The University of Massachusetts Lowell (UMass Lowell and UML) 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 ...

Lowell, Massachusetts Lowell () is a city in Massachusetts, in the United States. Alongside Cambridge, It is one of two traditional seats of Middlesex County. With an estimated population of 115,554 in 2020, it was the fifth most populous city in Massachusetts as of ...

, with a satellite campus in Haverhill, Massachusetts. It is the northernmost member of the

University of Massachusetts The University of Massachusetts is the five-campus public university system and the only public research system in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The university system includes five campuses (Amherst, Boston, Dartmouth, Lowell, and a medical ...

public university system and has been

accredited Accreditation is the independent, third-party evaluation of a conformity assessment body (such as certification body, inspection body or laboratory) against recognised standards, conveying formal demonstration of its impartiality and competence to ...

by the

New England Commission of Higher Education The New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE) is a voluntary, peer-based, non-profit membership organization that performs peer evaluation and accreditation of public and private universities and colleges in the United States and other ...

(NECHE) since 1975. With 1,110 faculty members and over 18,000 students, it is the largest university in the

Merrimack Valley The Merrimack Valley is a bi-state region along the Merrimack River in the U.S. states of New Hampshire and Massachusetts. The Merrimack is one of the larger waterways in New England and has helped to define the livelihood and culture of those ...

and the second-largest public institution in the state. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity". The university offers 120 bachelor's degree, 43 master's degree, and 25 doctoral degree programs, including nationally recognized programs in engineering, criminal justice, education, music, science, and technology. The university is one of the few public universities in the United States to offer accredited undergraduate degrees in

meteorology Meteorology is a branch of the atmospheric sciences (which include atmospheric chemistry and physics) with a major focus on weather forecasting. The study of meteorology dates back millennia, though significant progress in meteorology did no ...

sound recording technology In physics, sound is a vibration that propagates as an acoustic wave, through a transmission medium such as a gas, liquid or solid. In human physiology and psychology, sound is the ''reception'' of such waves and their ''perception'' by the ...

, nuclear engineering and

plastics engineering Plastics engineering encompasses the processing, design, development, and manufacture of plastics products. A plastic is a polymeric material that is in a semi-liquid state, having the property of plasticity and exhibiting flow. Plastics engineer ...

. It was the first to offer a degree in music education. Academically, UMass Lowell is organized into six schools and colleges: the College of Fine Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences; the College of Education; the Kennedy College of Sciences; the Francis College of Engineering; the Manning School of Business; and the Zuckerberg College of Health Sciences.

History

The University of Massachusetts Lowell owes its origins to two institutions founded in the 1890s: Lowell State College on the south side of the

Merrimack River The Merrimack River (or Merrimac River, an occasional earlier spelling) is a river in the northeastern United States. It rises at the confluence of the Pemigewasset and Winnipesaukee rivers in Franklin, New Hampshire, flows southward into M ...

and

Lowell Technological Institute The Lowell Technological Institute was a public college located in Lowell, Massachusetts, United States. It was founded in 1895 as the Lowell Textile School. Its campus is now part of the University of Massachusetts Lowell. History Beginnings P ...

on the north side. Each would follow its own path of expansion through the 20th century.

Lowell State College

Lowell State College got its start as the Lowell Normal School, which was chartered in 1894 as a teacher-training institution for women. The 10th and final

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 ...

