University of Arkansas Grantham (UA Grantham) 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 ''Öffentlichkei ...

online In computer technology and telecommunications, online indicates a state of connectivity and offline indicates a disconnected state. In modern terminology, this usually refers to an Internet connection, but (especially when expressed "on line" or ...

university based in

Little Rock, Arkansas (The Little Rock, The "Little Rock") , government_type = council-manager government, Council-manager , leader_title = List of mayors of Little Rock, Arkansas, Mayor , leader_name = Frank Scott Jr. , leader_ ...

. Founded in 1951 as Grantham Radio License School, it would eventually be renamed Grantham University. The then- for-profit school offered distance-education programs from 1951 until 2021, at which point it was entirely online. Grantham was purchased by the

University of Arkansas System The University of Arkansas System is a state university system in the U.S. state of Arkansas. It comprises six campuses; a medical school; two law schools; a graduate school focused on public service; a historically black college, statewide rese ...

for one dollar in 2021, merging with the latter’s eVersity online program. It is composed of four colleges: the College of Business, Management, and Economics; the College of Humanities and Social Sciences; the College of Science, Engineering, and Technology; and the College of Nursing and Health Professions. It is accredited by the

Distance Education Accrediting Commission The Distance Education Accrediting Commission (DEAC), formerly the National Home Study Council and then as the Distance Education and Training Council, is a non-profit national educational accreditation agency in the United States specializing in t ...

History

The university started as Grantham Radio License School, a private school founded in 1951, in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. Its founder, Donald Grantham, was an engineer and

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

veteran A veteran () is a person who has significant experience (and is usually adept and esteemed) and expertise in a particular occupation or field. A military veteran is a person who is no longer serving in a military. A military veteran that has ...

who offered

Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdiction ...

License certification courses to other World War II veterans after returning from the war. Through the 1950s and 1960s additional campuses were opened in Washington, D.C.; Hollywood, California; Seattle, Washington; and Kansas City, Missouri. In 1961, the university received formal recognition by the

U.S. Department of Education The United States Department of Education is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government. It began operating on May 4, 1980, having been created after the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare was split into the Department ...

., when the Grantham School of Electronics (GSE) became accredited by the

. In 1968, the GSE was renamed the Grantham College of Engineering (GCE). A second Los Angeles campus was established in 1974. In subsequent years, GCE moved all of its operations to the Los Angeles location and offered distance learning programs exclusively. In 1990, GCE obtained approval to operate in Louisiana and relocated to Slidell. It was licensed by the

Louisiana Board of Regents The Louisiana Board of Regents is a government agency in the U.S. state of Louisiana that is responsible for coordination of all public higher education in the state. The Board was created under the terms of the 1974 Louisiana Constitution, and bega ...

in 1993. In 2005,

Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that caused over 1,800 fatalities and $125 billion in damage in late August 2005, especially in the city of New Orleans and the surrounding areas. It was at the time the cost ...

hit Grantham's main campus in

Slidell, Louisiana Slidell is a city on the northeast shore of Lake Pontchartrain in St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 28,781 at the 2020 census. It is part of the New Orleans− Metairie−Kenner metropolitan statistical area. Hist ...

, destroying approximately eighty percent of their facilities. Days later, more than 140 employees had the university up and running again in temporary offices in Kansas City, Missouri. The school decided to relocate to Kansas City and secured a certificate to operate from the Missouri Department of Higher Education. In June 2006, Grantham signed articulation agreements with

Bellevue University Bellevue University is a private university in Bellevue, Nebraska. It opened in 1966 as Bellevue College and from the outset has focused on providing adult education and educational outreach. As of 2011, 80% of its undergraduates were aged 25 ...

and

Central Wyoming College Central Wyoming College (CWC or CW) is a public community college in Riverton, Wyoming. In addition to its main campus, the college provides online classes and has outreach centers in Jackson, Lander, Dubois, and the Wind River Indian Reservati ...

. In January 2007, Grantham signed a memorandum of understanding with the

Defense Acquisition University The Defense Acquisition University (DAU) is a corporate university of the United States Department of Defense offering "acquisition, technology, and logistics" (AT&L) training to military and Federal civilian staff and Federal contractors. DAU is ...

(DAU) to accept educational credit earned through successful completion of DAU courses and programs as transfer or elective credit at Grantham. In November 2021, Grantham joined the

to officially become University of Arkansas Grantham. By summer 2022, the system's original online college initiative, eVersity, merged with UA Grantham to form one institution.

Academics

College of Business, Management, and Economics

In December 2015, the school received specialized accreditation for its business programs through the

International Assembly for Collegiate Business Education The International Accreditation Council for Business Education (IACBE), formerly the International Assembly for Collegiate Business Education, is an educational accreditation agency for college and university business programs founded in 1997. It ...

(IACBE).

College of Science, Engineering, and Technology

The College of Science, Engineering, and Technology oversees a number of different programs and courses, including associate degrees, bachelor's degrees and course offerings from project management, digital systems, physics, calculus, differential equations, and programming. In September 2016, the school received accreditation for its Bachelor of Science in electronics engineering technology program through the

Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology The ABET (incorporated as the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, Inc.) is a non-governmental organization that accredits post-secondary education programs in applied and natural sciences, computing, engineering and engineering ...

(ABET).

College of Humanities and Social Sciences

The College of Humanities and Social Sciences offers courses that are aimed at strengthening basic skills in writing, speaking, critical thinking and quantitative reasoning. The arts courses include writing and communication, while the sciences include knowledge of the natural world and human civilization.

College of Nursing and Health Professions

The College of Nursing and Health Professions is the newest college. In 2010, the school offered its first online RN-to-BSN program. In 2016, it was awarded program "candidate" status by the

Accrediting Commission for Education in Nursing The Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN) is one of three program accrediting agencies for nursing education in the US and its territories. It is also a subsidiary of the National League for Nursing. ACEN is recognized by the Coun ...

(ACEN). Initial ACEN accreditation for the Baccalaureate and Master's programs in nursing was granted in March 2019. On October 21, 2019, the Baccalaureate and Master's nursing programs received initial accreditation from the Commission of Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE)

Accreditation

University of Arkansas Grantham has been nationally accredited by the

Distance Education Accreditation Commission The Distance Education Accrediting Commission (DEAC), formerly the National Home Study Council and then as the Distance Education and Training Council, is a non-profit national educational accreditation agency in the United States specializing in t ...

(DEAC), formerly the Distance Education and Training Council, since 1961. Additionally, as a member of the

, UA Grantham credits may be transferred to other system universities. The other members of the UA System are regionally accredited by the

Higher Learning Commission The Higher Learning Commission (HLC) is an institutional accreditor in the United States. It has historically accredited post-secondary education institutions in the central United States: Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa ...

Faculty

University of Arkansas Grantham employs 36 full-time instructors and 255 adjunct instructors.

References

External links

* * {{Coord, 36, 40, 37, N, 94, 35, 46, W, type:edu, display=title University of Arkansas System Educational institutions established in 1951 Distance Education Accreditation Commission Distance education institutions based in the United States