The University of Rhode Island (URI) 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 ...

land-grant

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 kno ...

with its main campus in

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the five most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area and the seventh-least populous, with slightly fewer than 1.1 million residents as of 2020, but i ...

, United States. It is the flagship public research as well as the land-grant university of the

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * '' Our ...

. Its main campus is located in the village of

in southern Rhode Island. Satellite campuses include the Feinstein Campus in Downtown Providence, the Rhode Island Nursing Education Center in Providence's Jewelry District, the Narragansett Bay Campus in Narragansett, and the W. Alton Jones Campus in West Greenwich. The university offers

bachelor's degrees A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to si ...

master's degrees A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

, and doctoral degrees in 80 undergraduate and 49 graduate areas of study through nine academic schools and colleges. These schools and colleges include Arts and Sciences, Business, Education and Professional Studies, Engineering, Health Sciences, Environment and Life Sciences, Nursing, Pharmacy and Oceanography. Another college, University College for Academic Success, serves primarily as an advising college for all incoming undergraduates and follows them through their first two years of enrollment at URI. The university is

classified Classified may refer to: General *Classified information, material that a government body deems to be sensitive *Classified advertising or "classifieds" Music *Classified (rapper) (born 1977), Canadian rapper *The Classified, a 1980s American roc ...

among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity". As of 2019, the URI enrolled 14,653 undergraduate students, 1,982 graduate students, and 1,339 non-degree students, making it the largest university in the state.

History

The University of Rhode Island was first chartered as the Rhode Island State Agricultural School, associated with the state agricultural experiment station, in 1888. The site of the school was originally the Oliver Watson Farm in Kingston, whose original farmhouse is now a small museum. In 1892, the school was reorganized as the Rhode Island College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts. That year, it extended courses of study from two years to four years; URI reckons 1892 as its founding date. The first class had only seventeen students, each completing their course of study in two years. In 1909, the school's name was again changed to Rhode Island State College as the school's programs were expanded beyond its original agricultural education mandate. In 1951 the school was given its current title through an act of the

General Assembly A general assembly or general meeting is a meeting of all the members of an organization or shareholders of a company. Specific examples of general assembly include: Churches * General Assembly (presbyterian church), the highest court of pres ...

following the addition of the College of Arts and Sciences and the offering of doctoral degrees. The Board of Governors for Higher Education, appointed by the governor, became the governing body of the university in 1981 during the presidency of Frank Newman (1974–1983). The Board of Governors was replaced by the Rhode Island Board of Education in 2013, and by a 17-member

Board of Trustees A board of directors (commonly referred simply as the board) is an executive committee that jointly supervises the activities of an organization, which can be either a for-profit or a nonprofit organization such as a business, nonprofit organ ...

in 2019. In 2013 the faculty adopted an open-access policy to make its scholarship

publicly accessible Open access (OA) is a set of principles and a range of practices through which research outputs are distributed online, free of access charges or other barriers. With open access strictly defined (according to the 2001 definition), or libre op ...

online.

Presidents

Twelve individuals have served as president, and three others have served as acting president of the University of Rhode Island. Marc B. Parlange is the current president, having served since August 2021.

Main campus

URI's main campus is located in northern

South Kingstown South Kingstown is a town in, and the county seat of, Washington County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 31,931 at the 2020 census. South Kingstown is the second largest town in Rhode Island by total geographic area, behind New ...

, and is accessed via

Rhode Island Route 138 Route 138 is a numbered State Highway running in Rhode Island. It is the longest state numbered route in Rhode Island, and the second longest highway after US 1. Route 138 begins in Exeter at the Connecticut state line in the west and runs ...

from either the west ( Interstate 95) or east ( United States Route 1). The campus was mostly farmland when it was purchased by the state in 1888, and still includes the c. 1796 Oliver Watson Farmhouse. The early buildings of the campus are set around its main quadrangle, and were built out of locally quarried granite. The campus master plan was developed by the noted landscape architects Olmsted, Olmsted & Eliot in the 1890s. The central portion of the campus, where most of its pre-1950 buildings are located, was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artist ...

in 2017.

Gallery

File:URI East Hall and Washburn Hall.jpg, File:Lippitt Hall, URI.jpg, File:GreenHall URI.JPG, File:URI Carothers Library.jpg, File:URI Memorial Student Union.jpg, File:URI Multicultural Center.jpg, File:University of Rhode Island Planetarium.jpg, File:Chester H. Kirk Center for Advanced Technology.jpg, File:URI_StairwayToExcellence2.jpg, File:URI_Engineering_Pano.jpg,

Academics

URI is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education. The student-faculty ratio at University of Rhode Island is 16:1, and the school has 43.1% of its classes with fewer than 20 students. The most popular majors at University of Rhode Island include: Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse; Psychology, General; Speech Communication and Rhetoric; Kinesiology and Exercise Science; and Health-Related Knowledge and Skills, Other. The average freshman retention rate, an indicator of student satisfaction, is 84%.

