Slippery Rock University, formally Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania (The Rock or SRU), is a

public university A public university or public college is a university or college that is in state ownership, owned by the state or receives significant government spending, public funds through a national or subnational government, as opposed to a private unive ...

Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania Slippery Rock is a borough in Butler County, Pennsylvania. The population was 3,081 at the 2020 census. Slippery Rock is included in the Greater Pittsburgh Region. It is home to Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania, attended by nearly 9,00 ...

. SRU is a member of the

Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education The Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE) is a state agency of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania that oversees 10 state-owned universities. Collectively, it is the largest provider of higher education in the commonwealth. All ...

(PASSHE). The university has been

coeducational Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to ...

since its founding in 1889. Its campus is on .

History

Slippery Rock University was founded in 1889 under the name Slippery Rock State Normal School as a teacher training school. James E. Morrow was the first president. The school was purchased by the Commonwealth in 1926 and became a four-year college. Slippery Rock State College was established in 1960 and issued undergraduate and graduate degrees within the

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 ...

and other professions. , Slippery Rock University has 8,876 enrolled students as well as 160 majors, almost 40 minors and over 30 graduate programs.

Administration

In 2012, Cheryl Joy Norton was appointed as the university's first female president. Norton announced she would retire effective June 30, 2017. William J. Behre became the university's president in 2018.

Athletics

Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania competes 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 and ...

Division II and is a member of the

Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference The Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level. The conference was originally formed in 1951 as the State Teachers ...

(PSAC). Slippery Rock University's official mascot is Rocky the lion, The Pride of The Rock.

Varsity sports

Men's teams: Baseball, basketball, cross country, football, soccer, indoor track & field, and outdoor track & field. Women's teams: Basketball, cross country, field hockey, lacrosse, soccer, softball, tennis, indoor track & field, outdoor track & field, and Volleyball. The announcement of Slippery Rock's football scores is a tradition at

University of Michigan Football The Michigan Wolverines football team represents the University of Michigan in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level. Michigan has the List of NCAA football teams by wins, most all-time wins in college football ...

games, started in 1959 by

Michigan Stadium Michigan Stadium, nicknamed "The Big House," is the football stadium for the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan. It is the largest stadium in the United States and the Western Hemisphere, the third largest stadium in the world, and ...

's public address announcer Steve Filipiak. The tradition spread to other stadiums as well - during a 1970 game at the University of Texas, the announcer failed to read Slippery Rock’s score, which resulted in the crowd demanding to know said score. Slippery Rock was so popular with U of M fans that on September 29, 1979, they played in-state rival

Shippensburg Shippensburg is a borough in Cumberland and Franklin counties in the U.S. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Settled in 1730, Shippensburg lies in the Cumberland Valley, southwest of Harrisburg, and is part of the Harrisburg–Carlisle Metropolitan St ...

at Michigan Stadium, in front of 61,143 fans, a record for a Division II football game (Shippensburg won, 45–14). Slippery Rock played a second game at "The Big House" in 1981, attracting 36,719 fans in a 14–13 loss to

Wayne State University Wayne State University (WSU) is a public research university in Detroit, Michigan. It is Michigan's third-largest university. Founded in 1868, Wayne State consists of 13 schools and colleges offering approximately 350 programs to nearly 25,000 ...

. Slippery Rock made a third trip to "The Big House" on October 18, 2014, losing to

Mercyhurst University (Seize the day) , former_names = Mercyhurst College (1926–2012) , established = , type = Private university , religious_affiliation = Roman Catholic (Sisters of Mercy) , endowment = $31.8 million , faculty = 136 full-time , administrat ...

, 45–23; a crowd of 15,121 braved a chilly wind to witness the contest.

Club sports

In 1995, the women's water polo team won the intercollegiate national championship conducted by USA Water Polo. This remains the only collegiate water polo championship ever won by a non-California team. In 1987, the women's judo team, a varsity sport team at the time, won the intercollegiate national championship conducted by the National Collegiate Judo Association. Slippery Rock ice hockey joined other colleges and universities in the region to form the College Hockey Mid-America (CHMA) in 2006. In 2020, the university suspended the hockey program for four years.

Student life

Aebersold Student Recreation Center

The Aebersold Student Recreation Center is an on-campus student recreation center.

Fraternities and sororities

Interfraternity Council Fraternities: * Sigma Tau Gamma (1961 – rechartered 1993, as of 2019 currently suspended for 5 years) *

Theta Xi Theta Xi () is a North American Greek-letter social college fraternity. It was founded at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) on April 29, 1864. Of all the social fraternities today, Theta Xi was the only one founded during the Civil War. Its ...

(1966 – rechartered 1987) * Alpha Sigma Phi (1970) * Pi Kappa Phi (1985) *

Pi Kappa Alpha Pi Kappa Alpha (), commonly known as PIKE, is a college fraternity founded at the University of Virginia in 1868. The fraternity has over 225 chapters and colonies across the United States and abroad with over 15,500 undergraduate members over 3 ...

