The University of Montevallo is a public university in Montevallo, Alabama. Founded on October 12, 1896, the university is Alabama's only public

liberal arts college A liberal arts college or liberal arts institution of higher education is a college with an emphasis on undergraduate study in liberal arts and sciences. Such colleges aim to impart a broad general knowledge and develop general intellectual capac ...

and a member of the Council of Public Liberal Arts Colleges. The

University of Montevallo Historic District The University of Montevallo Historic District was added to the National Register of Historic Places in December 1978 and originally included 25 acres and 16 structures. These structures made up the core part of the campus and included residence ...

was established in 1979 and included 16 buildings on campus. It was expanded in 1990 to include 75 buildings total. It is located in a rural location in central Alabama.

History

King House University of Montevallo Montevallo, AL

The main part of the campus was designed by the Olmsted brothers and the central part is a historic district listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The university opened in October 1896 as the Alabama Girls' Industrial School (AGIS), a women-only

technical school In the United States, a technical school is a type of two-year college that covers specialized fields such as business, finance, hospitality, tourism, construction, engineering, visual arts, information technology and community work. Associa ...

that also offered high school-level courses. AGIS became the Alabama Girls' Technical Institute in 1911, further adding "and College for Women" in 1919. The school gradually developed as a traditional degree-granting institution, becoming Alabama College, State College for Women in 1923. The school effectively became

coeducation 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 t ...

al after lobbying by the school's supporters resulted in the

Alabama Legislature The Alabama Legislature is the legislative branch of the state government of Alabama. It is a bicameral body composed of the House of Representatives and Senate. It is one of the few state legislatures in which members of both chambers serv ...

passing a bill on January 15, 1956 to remove the designation "State College for Women". The first men entered the school that same month. Its student body still maintains a 7:5 ratio of women to men. In 1965, the board of trustees authorized President D.P. Culp to sign the Certificates of Assurance of Compliance with the

Civil Rights Act of 1964 The Civil Rights Act of 1964 () is a landmark civil rights and United States labor law, labor law in the United States that outlaws discrimination based on Race (human categorization), race, Person of color, color, religion, sex, and nationa ...

.Encyclopedia of Alabama: University of Montevallo
accessed 2010-05-16. In the fall of 1968, three African American women, Carolyn Burpo, Ruby Kennbrew and Dorothy (Lilly) Turner, enrolled in the university. On September 1, 1969, Alabama College was renamed the University of Montevallo. University of Montevallo Campus Gate

The Alabama Girls' Industrial School was listed on the National Register in 1978. In 1990, the

was listed on the National Register, as an expansion. Montevallo is in the geographic center of Alabama in an area rich with Civil War history. Many of the buildings on campus predate the founding of the college, including King House (reserved for special guests of the campus) and Reynolds Hall (used by the Theater Department and alumni relations). King House was reportedly the first home in Alabama to receive pane glass windows. With nearly 3,000 students, the university has a significant economic impact on the surrounding communities in Shelby County.

Traditions

College Night

The University of Montevallo's homecoming tradition, called College Night, is a coeducational competition in which students may participate for either the Purple Side or the Gold Side, named after the school's colors. The tradition of College Night began as a celebration of the upcoming renaming of Alabama Girls' Technical Institute to Alabama College. First taking place on March 3, 1919, as a competition between the four classes, the Class of 1919 said that "now that our school is becoming a college, we have begun to take up college stunts." The main event of College Night is the performance of musical theater productions by each side. Said musicals are composed, directed, produced, and performed entirely by student participants. The productions last from Wednesday through Saturday on the week of College Night. The competition also currently involves four athletic events: men's and women's basketball, women's volleyball, and men's ultimate Frisbee. During halftime at the men's basketball game, which is played on Saturday afternoon before the final musical performances, a cheer competition between the Purple Side and the Gold Side takes place. Additionally, both sides craft signs which are revealed and displayed in front of Farmer Hall, the campus's

student union building A student center (or student centre) is a type of building found on university and some high school campuses. In the United States, such a building may also be called a student union, student commons, or union. The term "student union" refers mos ...