to be established in Massachusetts, it opened in 1898 with 108 students and five faculty members. The original classroom building opened the next year at the corner of Broadway and Wilder streets, and quickly became a landmark in the city. Designed by local firm Stickney & Austin, it reflects the fashion of the time: high-style Beaux Arts with classical symmetry, arches, cast-iron lampposts and yellow brick. Its design was influenced in part by Lowell High School, which was also designed by Lowell native Frederick W. Stickney. Frank Coburn, for whom the hall was later named, served as the school's first principal until 1908. After being threatened with closure during the Great Depression, school administrators rallied local support to help keep it open. A delegation of prominent individuals representing Lowell's powerful interest groups traveled to Boston and convinced state officials of the school's importance. The result was that the school not only survived, but continued to grow and expand. In 1950, Dr. Daniel O'Leary assumed the presidency and initiated an ambitious building program. The physical plant of the campus expanded during post-war era from a single structure to a multi-building complex, forming an area now known as UMass Lowell's South Campus. As the demand for more qualified teachers grew, the legislature reorganized the Normal School into Lowell State College in 1960 with a curriculum that expanded beyond education to include baccalaureate degrees in other fields including nursing and music. Beginning in 1967, the college was authorized to confer two more degrees: Master of Education and Master of Music Education.

Lowell Technological Institute

Established in 1895 as the Lowell Textile School, the institution was founded to train technicians and managers for work in Lowell's booming textile industry. Modeled after the now-defunct

Polytechnic College of Pennsylvania Polytechnic College of Pennsylvania was an engineering school in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania founded in 1853. It was the eighth school of engineering in the United States and the first to offer degree programs in mechanical engineering, mining engin ...

, Lowell Textile was the combined effort of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and corporations eager to form a school dedicated to textile education. Under the guidance of founder James T. Smith, Lowell Textile opened its doors in February 1897 in the upper floors of a downtown commercial block located on Middle Street. The school offered three-year training programs in cotton and wool manufacturing, design, textile chemistry and dyeing. In 1903, the school moved from downtown to its permanent location just northwest of the Merrimack River. The yellow brick mill-like Southwick Hall was dedicated to Royal and Dierexa Southwick. Grandparents of the wealthy businessman

Frederick Ayer Frederick Ayer (December 8, 1822 – March 14, 1918) was an American businessman and the younger brother of patent medicine tycoon Dr. James Cook Ayer. Early life Ayer was born on December 8, 1822 in Ledyard, Connecticut and was the son of ...

, the Southwicks were

Quakers Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belief in each human's abil ...

and abolitionists who came to Lowell in the 1820s to help establish the Lowell Carpet Company. Ten years later, the school granted its first bachelor's degrees in textile dyeing and textile engineering. In 1953, President Martin Lydon expanded the curriculum to include programs in plastics, leather, paper and electronics technology, increased the liberal arts offerings and renamed the school the Lowell Technological Institute. He moved the institute decisively toward general engineering, setting up a bachelor's program in 1956. The textile program was closed in 1971, reflecting the closure of most of the mills in the city.

University of Lowell

In 1972, a feasibility study was conducted on merging Lowell State College with Lowell Technological Institute. Lowell State and Lowell Tech merged in 1975 as the University of Lowell. Durgin Hall, with its 1000-seat performance venue, was dedicated as the home of the Music Department. The Manning School of Business (then the College of Management Science) was accredited. The College of Education became certified to offer a doctorate in education (Ed.D.). The College of Health Professions (now the Zuckerberg College of Health Sciences) was established. Enrollment increased 58% by 1985.

Merger with University of Massachusetts

In 1991, the Lowell campus joined the University of Massachusetts system under its current name. Under Chapter 142, the UMass system was restructured to combine the Amherst,

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, and

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Engla ...

campuses with the University of Lowell and

Southeastern Massachusetts University The University of Massachusetts Dartmouth (UMass Dartmouth or UMassD) is a public research university in Dartmouth, Massachusetts. It is the southernmost campus of the University of Massachusetts system. Formerly Southeastern Massachusetts U ...

(now

UMass Dartmouth The University of Massachusetts Dartmouth (UMass Dartmouth or UMassD) is a public research university in Dartmouth, Massachusetts. It is the southernmost campus of the University of Massachusetts system. Formerly Southeastern Massachusetts Un ...

Recent developments

In 2019, a sexual harassment complaint against Associate Dean Oliver Ibe was settled by the university. The complaint was from a younger female staff member in 2017. Ibe's title of associate dean was removed and he returned to the faculty despite a petition from faculty and staff to have him removed from the campus. He retired the following year.

