Eastern Michigan University is a comprehensive, co-educational public
university located in Ypsilanti, Michigan. The university is governed by an
eight-member Board of Regents, who are appointed by the Governor of Michigan for eight-year terms. The school belongs to the
Mid-American Conference and was re-accredited by the North Central Association
in 2001. Currently, EMU comprises five colleges: Arts & Sciences, Business, Education, Health & Human Services,
Technology and a Graduate School. Its mascot, since 1991, has been the Eastern Eagle, after the traditional name "Hurons" was
deemed unsuitable. EMU has consistently been one of the largest producers of professional educators in the country.[citation needed]
History
University Park on campus, in the background is the Rec/IM center. On the far right (not in view) is the Student Center.
Founded in 1849 as Michigan State Normal School, the first normal school created
outside the original 13 colonies, it became the Michigan State Normal College in 1899, then Eastern Michigan
College in 1956, and finally Eastern Michigan University in 1959. Education, Arts and Sciences and the Graduate School
were the first three colleges in the newly created university. Several major expansions followed shortly afterward, including the
addition of the College of Business in 1964, the College of Health and Human Services in 1975 and the College of Technology in
1980. More recently, extended programs were added such as Continuing Education, the Centers for Corporate Training, the World
College and numerous community-focused institutes.
Physically, the campus has grown with the construction of the Terrestrial and Aquatic Research Facility (1998), the
Convocation Center (1998), the Bruce T. Halle Library (1998), the John W. Porter College of Education Building (1999), the
Everett L. Marshall College of Health and Human Services Building (2000), the Village residence hall (2001) and University House
(2003). A new Student Center opened in 2006.
Total student population averages about 23,000, of whom roughly 5,000 are graduate students. Most programs are undergraduate
or master's level, although the university has doctoral programs in Educational Leadership, Technology, and Psychology. John
Fallon III, Ph.D., EMU's twenty-first President, began his tenure on July 15, 2005. Fallon was fired on July 15 following a
unanimous vote by the board of regents in the wake of the Laura Dickinson murder scandal.
Campus
The Towers, on-campus residence halls.
EMU is located in Ypsilanti, a city thirty-five miles west of Detroit and eight
miles east of Ann Arbor. Detroit Metro Airport is a fifteen minute drive from campus. The school is a
culturally diverse learning and teaching community set in a small city environment, amidst a major metropolitan area, which
attracts students from Metro Detroit, across the state, nationally and internationally. The university's site is composed of an
academic and athletic campus spread across 800-plus acres, with 122 buildings.
Like all colleges and universities in the United States, under the Crime Awareness and Campus Security Act (1990), EMU
reports its on-campus crime statistics to the Michigan State Police and publishes
the numbers on the Campus Safety
website. Ypsilanti crime rates can be compared to other cities using Detroit Michigan Crime Statistics and Data Resources website.
The EMU campus includes several buildings with sculpture by Corrado Parducci.
Academic profile
Enrollment, 2005
Ethnicity (non-foreign nationals)
Gender
Geographic distribution
Participation
Academic profile (freshmen class of 2005)
- Average GPA: 3.2
- Average ACT Score: 21
- Average SAT Score: 1014
College jobs
- Part-time employment (on or off campus): 70%
Student Life
The Village on-campus residences.
Journalism
The Eastern Echo, EMU's independent student newspaper, publishes three times a week
during the fall and winter semesters and once a week during the spring semester. The paper won eight awards in the 2005 Division
1 Michigan Collegiate Press Association contest, including second place in the general excellence category. The newspaper, which
is funded through advertising revenue, is not under the editorial control of the university. It also publishes content online at
http://www.easternecho.com.
Also part of the EMU Student Media Office is Cellar Roots, the school's student-run literary and fine arts magazine.
Cellar Roots celebrated its 35th anniversary in 2006 with a week of events that highlighted the history of the
publication. Cellar Roots is a five time winner of the National Pacemaker award for design, an award often equated with
the Pulitzer Prize for the college level, as well numerous other awards. Cellar Roots
Music
The school song "Our Pledge" was written by Edward Bowles and was arranged for the marching
band by Thomas Tyra. The melody of "Eagles Fight Song" was written by Larry Livingston and arranged for marching band by Thomas Tyra. The percussion parts were written by Whitney
Prince. The lyrics were revised by Dr. Max Plank after the Eastern Michigan University mascot was changed from the
Hurons to the Eagles. "Go Green" was written by Thomas Tyra.