. It is after the final production on Saturday night when either a Purple Victory or a Gold Victory is declared until the next year's College Night. The victor of College Night is decided based on a system of points derived from each side's degree of sportsmanship, how well they perform in the various events, and how the three judges of the student-led productions rate each side's show. In honor of A.G.T.I.'s 25th anniversary in 1921, College Night became a competition between two sides, Purple and Gold, instead of a competition between the classes. Since then, both sides have adopted mascots; Purple Side adopted the cow as theirs, and Gold Side adopted the lion as theirs. Each side has a song that is sung only when members of the side join hands, forming a circle; whereas Purple Side's circle is connected 360° around, Gold Side leaves a small hole in their circle. When "circled up," the leaders of each side ask a question to all the other members of their respective sides. Purple Side's leaders ask, "Why is their ''never'' a hole in our circle?" Their side always responds with, "''Because''! A united circle is a united side! Let the circle be unbroken!" Gold Side's leaders ask their side, "Why is there ''always'' a hole in our circle?" Their side responds by saying, "''Because''! There's always room for one more Gold!" In 2000, College Night was declared a "Local Legacy" by the Library of Congress, with an exhibit containing audio recordings of Purple and Gold side songs, photographs, College Night programs, and other artifacts.

Crook Week/Senior March

Traditionally, Crook Week was a week in late October when the senior class women would hide the "crook"—a staff shaped roughly like a

shepherd A shepherd or sheepherder is a person who tends, herds, feeds, or guards flocks of sheep. ''Shepherd'' derives from Old English ''sceaphierde (''sceap'' 'sheep' + ''hierde'' 'herder'). ''Shepherding is one of the world's oldest occupations, i ...

's crook—and give obscure clues for the underclass women who were to find it. At the end of Crook Week was Senior March. When the chimes struck thirteen, if the underclass women did not find the crook, the seniors march on them, getting them out of their rooms and onto Main Quad where they would have a shaving cream and water balloon battle. If the underclass women found the crook, they were safe that year. This tradition ended in the 1990s because the administration considered it hazing. Today, the Hiding of the Crook occurs the week of Founders' Day. The administration hides the crook and leaves clues as to where it can be found. The finder of the crook gets recognized at Founders' Day with a small prize.

Life Raft Debate

The Life Raft Debate is an annual event sponsored by the Philosophy Club. The debate has occurred each fall semester since 1998, on the second Thursday in October during the university's Founders' Day commemoration. In the Life Raft Debate, the audience is asked to imagine that there has been a nuclear war and that they, as the survivors, are setting sail to rebuild society from the ground up. There are a group of professors vying to win the coveted Oar and get on the raft, and only one seat is left. Each professor has to argue that his or her discipline is the one indispensable area of study that the new civilization will need to flourish. Varagona with oar

Each professor gets to give an introductory account of his or her discipline then a brief rebuttal to the others. At the end of the debate, the audience votes and the lucky winner claims the Oar and climbs aboard, waving goodbye to the others. Often, a seventh participant, the Devil's Advocate, appears and tries to convince the audience that the entire panel is unworthy and that all should be left behind to drown. In the following year, the defending champion faces five new challengers in a new debate. To date, no one has successfully defended the Oar. The first event was held in 1998 before an audience of roughly 200 people. Michael Sterner of the Mathematics Department carried the day with an impassioned defense of his discipline, touting both its usefulness and beauty and promising that, if he were to be saved, there would be "no more word problems ever." In the subsequent years the debate's popularity grew to attract more than 800 audience members per year. Following years saw victories by professors from a variety of academic disciplines. On March 12, 2010, the public radio show ''

This American Life ''This American Life'' (''TAL'') is an American monthly hour-long radio program produced in collaboration with Chicago Public Media and hosted by Ira Glass. It is broadcast on numerous public radio stations in the United States and internation ...

'' ran a story on the Life Raft Debate entitled "I'd Like to Spank the Academy." The story followed the events of the 2007 Life Raft Debate in which the Devil's Advocate, Jon Smith, a professor in the Department of English, successfully argued that all the panelists should be drowned because they were merely trying to be funny, not to educate or to defend the importance of their respective disciplines. Following the broadcast, several colleges and universities in the United States and abroad began hosting Life Raft Debates of their own.

