist.

Homer L. Shantz

Homer L. Shantz

Homer LeRoy Shantz (1876–1958) was an American botanist and former president of the University of Arizona.

This article may be too long to read and navigate comfortably. Please consider splitting content into sub-articles, condensing it, or adding subheadings. Please discuss this issue on the article's talk page. (November 2021)

Like many large public universities in the U.S., sports are a major activity on campus, and receive a large operating budget. Arizona's athletic teams are nicknamed the Wildcats, a name derived from a 1914 football game with then California champions Occidental College, where the L.A. Times asserted, "the Arizona men showed the fight of wildcats."^[105] The University of Arizona participates in the NCAA's Division I-A in the Pac-12 Conference, which it was admitted in 1978.

Teams

Men's basketball

The men's basketball team has been one of the nation's most successful programs since Lute Olson was hired as head coach in 1983, and is still known as a national powerhouse in Division I men's basketball.^[106] Between 1985 and 2009, the team reached the NCAA Tournament 25 consecutive years, which is the third-longest streak in NCAA history, after Kansas, with appearances from 1990–present, North Carolina, with 27 consecutive appearances from 1975 to 2001.^[107] The Wildcats have reached the Final Four of the NCAA tournament in 1988, 1994, 1997, and 2001. In 1997, Arizona defeated the University of Kentucky, the then-defending national champions, to win the NCAA National Championship (NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship) by a score of 84–79 overtime; Arizona's first national championship victory. The 1997 championship team became the first and only in NCAA history to defeat three number-one seeds en route to a national title (Kansas, North Carolina, and Kentucky—the North Carolina game being the final game for longtime UNC head coach Dean Smith). Point guard Miles Simon was chosen as 1997 Final Four MVP (Simon was also an assistant coach under Olson from 2005 to 2008). The Cats also boast the third-highest winning percentage in the nation over the last twenty years. Arizona has won a total of 28 regular season conference championships in its program's history, and 6 PAC-12 tournaments. Since 2005, Arizona has produced 17 NBA draft picks.^{[108][109][110]}

The Wildcats play their home games at the McKale Center in Tucson. A number of former Wildcats have gone on to pursue successful professional NBA careers (especially during the Lute Olson era), including Gilbert Arenas, Richard Jefferson, Mike Bibby, Jason Terry, Sean Elliott, Damon Stoudamire, Khalid Reeves, Luke Walton, Hassan Adams, Salim Stoudamire, Andre Iguodala, Channing Frye, Brian Williams (later known as Bison Dele), Sean Rooks, Jud Buechler, Michael Dickerson, Chase Budinger, Jordan Hill, Jerryd Bayless, Derrick Williams, Kadeem Allen, Aaron Gordon, Solomon Hill, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, Stanley Johnson, T.J McConnell, Lauri Elias Markkanen, Kobi Simmons, Steve Kerr, Deandre Ayton, Rawle Alkins, and Allonzo Trier. Kenny Lofton, now best known as a former Major League Baseball star, was a four-year letter winner as a Wildcat basketball player (and was on the 1988 Final Four team), before one year on the Arizona baseball team. Another notable former Wildcat basketball player is Eugene Edgerson, who played on the 1997 and 2001 Final Four squads, and spent some of his professional careers as one of the Harlem Globetrotters as "Wildkat" Edgerson.

Before Lute Olson's hire in 1983, Arizona was the first major Division I school to hire an African American head coach in Fred Snowden, in 1972. After a 25-year tenure as Arizona head coach, Olson announced his retirement from the Arizona basketball program in October 2008. After two seasons of using interim coaches, Arizona named Sean Miller, head coach at Xavier University, as its new head basketball coach in April 2009. During his tenure, Miller led the Wildcats to five regular-season conference championships, three conference tournament championships, and seven appearances in the NCAA tournament. Miller served as head coach for four of the seven seasons in Arizona history in which the Wildcats have won 30 or more games.

In the aftermath of the basketball program receiving five Level I violations from the NCAA in March 2021 (the culmination of a major NCAA investigation going back to 2017), Miller was relieved of his duties in April 2021 after twelve seasons. After a national search and much media speculation, Arizona announced soon afterward that Gonzaga assistant Tommy Lloyd would become the 18th head coach of Arizona men's basketball.