"Our Pledge" lyrics:
Eastern, sacred alma mater,
To your name we shall be true.
Ever marching on to victory,
We'll stand by to see you through.
Softly floating on the breeze
Verdant green with white of snow.
This our banner we will carry
In our hearts, where e'er we go.
Eastern Eagles hats off to you
Fight, fight, fight for old E-M-U
Look to the sky,
The Eagles will fly,
The bravest will defy
Rah! Rah! Rah
Hold that line for old green and white
Sons and daughters show your might
So FIGHT! FIGHT! for old E-M-U and vic-tor-ry
- The Eastern Michigan University Spirit Song is "Go Green":
Go Green, roll up the score
Go Green, let's get some more
Raise a cheer for old green and white
Let's show them we came here to fight
Go Green, vic'try we'll claim
Go Green, let's win this game
We'll always fight (what) for (who?) old E-M-U
Come on and let's go Green!
Marching and Basketball Bands
The Eastern Michigan University Marching Band was first formed in 1924 by Thomas Tyra. The University Bands are directed by
Miller Asbill and John Zastoupil. The band plays both "Go Green" and the "Eagles Fight Song" for pregame at football games and
after every game and rehearsal the marching band sings "Our Pledge".
The Eastern Michigan University Basketball Band is directed by the 2 graduate assistants of the band. The basketball band
travels with the basketball teams during the MAC tournament or the NCAA tournament.
Library
Halle Library from McKenny side of campus.
The Bruce T. Halle Library is a state-of-the-art four-story facility. It is the sole library on campus. It includes computer
labs, study spaces, the Holman Learning Center, a distance-learning classroom, the Faculty Development Center, the ICT Help Desk,
an auditorium, the University archives, the carillon tower and the Paradox Cafe. It houses one of the largest collections of
children's literature in the United States.
The building has full wireless connectivity, as well as an automated retrieval system capable of housing 1 million items.
Bruce Halle was the head of the Discount Tire Company, and has been a major benefactor.
Forensics
EMU is home to one of the nation's most successful Forensics (competitive
speech) teams. The EMU Forensics team, currently ranked 2nd in the nation[1], has the distinction of being the only program in the country to place in the top 10 at every
NFA national championship since they began in 1971. The EMU forensics team
has won 10 team national championships and 66 individual national championships. With 33 out of a possible 35 state
championships, the team is the foremost forensics competitive team in the state of Michigan.
This reputation has been enhanced by the fact that EMU competitors have won over 200 individual state champions.
Controversies
Nicknames
Since the 1991 season, Eastern Michigan University athletic teams have gone by the nickname "Eagles."
EMU originally went by the nicknames "Normalites" and "Men from Ypsi" and various other titles
down through the years before "Hurons" was adopted in 1929.
The "Hurons" first came into being as the result of a contest sponsored by the Men's Union in 1929. On Oct. 31 of that year, a
three-person committee, composed of Dr. Clyde Ford, Dr. Elmer Lyman and Professor Bert Peet, selected the name "Hurons" from the
many entries in the contest.
The name was submitted by two students, Gretchen Borst and George Hanner. Hanner was working at the Huron Hotel at the time of
the contest and was no doubt as much influenced by his place of employment as by the Huron
Indian tribe. The runner-up name in that contest was Pioneers.
EMU began investigating the appropriateness of its Huron Indian logo after the Michigan Department of Civil Rights issued a
report in October 1988 suggesting that all schools using such logos drop them. The report indicated that the use of Native
American names, logos and mascots for athletic teams promoted racial stereotypes. At that time, four colleges, 62 high schools
and 33 junior high/middle schools in Michigan used Native American logos or names, including Mid-American Conference rival Central Michigan
University. CMU did not, however, change their nickname from the Chippewas.
The EMU Board of Regents voted to replace the Huron name with Eagles, taken from three recommendations from a committee
charged with supplying a new nickname. The other two final names submitted were Green Hornets and Express.
The Eagles name was officially adopted on May 22, 1991, when the EMU Board of Regents voted to replace the existing Huron
nickname and logo with the new one. During the 1991 NCAA Men's
Division I Basketball Tournament (for which EMU qualified for the first time in school history), announcer
Brent Musburger talked about the controversy and referred to the team on-air as the
"No-Names."
