Northrop University
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Former name | Northrop Aeronautical Institute (1942 to March 1959) Northrop Institute of Technology (March 1959 to 1974) |
|---|---|
| Type | Private |
| Active | 1942–1993 |
| Founder | Jack Northrop |
Parent institution | Northrop Corporation |
| Accreditation | Western Association of Schools and Colleges |
Officer in charge | James L. McKinley, director (1946) |
| President | B.J. Shell (1972-1989) John Beljan (1989-1991) |
| Location | , , United States |
Northrop University, formerly Northrop Institute of Technology and Northrop Aeronautical Institute, was a private technology college in Inglewood, California, focused on aviation, engineering, science, mathematics, and computing. It operated from 1942 to 1993.[1]
History
Jack Northrop, airline manufacturer and founder of Northrop Corporation, started Northrop Aeronautical Institute in Inglewood, California in 1942.[2][3] He launched the Northrop Aeronautical Institute because he recognized the shortage of master mechanics, airline maintenance specialists, and aeronautical engineers for civilian aviation.[4] Classes started through home study in January 1946 and expanded to offered on-site in June 1946.[5][3][a]
The school targeted male students, mostly veterans of the war, as well as employees of Northrop Corporation.[6][3] The first class consisted of 412 students.[3] Its first director was James L. McKinley.[7] Charles Edward Chapel became its reseach and development director in 1946.[8] Additional faculty included employees of Nortrup Corporation and alumni of the school.[3]
In 1953, the school became independent of Northrop Corporation.[9] In March 1959, the school announced its new name, Northrup Institute of Technology, reflecting the start of its Bachelor of Science curriculum.[2][b] It became Northrup University at Inglewood in 1974 and offered master's degrees.[3] The university's mission statement was "to expand human knowledge and benefit society through research integrated with education. We investigate the most challenging, fundamental problems in science and technology in a singularly collegial, interdisciplinary atmosphere while educating outstanding students to become creative members of society."[10]
Jack Northrop made a significant donation in 1975 to create the American Hall of Aviation at the school.[3] The museum included the David D. Hatfield Collection of Aviation History which was the largest collection of aviation history ever to be displayed at a single location.[3]
In 1989, the Western Association of Schools and Colleges accused the university of improprieties in bookkeeping, credits, and the recruitment of foreign students.[9] This threatened the school's accreditation with that agency.[9] B.J. Shell who had been the university's president for seventeen years, stepped down.[9] John Beljan, previously the provost of California State University, became interim president.[9][11] Despite Beljan save of the school's accreditation, student enrollment from dropped from 1,800 to 1,200 by 1991.[9]
In May 1991, the university announced that it was reducing its degree programs and related staff due to low enrollment and related financial problems.[9] Students in its degree-based programs were assisted in transferring to other institutions after the June 1991 semester.[9] After declaring bankruptcy, Northrop University closed in August 1993.[1]
Campus
The school was originally located in the Northrop Corporation plant at 1637 East Broadway at Northrup Field.in Hawthorne, Los Angeles County, California.[4] It consisted of three purpose-built structures: a main building that included administration, classrooms, and engineering drafting rooms; a building for laboratories; and a building with modern shops/[7] In January 1946, Northrup purchased a former Army barracks installed on property owned by the City of Los Angeles and relocated it to property adjacent to Northrop Corporation to use as dormitories for 150 to 170 students.[6]
The school expanded to an additional site in Inglewood, California near the Los Angeles airport, around 1953.[9] The Central Coast Institute of Technology was founded in Sanda Barbara in 1978 and was accredited as a satellite campus of Northrop University in 1979/
Academics
When it opened, Northrop Aeronautical Institute specialized in aeronautical engineering and training for airline maintenance mechanics.[5] It offered training in aeronautical engineering, master airplane and engineer mechanic (A&E), engine mechanic, airline maintenance specialist, and airplane and engine maintenance.[4] A 1946 ad, claimed, "The Northrop Aeronautical Institute brings to aviation training completely new standards."[4]
In March 1959, the school expanded beyond its certificate and two-year associate's degree program to include a Bachelor of Science degree in aeronautical engineering, reflecting the industry's need for space engineers.[2][9] In 1974, it offered Bachelor's and Masters degrees in accounting, aeronautical sciences, business administration and management, computer science, electrical engineering, design engineering project management, and mechanical engineering.[3] It also added a law to its academic offerings in 2001.[9][12]
Starting in 1978, it offered bachelor's and master's degrees in aeronautical sciences, computer science, electrical, mechanical, and systems engineering programs at its satellite campus at Central Coach Tech.