Football

Arizona Stadium has a total capacity of 55,675

The football team began at The University of Arizona in 1899 under the nickname "Varsity" (a name kept until the 1914 season when the team was deemed the "Wildcats").^[111]

The football team was notably successful in the 1990s, under head coach Dick Tomey; his "Desert Swarm" defense was characterized by tough, hard-nosed tactics. In 1993, the team had its first 10-win season and beat the University of Miami Hurricanes in the Fiesta Bowl by a score of 29–0. It was the bowl game's only shutout in its then 23-year history. In 1998, the team posted a school-record 12–1 season and made the Holiday Bowl in which it defeated the Nebraska Cornhuskers. Arizona ended the season ranked 4th nationally in the coaches and API poll. The 1998 Holiday Bowl was televised on ESPN and set the now-surpassed record of being the most-watched bowl game in the network's history. From November 2003 until October 2011, the program was led by Mike Stoops, brother of Bob Stoops, the head football coach at the University of Oklahoma (the 2000 BCS national champions); Stoops was fired on October 10, 2011. Former Michigan and West Virginia head coach Rich Rodriguez was hired on November 21, 2011, to lead the Wildcats. The announcement was made by UA athletic director Greg Byrne via Twitter. In his first season, Rodriguez took the Wildcats to the 2012 New Mexico Bowl, where they defeated the University of Nevada Wolf Pack. In his third season, the Wildcats won the Pac-12 South and played in the 2014 Fiesta Bowl.^[112] In 2015, the Wildcats played in their fourth consecutive bowl game, defeating the University of New Mexico in the New Mexico Bowl.^[113] In 2017, they lost to the Purdue Boilermakers in the Foster Farms Bowl, the Wildcats 21st bowl game.^[114]

Dave Heeke was named Arizona's 13th Director of Athletics in February 2017 and officially started in that role on April 1, 2017. Heeke served as Athletics Director at Central Michigan University for 11 years and as a staff member in the University of Oregon athletics department for 18 years. (Greg Byrne resigned from the post in January to accept the same role at the University of Alabama.)

Rodriguez was relieved of his duties on January 2, 2018, in the wake of an internal university investigation of sexual harassment claims made by Rodriguez's former administrative assistant.^[115] After a nationwide search and much media speculation, Kevin Sumlin was hired on January 14, 2018, as the new Wildcats head football coach. Sumlin was head coach at Texas A&M University and the University of Houston. After a disappointing three-season tenure, with the Wildcats posting a 5–7 (4–5 in Pac-12) record in 2018 and a 4–8 record (2–7 in Pac-12) record in 2019, Sumlin was fired at the conclusion of the 2020 season (a truncated schedule due to the COVID-19 pandemic).

After a nationwide search and much media speculation, former college and NFL coach Jedd Fisch (most recently the QB coach for the New England Patriots and a previous assistant at UCLA, Michigan, Miami and Minnesota) was chosen as the Wildcats’ 32nd head football coach, as announced in December 2020.^[116]

Baseball

The baseball team had its first season in 1904. The baseball team has captured four national championship titles in 1976, 1980, 1986 and 2012, with the first three coached by Jerry Kindall and the most recent by Andy Lopez. Arizona baseball teams have appeared in the NCAA National Championship title series a total of 34 times,^[117] including 1956, 1959, 1963, 1976, 1980, 1986, 2004, 2012, and 2016. Arizona baseball has appeared in the College World Series 18 times. Arizona is 7th all-time in games won in the regular season with 2,347 wins. Home games are played at Hi Corbett Field.

Arizona players celebrating the program's fourth College World Series title in 2012

Jay Johnson, previously head coach of the University of Nevada baseball program, succeeded Andy Lopez who retired after the 2015 season.^[118] In his first season as head coach, Johnson guided his team to the programs 17th College World Series appearance and 8th championship series appearance.

Johnson resigned from the Wildcat program in June 2021 to accept the head coaching job at LSU.^[119] This was after leading the Wildcats to a Pac-12 conference championship and the 18th College World Series appearance in program history; they were eliminated in Omaha by Stanford.

In July 2021, Chip Hale was named the new head coach of Arizona baseball.^[120] Hale played for the Wildcats under Jerry Kindall and was on the 1986 College World Series championship team; he went on to play, coach and manage in the major leagues for several years, serving as manager of the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2015 and 2016, and most recently serving as the third base coach of the Detroit Tigers.

