Campus History

Since opening its doors in September 1965, Rock Valley College has been a cornerstone of education and community for northern Illinois. From its formation following a district-wide referendum in October 1964, the college embraced national and regional movements, demonstrating that Rock Valley College’s story is one of progress and transformation.

During the 1970s, the college expanded educational, employment, and athletic opportunities for women, and in the 1980s, it confronted the region’s Rust Belt decline through investments in advanced technical and health care fields. This legacy continued in the 21st century when Rock Valley College formed partnerships with Northern Illinois University and OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center. The college’s dedication to high-quality liberal arts and science education has empowered students to transfer to four-year universities, while its commitment to fostering an inclusive environment reflects the growing diversity of the community. Rock Valley College’s influence extends far beyond the classroom. Its alumni—over 33,000 degree and certificate holders—serve as a testament to the college's lasting impact.

Daniel Blumlo, PhD, is a history professor at Rock Valley College, where he has taught since 2010. This book draws upon images and documents from the Rock Valley College Archives and the Starlight Theater Archives to chronicle the college’s dynamic journey.

On September 25, 1873, Dr. Nathan Jackson Morrison, the first president of Drury College, stood in the second-story window of an unfinished building and rang a borrowed boardinghouse dinner bell to announce the opening of the school. The six faculty members and thirty-nine students in attendance that day had to share the simple brick structure with carpenters and plasterers, and the isolated campus consisted of a few hardscrabble acres of prairie dotted with hazel brush and hickory saplings. Today, Drury University sits upon a 90-acre campus and has over 2,200 undergraduate, graduate, and continuing education students. The school has a vibrant and innovative academic program, a strong tradition in athletics, and over 30,000 living alumni. For 150 years, Drury University has stood as an institution that blends liberal learning and professional studies in the heart of the Missouri Ozarks.

Since 1973, the Latin/Greek Institute (LGI) at the City University of New York has trained thousands of students in the classical languages. After 50 days of highly choreographed study, graduates of the Institute’s basic Latin and Greek programs—who enter with little or no prior knowledge—are able to engage in advanced reading courses and/or sit for graduate language exams. This is a remarkable feat made possible by a unique curricular model developed by the Institute’s visionary founder, Dr. Floyd L. Moreland. A summer at the LGI is almost impossible to describe; it is as much an experience as a program of study. Largely assembled from the archives of Brooklyn College, this book tells the story of the Latin/Greek Institute from its prehistory to its 50th anniversary and includes a visual history of its academics, dramatis personae, and an array of customs and traditions that have come to define this unique academic enterprise.

Lucas G. Rubin is a two-time alumnus of the Latin/Greek Institute, of which he became director in 2020. He holds a doctorate in classics from the State University of New York at Buffalo, an accomplishment made possible only by his summers spent at the Institute.

In 1917, when Torrance School first opened, the city of Torrance was developing a reputation as an industrial powerhouse. The new school initially served all school-age children in one building. By 1923, the elementary students had their own school, and Torrance High School stood as the only high school until the 1950s. As the population of the city grew, so did the campus of Torrance High. The rich history of Torrance High School is filled with academic and athletic successes, as well as storied alumni like Louis Zamperini and Ted Tanouye, who served the United States during World War II. In the 1990s, the highly recognizable Main Building served as a set for several television shows, including Beverly Hills, 90210 and Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and movies, such as She's All That and Not Another Teen Movie.

Founded in Albuquerque on February 28, 1889, the University of New Mexico (UNM) stands as a testament to the spirit of the Southwest. From its beginnings on the rugged frontier, UNM has blossomed into a cultural and academic hub, defined by its striking Pueblo Revival architecture and commitment to the diverse peoples and traditions of New Mexico.

Built on the ancestral lands of the Pueblo of Sandia, UNM has grown from a single territorial building into a world-class institution celebrated for its academic excellence, cultural diversity, and stunning architecture. Photographs of student life, groundbreaking events, and the vibrant traditions of Lobo pride reveal a tapestry of history that reflects the university’s enduring influence on the cultural and academic identity of New Mexico.

Author Amber Lane, archivist, historian, and UNM alumna, draws on the rich resources of the Center for Southwest Research to present a photographic journey through UNM’s first century, offering readers a deeper connection to the university's storied past while focusing on visual storytelling. Portia Vescio, also a UNM alumna, is the university’s archivist, and her mission is to spread awareness about the rich history of the university.

Using materials from the vast university archives in the Edith Garland Dupré Library, Drs. Zachary G. Stein and Michael S. Martin trace the University of Louisiana at Lafayette's dynamic history.

The University of Louisiana at Lafayette (UL Lafayette) welcomed its first classes in 1901. Originally a vocational school, the Southwestern Louisiana Industrial Institute, it has since grown in physical size from a small parcel of former farmland to a campus of more than 1,300 acres and a student population of a handful of students to over 19,000 enrollees. Under the leadership of six presidents across more than 120 years, UL Lafayette’s students and faculty have overcome devastating adversities and ushered in dynamic changes. They provided relief amid the Great Flood of 1927, built military training programs during World War II, and developed among the nation’s earliest computer science labs and classes. Dozens of Black students made history in 1954 by being the first cohort to desegregate a previously all-white public college in the Deep South. Today, as an R1 institution, UL Lafayette continues to expand its reach through pathbreaking research, technological and environmental innovation, and dedication to its region’s unique cultures and history. 