June 2021 network outage

On June 15, 2021, technology services of the university were affected by a cybersecurity incident. The university was closed for the day, and all in-person and online classes and other operations for the day were canceled. On June 20, all university account passwords were reset. On June 21, technology services such as Blackboard and Zoom were finally restored, and classes finally resumed.

Campus

UMass Lowell is the second-largest campus in the University of Massachusetts system and it has three campus clusters: North, South and East. The university's main facilities are located in

, 25 miles (40 km) northwest of

on both sides of the

. The university has increased student housing by more than 2,500 beds in the last five years, including opening three new residence halls in 2013, 2015, and 2017.

Organization and administration

The university is governed by a six-member executive cabinet, including and led by the chancellor. The current chancellor is Julie Chen, who was appointed in May 2022.

Marty Meehan Martin Thomas Meehan (born December 30, 1956) is an American academic administrator, politician, and attorney. Since July 2015, Meehan has served as the President of the University of Massachusetts after serving as Chancellor of the University of ...

, former UMass Lowell Chancellor, is currently the president of the entire University of Massachusetts system. He assumed office in July 2015 after serving as the chancellor since September 2007.

Academics

The University of Massachusetts Lowell has an acceptance rate of 72 percent, a freshman retention rate of 85 percent, and a graduation rate of 63 percent. In 2016, 87% of first-year students rated their overall educational experience as "good" or "excellent". The average combined SAT score (Critical Reading and Math) for incoming freshmen for fall 2018 was 1233, up nearly 150 points since fall 2010, and the average entering GPA was a 3.60, up from 3.18 in fall 2010. 47% of undergraduate classes had 20 students or fewer in the fall 2018 semester. In 2018 UMass awarded a total of 2,798 Bachelor's, 1,102 Master's and 122 Doctoral degrees.

Tuition and fees

The 2018-2019 annual tuition and fees for undergraduates were $15,180 (In State), $26,441 (New England Regional & Proximity) and $32,827 (Out of State). Graduate tuitions were $15,060, $22,871 and $26,840 respectively. As of the 2020–2021 school year the annual tuition and fees for undergraduates students are as follows, $15,698 (in state), $27,238 (New England/proximity), $33,624 (out of state), and lastly $36,525 (International). Graduate tuitions were $15,210, $23,021, $26,990, and $29,841 respectively.

Online programs

The university offers various courses online; in 2018, it had a total online-enrollment of 30,932 which was an increase of 7.4% compared to 2017. Total revenue from online classes in 2018 was $39.1 million.

Colleges

Francis College of Engineering

Southwick Hall - University of Massachusetts Lowell - DSC00147

The Francis College of Engineering is named after James B. Francis, a hydraulic engineer who began his career in Lowell during the

Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...

. The college is home to nearly 150 full-time faculty members and 14 research centers, and is fully accredited by

ABET 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 ...

. The college is ranked No. 118 by U.S. News & World Report. UMass Lowell has a

radiation laboratory The Radiation Laboratory, commonly called the Rad Lab, was a microwave and radar research laboratory located at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It was first created in October 1940 and operated until 31 ...

that provides students with real-world experience in

particle physics Particle physics or high energy physics is the study of fundamental particles and forces that constitute matter and radiation. The fundamental particles in the universe are classified in the Standard Model as fermions (matter particles) an ...

, nuclear engineering and

health physics Health physics, also referred to as the science of radiation protection, is the profession devoted to protecting people and their environment from potential radiation hazards, while making it possible to enjoy the beneficial uses of radiation. H ...

. The UMass Lowell Baseball Research Center is associated with the College of Engineering. The facility, first funded in 1998, is the official testing center for

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

, testing

bats Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera.''cheir'', "hand" and πτερόν''pteron'', "wing". With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most bir ...

and baseballs. Those conducting research through the center include mechanical engineering faculty and a full-time staff engineer, and six to 12 student laboratory assistants.

