The University of Virginia's College at Wise
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The University of Virginia's College at Wise (UVA Wise) 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 ...
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 ...
in Wise, Virginia. It is part of the
University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United S ...
and was established in 1954 as Clinch Valley College of the University of Virginia. The
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...
treated the University's campus as a
Census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counterparts of incorporated places, such ...
for the
2020 US census The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to of ...
and it had a population of 439.


History

The college was first conceived by local residents who petitioned the
University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United S ...
to establish a college in Wise. As support for a college grew, the Commonwealth of Virginia appropriated $5,000 to open, staff, and operate the college as a two-year
junior college A junior college (sometimes referred to colloquially as a juco, JuCo or JC) is a post-secondary educational institution offering vocational training designed to prepare students for either skilled trades and technical occupations and workers in su ...
on a trial basis for a year; and if successful, another $5,000 would be available for a second year. In the winter of 1954, the local community matched the commonwealth's funds and collected over $6,000 to furnish the classrooms and use for supplies. Wise County donated over of property that included two sandstone buildings; the property had once served as the county's poor farm. Clinch Valley College of the University of Virginia opened in September 1954 with an enrollment of 100 freshmen. Clinch Valley College became the westernmost state-supported college in Virginia. Prior to its opening, Virginia lacked public colleges west of Radford. Clinch Valley College operated as a junior college throughout the late 1950s and 1960s. During that time, the college gained more support from graduates who wanted to complete their baccalaureate degrees at the same institution and the college began the process to become a four-year college. In June 1970, Clinch Valley College granted its first Bachelor of Arts degrees; followed by Bachelor of Science degrees, first awarded in 1973. The college continued to grow and added new programs such as nursing and technology and in 1996, the college granted its first Bachelor of Science in Nursing degrees. In 1999, the
Virginia General Assembly The Virginia General Assembly is the legislative body of the Commonwealth of Virginia, the oldest continuous law-making body in the Western Hemisphere, the first elected legislative assembly in the New World, and was established on July 30, 161 ...
renamed the school "The University of Virginia's College at Wise," following an unsuccessful effort to change the institution's name in 1991. UVA Wise expanded its focus on international education and signed three sister institution agreements along with initiating cooperative and mutual exchange programs for students and faculty with three international institutions in the late 1990s. In 1998, the college signed a sister institution agreement with
Istanbul University , image = Istanbul_University_logo.svg , image_size = 200px , latin_name = Universitas Istanbulensis , motto = tr, Tarihten Geleceğe Bilim Köprüsü , mottoeng = Science Bridge from Past to the Future , established = 1453 1846 1933 ...
. A year later, it signed a second agreement with another
Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...
university, Dumlupinar University in
Kütahya Kütahya () (historically, Cotyaeum or Kotyaion, Ancient Greek, Greek: Κοτύαιον) is a city in western Turkey which lies on the Porsuk River, Porsuk river, at 969 metres above sea level. It is inhabited by some 578,640 people (2022 estimate) ...
. In December 2000, the University of Seville in Spain became the college's third sister institution. Through the early 21st century, UVA Wise underwent rapid growth, with several new buildings and campus beautification projects to accommodate enrollment growth. As of September 2010, the college offered 31 majors, 31 minors and 23 teaching specialties and had an enrollment of about 2,005 students. On February 2, 2012, UVA Wise saw the unexpected death of Chancellor David J. Prior. During his seven years as chancellor, the college experienced dramatic growth in student enrollment and facilities. During his tenure, the UVA Wise's five-year fund raising campaign, known as the "Fulfilling the Dream" campaign, exceeded its goal to raise $50 million. UVA Wise constructed numerous building during Prior's tenure, including the Hunter J. Smith Dining Commons, the Gilliam Center for the Arts and two residence halls, the $30 million Convocation Center, as well as the renovation of the Leonard W. Sandridge Science Center.


Campus

The University of Virginia's College at Wise comprises in the small town of Wise, Virginia. It is located approximately from
Kingsport, Tennessee Kingsport is a city in Sullivan and Hawkins counties in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 census, its population was 55,442. Lying along the Holston River, Kingsport is commonly included in what is known as the Mountain Empire, w ...
and from
Pikeville, Kentucky Pikeville () is a city in and the county seat of Pike County, Kentucky, United States. During the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. Census, the population within Pikeville's city limits was 7,754. In Kentucky's current city classification sys ...
.


Convocation Center

State lawmakers and regional leaders joined The University of Virginia's College at Wise on July 1, 2009, to break ground for a $30 million Convocation Center, the largest single capital project in the college's history at that time. The facility seats 3,000 for sporting events and 4,000 for concerts or convocation activities. The facility provides the region with its first venue to seat large crowds, something economic developers have said is needed to boost growth and development in far Southwest Virginia. Shortly after the death of Chancellor David J. Prior in February 2012, the facilities were dedicated in his honor and named the David J. Prior Convocation Center.


Academics


Accreditations

UVA Wise is accredited by the
Southern Association of Colleges and Schools The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) is an educational accreditor recognized by the United States Department of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. This agency accredits over 13,000 public and priv ...
Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) to award baccalaureate degrees. In addition, the college's computer science and software engineering degree programs are accredited by 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), the nursing program is accredited by the
Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education The Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) is a nursing education accrediting agency in the United States. The CCNE is recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. CCNE accreditation is a voluntary, self-regulatory process, and the ...
(CCNE), the teacher education program is accredited by the Teacher Education Accreditation Council (TEAC), and the chemistry program is accredited by the
American Chemical Society The American Chemical Society (ACS) is a scientific society based in the United States that supports scientific inquiry in the field of chemistry. Founded in 1876 at New York University, the ACS currently has more than 155,000 members at all d ...
(ACS).