Arizona baseball also has a student section named The Hot Corner. Seventy-five former Arizona baseball players have played in the Major Leagues. Famous alums include Terry Francona, Kenny Lofton, Shelley Duncan, Trevor Hoffman, Mark Melancon, Chip Hale, Craig Lefferts, J. T. Snow, Don Lee, Carl Thomas, Jack Howell, Mike Paul, Dan Schneider, Rich Hinton, Ed Vosberg, Hank Leiber, Ron Hassey, Brad Mills, Joe Magrane, Alex Mejia, Dave Baldwin, Brian Anderson, Jack Daugherty, Scott Erickson, Gil Heredia, Casey Candaele, George Arias, and Scott Kingery.

Soccer

The University of Arizona women's soccer team wrapped up their 2017 season on Nov. 17 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, finishing with an 11-5-4 record, and seven Pac-12 wins, the most in program history.

Led by coach Tony Amato, Arizona's seniors became the first group in program history to make three NCAA Tournament appearances, winning at least one match in each Tournament. The program had only two appearances in its history prior to the last four years. Ten members received PAC-12 academic honors for their performance in the classroom.

Softball

The Arizona softball team is among the top programs in the country. The softball team has won eight NCAA Women's College World Series titles, in 1991, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997, 2001, 2006 and 2007 under head coach Mike Candrea (NCAA Softball Championship). The team has appeared in the NCAA National Championship in 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997 1998, 2001, 2002, 2006, 2007 and 2010 (a feat second only to UCLA), and has reached the College World Series 19 times. The Arizona Wildcats softball team won their first Pac-12 Championship in ten years after defeating the No. 12 UCLA Bruins 7–2, and qualified for its 31st consecutive NCAA tournament, creating a new NCAA softball record.^[121] Coach Candrea, along with former Arizona pitcher Jennie Finch, led the 2004 U.S. Olympic softball team to a gold medal in Athens, Greece. The Wildcat softball team plays at Rita Hillenbrand Memorial Stadium.

Golf

The university's golf teams have also been notably successful. The men's team won a national championship in 1992 (NCAA Division I Men's Golf Championships), and has produced a number of successful professionals, most notably Jim Furyk. The women's team won national championships in 1996, 2000 and 2018 (NCAA Women's Golf Championship). The women's golf program has produced professionals Annika Sörenstam, Lorena Ochoa, and Erica Blasberg.

Men's lacrosse

The lacrosse club team was founded in the mid-1960s. In the 1960s, Arizona was a Division I varsity program, coached by Carl Runk, an Arizona graduate and football player. In 1998, Runk retired after twenty-eight years at Towson University in Maryland.^[122]

Other

Many other Wildcats have met with success at the university. Alix Creek and Michelle Oldham won the NCAA Women's Doubles Tennis title in 1993, defeating Texas in the Final. Although surprising to some, the University of Arizona has a noteworthy history in ice hockey. The school's club hockey team, formerly known as the Icecats, won over 800 games between its inception in 1979 and 2011. The Icecats defeated Penn State for the National Collegiate Club Hockey National Championship in 1985. They also appeared in eight Final Fours (’84, ’86, ’87, ’88, ’91, ’93, ’94, ’97) and ten Elite Eights. As of 2011^[update], they are part of ACHA Division I, and are known formally as the Arizona Wildcats hockey team. Robert M. Tanita was a nationally ranked collegiate wrestler who reached the NCAA finals tournament as WAC champion in 1963.^[123]

Three national championships for synchronized swimming were won in 1980, 1981, and 1984, though these championships were in the Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women, and not the NCAA. Along with winning three national championships in the pool for synchronized swimming, the Wildcats have also won their first NCAA Championship in men and women's swimming and diving for the seasons of 2007–2008. Topping off these weekends Frank Busch, the men and women's head coach, was named NCAA Swimming Coach of the Year. Arizona men became the first team to claim a first-time title since UCLA's win in 1982. Also, the men ended Texas and Auburn's winning streak since 1998. At the end of the meet, the Texas Longhorns took second while 2007's champion, the Auburn Tigers, took fifth. For the women, Arizona worked on the disappointment of 2007's defeat. The women were winning until the last day when Auburn grasped the title. Unlike 2007, Arizona's women did not let anyone come close. The Wildcats won with 484 team points while the Auburn Tigers came in second with 348 and the Stanford Cardinal in third with 343. Student-athletes from the women's swimming and diving team have been particularly heralded by the NCAA. The NCAA Woman of the Year Award was won by UA swimmers Whitney Myers, Lacey Nymeyer and Justine Schluntz in 2007, 2009 and 2010 respectively. The three awards and the 1994 award won by track and field athlete Tanya Hughes are the highest number of Woman of the Year awards won by a single university.^[124]

