The University of Wyoming (UW) is a public land-grant research university in Laramie, Wyoming, United States. It was founded in March 1886, four years before the territory was admitted as the 44th state, and opened in September 1887. The University of Wyoming's location is written into the state's constitution.Wyoming State Constitution ; Article 7, Section 23. Wyoming Legislative Service Office The university also offers outreach education in communities throughout Wyoming and online.
The University of Wyoming consists of seven colleges: agriculture and natural resources, arts and sciences, business, education, engineering and applied sciences, health sciences, and law. The university offers over 120 undergraduate, graduate, and certificate programs including Doctor of Pharmacy and Juris Doctor. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very High research activity".
In addition to on-campus classes in Laramie, the university's Outreach School offers more than 41 degree, certificate, and endorsement programs to distance learners across the state and beyond. These programs are delivered through the use of technology, such as online and video conferencing classes. The Outreach School has nine regional centers in the state, with several on community college campuses, to give Wyoming residents access to a university education without relocating to Laramie.
Campus
Old Main
On September 27, 1886, the cornerstone of Old Main was laid, marking the beginning of the University of Wyoming. The stone is inscribed Domi Habuit Unde Disceret, which is often translated, "He need not go away from home for instruction." The following year, the first class of 42 men and women began their college education. For the next decade, the building housed classrooms, a library, and administration offices.
The style of Old Main set a precedent for all future university buildings. The main stone is rough-cut sandstone from a quarry east of Laramie, and the trim stone is smooth Potsdam Sandstone from a quarry near Rawlins. Old Main was supposed to be a monumental structure, and it was designed to be symmetrical, with a prominent central spire as the focal point. The building was also meant to reflect the character of Wyoming, and the rough stone and smooth trim represented the progressing frontier. The design of Old Main had a lasting effect on university structures, most visible in the use of a sandstone façade on nearly every building.
In 1916, the university removed the central spire because of structural concerns. The size of the auditorium was reduced during a 1936 renovation. In 1949, the university thoroughly remodeled the building and completely removed the auditorium and exterior stairs. At that time, it officially became known as Old Main, and the name was carved above the east entrance. Old Main houses university administration, including the president's office and the boardroom where the trustees often meet.
Prexy's Pasture
Prexy's Pasture is a large grassy area located within a ring of classroom and administrative buildings and serves as the center mall of the campus. The name is attributed to an obscure rule that the university president, or "prexy", is given exclusive use of the area for livestock grazing. During the administration of Arthur G. Crane, the name "Prexy's Pasture" was formally declared. Prexy's, as it is often called today, is also known for the unique pattern formed by concrete pathways that students and faculty use to cross it.
When the University of Wyoming first opened its doors in 1887, Prexy's Pasture was nothing more than an actual pasture covered in native grasses. The football team played their games there until 1922, when Corbett Field opened at the southeast corner of campus. Over time, as the needs of the university have changed, the area has been altered and redesigned. The original design was established in 1924, and in 1949, the area was landscaped with blue spruce and mugo pine. In February 1965, the board of trustees decided to construct the new science center on the west side of Prexy's Pasture. The board president, Harold F. Newton, who was concerned about the location, leaked the decision to the local press. The uproar that followed caused the board to decide on a new location for the science center and resulted in a new state statute making it necessary for any new structure built on the pasture to receive legislative approval. The statue known as University of Wyoming Family was installed in 1983 by UW professor Robert Russin in anticipation of the centennial celebration.
In the summer of 2004, Prexy's Pasture was remodeled as the first step in a two-part redesign project. The first step involved removing the asphalt roadway that circled the pasture and replacing it with concrete walkways to make the area a walking campus, as recommended by the 1966 and 1991 campus master plans. The grassy area was also increased, and new lampposts were installed for better lighting. The second phase of the project involved the construction of a plaza at each corner, featuring trees and rocks styled after the rocky outcrops of nearby Vedauwoo. Two of the plazas, Simpson Plaza and Cheney Plaza, have been completed.
In 2015, several exhibits from the exhibition Sculpture: A Wyoming Invitational were featured along the exterior walkway. In addition to its primary use by students travelling to and from classes or socializing, the area is host to campus barbecues and fall welcome events.
Wyoming Union
In September 1937, the university obtained a Public Works Administration loan during the Great Depression for $149,250 for construction of a student union. On March 3, 1938, ground was broken and construction began on what would become the Wyoming Union. Many students were involved in the construction, and twenty-five students were trained to be stone-cutters.
