East Tennessee State University (ETSU) is a

public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociological concept of the ''Öffentlichk ...

research university A research university or a research-intensive university is a university that is committed to research as a central part of its mission. They are the most important sites at which knowledge production occurs, along with "intergenerational kn ...

Johnson City, Tennessee Johnson City is a city in Washington, Carter, and Sullivan counties in the U.S. state of Tennessee, mostly in Washington County. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 71,046, making it the eighth largest city in Tennessee. Joh ...

. It was historically part of the State University and Community College System of Tennessee under the

Tennessee Board of Regents The Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR or The College System of Tennessee) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is one of two public university systems, the other being the University of Tennessee system. It was autho ...

, but since 2016, the university has been transitioning to governance by a separate institutional Board of Trustees. , it is the fourth largest university in the state and has off-campus centers in nearby Kingsport, Elizabethton, and

Sevierville Sevierville ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Sevier County, Tennessee, located in eastern Tennessee. The population was 17,889 at the 2020 United States Census. History Native Americans of the Woodland period were among the first human ...

. ETSU is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity." It hosts the James H. Quillen College of Medicine which is often ranked as one of the top schools in the United States for rural medicine and primary care education; the Bill Gatton College of Pharmacy, the College of Nursing, the College of Public Health, and the recently formed College of Clinical and Rehabilitative Health Sciences. Unique programs include an accredited program in Bluegrass, Old Time, and Country Music, America's lone

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

in Storytelling, and the Appalachian Studies programs, focused on the surrounding Appalachian region.

History

ETSU was founded as East Tennessee State

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, turni ...

in 1911 to educate teachers; the K-12 training school, called University School, operates to this day. East Tennessee State officially became a college in 1925 when it changed its name to East Tennessee State Teachers College, subsequently gaining accreditation from the Southern Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools in 1927. By 1930, the school's name had changed again to East Tennessee State Teacher's College, Johnson City. In 1943, East Tennessee State Teacher's College was expanded into a college with a range of

liberal arts Liberal arts education (from Latin "free" and "art or principled practice") is the traditional academic course in Western higher education. ''Liberal arts'' takes the term '' art'' in the sense of a learned skill rather than specifically th ...

offerings, becoming East Tennessee State College. The college became East Tennessee State University in 1963, adopting the name it holds today. In 1973,

Shelbridge Shelbridge is a historic three-story mansion in Johnson City, Tennessee, U.S.. It serves as the official residence of the president of East Tennessee State University. History The house was built in 1920-1921 for Ross Spears, a businessman. With ...

became the president's official residence. ETSU announced plans to open a College of Pharmacy in 2005, rapidly receiving local support to secure the approval. Full accreditation was granted in June 2010, shortly after the first class of the

Bill Gatton Carol Martin "Bill" Gatton (May 25, 1932 – April 18, 2022) was an American entrepreneur and philanthropist. Gatton was born near Bremen, Kentucky, on May 25, 1932. He earned his B.S. in 1954 from the University of Kentucky. In addition to his de ...

College of Pharmacy graduated. In late 2009, the

Tennessee Higher Education Commission The Tennessee Higher Education Commission (THEC) was established by the Tennessee General Assembly in 1967 to coordinate and support the efforts of higher education institutions in the State of Tennessee. One of its statutory requirements is to ...

and the

authorized the formation of a Ph.D. program in Sport Physiology and Performance. This program, the first of its kind in the United States, focuses on sports science and physiology in athletics. It features concentrations in sport physiology and sport performance and started in 2010.

Presidents

*Sidney G. Gilbreath, 1911–1925 *Charles C. Sherrod, 1925–1949 *Burgin E. Dossett Sr., 1949–1968 *D.P. Culp, 1968–1977 *Arthur H. DeRosier Jr., 1977–1980 *Ronald E. Beller, 1980–1991 *Bert C. Bach (interim), 1991–1992 *Roy S. Nicks, 1992–1996 *Paul E. Stanton Jr., 1997–2012 *Brian Noland, 2012–present

Research

The research mission of ETSU advances scholarly and creative activity that enhances the teaching and learning environment and benefits the regional, national, and global communities served. ETSU strongly supports and encourages faculty and student research. In FY12, ETSU was awarded over $50 million in research, public service, and training/instruction grants. The ETSU Office of Research and Sponsored Programs Administration (ORSPA) organizes an annual event, the Appalachian Student Research Forum, for students to showcase their research via poster and/or oral presentations. At the April 2012 event, over 150 student poster and oral presentations were made and over $5,000 was given in prize money to undergraduate, graduate, medical students, medical residents and postdoctoral fellows.