The controversy over the nickname continues to this day, as many former students and faculty were angered that a unique name
like Hurons was replaced by a common name like Eagles, especially for reasons of political correctness. Some alumni have even refused to donate money to the school until the name
Hurons is restored. A group called Huron
Restoration continues to try to bring back the name, and claims to have the support of Chief Leaford Bearskin of the
Wyandotte Tribe of Oklahoma and former Grand Chief Max Gros-Louis of the Huron-Wendat Nation of Quebec.[4]
Laura Dickinson murder
On December 15, 2006, EMU student Laura Dickinson's body was found in her dorm room at Hill Hall. EMU issued a statement the
next day that foul play was not suspected, but EMU student Orange Amir Taylor III was arrested February 23 and charged with her
rape and slaying. Many Eastern Michigan students were especially skeptical of their university's compliance with the law because
of this delay. According to police reports, the investigation was regarded as a homicide, however this was denied and only
officially announced on the day of Taylor's arrest. His arrest happened to be the first day students could not withdraw from
classes and housing for a full refund.[2] A subsequent
investigation by Detroit law firm Butzel Long found that EMU had violated the
Clery Act by not notifying students and named Vice President of Student Affairs, Jim Vick, as
the main source of the cover-up.[3] The report led the
investigation of many high-level administrators.[citation needed]
The nationally reported scandal resulted in the firing of President John A. Fallon by
the Board of Regents.[4] He was notified of the unanimous
vote of the Board to fire him by a letter sent to his home on July 15, 2007. Although no formal reason for the termination was
given, his dismissal was considered by many to be a direct result of his role in the cover-up of the on-campus homicide. Eastern
Michigan's Faculty Association President supported the Board's decision. Fallon claimed that he did not know a murder had
happened on campus until an arrest was made. His replacement, and the fate of his administration, have not yet been
determined.
At a special meeting called by the Board of Regents on Monday, July 16, the separation of President John Fallon was officially
announced along with the separation of Jim Vick, Vice President for Student Affairs and Cindy Hall, Director of Public Safety and
Chief of Police. A letter of discipline was placed in University Counsel Kenneth McKanders' file. [5] It was also announced that Donald Loppnow, Provost and Vice President for
Academic Affairs, would be appointed Executive Vice President and in this role serve as Acting President until an Interim
President is selected.[6]
As of July 3, 2007 the Department of Education report relating to the Clery Act
violations has been released to the public. It states, "Several findings of noncompliance were discovered during the review which
the Department [of Education] considers to be serious violations of the Clery Act." The result of this report has yet to be seen.
EMU released the executive summary of its response to the DOE report on July 27. [7][8]
Athletics
Rynearson Stadium Press box.
-
Eastern Michigan athletic teams have been successful on a national level, winning three NCAA Division II national championships and 13 NAIA Division I national championships in five different sports
(baseball, men's cross country, men's swimming and diving, men's indoor track and field, and men's outdoor track and field).
EMU has also been NCAA Division I national runner-up twice:
in 1940, the men's cross country team finished second to Indiana
University at the national meet hosted by Michigan State University;
then, on June 19, 1976, after finishing in sixth place the year before, the baseball team was defeated by the University of Arizona in the final game of the College
World Series at Johnny Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha, Nebraska.
Oestrike Stadium looking towards Huron River Drive.
Eastern's men's basketball team has appeared in four NCAA Division I tournaments, and have a 3-4 record, tied for third best
among Michigan colleges. In the 1996 Men's Basketball
Tournament, Eastern Michigan defeated the Duke Blue Devils in the opening round;
it would be the Blue Devils' last first- or second-round defeat until 2007, when they were upended by VCU in the opening round.
The Eagles have the most MAC championships in a single sport, 26, in men's
swimming and diving (1978, 1980-1996, 1998, 2000-2005, and 2007).
The 2006-2007 season was a successful one for Eastern Michigan, as they won an EMU and Mid-American Conference record eight
conference titles: Men's Cross Country, Men's Swimming And Diving, Women's Swimming And Diving, Softball, Men's Indoor Track,
Women's Gymnastics, Men's Golf and Men's Outdoor Track. This beat the school's previous record of five titles as well as the
previous MAC record of six.