From the beginning, the union housed an assortment of student needs and activities. The formal and informal social needs were met by including a ballroom, banquet room, lounges, and game rooms. It also contained offices for student government, committees, organizations, and publications, to help meet the political and organizational needs of the student population. Lastly, a student store, post office, and bookstore completed the design.
The original design has been modified several times to accommodate changing needs and a growing student population. The first addition was completed in January 1960. This section, added to the northeast of the original structure, expanded the ballroom, made a lounge area and senate chambers adjacent to the ballroom, created the main lobby and breezeway, and provided a larger food area called The Gardens. In 1973, an addition to the north was completed to make a food court, add more space for the bookstore, and create additional offices. Also, parts of the original building were remodeled to create the Campus Activities Center, an art gallery, and a ticket outlet. In 2000, the Wyoming Union underwent extensive renovation. The $12 million project moved the food court to the main level, expanded the bookstore to the lower level, and revitalized the look and feel of the interior.
Ross Hall Ross Hall was built in 1959 and first used as a women's dormitory. In 1975, Ross Hall was converted to academic offices. It is located on the south side of Prexy's Pasture and is named after Nellie Tayloe Ross, Wyoming's and the nation's first woman governor, elected in 1924. There is a brass plaque relief of Nellie Ross in Ross Hall. She was married to William B. Ross, the 12th governor of Wyoming, who died in office. In 2000, on Ross Hall's fourth floor, the university installed the Wyoming Press Association's Newspaper Hall of Fame wall photos. In 2014, the Rendezvous Cafe open in the lobby.KOWB, Grand Opening of Rendezvous Dining at Ross Hall, by Eldridge Bell, January 22, 2014
Half Acre Gym The Half Acre Gym facility was constructed in 1925 to house the National Guard Armory of Laramie, as well as the athletic programs, until the field house opened in 1951. To fund this project, the university received a $100,000 gift from the Wyoming State Legislature, designated to be used for new buildings, such as a library, the gymnasium and armory, a power plant, an engineering building, and an expansion of the Hoyt Hall dormitory. The original structure occupied half an acre (), hence the name "Half Acre Gym". It was one of the largest facilities of its type at the time.
The building has undergone several renovations to increase its size and structural safety. In 2012, the university announced a $27 million renovation to begin in the Spring of 2013 and be completed by the Fall of 2014. Groathouse Construction, a local construction management firm, carried out the project in two phases to allow maximum use of the facility while it was under construction. Phase One would consist of the demolition and recreation of the east portion of the building. Phase Two would include the reopening of the east portion and the closure and construction of the west portion, which is the historical section of the building. Throughout the renovation, the university hoped to keep and incorporate as much of the historical structure and facade as possible.
The improvements included elevators, added classrooms, a space for athletic training, new racquetball courts, a climbing wall for Bouldering, a dance studio, a jogging/walking track, and new locker rooms with access to the pool.
Coe Library
The original library at the University of Wyoming consisted of 300 books and was located in Old Main. In 1923, the library was moved to the new Aven Nelson Memorial Building. With the 1950s came a larger student population and a greater push for America to excel academically. These factors contributed to the decision by the board of trustees that it was necessary to construct a new library. However, in 1951, the state legislature rejected the funding request.
William Robertson Coe, a financier and philanthropist, came to the aid of president Humphrey in 1954 by contributing $750,000 in securities to the university. The trustees called the grant "one of the most outstanding contributions that has ever been made to the perpetuation of the American heritage" and assured Coe that the building would be "appropriately named". In 1955, the state legislature matched the Coe grant for an overall amount of $1.5 million.
Laramie architects Eliot and Clinton Hitchcock, whose father had designed the Aven Nelson Memorial Building, teamed up with the Porter and Porter firm in Cheyenne to design the new library. Their modular design was popular at the time and they intended to make the space very functional. The layout provided room for over 500,000 books and seating for at least 900 students. In May 1956, one year after the death of Coe, ground was broken and construction began on the building. The William Robertson Coe Library was finished in time for the Fall 1958 semester. In 1979, the stack tower was completed. This structure, designed by Kellogg and Kellogg of Cheyenne and Rock Springs, Wyoming, almost doubled the shelf space of the original Coe Library.
The most recent renovation of the library was completed in the fall of 2009 and officially dedicated on November 19, 2009. Hinthorne Mott Architects designed the new wing, referred to as Coe East, which added to the library. The addition was part of a larger, $50 million project to modernize the library by integrating technology and information. The renovation created an additional 20 group study rooms, space for 180 computer terminals, and features art by James Surls.
Classroom Building