Individual national championships

A number of notable individuals have also won national championships in the NCAA. Arizona's first NCAA Individual Champion in the sport of Men's Swimming came in 1981 when Doug Towne won the 500-yard freestyle at the NCAA championships. Another individual champion occurred in 1989 when Mariusz Podkoscielny won the 1650-yard (mile) at the NCAA National Championships held at the IUPUI Natatorium. Some other champion swimmers include Crissy Ahmann-Leighton, Ryk Neethling, Margo Geer, Kevin Cordes, and Amanda Beard. Annika Sörenstam won in 1991 in golf, and Brigetta Barrett won the women's high jump in 2013. The men's cross country has also produced two individual national titles in 1986 (Aaron Ramirez) and 1994 (Martin Keino) (NCAA Men's Cross Country Champions). The women's cross country also produced two individual national titles in 1996 (Amy Skieresz) and 2001 (Tara Chaplin) (NCAA Women's Cross Country Championship). Another notable individual was football standout Vance Johnson who won the NCAA long jump in 1982.

Rivalries

A strong athletic rivalry exists between the University of Arizona and Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona. The University of Arizona leads the all-time record against Arizona State University in men's basketball (149–83), as well as in football (49–42–1). The football rivalry game between the schools is known as "The Duel in the Desert." The trophy awarded after each game is the Territorial Cup. Rivalries have also been created with other Pac-12 teams, especially University of California, Los Angeles which has provided a worthy softball rival and was Arizona's main basketball rival in the early and mid-1990s.

Mascot

Wilma and Wilbur Wildcat at the 100th homecoming at the University of Arizona

The university's mascots are a pair of anthropomorphized wildcats named Wilbur and Wilma. The identities of Wilbur and Wilma are kept secret through the year as the mascots appear only in costume. In 1986, Wilbur married his longtime wildcat girlfriend, Wilma. Together, Wilbur and Wilma appear along with the cheerleading squad at most Wildcat sporting events.^[125] Arizona's first mascot was a real desert bobcat named "Rufus Arizona", introduced in 1915.^[126]

Wilbur was originally created by Bob White as a cartoon character in the university's humor magazine, Kitty Kat. From 1915 through the 1950s the school mascot was a live bobcat, a species known locally as a wildcat. This succession of live mascots were known by the common name of Rufus Arizona, originally named after Rufus von Kleinsmid, president of the university from 1914 to 1921. 1959 marked the creation of the first incarnated Wilbur, when University student John Paquette and his roommate, Dick Heller, came up with idea of creating a costume for a student to wear. Ed Stuckenhoff was chosen to wear the costume at the homecoming game in 1959 against Texas Tech and since then it has become a long-standing tradition. Wilbur celebrated his 50th birthday in November 2009.

Fight song

In 1952 Jack K. Lee, an applicant for the UA's band directorship, departed Tucson by air following an interview with UA administration. From his airplane window, Lee observed the huge letters on the roof of the UA gymnasium reading "BEAR DOWN." Inspired, Lee scribbled down the music and lyrics to an up-tempo song. By the time his plane landed, he had virtually finished it. A few weeks later Lee was named the UA band director, and in September 1952, the UA band performed "Bear Down, Arizona!" in public for the first time. Soon thereafter, "Bear Down, Arizona!" became accepted as UA's fight song (Bear Down).^[82]

ZonaZoo

Officially implemented in 2003, ZonaZoo is the official student section and student ticketing program for the University of Arizona Athletics. The ZonaZoo program is co-owned by the Associated Students of the University of Arizona (ASUA) and Arizona Athletics yet run by a team of individuals called the ZonaZoo Crew. In 2014, ESPN ranked ZonaZoo as the top student cheering section in the PAC 12 conference and in 2015, and in 2018, ZonaZoo received the Best Student Section of the Year award from the National Collegiate Student Section Association.^[127]