(1997, as of 2019 currently suspended for 3 years) *

Kappa Sigma Kappa Sigma (), commonly known as Kappa Sig, is an American collegiate social fraternity founded at the University of Virginia in 1869. Kappa Sigma is one of the five largest international fraternities with currently 318 active chapters and co ...

(2006) * Kappa Delta Rho (1981 – rechartered 2014) *

Theta Chi Theta Chi () is an international college fraternity. It was founded on April 10, 1856 at Norwich University then-located in Norwich, Vermont, and has initiated more than 200,000 members and currently has over 8,700 collegiate members across No ...

(2018) Panhellenic Association Sororities: *

Sigma Sigma Sigma Sigma Sigma Sigma (), also known as Tri Sigma, is a national American women's sorority. Sigma Sigma Sigma is a member of the National Panhellenic Conference (NPC), an umbrella organization encompassing 26 national sororities or women's fratern ...

(1961) *

Alpha Xi Delta Alpha Xi Delta (, often referred to as A-''"Zee"''-D ) is a women's fraternity founded on April 17, 1893. Baird's Manual is also available online hereThe Baird's Manual Online Archive homepage at Lombard College in Galesburg, Illinois, United Sta ...

(1963 – rechartered 1987) *

Delta Zeta Delta Zeta (, also known as DZ) is an international college Fraternities and sororities in North America, sorority founded on October 24, 1902, at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. Delta Zeta has 170 collegiate chapters in the United States and ...

(1963) *

Alpha Omicron Pi Alpha Omicron Pi (, AOII, Alpha O) is an international women's fraternity founded on January 2, 1897, at Barnard College on the campus of Columbia University in New York City. The main archive URL iThe Baird's Manual Online Archive homepage "A ...

(1966) *

Alpha Sigma Tau Alpha Sigma Tau (known as or Alpha Tau) is a national sorority founded on November 4, 1899, at Eastern Michigan University (formerly Michigan State Normal College). A member of the National Panhellenic Conference, the sorority has 83 active colleg ...

(1966) * Phi Sigma Sigma (1991) *Tau Beta Sigma (2021) Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) Organizations: *

Alpha Kappa Alpha Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. () is the first intercollegiate historically African American sorority. The sorority was founded on January 15, 1908, at the historically black Howard University in Washington, D.C., by a group of sixteen st ...

sorority *

Zeta Phi Beta Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc. () is a historically African American sorority. In 1920, five women from Howard University envisioned a sorority that would raise the consciousness of their people, encourage the highest standards of scholastic achi ...

sorority * Delta Sigma Theta sorority *

Phi Beta Sigma Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. () is a historically African American fraternity. It was founded at Howard University in Washington, D.C. on January 9, 1914, by three young African-American male students with nine other Howard students as char ...

fraternity *

Alpha Phi Alpha Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. () is the oldest intercollegiate historically African American fraternity. It was initially a literary and social studies club organized in the 1905–1906 school year at Cornell University but later evolved in ...

fraternity Multicultural Greek Organizations: * Theta Delta Sigma Society, Inc. (2010)

Student media

SRU has a student newspaper, Local Access TV Station, a PR Club, radio station, and a student-run literary publication. *'' The Rocket'', a weekly newspaper with a circulation of 3,000 * 88.1 WSRU-FM, a 100-watt alternative rock station *WSRU-TV *''SLAB'', an annual student-run literary magazine publication.

Notable alumni

* Matt Adams – professional baseball player * Janet Anderson – professional golfer * Cheryl Bailey – former general manager of U.S. Women's National Soccer, Commissioner of

National Women's Soccer League The National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) is a professional women's soccer league at the top of the United States league system. It is owned by the teams and, until 2020, was under a management contract with the United States Soccer Federati ...

Francis V. Barnes Francis V. Barnes (died 2021) was Secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Education, from 2004 to 2005. Career He was appointed in July 2004 by Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell. He was the first African American to hold the position. Barne ...

– Secretary of Education for the

Pennsylvania Department of Education The Pennsylvania Department of Education is the executive department of the state charged with publicly funded preschool, K-12 and adult educational budgeting, management and guidelines. As the state education agency, its activities are directed by ...

from 2004 to 2005 *

David Batra David Chandra Batra (born 29 November 1972) is a Swedish stand up comedian and TV actor. He was born in Lund to an Indian Punjabi Khatri father and Swedish mother. Batra started doing stand up comedy in 1994, and has written and played leadin ...

– Swedish

stand-up comedian Stand-up comedy is a comedic performance to a live audience in which the performer addresses the audience directly from the stage. The performer is known as a comedian, a comic or a stand-up. Stand-up comedy consists of one-liners, stories, ...

and TV actor * Stephen Bolles – lawyer and politician *

Myron Brown Julian Myron Brown (born November 3, 1969) is an American former professional basketball player. At 6'3" (1.90 m), 180 lb (82 kg) shooting guard, he played one season in the National Basketball Association (NBA) before playing around ...