Departments

UVA Wise has ten departments: * Department of Business & Economics * Department of Communications * Department of Education * Department of History & Philosophy * Department of Language and Literature * Department of Mathematics and Computer Science * Department of Natural Sciences * Department of Nursing * Department of Social Sciences * Department of Visual and Performing Arts The college requires all freshmen to enroll in a one-semester seminar that covers adjusting to the demands of college academic work. The seminar used to cover two semesters, until it was modified in the 2012-13 fall semester. Before the modified seminar, the student's seminar instructor became his or her advisor until the student selected a major. Presently, if the student is unsure of the major that he or she wants to be in, the Advising Office becomes the student's adviser. The college also has a 53 semester-hour general education requirement. Students must attend four cultural activities in each their freshman and junior years. The college offers baccalaureate degrees in 31 majors. A College Major is also offered.


Student life


Greek life

There are five Greek life fraternities and sororities. Fraternities *
Alpha Gamma Omega Alpha Gamma Omega (, or AGO) was founded in 1927 at UCLA as a Christ-centered fraternities and sororities, fraternity. Alpha Gamma Omega now has chapters at universities in California, Colorado, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. It mai ...
* Kappa Sigma * Pi Kappa Phi * Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Sororities *
Sigma Alpha Omega Sigma Alpha Omega () is an American non-denominational Christian sorority for women, founded at North Carolina State University on January 5, 1998. However, they can trace their roots back to the once co-educational Chi Alpha Omega fraternity fou ...


Student publications

''The Highland Cavalier'' is the student-run newspaper. The college also has a biannual literary journal, ''Jimson Weed''.


Athletics

The Virginia–Wise (UVA Wise) athletic teams are called the Cavaliers (formerly known as the "Highland Cavaliers" before 2017), The college is a member of the
NCAA Division II NCAA Division II (D-II) is an intermediate-level division of competition in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It offers an alternative to both the larger and better-funded Division I and to the scholarship-free environmen ...
ranks, primarily competing in the
South Atlantic Conference The South Atlantic Conference (SAC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level, which operates in the southeastern United States. The SAC was founded in 1975 as a ...
(SAC) since the 2019–20 academic year. The Cavaliers previously competed in the D-II
Mountain East Conference The Mountain East Conference (MEC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level and officially began competition on September 1, 2013. It consists of 12 schools, mo ...
(MEC) from 2013–14 to 2018–19. Prior joining the NCAA, UVA Wise previously competed in the
Mid-South Conference The Mid-South Conference (MSC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). Member institutions are located in Kentucky, Ohio, and Tennessee. The league is headquartered in Lou ...
(MSC) of the
National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) established in 1940, is a college athletics association for colleges and universities in North America. Most colleges and universities in the NAIA offer athletic scholarships to its stu ...
(NAIA) from 2010–11 to 2012–13 (with a partial provisional membership as a core member of the D-II Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) during their D-II transition within the 2012–13 school year); in the Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) from 2001–02 to 2009–10; the
Tennessee Valley Athletic Conference Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 36th-largest by ...
from 1994–95 to 2000–01; and in the Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (KIAC; now currently known as the River States Conference (RSC) since the 2016–17 school year) from 1971–72 to 1993–94. UVA Wise competes in 13 intercollegiate varsity sports: Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf and tennis; while women's sports include basketball, cross country, golf, lacrosse, softball, tennis and volleyball.


Accomplishments

Since moving to NCAA Division II in 2013, the school has claimed conference titles in softball and men's golf and most recently in 2018 their women’s lacrosse program went undefeated in the regular season and finished with a conference championship in their former home of the Mountain East Conference.


CAV-TV

The college broadcasts student news on channel 55, a public access cable station, under the call sign CAV-TV.


Notable alumni

*
Hakeem Abdul-Saboor Hakeem Abdul-Saboor (born November 7, 1987) is an American bobsledder. He competed in the two-man event at the 2018 Winter Olympics. He qualified to represent the United States at the 2022 Winter Olympics. He is a specialist in the United Stat ...
, Olympic bobsledder * Jerry Kilgore, politician. During 1987 and 1988, Kilgore served as an Assistant United States Attorney for the Western District of Virginia. He was Secretary of Public Safety under Governor George Allen from 1994 to 1998 and was elected Attorney General of Virginia in 2001 by a wide margin. *
Terry Kilgore Terry Gene Kilgore (born August 23, 1961) is an American attorney and politician. A Republican, he was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates in 1993, and became chair of the Commerce and Labor committee in 2008. He graduated with a B.A. fro ...
, politician, elected to the Virginia House of Delegates in 1993; graduated from Clinch Valley College (now UVA Wise). *
Randy Hippeard Randy Hippeard (born December 6, 1985) is an American football quarterback who is currently a free agent. He was signed by the Winterthur Warriors of Nationalliga A (American football), Nationalliga A in Switzerland as an undrafted free agent in 2 ...
, professional football player (quarterback). * Steven Williams,
YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
personality known under the handle
Boogie2988 Steven Jay Williams (born July 24, 1974), better known by his online alias Boogie2988 or just Boogie, is an American YouTuber best known for his video rants about video games and nerd culture as a character named "Francis". Early life and edu ...
.


References


External links

*
Official athletics website
{{DEFAULTSORT:University Of Virginia's College At Wise Wise, Virginia Education in Wise County, Virginia University of Virginia schools Universities and colleges accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Buildings and structures in Wise County, Virginia Tourist attractions in Wise County, Virginia 1954 establishments in Virginia Educational institutions established in 1954 Public liberal arts colleges in the United States