Zuckerberg College of Health Sciences

The Roy J. Zuckerberg College of Health Sciences includes the Solomont School of Nursing, elevated from a department as of June 1, 2013. The college has more than 2,100 undergraduate students, 409 graduate students, 82 faculty members and six research centers. The college offers seven degree and certificate programs, including the only doctorate of physical therapy (DPT) degree program offered by a public institution in Massachusetts. It also offers the only graduate degrees in pharmaceutical sciences at a public institution in the Commonwealth. The graduate nursing program is ranked No. 156 in the nation while the graduate physical therapy program is ranked No. 101, according to U.S. News & World Report.

College of Fine Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences

The College of Fine Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences includes the School of Criminology and Justice Studies, as well as signature programs including sound recording technology, music business, peace and conflict studies, security studies and more. The College of Fine Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences is the largest college at UMass Lowell and offers 24 undergraduate and graduate degree programs and houses seven centers and institutes, including the Kerouac Center for Public Humanities, named for writer Jack Kerouac, a Lowell native.

School of Education

Cumnock Hall - University of Massachusetts Lowell - DSC00148

The College of Education offers bachelor's, master's and doctoral degree programs. The school includes 13 tenure-track faculty members and four clinical faculty members. The school has a 100 percent pass rate on the Massachusetts Tests for Educator Licensure. The online graduate education program is ranked No. 16 in the nation by U.S. News & World Report.

William J. and John F. Kennedy College of Sciences

The

William J. and John F. Kennedy College of Sciences The William J. and John F. Kennedy College of Sciences at the University of Massachusetts Lowell is so named for the Kennedy family (unrelated to the political family) and their contributions to the campus. John F. Kennedy is an alumnus of the Low ...

has six departments: Biological Sciences; Chemistry; Computer Science; Environmental, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences; Mathematical Sciences; and Physics and Applied Physics. Originally the UMass Lowell College of Sciences, the college was renamed in honor of two alumni, John F. Kennedy '70 and William J. Kennedy '54, in 2015 (unrelated to the political family). Research centers associated with the college include the New England Robotics Validation and Testing Center (NERVE), one of the nation's premier

robotics Robotics is an interdisciplinary branch of computer science and engineering. Robotics involves design, construction, operation, and use of robots. The goal of robotics is to design machines that can help and assist humans. Robotics integrate ...

research, testing and training facilities. Computer Science professor and NERVE director

Holly Yanco Holly Ann Yanco is an American roboticist and computer scientist who works as Distinguished University Professor of computer science at the University of Massachusetts Lowell, and the director of the New England Robotics Validation and Experiment ...

is currently collaborating with Northeastern University professors Taskin Padir and Robert Platt in developing NASA's Valkyrie robot to research advancements in cutting-edge humanoid robotics. The graduate chemistry program is ranked No. 145 and the graduate physics program is ranked No. 124 in the nation by U.S. News & World Report.

Manning School of Business

The Manning School of Business is named after Robert J. Manning, the chairman and CEO of

MFS Investment Management MFS Investment Management (MFS) is an American-based global investment manager, formerly known as Massachusetts Financial Services. Founded in 1924, MFS is one of the oldest asset management companies in the world and has been credited with pionee ...

. The school was named after Manning, a 1984 graduate of UMass Lowell, after he and his wife donated $5 million to the university. The Manning School of Business consists of five departments: Accounting, Finance, Management, MEI (Marketing, Entrepreneurship, and Innovation), and OIS (Operations and Information Systems). The school offers Bachelor's, Master's, and PhD level degrees.

Research

Total R&D expenditure was $92.2 million in 2020.https://www.uml.edu/docs/Report-Card-2021-Accessible_tcm18-338619.pdf Many of the research and development opportunities include Working in a campus research lab, helping a community organization, conducting reviews of program-related scholarship, or working on a business or marketing plan for a local start-up. Research can be done on anything, whether it is testing composite materials to advancing cyber security.