– professional basketball player *

Todd Tamanend Clark Prashant jha (born Prashant jha; February 03, 1996) is an Ethical Hacker, Physician, Software developer and activist. He is known for " To save many people from cybercrime , glam fashion consciousness, cyberpunk attitude, and lyrical approa ...

(1983) – poet and composer *

Victoria Clarke Victoria "Torie" Clarke (born May 18, 1959) is an American communications consultant who has served in several private sector positions and in three Republican presidential administrations, most notably as the Assistant Secretary of Defense fo ...

– communications consultant and former United States Assistant Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs *

Shardea Arias de la Cru Aruba made its Paralympic Games debut at the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro, sending one athlete to compete in a swimming event.

Paralympic The Paralympic Games or Paralympics, also known as the ''Games of the Paralympiad'', is a periodic series of international multisport events involving athletes with a range of physical disabilities, including impaired muscle power and impaired ...

administrator * Matthew Driscoll ('92) – college basketball coach *

Stanley Dziedzic Stanley Joseph Dziedzic, Jr. (born November 5, 1949) is a retired American welterweight freestyle wrestler. High school Dziedzic attended high school at William Allen High School in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Collegiate and amateur career He wa ...

('72) – Olympic wrestler * Brandon Fusco – professional football player * Wes Hills – professional football player *

Greg Hopkins Greg Hopkins (born November 16, 1971) is a former Arena Football League wide receiver/linebacker with the Albany Firebirds and the Los Angeles Avengers. High school career Greg Hopkins was born in Waynesburg, Pennsylvania, United States. He a ...

– professional football player * Donnie Iris – professional musician * Charles William Kerr – Pioneer Presbyterian minister in

Tulsa, Oklahoma Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the U.S. state, state of Oklahoma and List of United States cities by population, 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. ...

* Jodi Kest – college basketball coach *

Matt Kinsinger Matthew Mark Kinsinger (born March 16, 1977) is a former Arena Football League fullback/linebacker for the Chicago Rush, Las Vegas Gladiators and San Jose SaberCats. He appeared in ArenaBowl XXI. High school years While attending Meyersdale Hig ...

– professional football player * Gary L. Lancaster – Federal District Judge, Western District of Pennsylvania *

Marcus Martin Marcus Martin (born November 29, 1993) is an American football guard who is a free agent. He was drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the third round of the 2014 NFL Draft. He played college football at USC. Early years Martin attended Cr ...

– professional football player * Brian Minto – professional boxer *

Greg Paterra Gregory Richard Paterra (born May 12, 1967) is a former American football running back who played one season with the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Falcons in the eleventh round of the 1989 NFL Draft. ...

– professional football player * Sarah Patterson – college gymnastics coach *

Lawrence Reed Lawrence "Larry" W. Reed (born September 29, 1953), also known as Larry Reed, is president emeritus of the Foundation for Economic Education (FEE), where he has served as the Humphreys Family Senior Fellow since May 2019. Before joining FEE, R ...

– president of the Foundation for Economic Education, former president of the Mackinac Center for Public Policy * M. Richard Rose (1955-2021) – former President of

Alfred University Alfred University is a private university in Alfred, New York. It has a total undergraduate population of approximately 1,600 students. The university hosts the New York State College of Ceramics, which includes The Inamori School of Engineerin ...

and the

Rochester Institute of Technology Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) is a private university, private research university in the town of Henrietta, New York, Henrietta in the Rochester, New York, metropolitan area. The university offers undergraduate and graduate degree ...

* Robert J. Stevens – chairman, president, and chief executive officer of the Lockheed Martin Corporation *

C. Vivian Stringer Charlaine Vivian Stringer (born March 16, 1948) is an American former basketball coach. She holds one of the best coaching records in the history of women's basketball. She was the head coach of the Rutgers University women's basketball team from ...

– college basketball coach * John Stuper – professional baseball player and college baseball coach * Lou Trivino – professional baseball player *

Royce Waltman Royce Waltman (January 8, 1942 – April 7, 2014) was an American college basketball coach. He was the head coach at Indiana State University from 1997 to 2007; at the University of Indianapolis from 1992 to 1997 and the 2007–08 season and at ...

– college basketball coach * Richard Schweiker – politician; former United States Senator from Pennsylvania (1969–1981) and former

United States Secretary of Health and Human Services The United States secretary of health and human services is the head of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, and serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States on all health matters. The secretary is ...

(1981–1983)

References

External links

Official websiteOfficial athletics website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Slippery Rock University Of Pennsylvania Educational institutions established in 1889 Universities and colleges in Butler County, Pennsylvania Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education Public universities and colleges in Pennsylvania 1889 establishments in Pennsylvania