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University of Houston System

Coordinates: 29°43′13″N 95°20′37″W / 29.72037°N 95.34374°W / 29.72037; -95.34374
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University of Houston System
File:Seal of the University of Houston System.png
MottoIn Tempore (Latin)
Motto in English
In Time
TypeState university system
Established1977
EndowmentUS$662.2 million[1]
BudgetUS$1.49 billion[2]
ChancellorRenu Khator, PhD
Academic staff
5,227[2]
Students67,151[2]
Undergraduates54,089
Postgraduates13,062
ColorsGold and black
   
Websiteuhsa.uh.edu
File:Logotype of the University of Houston System.png

The University of Houston System is a state university system in Texas, encompassing four separate and distinct universities. It has two system centers, which operate as off-campus and distance learning sites for its universities. The UH System owns and holds broadcasting licenses to a public television station and two public radio stations.

The fourth-largest university system in Texas, the University of Houston System has over 67,000 students from the four separate universities.[2] Its flagship institution is the University of Houston, a nationally recognized Tier One research university with nearly 41,000 students.[3][4][5][6] The economic impact of the UH System contributes over $3 billion annually to the Texas economy, while generating about 24,000 jobs.[7][8]

The administration of the University of Houston System is located in the Ezekiel W. Cullen Building on the campus of the University of Houston. The chancellor of the System is Renu Khator, who serves concurrently as president of the University of Houston. The System is governed by nine voting-member board of regents, appointed by the Governor of Texas.

Component institutions

The University of Houston System has four separate and distinct institutions; each institution is a stand-alone university and confers its own degrees. Its flagship institution is the University of Houston. The three other institutions in the System are stand-alone universities; they are not branch campuses of the University of Houston, however they are accredited and are under the same umbrella of University of Houston System.

Admission into each institution is separate, and each institution has distinct admission criteria and requirements.

Institution Nickname Founded Enrollment
(Fall 2012)
Campus
Acreage
Freshman
Acceptance
Rate[9]
(Fall 2012)
Endowment
Research
Expenditures
(FY 2011)
Carnegie
Classification[10]
U.S. News
Ranking
University of Houston Cougars 1927 40,747 667 55.9% $589.8 million[11] $127.5 million[11] Research
(Very High)
National Universities,
No. 189 (Tier 1)[12]
University of Houston–Clear Lake Hawks 1971 8,153 524 N/A $22.6 million[13] $2.2 million[13] Master's (Large) Regional Universities,
Tier 2[14]
University of Houston–Downtown Gators 1974 13,916 20 90.3% $34.7 million[15] $1.5 million[15] Baccalaureate–
Diverse
Regional Colleges,
Tier 2[16]
University of Houston–Victoria Jaguars 1971 4,335 20 84.6% $15.2 million[17] $1.2 million[17] Master's (Large) Regional Universities,
Tier 2[18]

System centers

The Albert and Mamie George Building at the University of Houston Sugar Land campus

The University of Houston System has two system centers (also known as "multi-institution teaching centers"), which operate as off-campus and distance learning sites for its universities. The system centers are not stand-alone universities, and they do not have the authority to confer degrees.

System Center Founded Campus
Acreage
Participating universities offering courses and degree programs
University of Houston Sugar Land 1995 250 University of Houston
University of Houston–Clear Lake
University of Houston–Victoria
University of Houston System at Cinco Ranch 1980 10 University of Houston
University of Houston–Clear Lake
University of Houston–Victoria

Public broadcasting

The University of Houston System owns and holds broadcasting licenses to a public television station and two public radio stations. The stations broadcast from the Melcher Center for Public Broadcasting, located on the campus of the University of Houston.

KUHT (HoustonPBS) is a PBS member station and is the first public television station in the United States. Houston Public Radio is listener-funded radio and comprises two NPR member stations: KUHF (KUHF News) and KUHA (Classical 91.7). KUHF is news/talk radio, and KUHA is a classical music station.

Organizational structure

The governance, control, jurisdiction, organization, and management of the University of Houston System is vested in its Board of Regents.[19] The Board has all the rights, powers, and duties that it has with respect to the organization and control of the four component institutions in the System; however, each component institution is maintained as a separate and distinct university.