Campus resources

James Wylie Shepherd Observatory

The James Wylie Shepherd Observatory at the University of Montevallo was opened in the Fall of 2009. The observatory was built on the site of a former construction landfill, now remade into Gentry Springs field. The observatory is a U of M sustainability landmark.

The observatory is located roughly three miles from the main campus on the 150-acre Gentry Springs site owned by the university. The JWSO is capable of astronomical telescopic observation and astrophotography, has a dedicated telescope for solar viewing, and is one of very few observatories in the country that is designed specifically to be completely accessible to people of all disabilities. Besides its observing capabilities, the JWSO will be a green facility, employing self-composting toilets, filtered rainwater and solar-generated electricity. The facility is currently used by UM classes, the Montevallo Astronomical Society, AMSTI partners and a variety of area K-12 classes and other local groups. There are also regularly-scheduled public viewing nights that are free of charge. Upon completion, the observing complex will house an outdoor planetarium/amphitheater, a docent's cabin, walking trails, a digital indoor planetarium, a visiting scholar's dormitory, educational exhibits and a visitors' center in which groups can see images generated by the main telescope. Additional smaller scopes for solar and planetary observing can be set up at various locations outside the main dome, which is surrounded by solar-powered outdoor low-level lighting.

Ebenezer Swamp Ecological Preserve

The University of Montevallo's Ebenezer Swamp consists of approximately of wooded wetlands and is located on near the headwaters of Spring Creek, approximately northeast of the University in central Alabama. Spring Creek and Ebenezer Swamp form a portion of the headwaters for the ecologically diverse and environmentally sensitive Cahaba River Watershed. The Cahaba is the longest remaining free-flowing river, has more species of fish per mile than any river in North America and is one of eight river biodiversity hotspots in the U.S. UM is creating the Ebenezer Swamp Wetlands Interpretive and Research Center (ESWIRC) to focus greater research on wetland ecology and to increase educational opportunities for high school and middle school students from across the state of Alabama. Research goals center on: establishing and maintaining an inventory of plant, animal and fungal species; monitoring water quality, rainfall and stream flow rates; and future studies of wetland ecological processes and the effects of encroachment along the swamp margin. Education goals center on raising the profile of the ecologic importance of wetlands to high school and middle school students, while simultaneously providing them with a sound introduction to the underlying principles of biology.

ValloCycle: Montevallo Bike-Share Program

Formed through a collaborative partnership between the City of

Montevallo Montevallo is a city in Shelby County, Alabama, United States. A college town, it is the home of the University of Montevallo, a public liberal arts university with approximately 3,000 students. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city o ...

and the University of Montevallo, the ValloCycle Bike-Share Program exists as a citywide initiative to enhance overall community walkability and individual citizen engagement with a lifestyle of sustainable, alternative transportation. The ValloCycle Bike-Share Program's primary means of achieving these goals is through its day-to-day operation of the ValloCycle Bike-Share Program, the first county-wide bicycle sharing program in the state of Alabama to offer low-cost bicycle rentals to all the members of its community. Unlike other nearby campus bike-share programs, ValloCycle bicycle rentals are not limited solely to university students and are also not confined to one location. Rather, bicycle rentals are offered to all residents of Montevallo and the surrounding Shelby County area in three separate check-out locations. Annual membership fees amount to roughly $2 a month for adults and $1 a month per child. The all-volunteer ValloCycle Board oversees the implementation of a number of other campus and community programs, events, resources and public bicyclist/pedestrian infrastructure enhancements, including the Montevallo "Share the Lane" Initiative, the ValloCycle Town Map Project, and the Montevallo "Tour By Bike". Membership forms are available at ValloCycle's public website, vallocycle.com.

Anagama Kiln

Montevallo's kiln was hand-built by the ceramics professor Scott Meyer and students beginning in 1999. Fired once or twice a year, the kiln fires for 100 hours and consumes up to 14 cords of split wood.

Carmichael Library

Oliver Cromwell Carmichael Oliver Carmichael (October 3, 1891 – September 25, 1966) served as the third chancellor of Vanderbilt University from 1937 to 1946. He also served as the President of the University of Alabama from 1953 to 1957. Early life Oliver Cromwell Carm ...