Notable venues

The McKale Center, which opened in 1973, is used by men's and women's basketball, women's gymnastics, and women's volleyball. The official capacity has changed often. The largest crowd to see a game in McKale was 15,176 in 1976 for a game against the University of New Mexico, the main rival during that period. In 2000, the floor in McKale was dubbed Lute Olson Court, for the basketball program's winningest coach. During a memorial service in 2001 for Lute's wife, Bobbi, who died from ovarian cancer, the floor was renamed Lute and Bobbi Olson Court. In addition to the playing surface, McKale Center is host to the offices of the UA athletic department. McKale Center is named after J.F. Pop McKale, who was athletic director and coach from 1914 through 1957. Joe Cavaleri ("The Ooh-Aah Man") made his dramatic and inspiring appearances there. Arizona Stadium, built in 1928 and last expanded in 2013, seats 56,037 patrons. It hosts American football games and has also been used for university graduations. The turf is bermuda grass, taken from the local Tucson National Golf Club. Arizona football's home record is 258–139–12. The largest crowd ever in Arizona Stadium was 59,920 in 1996 for a game against Arizona State University. Rita Hillenbrand Memorial Stadium hosts softball games. Jerry Kindall Field at Frank Sancet Stadium hosted baseball games until the 2012 season, when the baseball program began playing home games at Hi Corbett Field, a former Cactus League spring training facility three miles southeast of campus.

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Arizona Wildcats

Arizona Wildcats

The Arizona Wildcats are the athletic teams that represent the University of Arizona, located in Tucson. The Wildcats compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level as a member of the Pac-12 Conference. Arizona's chief intercollegiate rival is the Arizona State Sun Devils, and the two universities' athletic departments compete against each other in multiple sports via the State Farm Territorial Cup Series.

National Collegiate Athletic Association

National Collegiate Athletic Association

The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges and universities in the United States and Canada and helps over 500,000 college student athletes who compete annually in college sports. The organization is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Arizona Wildcats men's basketball

Arizona Wildcats men's basketball

The Arizona Wildcats men's basketball team is the intercollegiate men's basketball program representing the University of Arizona in Tucson, Arizona. They compete in the Pac-12 Conference of NCAA Division I and is currently coached by Tommy Lloyd.

Basketball

Basketball

Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball through the defender's hoop, while preventing the opposing team from shooting through their own hoop. A field goal is worth two points, unless made from behind the three-point line, when it is worth three. After a foul, timed play stops and the player fouled or designated to shoot a technical foul is given one, two or three one-point free throws. The team with the most points at the end of the game wins, but if regulation play expires with the score tied, an additional period of play (overtime) is mandated.

Lute Olson

Lute Olson

Robert Luther "Lute" Olson was an American basketball coach, who was inducted into both the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame. He was the head coach of the Arizona Wildcats men's team for 25 years. He was also head coach for the Iowa Hawkeyes for nine years and Long Beach State 49ers for one season. Known for player development and great recruiting, many of his former players have gone on to have impressive careers in the NBA. On October 23, 2008, Olson announced his retirement from coaching. Olson died on August 27, 2020, in Tucson, Arizona. He was 85 years old.

1988 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament

1988 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament

The 1988 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament involved 64 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. The 50th annual edition of the tournament began on March 17, 1988, and ended with the championship game on April 4 returning to Kansas City for the 10th time. A total of 63 games were played.

1994 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament

1994 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament

The 1994 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament involved 64 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 17, 1994, and ended with the championship game on April 4 in Charlotte, North Carolina, played at Charlotte Coliseum. A total of 63 games were played.

1997 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament

1997 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament

The 1997 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament involved 64 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 13, 1997, and ended with the championship game on March 31 in Indianapolis, Indiana at the RCA Dome. A total of 63 games were played.

2001 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament

2001 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament

The 2001 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament involved 65 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball for the 2000–01 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. It began on March 13, 2001, with the play-in game, and ended with the championship game on April 2 in Minneapolis, at the Metrodome. A total of 64 games were played.

Kentucky Wildcats

Kentucky Wildcats

The Kentucky Wildcats are the men's and women's intercollegiate athletic squads of the University of Kentucky (UK), a founding member of the Southeastern Conference. The Kentucky Wildcats is the student body of the University of Kentucky. 30,473 students attend the university. Historically, the women's teams and athletes were referred to as the "Lady Kats", but all athletic squads adopted the "Wildcats" nickname in 1995. Collectively, the fans of the Kentucky Wildcats are often referred to as the Big Blue Nation. Their main and most intense rival is the University of Louisville. The Wildcats are composed of 19 varsity teams that compete nationally.

Miles Simon

Miles Simon

Miles Julian Simon is an American basketball coach and former player who is the head coach for the South Bay Lakers of the NBA G League.