Rankings

'' U.S. News & World Report'' ranks URI tied for 170th overall among 389 "national universities" and tied for 83rd out of 209 "top public schools" in 2021. * 40th in ''Pharmacy (tie)" in 2021 * 47th in "Best Library and Information Studies Program (tie)" in 2021 * 53rd in ''Best Nursing School: Master's (tie)'' in 2021 * 54th in ''Earth Sciences (tie)'' in 2021 * 80th in ''Best Nursing School: Doctor of Nursing Practice (tie)'' in 2021 * 101st in ''Clinical Psychology (tie)'' in 2021 * 102nd in "Physical Therapy (tie)" in 2021 * 108th in "English (tie)" in 2021 * 109th in "Speech-Language Pathology (tie)" in 2021 * 119th in ''Computer Sciences (tie)'' in 2021 * 119th in "Best Education Schools (tie)" in 2021 * 122nd in "Chemistry (tie)" in 2021 * 127th in "Mathematics (tie)" in 2021 * 131st in "Psychology (tie)" in 2021 * 132nd in ''Best Undergraduate Engineering Program'' in 2021. * 140th in ''Biological Sciences (tie)'' in 2021 * 146th in "Physics (tie)" in 2021 * 154th-202nd in "Best Engineering Schools" in 2021 ''

Academic Ranking of World Universities The ''Academic Ranking of World Universities'' (''ARWU''), also known as the Shanghai Ranking, is one of the annual publications of world university rankings. The league table was originally compiled and issued by Shanghai Jiao Tong Universi ...

'' ranks URI for 51-75 globally for ''Oceanography'' in 2021.

Admissions

The average incoming freshman at the Kingston campus for the fall of 2017 had a GPA of 3.54 and an SAT score of 1178 (out of 1600) (with ACT scores converted to SAT scale).

Student clubs

URI has 18 club sports teams consisting of around 600 athletes. Club sports the school offers include soccer,

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball c ...

, equestrian,

ultimate frisbee Ultimate, originally known as ultimate Frisbee, is a non-contact team sport played with a frisbee flung by hand. Ultimate was developed in 1968 by AJ Gator in Maplewood, New Jersey. Although ultimate resembles many traditional sports in its ath ...

, volleyball,

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 shootin ...

wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...

, crew,

gymnastics Gymnastics is a type of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, dedication and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, s ...

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 extensi ...

and

sailing Sailing employs the wind—acting on sails, wingsails or kites—to propel a craft on the surface of the ''water'' ( sailing ship, sailboat, raft, windsurfer, or kitesurfer), on ''ice'' ( iceboat) or on ''land'' ( land yacht) over a chose ...

, amongst others. These teams travel and compete against other intercollegiate programs in the country. URI also has 20+ intramural sports, including

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

badminton Badminton is a racquet sport played using racket (sports equipment), racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net (device), net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game are "singles" (with one player per s ...

dodgeball Dodgeball is a team sport in which players on two teams try to throw balls and hit opponents, while avoiding being hit themselves. The objective of each team is to eliminate all members of the opposing team by hitting them with thrown balls, cat ...

, and soccer. The intramural sports allow students to compete in tournaments and games with other students on campus. URI also has over 300 student organizations and clubs. The university's student newspaper, ''The Good Five Cent Cigar'', was founded in 1971. It is also home to several Greek-lettered organizations.

Athletics

The University of Rhode Island competes in 16 intercollegiate sports. The university is a member of the Atlantic 10 Conference and the

Colonial Athletic Association The Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA's NCAA Division I, Division I whose full members are located in East Coast ...

in the

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major collegiate athleti ...

Football Championship Subdivision. The Rhode Island Rams men's basketball competes in the Atlantic 10 Conference, and has appeared in the NCAA "March Madness” Tournament a total of 10 times since its first appearance in 1961. Two of these ten appearances occurred during the 2017 and 2018 seasons. Athletic facilities include the Ryan Center,

Keaney Gymnasium Keaney Gymnasium is a multi-purpose arena in Kingston, Rhode Island, United States on the campus of the University of Rhode Island. Built in 1953, it was the home of the university's men's and women's basketball teams until they moved to the ...

, Meade Stadium, Mackal Field House, Tootell Aquatic Center,

Bradford R. Boss Arena The Bradford R. Boss Arena is a 2,500-seat ice arena on the campus of The University of Rhode Island located in Kingston, Rhode Island. The ice arena is named in honor of Bradford R. Boss, one of the founders of the URI men's hockey club in 1951, ...

, URI Soccer Complex,

Bill Beck Field Bill Beck Field is a baseball venue located on the campus of the University of Rhode Island in Kingston, Rhode Island, United States. It is home to the Rhode Island Rams baseball team, a member of the NCAA Division I Atlantic 10 Conference. Th ...

