Prairie View A&M University
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Prairie View A&M University |
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| Motto | Prairie View Produces Productive People |
| Established | 1876 |
| Type | State university |
| Endowment | $34 million |
| President | Dr. George C. Wright |
| Faculty | 422 |
| Students | 7,912 |
| Location | Prairie View, Texas, United States |
| Campus | Rural, 1440 acres |
| Nickname | Panthers |
| Website | www.pvamu.edu |
Prairie View A&M University is a historically black university located in Prairie View, Texas and is a member of the Texas A&M University System. Founded in 1876, Prairie View A&M University is the second oldest state-sponsored institution of higher education in Texas. With an established reputation for producing engineers, nurses and educators, PVAMU offers baccalaureate degrees in 50 academic majors, 37 master’s degrees and four doctoral degree programs through nine colleges and schools. PVAMU is dedicated to fulfilling its land-grant mission of achieving excellence in teaching, research and service. It is also a school with a long and proud military tradition, producing some of the foremost minority Generals in both the Army and Navy.
Prairie View A&M University prides itself on its core values of:
- Access and Quality
- Diversity
- Leadership
- Relevance
- Social Responsibility
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[edit] History
[edit] Presidents of Prairie View A&M University
L.W. Minor 1878 (Principal) E.H. Anderson 1879-1885 (Principal) L.C. Anderson 1885-1897 (Principal) E.L. Blackshear 1897-1915 (Principal) I.M. Terrel 1915-1918 (Principal) J.G. Osborne 1918-1925 (Principal) W.R. Banks 1926-1947 (Principal) E.B. Evans 1947-1966 A.I. Thomas 1966-1983 P.A. Pierre 1983-1989 J.W. Becton, Jr. 1989-1994 C.A. Hines 1994-2003 G.C. Wright Current
[edit] Academics
The university offers a broad range of academic programs through the following administrative units:
- College of Agriculture and Human Sciences
- School of Architecture
- College of Arts and Sciences
- College of Business
- College of Engineering
- College of Education
- College of Juvenile Justice and Psychology
- College of Nursing
[edit] Athletics
Prairie View A&M University offers a wide variety of varsity and intramural sports programs.
[edit] Varsity sports
Men's and women's athletics teams at the University are nicknamed the Panthers, and the team colors are purple and gold. Prairie View A&M is a charter member of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC), and is a member of the West Division of the SWAC in sports where the conference is divided. Prairie View competes in NCAA Division I-AA in football, and Division I in all other varsity sports. The football team lost a record 80 consecutive games between 1989-98, almost doubling Columbia University's 44 straight losses between 1983-88.[1]
Men's varsity sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, tennis, and track and field. Women's varsity sports include basketball, bowling, cross country, golf, soccer, softball, tennis, track and field, and volleyball.
The women's basketball team received national attention in 2005 with the naming of Cynthia Cooper as the women's head basketball coach. Cooper is a two time WNBA MVP. Cooper brings a wealth of knowledge, connections and expertise to the women's basketball program.
[edit] Prairie View A&M University Marching Storm
The Prairie View A&M University Marching Storm is the university's official marching band. The marching band is under the direction of Prof. George W. Edwards. The Marching Storm is governed by the Delta Psi chapter of Kappa Kappa Psi National Honorary Band Fraternity Inc. (est.1919-chapter 1966) along with the Epsilon Psi chapter of Tau Beta Sigma National Honorary Band Sorority Inc. (est. 1946-chapter 1976). The Marching Storm has earned a reputation as one of the best bands in the land, and has received many accolades for its outstanding performances and showmanship. The Marching Storm is joined by the renowned Black Foxxes, the university majorettes. The Black Foxxes are known for their energetic, yet classy and elegant performance style. The band has performed at such high-profile events as President George W. Bush’s 2001 Presidential Inaugural Parade in Washington, D.C., and the Dallas Cowboys' 2004 Thanksgiving Day game. The band has been selected as one of the top 10 marching bands in the country by the Historically Black Colleges and Universities to participate in the Honda Battle of the Bands Invitational Showcase in Atlanta, Georgia. The Marching Storm is also well known for its energetic marching drumline. Founded in 1984 by Prof. Edwards, the drumline, known as "The McFunk BOX", has had a long history of revolutionizing the art of showstyle marching percussion, incorporating a funky and unique style with DCI-influenced drumming techniques and the most surprising yet spontaneous visuals. "The BOX" was also one of the first showstyle drumlines ever to be featured in the middle of the band's halftime shows.
[edit] Student life
The university enrolls 6,324 undergraduate students and 1,758 graduate students who come from all 50 U.S. states and several countries throughout the world. Currently 56% of the students are female, and 44% are male.