Labs and Research Initiatives

* Advanced Biophotonics Laboratory * Advanced Composites Materials & Textile Research * Advanced Computation and Telecommunications * Advanced Computing & Networking Systems * Advanced Electronics Technology * Astronomical Observatory * Baseball Research * Biomanufacturing Science & Technology * Cancer Treatment, Tissue Regeneration * Children & Families * Combustion Lab * Computer Machine/Human Intelligence, Networking & Distributed Systems * Data Analytics * Emerging Technologies to Protect SOLDIERS * Geotechnical Engineering * Health Assessment * Human-Robot Interaction * Materials Characterization * Medical Device Development * Medical Physics * Nanomanufacturing Center * Neuroscience * Nuclear Physics * Nuclear Security & Safeguards * Peace & Conflict Studies Institute * Photonics, Electromagnetics & Nanoelectronics * Printed Electronics * Protective Fabrics * Structural Dynamics & Acoustic Systems * Submillimeter-Wave Technology * Sustainable Production * Toxics Use Reduction Institute

Research Centers

* Center for Advanced Manufacturing of Polymers and Soft Materials * Center for Advanced Materials * Center for Asian American Studies * Center for Population Health * Center for Program Evaluation * Center for the Promotion of Health in the New England Workplace * Center for Terrorism & Security Studies (CTSS), founded by

James J.F. Forest James J. F. Forest is an author and a professor at the University of Massachusetts Lowell (UMass Lowell). Biography Forest founded the Center for Terrorism and Security Studies (CTSS) at UMass Lowell in 2013 and served as its Director from 2015 to ...

in 2013 and former co-publisher of academic journal ''

Perspectives on Terrorism ''Perspectives on Terrorism'' (PT) is a bimonthly peer-reviewed, open-access online academic journal, covering political violence, terrorism and counter-terrorism, It is published jointly by the Institute of Security and Global Affairs at the Ca ...

'' * Center for Wind Energy * Center for Women & Work * Climate Change Initiative * Lowell Center for Space Science & Technology * New England Robotics Validation & Experimentation Center * Raytheon-UMass Lowell Research Institute *Saab Center for Portuguese Studies

Engagement Centers

* Center for Community Research and Engagement * Center for Public Opinion * Stella and Jack Kerouac Center for the Public Humanities * Tsongas Industrial History Center

Seed Centers

* Biomedical Terahertz Technology Center * Center for Autism Research and Education (CARE) * Center for Gerontology Research & Partnerships * Center for International Security & Forensics Education & Research * Massachusetts BioManufacturing Center * Radiation Laboratory

University rankings

'' U.S. News & World Report'' ranks UMass Lowell No. 176 on its National Universities list in the Best Colleges of 2021. ''U.S. News & World Report'' also named UMass Lowell No. 87 in the top public universities and second among public universities in Massachusetts.University of Massachusetts-Lowell , Overall Rankings , Best College , US News
Colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com. Retrieved on 2013-08-23. ''

Washington Monthly ''Washington Monthly'' is a bimonthly, nonprofit magazine of United States politics and government that is based in Washington, D.C. The magazine is known for its annual ranking of American colleges and universities, which serves as an alterna ...

'' ranked UMass Lowell No. 163 nationally for 2015, representing a 31-spot jump from 2013.

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also r ...

ranked UMass Lowell No. 175 among research universities and No. 408 overall.

University Ranking by Academic Performance The University Ranking by Academic Performance (URAP) is a College and university rankings, university ranking developed by the Informatics Institute of Middle East Technical University. Since 2010, it has been publishing annual national and glob ...

for 2019-2020 ranks the university as No. 197 in the country. UMass Lowell is

by the

. UMass Lowell is known for having one of the highest returns on investment (ROI) in the country for its graduates.