Library, is on Bloch Street, since 1968.

Greek life

Interfraternity Council

Panhellenic Council

National Pan-Hellenic Council

Professional and Honorary Societies

Disc golf course

In 2007, The University of Montevallo in cooperation with the Professional Disc Golf Association built a full size, 18 hole, disc golf course on the grounds of the campus. At the time of its construction it was one of the few courses located on the campus of a public university in the region. Despite the fact that it is on university grounds and maintained by school staff it is open to the public and has provided a source of cooperation and connection between the community and the school. In recent years several University of Montevallo Greek organizations have sponsored various holes in order to help with maintenance and upkeep.

Athletics

The University of Montevallo fields 19 NCAA Division II athletic teams that currently compete in the Gulf South Conference. Men's sports include baseball, basketball,

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

, golf, lacrosse, tennis and

track Track or Tracks may refer to: Routes or imprints * Ancient trackway, any track or trail whose origin is lost in antiquity * Animal track, imprints left on surfaces that an animal walks across * Desire path, a line worn by people taking the shorte ...

cross-country Cross country or cross-country may refer to: Places * Cross Country, Baltimore, a neighborhood in northwest Baltimore, Maryland * Cross County Parkway, an east–west parkway in Westchester County, NY * Cross County Shopping Center, a mall in Yo ...

. Women's sports include lacrosse, basketball, soccer, golf, cross-country, tennis, volleyball and track and field. The Falcons were members of the Gulf South Conference from 1995 until 2009. They then competed in the Peach Belt Conference until re-joining the GSC before the 2017–18 academic year.

Notable faculty and staff

* Oliver Carmichael, served as President of Alabama College from 1926 to 1935; later served as Chancellor of Vanderbilt University from 1937 to 1946 and as President of the University of Alabama from 1953 to 1957. He is also the

namesake A namesake is a person, geographic location, or other entity bearing the name of another. History The word is first attested around 1635, and probably comes from the phrase "for one's name's sake", which originates in English Bible translations ...

of the Oliver Cromwell Carmichael Library at the University of Montevallo. * Margaret Cuninggim, taught at the University of Montevallo. Later, she served as Dean of Women at the University of Tennessee and Vanderbilt University. *

Garnie W. McGinty Garnie William McGinty (April 5, 1900 – April 22, 1984) was a historian whose career was principally based for thirty-five years at Louisiana Tech University in Ruston, Louisiana. Biography McGinty was born in Bienville Parish in north Loui ...

, Louisiana historian taught briefly at UM prior to his longtime association with Louisiana Tech University. *

Eugene Sledge Eugene Bondurant Sledge (November 4, 1923 – March 3, 2001) was a United States Marine Corps, United States Marine, university professor, and author. His 1981 memoir With the Old Breed, ''With the Old Breed: At Peleliu and Okinawa'' chroni ...

, PhD, recounted his experiences in the Pacific theater of World War II in the book ''With the Old Breed: At Peleliu and Okinawa.'' He is portrayed in the HBO miniseries "The Pacific." He was a professor of biology and a specialist in ornithology at the university until his death in 2001. *

John R. Steelman John Roy Steelman (June 23, 1900 – July 14, 1999) was the first person to serve as "The Assistant to the President of the United States", in the administration of President Harry S. Truman from 1946 to 1953. The office later became the White ...

, sociologist at UM from 1928 to 1934 went on to become the first Assistant to the President of the United States (today called White House Chief of Staff) for

Harry S. Truman Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. A leader of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 34th vice president from January to April 1945 under Franklin ...

from 1946 to 1953. * Olive Stone, sociologist known for her covert involvement with the Southern Negro Youth Congress and multiple

Marxist Marxism is a Left-wing politics, left-wing to Far-left politics, far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a Materialism, materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand S ...

reading groups in the

Deep South The Deep South or the Lower South is a cultural and geographic subregion in the Southern United States. The term was first used to describe the states most dependent on plantations and slavery prior to the American Civil War. Following the war ...