The university sits on a 1,440-acre campus in Prairie View, TX. The university is only a short drive from Houston, the country's fourth largest city. Prairie View's campus is considered one of the finest of member institutions in the Southwestern Athletic Conference.[citation needed]
Prairie View A&M University has some of the best on campus housing communities of any historically black colleges and universities. Students at Prairie View A&M University live in on campus housing owned by American Campus Communities. Freshmen students live in the University College community on campus. Upper classmen live in all apartment style living. They can either live in University Village Phase I, II, or III. The first of these apartment buildings was built in 1996.
[edit] Greek life
The university welcomes a very rich Greek life. All nine members of the National Pan-Hellenic Council are represented at PVAMU. Though not a member of the National Pan-Hellenic Council, Kappa Kappa Psi Fraternity Inc., National Honorary Band Fraternity, was the first Greek organization to have a chapter on the campus of Prairie View A&M University. Greek Life at Prairie View A&M University is a very well-respected and notable entity. Sororities, notably, Alpha Kappa Alpha, and Delta Sigma Theta generally have over 300 young ladies interested in joining each year. PVAMU's chapter of Zeta phi Beta is considered to be the largest undergraduate Zeta Phi Beta Chapter in Texas, and maybe the United States.[citation needed] This large interest often creates large lines and very well-respected chapters. The Eta Gamma chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.(1906) is the most respected fraternity at any HBCU, graduating the highest number of members with the highest GPA. The Eta Gamma Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha has the distinction of being named the best National chapter on three separate occasions. Most of any Alpha chapter. Omega Psi Phi Fraternity Inc., is also highly respected on campus. Omega chapter members generally have the highest GPA's of any chapter in Texas. Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. is also a fraternity on campus. The Brothers of Delta Theta Chapter of [Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc] exemplify Sigma men the world over. Hence “Where There Are Great Men to be Made, Sigma Will Make Them.” The Zeta Beta Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc is nationally known for its reputation of inducting strong men of high moral character into the bond. The bond of quality men of culture, patriotism, and honor to rise to the occasion and inspire to service. They assist with the aims and purpose of colleges and universities while promoting the spiritual, social, intellectual, and moral welfare of their members. Sickle cell Walkathon, Miss Krimson & Kream pageant, guide right program, canned food drive, turkey drive, highway cleanup, campus cleanup are some of the projects and programs Zeta Beta has implemented.
[edit] The university alma mater
"Dear Prairie View"
Dear Prairie View, our song to thee we raise in gratitude, we sing our hymn of praise, For mem'ries dear, for friends and recollections, For lessons learned while here we've lived with thee, For these we pledge our hearts full of devotion, To serve thee now, and through eternity.
As days go by, our hearts will not grow cold, We'll love thy purple royal and thy gold, We'll through our lives exemplify thy teachings, We'll always strive a blessing be. Thy children we our love and pride confessing, We'll love thee now, and through eternity.
Words by O. Anderson Fuller, Music from "Finlandia" by Silbelius
[edit] Notable graduates
- Julius Wesley Becton, Jr., Lieutenant General US Army, FEMA Director, and educator
- Vice Admiral David L. Brewer, III, United States Navy
- Rev. Emanuel Cleaver II U.S. House of Representatives, 5th District of Missouri
- Rear Admiral Osie Combs, United States Navy
- Cecil Cooper, 5 time MLB All-Star, 17 year career with Boston Red Sox and Milwaukee Brewers
- Wendel V. Eckford, Ph.D., Principal, Archistoria, LLC.,
- Terry Ellis, vocalist and member of female R&B group En Vogue
- Nathelyne Archie Kennedy, P. E., First African-American Female Architect and Prof. Engr. CEO Kennedy Associates
- Kase L. Lawal, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer CAMAC Holdings, Inc.
- Sidney A. McPhee, President of Middle Tennessee State University
- Rtd. Col Samuel Metters, DPA, P.E., Chairman and CEO, Metters Industries, Inc.
- Dewey Redman, jazz saxophonist
- Frederick D. Patterson, founder of United Negro College Fund
- Mr. T, actor (did not graduate)
- Otis Taylor, member of 1969 World Champion Kansas City Chiefs Hall of Fame
- Craig Washington, former member, U.S. House of Representatives, 1989-1994 18th District, Texas
[edit] External links
| The Texas A&M University System |
| Universities: Texas A&M University | A&M–Commerce | A&M–Corpus Christi | A&M–Kingsville Prairie View A&M | Tarleton State | A&M–Texarkana | A&M International | West Texas A&M | A&M–San Antonio Branches: TAMU at Galveston | TAMU at Qatar |
Categories: Articles to be expanded since January 2007 | All articles to be expanded | Articles with unsourced statements since January 2007 | All articles with unsourced statements | Educational institutions established in 1876 | Historically black universities and colleges in the United States | Land-grant universities and colleges | Texas A&M University System | Southern Association of Colleges and Schools | Universities and colleges in Texas