ranked UMass Lowell as the 10th best value among all universities and colleges nationwide for 2013 and fourth-best value among non-military academies. UMass Lowell is one of just 75 institutions in the nation whose graduates have a 30-year net ROI of more than $1 million. PayScale.com found that UMass Lowell provides the 10th best ROI among 437 public universities in the U.S. and 50th out of 1,060 colleges and universities for 2013. PayScale also ranked UMass Lowell 40th in the Northeast Region for highest mid-career salary among graduates of state universities ($95,100) and 80th overall (tied with Boston College). UMass Lowell has been listed as one of the most underrated colleges in America on multiple occasions. In 2013, Business Insider named UMass Lowell as the "Most Underrated College in America". The 2015 edition has named UMass Lowell as the second-most underrated college in the U.S. behind

NJIT {{Infobox university , name = {{nowrap, New Jersey Institute of Technology , image = New Jersey IT seal.svg , image_upright = 0.9 , former_names = Newark College of Engineering (1930–1975)Ne ...

Student life

Student body

Total enrollment for the 2019–2020 academic year is 18,338, including 2,481 students in online and continuing education. in the following academic year about 18,400 students enrolled in the university this fall, making the largest student body enrolled. In-state enrollment represents 88.3 percent of undergraduates and 58.4 percent of graduate students. International students make up 3.5 percent of the undergraduate population and 16.2 percent of the graduate population. Students of color represent 36 percent of the total undergraduate population and 25 percent of the graduate population. The male-female ratio for undergraduates in 2018 was 61/39. Total enrollment has increased 50 percent since 2007.

Student activities

UMass Lowell has more than 250 student-run organizations. Of those, the seven largest are funded directly from the student activities fee (other registered student organizations have budgets granted through the Student Government Association). They are: * Student Government Association (SGA) *The UMass Lowell Connector ( student newspaper) * WUML (student-run

radio station Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radi ...

) *Association for Campus Events (ACE) *Off-Broadway Players (student theater group) *

University of Massachusetts Lowell River Hawk Marching Band A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, the ...

*Greek Council (student-run Governing Body of Greek Life Organizations) *Disable the Label (UML)

Greek life

Greek life was banned from the university campus after a hazing in 1987, where a student suffered overheating when left with a sleeping bag over his head near a space heater. Greek life was returned to the campus in 2012. Fraternities * Omicron Pi (local fraternity) *

Phi Kappa Sigma Phi Kappa Sigma () is an international all-male college secret society and social fraternity. While nicknames differ from institution to institution, the most common nicknames for the fraternity are Skulls, Skullhouse, Phi Kap, and PKS (the fi ...

Sigma Tau Gamma Sigma Tau Gamma (), commonly known as Sig Tau, is a United States college social fraternity founded on June 28, 1920, at the University of Central Missouri (then known as Central Missouri State Teachers College). The fraternity was founded as a re ...

*Sigma Phi Omicron (local fraternity) *

Sigma Beta Rho Sigma Beta Rho Fraternity, Inc. (, also SigRho) is a national, collegiate, multicultural, Greek-lettered fraternity. Sigma Beta Rho was founded on , at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. History Founding The founders originally att ...

* Delta Kappa Phi (local fraternity) Sororities * Alpha Sigma Tau *Alpha Omega (local sorority) * Kappa Delta Phi NAS *Phi Sigma Rho (local sorority)

Athletics

Tsongas Center - University of Massachusetts Lowell - DSC00100

UMass Lowell athletic teams compete in a variety of men's and women's sports in Division I. Men's sports include

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,

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice h ...

lacrosse Lacrosse is a team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game was extensiv ...

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 ...

, and soccer. Women's sports are

, cross country, lacrosse, track and field,

field hockey Field hockey is a team sport structured in standard hockey format, in which each team plays with ten outfield players and a goalkeeper. Teams must drive a round hockey ball by hitting it with a hockey stick towards the rival team's shooting ...

, soccer, and

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 ...

. As of July 1, 2013, 14 of UMass Lowell's Division II teams moved up to Division I, joining the

America East Conference The America East Conference is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with NCAA Division I founded in 1979, whose members are located in the Northeastern United States. The conference has nine core members including eight public research ...