Belknap Campus, the historic heart of the University of Louisville (UofL), was laid out just before the Civil War as a city-owned reform school and orphanage. In 1925, the university acquired the site, relocating its undergraduate college and adding an engineering school. Eight structures from that earlier use give the modern campus its strong historical feel. This volume is rich with images of student life, from homecoming and campus hangouts to intramurals and sports. University of Louisville: Belknap Campus chronicles the dramatic expansion of the campus into adjacent neighborhoods, drawing heavily on archival sources. The Belknap Campus story provokes both warm recollection and pride in a 200-plus-year-old institution that is part of the core fabric of what makes Louisville great.

Southern Arkansas University began as a residential agricultural high school, the Third District Agricultural School, in 1909. The school evolved into a junior college, popularly known as Magnolia A&M College, and later into a four-year institution, Southern State College. These four institutions served, primarily, young people of southwest Arkansas and provided extraordinary support to students, often the first in their families to seek degrees. The schools' educational value has been exceptional, as measured in graduates' achievements. Distinguished graduates have included, among many others, Gen. Horace Wade, '36, vice chief of staff, US Air Force; Leland Tollett, '56, president of Tyson Foods; Harry Thomason, '62, Hollywood producer and director; Cinda Hallman, '66, CEO, Spherion Corporation; Joyce Elliot, '73, Arkansas state senator and educational reformer; Joan Dempsey, '81, deputy director, US Central Intelligence Agency; and Fernando Barbosa, '92, managing director, Walt Disney Television International.

Early in 1869, Nebraska's legislature convened for the first time in the new capital city of Lincoln. Eager to reap the benefits of the Morrill Act, legislators quickly approved a bill establishing the University of Nebraska. Visionary lawmakers rejected the creation of two universities and determined that the state university and the state agricultural university should "be united as one educational institution." Thus was born Nebraska's great land grant and comprehensive research university that serves Nebraskans and the world beyond the state. Pulitzer Prize-winning authors, Olympic athletes, and Nobel Prize-winning scientists have launched their careers at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, as have world-class artists, entertainers, educators, and business leaders.

Anyone strolling through James Madison University's bucolic Bluestone area, which is grounded by the iconic Wilson Hall, will feel the educational journeys of past students resonating through the air. Founded in 1908 as a women's college, James Madison University was originally called the State Normal and Industrial School for Women at Harrisonburg and had an opening enrollment of 150 students. Since then, James Madison University has undergone several name changes and has a current enrollment of over 20,000 students. The Madison Experience is one that involves a commitment to learning and a fun and open spirit. This retelling of campus history seeks to capture some of the defining moments and cherished memories that have shaped so many Dukes.

Anyone who has driven through central Lake County, Illinois, has likely wandered across the entrance to Mundelein Seminary. The arched gateway is a teaser to the magnificence that lies within.

The heavily forested grounds and sparkling lake provide a backdrop to the unique Colonial architecture of the buildings. The seminary was the dream of George William Mundelein, who told reporters as early as 1916 of his plans to build a seminary shortly after he was named archbishop of Chicago. Mundelein's vision was grand. He wanted a seminary to rival the best in the world, and he wanted it to be truly American. He succeeded. Today, Mundelein Seminary is the largest priesthood preparation program in the country, training priests for Chicago and 31 dioceses around the country and the world.

Established in 1900, the University of Tennessee at Martin (UT Martin or UTM) is a public university in Martin, Tennessee.

Nestled in the small town of Martin, Tennessee, the University of Tennessee at Martin (UTM) serves as a vital cultural, academic, and economic force for the development of rural West Tennessee. UTM’s history traces back to the Hall-Moody Institute, a private Baptist institution established in 1900, which later evolved into a teacher training normal school. As the Baptist organization decided to close its doors, the University of Tennessee recognized the importance of establishing a presence in the western part of the state and brought the institution under its system. Today, UTM enrolls over 7,500 students and boasts more than 50,000 alumni. The university features a Division I athletics program and offers academic resources that play a crucial role in driving economic growth throughout the region. In 2025, UTM celebrates its 125th anniversary.

On November 19, 1906, the School of the Ozarks was chartered by the State of Missouri.

The poverty-stricken Ozarks had limited educational opportunities, but when the first students enrolled, the school did not depend on tuition dollars. Instead, each student worked at the school in exchange for an education. Today, the College of the Ozarks is a liberal arts college where students still work for their degrees. The institution is recognized for its emphasis on academics, faith, patriotism, and vocation, and it continues its commitment to the mission “to provide the advantages of a Christian education for youth of both sexes, especially those found worthy, but who are without sufficient means to procure such training.” Located near Branson, Missouri, the campus hosts thousands of visitors each year who enjoy Williams Memorial Chapel; Edwards Mill; and the Keeter Center, modeled after a historic building on the Point Lookout campus. Visitors discover a unique college where generations of students have gained a life-changing education.

Gwen Simmons is the director of Lyons Memorial Library at the College of the Ozarks and an alumna of the institution. Most of the images featured in this book are a part of the college’s archival collections at the library, alumni center, and museum.

In 1867, a teacher training school was formed in a leaky railroad boxcar in Blue Island, Illinois. Over the next 150 years, the school grew from a rural county certificate-granting program to Chicago State University (CSU). During the 1930s, CSU was at the forefront of preparing teachers for diverse learners, and by the 1980s, the institution expanded its influence by partnering with international universities. At its inception, there were 13 pupils, and by the mid-1990s, the university had a student body exceeding 8,500 students. As the school grew, so did its influence. Now in the 21st century, CSU has become a hub for education, science and technology, and health professions, offering baccalaureate through doctoral degrees. In addition to academics, the institution has a rich history of student activism, athletics, and cultural activities.