The Board consists of a chairman, vice-chairman, secretary, and six other members. Every two years, the Governor of Texas, subject to the confirmation of the Texas Senate, appoints three members to the Board of Regents. Each member serves a six-year term. Responsibilities for members are specifically listed in the bylaws of the Board of Regents.

The chair of the Board of Regents is Nelda Luce Blair, an alumna of the University of Houston.[20] She was appointed to the Board in 2008, and will serve through August 31, 2013.

Renu Khator, chancellor of the University of Houston System and president of the University of Houston

Administration

File:Coat of arms of the University of Houston System.png
Coat of arms of the University of Houston System

The chancellor is the chief executive officer of the University of Houston System. The chancellor, appointed by the System's Board of Regents, has certain authorities that are specified in the regent bylaws.[21] The chancellor has the option to delegate responsibilities to others such as the vice-chancellor, university presidents, and university athletic directors. Such delegations are subject to the board of regents bylaws and UHS policies.

Since 1997, the UH System chancellor has been serving concurrently as the President of the University of Houston. Thus, the chancellor holds a dual role. As of January 2008, Renu Khator has been the chancellor of UH System and president of the University of Houston.

The administration of the System is located in the Ezekiel W. Cullen Building on the campus of the University of Houston. The Chancellor's official residence is known as the "Wortham House."[22] The house was designed by Alfred C. Finn, and built by Frank P. Sterling in 1925 as the "Sterling House." In 1948, the house was donated to the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, and later sold to Gus and Lyndall Wortham in 1951. Upon her death in July 1980, Lyndall Wortham donated the property to the University of Houston. The house, located in the Houston neighborhood of Southampton, serves as a facility for small functions or gatherings of the UH System.[23]

History

Philip G. Hoffman, first chancellor of the University of Houston System

The University of Houston, founded in 1927, entered the state system of higher education in 1963. The evolvement of a multi-institution University of Houston System came from a recommendation in May 1968 which called for the creation of a university near NASA's Manned Spacecraft Center to offer upper-division and graduate-level programs.[24] By 1971, the 62nd Texas Legislature passed House Bill 199 authorizing the establishment of the University of Houston at Clear Lake City as a separate and distinct institution with the organization and control vested in the Board of Regents of the University of Houston.[25][26]

Recognizing the need for a university presence in Downtown Houston, the Board of Regents acquired the assets of South Texas Junior College on August 6, 1974 and then opened the University of Houston–Downtown College (UH/DC) as a four-year institution under the organization and control of the University of Houston. By August 1979, it became a stand-alone university when the 66th Texas Legislature established UH/DC as a separate and distinct institution in the University of Houston System.[27][28]

The University of Houston System was created by statute on August 29, 1977 under House Bill 188 during the 65th Texas Legislature.[29][30] The Board of Regents of the University of Houston was renamed the Board of Regents of the University of Houston System. Philip G. Hoffman became the first chancellor of the System, after serving as president of the University of Houston from 1961 to 1977.

During the 68th Texas Legislature, Senate Bill 235 (SB 235) was signed into law and became effective immediately on April 26, 1983. The bill statutorily established the University of Houston–Victoria as a separate and distinct institution in the University of Houston System, and allowed the university system to acquire and dispose of land or other real property outside of Harris County. In addition, SB 235 changed the names of existing UH System institutions as follows:

The University of Houston was renamed the University of Houston–University Park;
The University of Houston at Clear Lake City was renamed the University of Houston–Clear Lake; and
The University of Houston–Downtown College was renamed the University of Houston–Downtown.[31][32]

A proposal to reorganize and consolidate state university systems emerged in 1986. The UH System would have been merged into a new university system to include a total of 10 institutions under the recommended reorganization referred to as the "Gulf Coast System."[33] The proposed consolidation grouping drew oppositions from affected institutions, and the plan never materialized.[33]

In 1991, the University of Houston–University Park changed back to its original name: University of Houston.[31][34] The addition of the "University Park" appellation was done with little discussion and had never gained community acceptance.[35]

In 1997, the administrations of the UH System and the University of Houston were combined under a single chief executive officer, with the dual title of Chancellor of the UH System and President of the University of Houston. Arthur K. Smith became the first person to have held the combined position.