, and URI Softball Complex. URIQuad

Off campus living

While 5600 students live in the 25 on campus residence halls, thousands more opt to commute from the surrounding area. Narragansett, an abutting town to Kingston, is made up of hundreds of summer vacation homes which are rented to students for the academic year.

Notable alumni

Notable University of Rhode Island alumni in politics and government include Lieutenant General Michael Flynn (B.Sc. 1981), 38th mayor of Providence Jorge Elorza (B.Sc. 1998), and governors of Rhode Island Lincoln Almond (B.Sc. 1959) and

J. Joseph Garrahy John Joseph Garrahy (November 26, 1930 – January 24, 2012), known to Rhode Islanders as J. Joseph Garrahy or just "Joe", was an American politician. He served as the 69th Governor of Rhode Island from 1977 to 1985. Early life Garrahy was born ...

(1953). Notable graduates in journalism and media include CNN correspondent John King (B.A. 1985), CNN anchor Christiane Amanpour (B.A. 1983), and CBS correspondent Vladimir Duthiers (B.A. 1991). Among URI's alumni in the arts and entertainment are actors J. T. Walsh, Peter Frechette (B.F.A.),

Amanda Clayton Amanda Clayton (born October 24, 1981) is an American actress, best known for her role as Alex Montgomery in the Oprah Winfrey Network prime time soap opera, ''If Loving You Is Wrong''. Life and career Clayton was born in Johnston, Rhode Island. ...

, and

Andrew Burnap Andrew Burnap (born March 5, 1991) is an American actor. He was born and raised in South Kingstown, Rhode Island, and graduated from the University of Rhode Island. He starred in the 2019 Broadway production of '' The Inheritance'', for which he w ...

(recipient of the 2020

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...

- Best Actor in a Play, The Inheritance.) Notable graduates in business and finance include billionaire

Ben Navarro Benjamin W. Navarro (born 1962/1963) is an American billionaire businessman, the founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of Sherman Financial Group, LLC, which owns Credit One Bank. Early life He is one of eight children of Frank Navarro, a coll ...

(B.Sc. 1984); former president of

American Airlines American Airlines is a major US-based airline headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is the largest airline in the world when measured by fleet size, scheduled passengers carried, and revenue passenge ...

, Robert Crandall (1960); and former CEO of CVS, Thomas Ryan (1975). File:J. Joseph Garrahy, Rhode Island Governor.jpg, Governor of Rhode Island

'59 File:Michael T Flynn (cropped).jpg, 25th

U.S. National Security Advisor The Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs (APNSA), commonly referred to as the National Security Advisor (NSA),The National Security Advisor and Staff: p. 1. is a senior aide in the Executive Office of the President, based at t ...

Michael Flynn '81 File:Christiane Amanpour June 2008 (cropped).jpg, CNN anchor Christiane Amanpour '83 File:Providence mayor Jorge Elorza (1).jpg, 38th mayor of Providence Jorge Elorza '98 File:Lamar Odom 2012 Shankbone.JPG, Basketball star Lamar Odom
(did not graduate)

Notable faculty

* Robert Ballard, undersea archaeologist and discoverer of the wreck of the '' Titanic'' * Yehuda Hayuth, Israeli professor of geography, and President of the

University of Haifa The University of Haifa ( he, אוניברסיטת חיפה Arabic: جامعة حيفا) is a university located on Mount Carmel in Haifa, Israel. Founded in 1963, the University of Haifa received full academic accreditation in 1972, becoming I ...

Natalie Kampen Natalie Kampen (February 1, 1944 – August 12, 2012) was an American art historian and women's studies professor. She was born Natalie Boymel on February 1, 1944 in Philadelphia to Pauline (''née'' Friedman) and Jules Boymel. She received he ...

* Joëlle Rollo-Koster *

Andrea Rusnock Andrea Rusnock is a professor of history at the University of Rhode Island. She has published two books and numerous articles on science and medicine in the Enlightenment, quantification, public health and the environment, and the history of va ...

Melvin Stern Melvin Ernest Stern (January 22, 1929 – February 2, 2010) was a U.S. academic oceanographer who focused on fluid dynamics. He served as the Ekman Professor of Oceanography at Florida State University and was an elected member of both the N ...

Robert Weisbord Robert G. Weisbord is professor emeritus of History at the University of Rhode Island. He has published seven books and numerous articles dealing with issues of racism in sports, the Vatican, and the Holocaust. He taught an Afro-American history c ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rhode Island, University Of Educational institutions established in 1888 Flagship universities in the United States Land-grant universities and colleges South Kingstown, Rhode Island Buildings and structures in Washington County, Rhode Island Education in Washington County, Rhode Island Tourist attractions in Washington County, Rhode Island 1888 establishments in Rhode Island Historic districts in Rhode Island National Register of Historic Places in Washington County, Rhode Island University of Rhode Island