Athletics

ETSU collegiate athletic teams,

nickname A nickname is a substitute for the proper name of a familiar person, place or thing. Commonly used to express affection, a form of endearment, and sometimes amusement, it can also be used to express defamation of character. As a concept, it is ...

d ''Buccaneers'', compete in the

NCAA 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 an ...

Division I

Southern Conference The Southern Conference (SoCon) is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I. Southern Conference football teams compete in the Football Championship Subdivision (formerly k ...

. The Buccaneers rejoined the Southern Conference in July 2014 after competing in the Atlantic Sun since 2003, when they dropped football. In the 2006-07 year, ETSU won both the conference's men and women's All-Sport trophies, winning seven team titles. They repeated as the overall and men's All-Sport champions in 2007–08 with three team titles, in 2008–09 with five team titles, and in 2009–10 with three team titles. Current men's sports at ETSU are football,

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

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 (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

, cross country,

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping ...

, soccer,

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...

and

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping eve ...

. Women's sports are basketball, cross country, golf, soccer,

softball Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...

, tennis, track and field and

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Sum ...

. Men's soccer competed at the club level in the fall of 2007, before entering NCAA and Atlantic Sun competition as a scholarship program in the 2008 season. With of the addition of football, ETSU rejoined the

in 2014 because the A-Sun does not support the sport. The Mini-Dome on the campus of ETSU houses the intercollegiate athletics offices. Still known by students, faculty, and the community as the Mini-Dome, this campus landmark was officially renamed from Memorial Center to ETSU/Mountain States Health Alliance Athletic Center and now Ballad Health Athletic Center. The largest building on the ETSU campus, it hosts several indoor

meets, and was once the home field for the university's football program. The Mini-Dome has hosted many non-athletic events that could not be housed in an indoor setting on most American college campuses, such as national indoor championships for free flight

model aircraft A model aircraft is a small unmanned aircraft. Many are replicas of real aircraft. Model aircraft are divided into two basic groups: flying and non-flying. Non-flying models are also termed static, display, or shelf models. Aircraft manufactur ...

Greek life

There are several

Greek organizations Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

at East Tennessee State University. University sources claim that five percent of both men and women on campus are involved in Greek organizations.

Charles C. Sherrod Library

The Charles C. Sherrod Library houses the

Archives of Appalachia The Archives of Appalachia are located on the campus of East Tennessee State University (ETSU) in Johnson City, Tennessee. Containing books, rare manuscripts, photographs, and audio and moving-image recordings, the archives serve as a resource f ...

and University Archives. They have on occasion, given grade schools tours of their facility.

Colleges and schools

*College of Arts and Sciences *College of Business and Technology *College of Clinical and Rehabilitative Health Sciences *Clemmer College * James H. Quillen College of Medicine *College of Nursing *College of Pharmacy *College of Public Health *Honors College *School of Continuing Studies *School of Graduate Studies

Honors College

There is an Honors College at East Tennessee State University.

Notable people

Donnie Abraham Nathaniel Donnell Abraham (born October 8, 1973) is an American football coach and former cornerback who is the current Defensive Coordinator for St. Louis Battlehawks. In his career, he played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1996–2001) and the ...

, football player *

Eric Axley Eric Allen Axley (born April 22, 1974) is an American professional golfer. Career Axley was born in Athens, Tennessee. He turned professional in 1997. He is one of the few natural left-handers to win on the Web.com Tour and PGA Tour. In 2006, ...

, golfer *

Barry Bales Barry Turner Bales (born August 23, 1969 in Kingsport, Tennessee, United States) is an American musician best known as the long time bass player and harmony vocalist for Alison Krauss and Union Station. He has been in the band for around 25 years ...

, musician *

David Bunton The Showdown is an American Christian metal band from Elizabethton, Tennessee. While the members of the band are Christian and the band is signed to a Christian record label, the band does not consider itself a Christian act, according to guita ...

, singer *

Timothy Busfield Timothy Busfield (born June 12, 1957) is an American actor and director. He has played Elliot Weston on the television series ''thirtysomething''; Mark, the brother-in-law of Ray Kinsella (Kevin Costner) in ''Field of Dreams''; and Danny Concann ...