Oestrike Stadium is besides Rynearson Stadium.
Traditionally, Eastern's football teams have been a disappointment, and the program has had problems attracting fans,
partially due to their proximity to the powerful University of Michigan just
seven miles away. EMU has been described as part of a group of schools in Michigan, Directional Michigan. The nickname is usually considered to be derogatory. After reaching a low
point with a 27-game losing streak that was finally snapped in 1982, though, EMU started to become competitive. In 1987, EMU won
its first Mid-American Conference title then defeated 17 1/2-point favorite San Jose State in the California Bowl. The 1988 and 1989 teams each finished in second place in the conference and ended the
most successful stretch of football in school history with its fourth straight winning season.
Unfortunately, the newly-renamed Eagles (cynics have suggested the new nickname has put a "hex" on the team) have returned to
mediocrity since the 80s, with just one winning season (1995) since. Despite the expansion of Rynearson Stadium to 30,000 seats, drawing fans continues to be a problem: NCAA rules state that in order to stay in Division I-A for football, each team
must attract an average of 15,000 fans per game. During a 1-11 season in 2006, Eastern's EMU Foundation purchased 5,000 tickets
for local high school students to curb this threat to their status. EMU has also played one home game a year at Ford Field in downtown Detroit annually since 2004 in the
"Collegiate Clash", where they have hosted Central Michigan University
(2004), Western Michigan University (2005), the United States Naval Academy (2006), and will host Northwestern University on October 19, 2007. This appearance in Detroit is beneficial to their
average attendance, as it usually gets around 25,000 fans. EMU often plays home games at night, so they won't interfere with U of
M home games on the same day. Also, in recent years they have scheduled games on Thursday and Friday nights, which boosts student
attendance (EMU is a majority commuter school, and even those who stay in the dorms often go home over weekends).
Rynearson Stadium track, EMU Convocation & Athletic Center in the background.
Other Information
Notable alumni
The legendary water tower.
- Charles E. Ramsey, Head Basketball Coach, Eastern Michigan University
- John Edward Ames, novelist and short story writer
- Kim Antieau -- American novelist
- Gary Bastien --1983 Pan American Games track team, decathlon
- Charlie Batch-- NFL player,
currently with the Pittsburgh Steelers
- Cory Bogner -- American author
- Earl Boykins -- NBA player,
currently with the Milwaukee Bucks
- Richard Campbell -- Head athletic trainer for the New York Islanders
- Ron Campbell-- CEO Tampa Bay Lighting NHL Hockey Team
- John G. Coburn -- Four-star general, Commander U.S. Army Materiel Command
- Fred Cofield, NBA player for the
New York Knicks and the Chicago Bulls
- Dr. Royal S. Copeland -- U.S. Senator from New York
- Dave Coverly -- syndicated cartoonist, Speed Bump (comic
strip)
- Lional Dalton, football player for the Houston
Texans
- Derrick Dial -- NBA player,
formerly with the San Antonio Spurs, New Jersey
Nets, and Orlando Magic
- Dann Florek -- American actor (Law &
Order, Law & Order: Special Victims
Unit)
- George Gervin -- Retired hall of Famer of the NBA
- Ryan Goleski -- professional baseball player, most recently with the [[Akron
Aeros]
- Bruce Halle -- Philanthropist and founder of Discount
Tire Company
- Stan Heath -- Head basketball coach, formerly with Arkansas and now with South Florida
- John Heffron -- Winner of NBC's Last Comic
Standing 2 in 2004 [5]
- Freman Hendrix -- Former chief of staff and deputy mayor of Detroit under former
Mayor Dennis Archer and was a 2005 mayoral candidate in Detroit
- John Hieftje -- Mayor of Ann Arbor,
Michigan since 2000
- Earlie Higgins, NBA player for the
Indiana Pacers
- Sheryl James -- Winner of the 1991 Pulitzer Prize for Feature Writing
- Mark Jefferson -- Geographer, most notable for drawing up the maps accompanying the Treaty of Versailles, and has a classroom building named after him on campus.