. The River Hawks, with the exception of men's ice hockey, previously competed in the

Northeast-10 Conference The Northeast-10 Conference (NE-10) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level. Member institutions are located in the northeastern United States in the states o ...

at the Division II level. Past champions include the 1988 men's basketball team, the 1991 men's cross country team, the men's ice hockey team (three times) and the field hockey team twice (2005, 2010). The 2010 field hockey team finished its season with a perfect 24–0 record. The university's men's ice hockey team plays in the

Hockey East The Hockey East Association, also known as Hockey East, is a college ice hockey conference which operates entirely in New England. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as a hockey-only conference. Hockey East came into existence in 1984 for ...

Association and plays its home games at the

Tsongas Center at UMass Lowell The Tsongas Center at UMass Lowell (formerly the Tsongas Arena) is a multi-purpose facility owned by the University of Massachusetts Lowell and located in Lowell, Massachusetts. The arena was opened on January 27, 1998, and dedicated to the memory ...

. In 2013, the men's hockey team won the Hockey East regular-season and tournament championships and advanced to the NCAA Division I Championship "Frozen Four," all for the first time in the university's history. The men's hockey team repeated as Hockey East champions in 2014 while advancing to the

NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Championship The annual NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament is a college ice hockey tournament held in the United States by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) to determine the top men's team in Division I. Like other Division I cham ...

for the third straight year and sixth time overall. Goalie Connor Hellebuyck is the only Hockey East player to receive the league tournament's Most Valuable Player Award in two consecutive years, earning the honor in 2013 and 2014. The nickname "River Hawks" came about during the school's transition from the University of Lowell to UMass Lowell and was inspired by the campus's location along the

. The University of Lowell's nickname was the Chiefs, which was abandoned in favor of the current name. A campus-wide poll was conducted for student input and final candidates included the Ospreys and the Raging Rapids, according to the Connector student newspaper.

Alumni and notable people

Alumni activity

In 2018, a total of 8,158 alumni were supporting UMass Lowell financially, representing 10.2% of the alumni body.

Notable alumni and others

Notable people associated with the university include: File:AndreDubusIII03.JPG, Best-selling author and faculty member

Andre Dubus III Andre Dubus III (born September 11, 1959) is an American novelist and short story writer. He is a member of the faculty at the University of Massachusetts Lowell. Early life and education Born in Oceanside, California, to Patricia (née Lowe) a ...

. File:Craig MacTavish.JPG, Former NHL player and current GM and coach

Craig MacTavish Craig MacTavish (born August 15, 1958) is a Canadian professional ice hockey executive and former player, currently in an assistant coaching position with the St. Louis Blues. He played centre for 17 seasons in the National Hockey League with th ...

. File:Marty Meehan, President of the University of Massachusetts.jpg, Former congressman, former UMass chancellor and current UMass president

. File:Ambassador costos official-301x376.JPG, American diplomat and

United States Ambassador to Spain The incumbent ambassador is Julissa Reynoso Pantaleón, she was sworn in by Vice President Kamala Harris on January 7, 2022 and presented her credentials on February 2, 2022. This is a list of United States ambassadors to Spain from 1779 to th ...

and

Andorra , image_flag = Flag of Andorra.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Andorra.svg , symbol_type = Coat of arms , national_motto = la, Virtus Unita Fortior, label=none (Latin)"United virtue is stro ...

from 2013 to 2017,

James Costos James Costos (born 1963) is an American diplomat who was the United States Ambassador to Spain and Andorra from 2013 to 2017. He was appointed by President Barack Obama and confirmed by the United States Senate on August 1, 2013. Outside of hi ...

References

External links

*
UMass Lowell Athletics website
{{authority control Lowell

University of Massachusetts Lowell The University of Massachusetts Lowell (UMass Lowell and UML) is a public research university in Lowell, Massachusetts, with a satellite campus in Haverhill, Massachusetts. It is the northernmost member of the University of Massachusetts public ...

Educational institutions established in 1975 Universities and colleges in Middlesex County, Massachusetts Tourist attractions in Lowell, Massachusetts Universities and colleges formed by merger in the United States