In 1991, the university significantly cut its academic program and focused on avionics, helicopter maintenance, and technical training.[9]
The school was accredited by the American Engineers' Council for Professional Development. It was accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges in 1960.[3]
Student life
Student organizations
Northrop University was home to three social fraternities.[1] Alpha Epsilon Rho was a local fraternity established in 1963.[1] In 1968, it became a chapter of the national fraternity Tau Kappa Epsilon that was active at the university through 1993.[13][1] in addition, the national fraternity Sigma Phi Epsilon was active from 1972 to 1976.[1]
The university also had a chapter of Alpha Eta Rho, a professional college aviation fraternity that was chartered in March 1960.[14][15]
Sports
Students at Northrup University formed a Sepak takraw or kick volleyball in 1986. Malaysia Airlines sponsored the team to represent the United States team at the national tournament in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in November 1987; the Northrop team came in first place.[16]
Popular culture
- . Northrop University loaned the production a working GE turbojet engine for the jet car sequences in the film The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension (1984).[17]86
- The first accounts of organized Sepak takraw or kick volleyball in the United States were at Northrop University where Malaysian students had formed a team in 1986.[16]
Notable alumni
- David Armenta (Master's degree in Public Law and Contracts), former mayor of Pico Rivera, California[18]
- Forrest Bird (ScD), aviator, inventor, and biomedical engineer
- Tim Brummer, winner of the Abbott Prize and co-founder of Lightning Cycle Dynamics while still a student at Northrop[19]
- Robbyanto Budiman (MBA), Indonesian businessman[20]
- Bob Citron (Aerospace engineering, 1959), entrepreneur and aerospace engineer[21]
- Chris Dreike, co-founder of Lightning Cycle Dynamics while still a student at Northrop[19]
- Kitaw Ejigu, chief of spacecraft and satellite systems engineer for NASA
- Chu Fong-chi, Taiwanese politician who served in the Legislative Yuan
- Don Guichard, co-founder of Lightning Cycle Dynamics while still a student at Northrop[19]
- Ed Horstman (BS Aeronautical Engineering), naval architect and multihull sailboat designer
- Ray Jardine (Aerospace Engineering, 1963) rock climber who the first to free climb the West Face of El Capitan in Yosemite Valley
- Lin Ling‑san (MS), Minister of Transportation and Communications of the Republic of China[22]
- Anthony S. Manera (BS Electronics Engineering, 1963), President of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
- Carolyn L. Mazloomi, curator, quilter, author, art historian, and aerospace engineer
- Francis M. McDaniel Jr., South Dakota House of Representatives[23]
- Emil Notti (BS degree in aeronautical and electrical engineering), 1st President of the Alaska Federation of Natives
- Gordon Novel, private investigator and electronics expert
- Naveed Qamar (1974, MS Management), member National Assembly of Pakistan, Pakistan Minister for Defence and Pakistan Minister for Finance[24]
- Jack Real (Honorary 1985), aerospace pioneer
- Shawn Steel (J.D.) , Republican National Committeeman from California and former cairman of the California Republican Party
- Suphajee Suthumpun (master's degree in business administration), CEO of the hotel business Dusit International[25]
- Ray Swanson, painter of the American West
- Gerald Wiegert, automotive engineer and founder of Vector Motors
Notable faculty
- Charles Edward Chapel, politician and noted technical writer[8]
- Knut Hagrup, Norwegian aviator
Notes
- ^ Several sources, including one from the university, state that it was established in 1942. However, it did not open to the public until 1946. In the gap, Northrop presumably used the school to train his eomployees at Northrop Corporation. It may have also served as a training facility for the military during World War II, although this theory is not supported by marketing literature.