- Hayes Jones -- Tokyo Olympics 110 meter hurdles Gold
Medalist
- Earl Jones -- 1984 Los Angeles Olympics 800 meters
Silver Medalist
- Ella Joyce -- American stage actress
- Grant Long -- Retired NBA
player
- Harvey Marlatt, NBA player
for the Detroit Pistons
- Eduardo Maruri Miranda, Former President of the Guayaquil
Chamber of Commerce, Founder of the political party UNO
- Greg Mathis, Judge and later TV personality of Judge
Mathis fame
- Winsor McCay -- Pioneering cartoonist
- Kenny Mcintosh, 1970's NBA
player for the Chicago Bulls and the Seattle
Supersonics
- Paul McMullen -- 1996 Olympics track
star
- Michael G. Morris -- President and CEO of American
Electric Power
- Jamie Nieto -- 2004 Olympics track
star
- Jereme Perry -- Plays Defensive Back for Cleveland
Browns
- Bob Parks --EMU track coach, coached several track Olympians
- Charles E. Potter -- U.S. Senator from Michigan
- Carl D. Pursell -- U.S. Congressman from Michigan
- Gary Reed -- Comic book writer
- Dean Rockwell -- Olympic team wrestling coach, 1964, and World War II Normandy D-Day invasion hero
- Chris Roberson -- NFL player,
currently with the Jacksonville Jaguars
- Jack Roush -- CEO, and owner of Roush Racing NASCAR and
Chairman of the Board of Roush Enterprises
- Faris Abdullah Sanabani -- Yemeni magazine, newspaper and book
publisher
- L. J. Shelton, Miami Dolphins offensive
tackle
- Rodney E. Slater -- U.S. Secretary of Transportation under President Bill Clinton
- Greg C. Smith -- Executive Vice President and President, The Americas of Ford Motor Company
- Joseph Sobran--Libertarian, author and syndicated collumnist
- Larry Soderquist -- Corporate and Securities law expert, author, and
Vanderbilt professor
- Barry Stokes -- NFL player, currently
with the Detroit Lions
- Carl Thomas, basketball player for several NBA teams
- Charles Thomas, basketball player for the Detroit Pistons
- Larry Warren, hospital administration executive
- Kevin Walter -- NFL player, currently
with the Houston Texans
- Bob Welch -- Former Major League
Baseball player, 2-time All-Star, Cy Young Award winner (1990), and best-selling
author
- Patrick McInnis, president of Quicken Loans
Notable Faculty
See also
Notes
- ^ "2007 NFA Nationals: Team and Pentathalon Results" - NFA Website, May 3, 2007
- ^ ABC News. Good Morning America.Mystery at Eastern Michigan
University
- ^ Huffstutter. P.J. Los Angeles Times online. 19 June 2007. [1]
- ^ "University president fired after alleged rape cover-up" - CNN.com, July 16,
2007
- ^ "Fallon administration over at EMU, regents confirm" - [2]
- ^ "EMU president, two others fired over cover up accusations" - [3]
- ^ United States Department of Education. DOE Draft Report.
- ^ Chronicle of Higher Education5 July 2007
External links
|
Sports teams based in Michigan |
| Baseball |
MLB:
Detroit Tigers, ML: Great Lakes Loons • Lansing Lugnuts • West Michigan Whitecaps, NwL: Battle Creek Bombers, FL: Kalamazoo Kings • Traverse City Beach Bums |
 |
| Basketball |
NBA: Detroit Pistons, ABA: Detroit Panthers,
IBL: Battle Creek
Knights • Grand Rapids Flight • Holland
Blast • Lansing Capitals, WNBA: Detroit Shock |
| Football |
NFL:
Detroit Lions, AFL: Grand Rapids Rampage, CIFL:
Kalamazoo Xplosion • Michigan Pirates •
Muskegon Thunder |
| Hockey |
NHL: Detroit Red Wings, AHL: Grand Rapids Griffins,
IHL: Flint Generals •
Kalamazoo Wings • Muskegon Fury •
Port Huron IceHawks, OHL:
Plymouth Whalers • Saginaw Spirit,
NAHL: Alpena IceDiggers •
Marquette Rangers • Traverse City North
Stars • US National Development Team Program |
| Soccer |
MISL: Detroit Ignition, PDL: Michigan Bucks • West Michigan Edge |
| NCAA Division I |
Central Michigan University • Eastern Michigan
University • Michigan State University • Oakland University • University of Detroit
Mercy • University of Michigan • Western Michigan University |
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