, actor and director * Dave Campbell, baseball player * Ronald E. Carrier, president of

James Madison University James Madison University (JMU, Madison, or James Madison) is a public research university in Harrisonburg, Virginia. Founded in 1908 as the State Normal and Industrial School for Women at Harrisonburg, the institution was renamed Madison Coll ...

* Jo Carson, writer * Keith Cate, newscaster *

Jamey Chadwell Jamey Chadwell (born January 10, 1977) is an American football coach and former player, who serves as the head coach at Liberty University; he also served as head coach for Costal Carolina and interim HC in the 2017 season while permanent head co ...

, football coach *

Kenny Chesney Kenneth Arnold Chesney (born March 26, 1968) is an American country music singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He has recorded more than 20 albums and has produced more than 40 Top 10 singles on the US ''Billboard'' Hot Country Songs and Country ...

, entertainer *

Besse Cooper Besse may refer to: Places * Besse, Cantal, France * Besse, Dordogne, France * Besse, Isère, France * Besse-et-Saint-Anastaise, Puy-de-Dôme, France ** Super-Besse, a ski resort * Besse-sur-Issole, Var, France * Bessé, Charente, France * ...

, oldest person in the world * Patrick J. Cronin, actor * Neil Cusack, runner * Rhys Davies, golfer * David Davis, politician *

David Eger David Benjamin Eger (born March 17, 1952) is an American professional golfer on the Champions Tour. Early life Eger was born in Fort Meade, Maryland. Amateur career He attended the University of North Carolina, and later East Tennessee Sta ...

, golfer * Earl Ferrell, football player *

Ray Flynn Raymond Leo Flynn (born July 22, 1939) is an American politician who served as 52nd Mayor of Boston, Massachusetts from 1984 until 1993. He also served as United States Ambassador to the Holy See from 1993–1997. Flynn was an All-American c ...

, runner *

Thane Gash Thane Alvin Gash (born September 1, 1965) is a former professional American football player who played safety for four seasons for the Cleveland Browns and two seasons for the San Francisco 49ers in the National Football League The Nat ...

, football player *

Joseph R. Garber Joseph R. Garber (August 14, 1943 – May 27, 2005) was an American author, best known for his 1995 thriller ''Vertical Run'' and for the articles he wrote on technology for Forbes magazine. Biography Garber was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, ...

, author *

Eddie Golden Harold Edward Cox (born November 4, 1973) is a semi-retired American professional wrestler and trainer better known by his ring name Eddie Golden. He was one of the top junior heavyweights in the Southern United States during the 1990s and won n ...

, wrestler * Ed Goodson, baseball player * J. Ronnie Greer, US federal judge * Steven M. Greer, ufologist *

Atlee Hammaker Charlton Atlee Hammaker (born January 24, 1958) is a former Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher who played the majority of his career for the San Francisco Giants (1982–1990). He also played for the Kansas City Royals, San Diego Padres, an ...

, baseball player *

Diana Harshbarger Diana Lynn Harshbarger ( ; born January 1, 1960) is an American pharmacist, businesswoman, and politician serving as the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for . The district is based in the Tri-Cities, Tennessee, Tri-Cit ...

, politician * Larry Hinson, golfer *

Mike Hulbert Michael Patrick Hulbert (born April 14, 1958) is an American professional golfer and sportscaster. Hulbert was born in Elmira, New York. He grew up in Horseheads, New York, and was a childhood friend and high school golf rival of fellow PGA To ...

, golfer * Earl Gladstone Hunt Jr., president of

Emory and Henry College Emory & Henry College (E&H or Emory) is a private liberal arts college in Emory, Virginia. The campus comprises of Washington County, which is part of the Appalachian highlands of Southwest Virginia. Founded in 1836, Emory & Henry College is ...

Steven James Steven James (born 1969) is the author of more than forty books, including the critically acclaimed Bowers Files, an eleven-book series of psychological thrillers that consists of ''Opening Moves'', ''Every Crooked Path'', ''Every Deadly Kiss'', ...

, novelist * Keith "Mister" Jennings, basketball player * Kenneth P. Johnson, newspaper editor *

Ric Keller Richard Anthony "Ric" Keller (born September 5, 1964) is an American politician, author, and lawyer who served as the U.S. representative for Florida's 8th congressional district from 2001 to 2009. His district included much of the Central Flori ...