- ^ The Northrup University Student Records website says this change happened in 1953 but this does not match newspaper reports.
References
- ^ a b c d e f Lurding, Carroll and Becque, Fran. (August 5, 2003) "Closed Institutions" Almanac of Fraternities and Sororities. Urbana: University of Illinois. Accessed September 10, 2023.
- ^ a b c "Northrop Offering Degrees in Science". Los Angeles Mirror. 1959-03-24. p. 16. Retrieved 2023-09-10 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j "History". Northrup University Student Records. Retrieved September 10, 2023.
- ^ a b c d "Northrop Aircraft Inc. Announces the Establishment of the Northrop Aeronautical Institute". The Los Angeles Times. 1946-01-02. p. 100. Retrieved 2023-09-10 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "New Air School". The Bull Horn. Norman, Oklahoma. 1945-12-20. p. 6. Retrieved 2023-09-10 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Public Housing Agency Named at Hawthorne". The Los Angeles Times. 1946-01-14. p. 14. Retrieved 2023-09-10 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "New Aviation School". The Pomona Progress Bulletin. Pomona, California. 1946-02-20. p. 18. Retrieved 2023-09-10 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Iowan an Expert in Many Fields". The Gazette. Cedar Rapids, Iowa. 1946-03-10. p. 29. Retrieved 2023-09-10 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Northrop University to Drop Degree Programs, Cut Faculty". The Los Angeles Times. 1991-05-10. p. 548. Retrieved 2023-09-10 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Mission Statement". Northrup University Student Records. Retrieved September 10, 2023.
- ^ Gordon, Larry Gordon (1989-09-23). "Northrop U. Hires Provost From Cal State Long Beach". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2023-09-10.
- ^ "California State Bar, General Statistics Report, July 2001 California Bar Examination". Archived from the original on 2012-04-05. Retrieved 2012-06-19.
- ^ "Find a Chapter | Tau Kappa Epsilon Fraternity". www.tke.org. Retrieved 2023-09-10.
- ^ Robson, John, ed. (1963). Baird's Manuel of American College Fraternities (17th ed.). Menasha, Wisconsin: The Collegiate Press, George Banta Company, Inc. pp. 498–499.
- ^ "Chapters - Alpha Eta Rho". web.archive.org. 2014-02-26. Retrieved 2023-09-10.
- ^ a b Northrop University Magazine, December 1987, vol 3, no. 4.
- ^ Murphy, Sean (June 10, 2016). "What do we know about the Jet Car?". www.figmentfly.com. Retrieved 2023-09-10.
- ^ "David W. Armenta, Councilmember" (PDF). City of Pico Rivera. March 2006. Retrieved 2023-09-10 – via Web Archive.
- ^ a b c Hadland, Tony; Lessing, Hans-Erhard (2014-03-28). Bicycle Design: An Illustrated History. MIT Press. p. 489. ISBN 978-0-262-32222-5 – via Google Books.
- ^ "Robbyanto Budiman, Wahana Ottomitra Multiartha PT: Profile and Biography". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2023-09-10.
- ^ "Robert Citron, Private Space Pioneer, Dies at 79 –". www.spacesafetymagazine.com. Retrieved 2023-09-10.
- ^ "Taiwan Review - The New Cabinet". web.archive.org. 2013-12-17. Retrieved 2023-09-10.
- ^ "Obituary for Francis Marion McDaniel at Kinkade Funeral Chapel". www.kinkadefunerals.com. February 2018. Retrieved 2023-09-10.
- ^ "Syed Naveed Qamar, Federal Minister for Defence". Ministry of Defense, Government of Pakistan. Archived from the original on December 1, 2012. Retrieved September 10, 2023 – via Archive.today.
- ^ "Suphajee Suthumpun Net Worth (2023) – wallmine.com". wallmine.com. Retrieved 2023-09-10.
https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-05-10-me-1391-story.html
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