Julia Tutwiler Julia Strudwick Tutwiler (August 15, 1841 – March 24, 1916) was an advocate for education and prison reform in Alabama. She served as co-principal of the Livingston Female Academy, and then the first (and only) woman president of Livingston N ...

, 19th-century champion of equal educational opportunities for Alabama women, secured the funding that enabled AGIS to open in 1896. She also served as the first president of Livingston Normal College (now the University of West Alabama) and wrote a poem, "Alabama", that was later adapted as the official state song.

Notable alumni

Slade Blackwell Slade Blackwell (born June 14, 1968) is an American Republican politician and businessman who served as a member of the Alabama Senate from 2010 to 2018. Early life and education He was born in Mississippi and grew up in Montevallo, Alabama.

, member of the Alabama Senate, 2010-2018 * Beth Chapman,

Secretary of State of Alabama The secretary of state of Alabama is one of the constitutional officers of the U.S. state of Alabama. The office actually predates the statehood of Alabama, dating back to the Alabama Territory. From 1819 to 1901, the secretary of state served ...

, 2007–2013 * Jim Dunaway, host of ''The Next Round'', former TV news anchor for WIAT and WVTM, radio host *

Matt Fridy Matt Fridy (born January 17, 1976) is an American politician and lawyer. He serves as a judge on the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals and served in the Alabama House of Representatives from the 73rd district from 2014 to 2020. Fridy graduated fro ...

, judge on the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals and served in the

Alabama House of Representatives The Alabama State House of Representatives is the lower house of the Alabama Legislature, the state legislature of state of Alabama. The House is composed of 105 members representing an equal number of districts, with each constituency contai ...

from the 73rd district from 2014 to 2020 * Hannah Godwin, television personality known for '' The Bachelor'' and '' Bachelor in Paradise'' * Rusty Greer, professional baseball player * Polly Holliday, actress best known for the character of Flo from the television show ''

Alice Alice may refer to: * Alice (name), most often a feminine given name, but also used as a surname Literature * Alice (''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland''), a character in books by Lewis Carroll * ''Alice'' series, children's and teen books by ...

'' * Jo Kittinger, children's book author, speaker, and President of SCBWI * Rebecca Luker, musical-theatre actress and three-time Tony Award nominee *

Jon Maloney Jonathan Duncan Maloney (born 3 March 1985) is an English footballer who plays for Wetherby Athletic as a defender although he has also been utilised as a striker. Career Born in Leeds, West Yorkshire, Maloney started his career at Doncaster ...

, professional soccer player All-time lead scorer for Montevallo Men's Soccer team and the only three-time Gulf South Conference Player of the Year *

Ray Reach Raymond Everett Reach, Jr. (born August 3, 1948) is an American pianist, vocalist, guitarist, composer, arranger, music producer, and educator, named by AL.com as one of "30 Alabamians who changed jazz history." He serves as President and CEO of ...

, jazz pianist, vocalist, arranger, composer, and educator * Doug Sisson, professional baseball

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

Rodger Smitherman Rodger Mell Smitherman (born March 2, 1953) is a Democratic member of the Alabama Senate, representing the 18th District since 1995. He is also a member of the Alabama Sentencing Commission. Smitherman was elected President Pro Tempore of the ...

, Democratic member of the Alabama Senate * Todd Strange, former mayor of Montgomery, Alabama *

Nancy Worley Nancy Worley (November 7, 1951 – December 29, 2021) was an American Democratic politician who served as Secretary of State of Alabama from 2003 to 2007 and Chairman of the Alabama Democratic Party from 2013 to 2019. Early life and education ...

, former president,

Alabama Education Association The Alabama Education Association (AEA) is a statewide professional organization that represents public school employees in the state of Alabama. It is based in the state capital of Montgomery. The AEA is the largest education association in Ala ...

;

, 2003–2007; chair, Alabama Democratic Party

References

External links

Official website

Anna Crawford Milner Archives & Special Collections
{{Authority control University of Montevallo Educational institutions established in 1896 National Register of Historic Places in Shelby County, Alabama Universities and colleges accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Universityof Montevallo Education in Shelby County, Alabama Buildings and structures in Shelby County, Alabama Montevallo, Alabama Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Alabama 1896 establishments in Alabama Public liberal arts colleges in the United States