NCAA basketball tournament Most Outstanding Player

NCAA basketball tournament Most Outstanding Player

At the conclusion of the NCAA men's and women's Division I basketball championships, a media panel selects a Most Outstanding Player (MOP). It is usually awarded to a member of the championship team. There have been 12 instances in which the winner was not from the championship team. The last man to win the award despite not being on the championship team was Hakeem Olajuwon (Houston) in 1983. Dawn Staley (Virginia) was the only woman to do so, when she won the award in 1991. In 1944, Arnie Ferrin of Utah was the first freshman to win the award.

Fraternities and sororities

The University of Arizona recognizes 51 fraternity and sorority chapters.^[129] As of 2018, more than 16% of students are part of UA's 52-chapter Greek life program. Four governing councils govern fraternities and sororities. The Interfraternity Council (IFC) represents 20 fraternities,^[130] the National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) represents 7 historically African-American fraternities and sororities,^[131] the Panhellenic Association (PHC) represents 20 sororities and the United Sorority and Fraternity Council (USFC) represents 21 multicultural and multi-interest Greek organizations.^[132] Delta Chi Lambda is an Asian American sorority established at the University of Arizona in 2000.^[133] The Lambda chapter of Phrateres, a non-exclusive, non-profit social-service club, was installed in 1937.

Marching band

The University of Arizona marching band, named The Pride of Arizona, played at the halftime of the first Super Bowl. Most recently, the Pride's 2014 Daft Punk show was chosen by the CBDNA (College Band Directors National Association) as one of ten in the nation to be presented at their National Conference in March 2015.^[134] They are directed by UA alumnus and former Pride of Arizona member Chad Shoopman.^[135]

Dormitories

Cochise Hall is a dormitory at the university,^[136][137] commissioned in 1921 and updated in 1992. While it started out as a male dorm, it is currently co-ed.^[138] Large Roman pillars adorn the front of the building. Fire escapes are highly visible from the courtyard of the edifice, and are frequently involved in practical jokes among residents. Cochise Hall is most famous for its inclusion in the 1984 blockbuster film Revenge of the Nerds.^[139] In the film, Cochise Hall was home to the freshmen, including the nerds, until the Alpha Beta house was burned down and the jocks kicked them out.

Cochise Hall from the north.

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Hispanic and Latino Americans

Hispanic and Latino Americans

Hispanic and Latino Americans are Americans of Spanish and/or Latin American ancestry. More broadly, these demographics include all Americans who identify as Hispanic or Latino regardless of ancestry. As of 2020, the Census Bureau estimated that there were almost 65.3 million Hispanics and Latinos living in the United States and its territories.

Asian Americans

Asian Americans

Asian Americans are Americans of Asian ancestry. Although this term had historically been used for all the indigenous peoples of the continent of Asia, the usage of the term "Asian" by the United States Census Bureau only includes people with origins or ancestry from the Far East, Southeast Asia, and the Indian subcontinent and excludes people with ethnic origins in certain parts of Asia, including West Asia who are now categorized as Middle Eastern Americans. The "Asian" census category includes people who indicate their race(s) on the census as "Asian" or reported entries such as "Chinese, Indian, Filipino, Vietnamese, Indonesian, Korean, Japanese, Pakistani, Malaysian, and Other Asian". In 2020, Americans who identified as Asian alone (19,886,049) or in combination with other races (4,114,949) made up 7.2% of the U.S. population.

Foreign national

Foreign national

A foreign national is any person who is not a national of a specific country. For example, in the United States and in its territories, a foreign national is something or someone who is neither a citizen nor a national of the United States. The same applies in Canada.

African Americans

African Americans

African Americans are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from any of the black racial groups of Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of enslaved Africans who are from the United States.

Native Americans in the United States

Native Americans in the United States

Native Americans, also known as American Indians, First Americans, Indigenous Americans, and other terms, are the Indigenous peoples of the mainland United States. There are 574 federally recognized tribes living within the US, about half of which are associated with Indian reservations. As defined by the United States Census, "Native Americans" are Indigenous tribes that are originally from the contiguous United States, along with Alaska Natives. Indigenous peoples of the United States who are not listed as American Indian or Alaska Native include Native Hawaiians, Samoan Americans, and Chamorros. The US Census groups these peoples as "Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islanders".