, US Congressman * Amythyst Kiah, singer-songwriter and recording artist * R. Alan King, author *

Dave Loggins David Allen Loggins (born November 10, 1947) is an American singer, songwriter, and musician. Musical career Loggins is best known for his 1974 song composition "Please Come to Boston", which was a No. 5 popular music success (No. 1 Easy Listen ...

, singer, songwriter * Herbert Theodore Milburn, US Federal Judge *

Jim Mooney James Noel Mooney (August 13, 1919 – March 30, 2008) was an American comics artist best known for his long tenure at DC Comics and as the signature artist of Supergirl, as well as a Marvel Comics inker and Spider-Man artist, both during wha ...

, baseball player *

Eureka O'Hara Eureka, also known as Eureka O'Hara and Eureka!, is the stage name of Eureka D. Huggard (born August 26, 1990), an American drag queen and reality television personality. Eureka rose to prominence competing on the ninth and tenth seasons of ''Ru ...

, contestant on

RuPaul's Drag Race ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' is an American reality competition television series, the first in the ''Drag Race'' franchise, produced by World of Wonder for Logo TV (season 1–8), WOW Presents Plus, VH1 (season 9–14) and, beginning with the f ...

Barclay Radebaugh Barclay Radebaugh (born September 14, 1965) is an American college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Assoc ...

, basketball coach *

Ron Ramsey Ronald Lynn Ramsey (; born November 20, 1955) is an American auctioneer, politician, and lobbyist, who served as the 49th lieutenant governor of Tennessee and speaker of the State Senate from 2007 to 2017. A Republican from Blountville in East ...

, Lieutenant Governor of Tennessee * Mo Sabri, recording artist *

Marcus Satterfield Marcus David Satterfield (born April 9, 1976) is an American football coach and former player, who is the offensive coordinator and quarterback coach for the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Satterfield served as the head football coach at Tenness ...

, football player *

Bryan Lewis Saunders Bryan Lewis Saunders (born 1969, in Washington, D.C.) is an endurance artist, a performance artist, videographer, performance poet, and self-portrait painter known for his disturbing spoken word rants, tragic art performances and stand-up trag ...

, visual and performance artist *

Aaron Schoenfeld Aaron Maxwell Schoenfeld ( he, אהרון מקסוול שוינפלד, born April 17, 1990) is an Israeli-American former professional soccer player who played as a forward. Early life Schoenfeld is Jewish, and was born in Knoxville, Tennessee, ...

, soccer player *

Gerald Sensabaugh Gerald Lind Sensabaugh Jr. (born June 13, 1983) is a former American football safety. He was drafted by the Jacksonville Jaguars in the fifth round of the 2005 NFL Draft. He also played for the Dallas Cowboys. He played college football at Nort ...

, football player *

Niall Shanks Niall Shanks (18 January 1959 13 July 2011) was an English philosopher and critic of intelligent design. Career Shanks was born in Cheshire, England, was educated at Rossall School, and later at the University of Leeds and the University of Li ...

, philosopher * Mike Smith, football coach * J.C. Snead, golfer * Adam Steffey, musician * Harley Swift, basketball player * Phyllis Tickle, author *

Jack Vest Jack Douglas Vest (September 16, 1926 – June 2, 1972) was an American athlete, sports coach, and official. He was a 12-letter man at East Tennessee State University, winning honors in football, basketball, and baseball between 1946 and 1950. He ...

, football player *

Bobby Wadkins Robert Edwin Wadkins (born July 26, 1951) is an American professional golfer. His older brother, Lanny, won 21 times on the PGA Tour, including the 1977 PGA Championship, and is a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame. Wadkins was born in Ric ...

, golfer * Harry L. Williams, businessman *

Garrett Willis Garrett Michael Willis (born November 21, 1973) is an American professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour and the Nationwide Tour. Willis was born in Charlotte, North Carolina. He attended East Tennessee State University where he was member of ...

, golfer * Tommy Woods, basketball player

References

External links

*
ETSU Athletics website
{{Coord, 36.30333, -82.36917, display=title East Tennessee Universities and colleges established in 1911 Johnson City, Tennessee Universities and colleges accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Education in Washington County, Tennessee Buildings and structures in Washington County, Tennessee Education in Sullivan County, Tennessee Education in Carter County, Tennessee Public universities and colleges in Tennessee 1911 establishments in Tennessee

History

Presidents

Research

Athletics

Greek life

Charles C. Sherrod Library

Colleges and schools

Honors College

Notable people

See also

References

External links