Unity Environmental University
- For other Unity Colleges, please see the disambiguation page Unity College.
| File:Unity College Logo.png | |
| Motto | America’s Environmental College |
|---|---|
| Type | Private |
| Established | September 7th, 1965 |
| President | Mitchell Thomashow |
| Vice-president | Amy Knisley |
Academic staff | 35 |
| Students | 497 |
| Location | , [USA], Maine |
| Campus | Rural, 240 acres (0.97 km2) |
| Colors | Green and White |
| Affiliations | NEASC |
| Mascot | The Ram |
| Website | http://www.unity.edu |
Unity College is a private, liberal arts college located 35 miles (56 km) Southwest of Bangor, Maine and 25 miles (40 km) from the Maine Coast, in the village of Unity. The college offers an undergraduate education that emphasizes the environment and natural resources throughout the academic program. In 2007 the school was ranked by U.S. News & World Report as one of America's Best Colleges. In the Comprehensive Colleges–Bachelor's (North) category it is ranked in the third tier.
History
The college was founded in 1965 as the Unity Institute of Liberal Arts and Sciences with a faculty of 15 and a student body of 39. The founders, a group of local business people, were looking for ways to counter economic decline in the adjacent town of Unity. Two years later it changed its name to Unity College and in 1969 awarded degrees to its first graduating class of 24. The school has continued to grow and has today one of the broadest environmental and natural resources programs in the United States.[1]
Campus
The campus is located on 240 acres (0.97 km2) overlooking Unity and nearby Unity Pond. The original section of the campus consisted of a farm with several of the farm buildings serving as residence halls, classrooms and administrative offices. The original farmhouse now is home to the College Development, Public Safety, Human Resources, and Switchboard offices.
There are five residence options on campus. The Eastview, Westview, and Wood Halls are designated for freshmen. Upperclassmen have the option of living in The Cottages, Maplewood, Cianchette Hall, or off campus. The residential community is vibrant and close knit resulting in over 60% of the student body living on-campus.[2]
The Dorothy W. Quimby Library houses a collection of over 50,000 volumes to more than 400 scholarly and general-interest periodicals. The collection has been assembled primarily to support the college's curriculum, but additionally it serves as the public library for area towns; its holdings include a large collection of general fiction and children's books.[3]
Academic program
The academic program comprises a broad environmental curriculum with 24 different majors and 13 minors. All of the degrees offered focus in environmental or natural resource studies. The college has a reputation for hands-on and outdoor study, and for providing students a gateway to outdoor careers. Many alumni go on to careers in biological research, state park & wildlife refuge management, natural sciences education, and wilderness recreation organization.
The majors of study are: Adventure Education Leadership; Adventure Therapy; Agriculture, Food and Sustainability; Aquaculture and Fisheries; Conservation Law Enforcement; Ecology; Environmental Analysis; Environmental Biology; Environmental Education; Environmental Policy; Environmental Humanities, Environmental Science, Environmental Writing, Forestry, General Studies; Landscape Horticulture; Liberal Studies; Marine Biology; Wildlife; Wildlife Biology; Captive Wildlife Care and Education; Wildlife Conservation; Parks, Recreation & Ecotourism; and Sustainability, Design and Technology.
The minor areas of study are: Adventure Therapy, Chemistry, English, Environmental Policy, Gender Studies, Geology, Horticulture, Human Ecology and Sustainable Development, Natural and Cultural Heritage Interpretation, Philosophy, Psychology, Studio Arts, Wildlife and Zoology.
The college is a leader in the movement towards sustainability. The campus produces exceptionally low climate emissions of around 4,300 pounds per student per year, achieved through a program of energy audits and retrofits to buildings. All recent and new buildings are or will be low or zero carbon. The first of these is the so-called Unity House, designed and built by Bensonwood architects and timber frame builders of New Hampshire. All students take a required course in sustainability in their junior year, including several weeks on climate change. The college recently began to offer Bachelor of Science Degree in Sustainability Design and Technology, and, in conjunction with the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardener's Association, a Bachelor of Science Degree in Agriculture, Food and Sustainability, both begun Fall 2008. Unity College will be graded in the College Sustainability Report Card 2010 edition. [4]
Sports
Unity College competes in the of the Yankee Small College Conference (YSCC) which is a division II member of the United States Collegiate Athletic Association(USCAA). The men's varsity sports are: Basketball, Cross-Country, and Soccer. The women's varsity sports are: Basketball, Cross-Country, Soccer and Volleyball. Additionally Unity College has a number of club sports (Woodsmen, Ice Hockey, Indoor Soccer and Ultimate Frisbee) and intramural sports.