Economic diversity

Economic diversity

Economic diversity or economic diversification refers to variations in the economic status or the use of a broad range of economic activities in a region or country. Diversification is used as a strategy to encourage positive economic growth and development. Research shows that more diversified economies are associated with higher levels of gross domestic product.

American lower class

American lower class

In the United States, the lower class are those at or near the lower end of the socio-economic hierarchy. As with all social classes in the United States, the lower class is loosely defined and its boundaries and definitions subject to debate and ambiguous popular opinions. Sociologists such as W. Lloyd Warner, Dennis Gilbert and James Henslin divide the lower classes into two. The contemporary division used by Gilbert divides the lower class into the working poor and underclass. Service and low-rung manual laborers are commonly identified as being among the working poor. Those who do not participate in the labor force and rely on public assistance as their main source of income are commonly identified as members of the underclass. Overall the term describes those in easily filled employment positions with little prestige or economic compensation who often lack a high school education and are to some extent disenfranchised from mainstream society.

Affluence in the United States

Affluence in the United States

Affluence refers to an individual's or household's economical and financial advantage in comparison to others. It may be assessed through either income or wealth.

Fraternities and sororities

Fraternities and sororities

Fraternities and sororities are social organizations at North American colleges and universities.

National Pan-Hellenic Council

National Pan-Hellenic Council

The National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) is a collaborative umbrella council composed of historically African American fraternities and sororities also referred to as Black Greek Letter Organizations (BGLOs). The NPHC was formed as a permanent organization on May 10, 1930, on the campus of Howard University, in Washington, D.C. with Matthew W. Bullock as the active Chairman and B. Beatrix Scott as Vice-Chairman. NPHC was incorporated under the laws of the State of Illinois in 1937.

Marching band

Marching band

A marching band is a group of instrumental musicians who perform while marching, often for entertainment or competition. Instrumentation typically includes brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. Most marching bands wear a uniform, often of a military style, that includes an associated organization's colors, name or symbol. Most high school marching bands, and some college marching bands, are accompanied by a color guard, a group of performers who add a visual interpretation to the music through the use of props, most often flags, rifles, and sabres.

Dormitory

Dormitory

A dormitory is a building primarily providing sleeping and residential quarters for large numbers of people such as boarding school, high school, college or university students. In some countries, it can also refer to a room containing several beds accommodating people.

• Notable University of Arizona alumni include:
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  Jerry Bruckheimer, film and television producer

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  Dennis DeConcini, former U.S. Senator from Arizona

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  Barry Goldwater, former U.S. Senator from Arizona and 1964 U.S. presidential candidate

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  Nick Foles, Super Bowl LII Most Valuable Player

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  Rob Gronkowski, four-time first-team All-Pro Tight End

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  Savannah Guthrie, journalist and co-anchor of Today

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  Trevor Hoffman, Baseball Hall Of Fame closer

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  Andre Iguodala, 2015 NBA Finals Most Valuable Player

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  Woody Johnson, businessman and former U.S. ambassador to the United Kingdom

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  Kourtney Kardashian, socialite and media personality

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  Steve Kerr, former NBA point guard and coach of the Golden State Warriors

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  Jon Kyl, former Senate Minority Whip

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  Linda McCartney, photographer and musician; wife of Paul McCartney

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  Craig T. Nelson, Emmy Award-winning actor

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  Geraldo Rivera, television host and journalist

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  Brian Schmidt, Nobel Prize in Physics lauterate and vice-chancellor of Australian National University

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  Garry Shandling, actor and comedian

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  Kristen Wiig, actress and comedian

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  Noam Chomsky, Linguist and Activist

Discover more about Notable alumni and staff related topics

List of University of Arizona people

List of University of Arizona people

The following is a list of encyclopedic people associated with the University of Arizona. Notable alumni include a former U.S. Secretary of the Interior, a former U.S. Surgeon General, five U.S. Senators, two Republican U.S. Presidential nominees, the creator of the television series Sesame Street and founder of Sesame Workshop, the owner of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim Major League Baseball team, and several NASA astronauts.

Jerry Bruckheimer

Jerry Bruckheimer

Jerome Leon Bruckheimer is an American film and television producer. He has been active in the genres of action, drama, fantasy, and science fiction.

Dennis DeConcini

Dennis DeConcini

Dennis Webster DeConcini is an American lawyer, philanthropist, politician and former Democratic U.S. Senator from Arizona. The son of former Arizona Supreme Court Judge Evo Anton DeConcini, he represented Arizona in the United States Senate from 1977 until 1995. After his re-election in 1988, no Arizona Democrats were elected to the United States Senate for 30 years until Kyrsten Sinema won his former seat in 2018.

Barry Goldwater

Barry Goldwater

Barry Morris Goldwater was an American politician and United States Air Force major general who was a five-term U.S. Senator from Arizona and the Republican Party nominee for president of the United States in 1964. Goldwater is the politician most often credited with having sparked the resurgence of the American conservative political movement in the 1960s. Despite his loss of the 1964 U.S. presidential election in a landslide, many political pundits and historians believe he laid the foundation for the conservative revolution to follow, as the grassroots organization and conservative takeover of the Republican Party began a long-term realignment in American politics, which helped to bring about the "Reagan Revolution" of the 1980s. He also had a substantial impact on the American libertarian movement.

1964 United States presidential election

1964 United States presidential election

The 1964 United States presidential election was the 45th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on Tuesday, November 3, 1964. Incumbent Democratic United States President Lyndon B. Johnson defeated Barry Goldwater, the Republican nominee, in a landslide. With 61.1% of the popular vote, Lyndon B. Johnson won the largest share of the popular vote of any candidate since the largely uncontested 1820 election, in which no candidate of either party has been able to match or surpass.

Nick Foles

Nick Foles

Nicholas Edward Foles is an American football quarterback for the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Arizona and was selected in the third round of the 2012 NFL Draft by the Philadelphia Eagles. Initially a backup, Foles was named the team's starter midway through his rookie season. He maintained his starting position through 2013, during which he set the NFL season record for the best touchdown–interception ratio and posted a perfect passer rating in a game. His success led the Eagles to a division title, while also earning him Pro Bowl honors. After an unsuccessful 2014 season, Foles was traded to the St. Louis Rams, where he was released after struggling in his one season. He spent the following year as a backup for the Kansas City Chiefs.

Rob Gronkowski

Rob Gronkowski

Robert James Gronkowski is an American former football tight end who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons. Nicknamed "Gronk", Gronkowski played nine seasons for the New England Patriots, then played his final two seasons for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Regarded as one of the greatest tight ends of all time, he is a four-time Super Bowl champion, a five-time Pro Bowl selection, a four-time First Team All-Pro selection, and was selected in the NFL 2010s All-Decade Team and NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team.

All-Pro

All-Pro

All-Pro is an honor bestowed upon professional American football players that designates the best player at each position during a given season. All-Pro players are typically selected by press organizations, who select an "All-Pro team," a list that consists of at least 22 players, one for each offensive and defensive position, plus various special teams players depending on the press organization that compiles the list. All-Pro lists are exclusively limited to the major leagues, usually only the National Football League; in the past, other leagues recognized as major, such as the American Football League of the 1960s or the All-America Football Conference of the 1940s, have been included in All-Pro lists.

Savannah Guthrie

Savannah Guthrie

Savannah Clark Guthrie is an Australian-born American broadcast journalist and attorney. She is a main co-anchor of the NBC News, morning show Today, a position she has held since July 2012.

Andre Iguodala

Andre Iguodala

Andre Tyler Iguodala is an American professional basketball player who plays for the Golden State Warriors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The swingman was an NBA All-Star in 2012 and has been named to the NBA All-Defensive Team twice. He has won four NBA championships with the Warriors and was named the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP) in 2015. He was also a member of the United States national team at the 2010 FIBA World Championship and 2012 Summer Olympics, winning the gold medal both times.

2015 NBA Finals

2015 NBA Finals

The 2015 NBA Finals was the championship series of the National Basketball Association's (NBA) 2014–15 season and the conclusion of the season's playoffs. The Western Conference champion Golden State Warriors defeated the Eastern Conference champion Cleveland Cavaliers in six games (4–2) for the Warriors' first title in 40 years and their fourth in franchise history, becoming the first team since the 1990–91 Chicago Bulls to win a championship without any prior Finals experience from any player on their roster. 2015 also marked the first Finals since 1998 without either the Los Angeles Lakers, the San Antonio Spurs, or the Miami Heat. Golden State's Andre Iguodala was named the Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP).

Kourtney Kardashian

Kourtney Kardashian

Kourtney Mary Kardashian is an American media personality and socialite. In 2007, she and her family began starring in the reality television series Keeping Up with the Kardashians. Its success led to the creation of spin-offs including Kourtney and Khloé Take Miami and Kourtney and Kim Take New York.