In November 2007, Renu Khator was selected as the eighth chancellor of the University of Houston System and thirteenth president of the University of Houston. Khator became the first female to hold the chancellorship position, and took office in January 2008. She is the third person to hold the dual role of UH System chancellor and UH president.

On November 16, 2011, the University of Houston System announced that the University of Houston as an institution would replace the university system as the administrative entity for the University of Houston System at Sugar Land. With this action, the campus was renamed the "University of Houston Sugar Land" in January 2012.[36]

References

  1. ^ "University of Houston System Progress Card" (PDF). University of Houston System. Retrieved 2011-12-18.
  2. ^ a b c d e "University of Houston System Fall 2012 Statistical Profile". University of Houston System. Retrieved 2013-08-05.
  3. ^ Khator, Renu (October 3, 2012). "State of the University: Fall 2012". University of Houston. Retrieved August 5, 2013.
  4. ^ Bonnin, Richard. "Carnegie Foundation Gives University of Houston its Highest Classification for Research Success, Elevating UH to Tier One Status". University of Houston. Retrieved 2011-02-08.
  5. ^ "UH achieves Tier One status in research". Houston Business Journal. 2011-01-21. Retrieved 2011-07-06.
  6. ^ "UH takes big step up to Tier One status". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved 2011-07-06.
  7. ^ TRESAUGUE, Matthew (2006-05-17). "Study suggests UH degrees are crucial economic factor". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved 2011-05-31.
  8. ^ "The Economic Impact of Higher Education on Houston: A Case Study of the University of Houston System" (PDF). University of Houston System. Retrieved 2011-05-14.
  9. ^ "Online Institutional Resumes". Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. Retrieved 2013-08-05.
  10. ^ [1] Carnegie Foundation University Classification | accessdate = 2011-02-06
  11. ^ a b "University of Houston Progress Card" (PDF). University of Houston System. Retrieved 2011-11-18.
  12. ^ "2015 Best Colleges: University of Houston". U.S. News & World Report. Retrieved September 16, 2014. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  13. ^ a b "University of Houston–Clear Lake Progress Card" (PDF). University of Houston System. Retrieved 2011-11-18.
  14. ^ "2015 Best Colleges: University of Houston–Clear Lake". U.S. News & World Report. Retrieved September 16, 2014. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  15. ^ a b "University of Houston–Downtown Progress Card" (PDF). University of Houston System. Retrieved 2011-11-18.
  16. ^ "2015 Best Colleges: University of Houston–Downtown". U.S. News & World Report. Retrieved September 16, 2014. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  17. ^ a b "University of Houston–Victoria Progress Card" (PDF). University of Houston System. Retrieved 2011-11-18.
  18. ^ "2015 Best Colleges: University of Houston–Victoria". U.S. News & World Report. Retrieved September 16, 2014. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  19. ^ "UHS - Board of Regents". University of Houston System. Retrieved 2008-06-26.
  20. ^ "Nelda Luce Blair". University of Houston System. Retrieved December 24, 2011.
  21. ^ "Chancellor/President's Delegations of Authority". University of Houston. Archived from the original on 2008-03-22. Retrieved 2008-06-26.
  22. ^ "Wortham House". UH Through Time. University of Houston Libraries. Retrieved 2008-06-26.
  23. ^ Hodge, Shelby (2008-04-14). "Dinner party dishes out praise, humor". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved 2008-06-26.
  24. ^ http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/history/HouHistory/HoustonHistory-Fall08.pdf
  25. ^ http://www.lrl.state.tx.us/LASDOCS/62R/HB199/HB199_62R.pdf#page=11
  26. ^ "EDUCATION CODE CHAPTER 111. THE UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON". Statutes.legis.state.tx.us. Retrieved 2010-08-13.
  27. ^ http://www.lrl.state.tx.us/scanned/sessionLaws/66-0/SB576_ch148.pdf
  28. ^ http://www.lrl.state.tx.us/LASDOCS/66R/SB576/SB576_66R.pdf
  29. ^ http://www.lrl.state.tx.us/scanned/sessionLaws/65-0/HB188_ch124.pdf
  30. ^ http://www.lrl.state.tx.us/LASDOCS/65R/HB188/HB188_65R.pdf
  31. ^ a b http://www.lrl.state.tx.us/scanned/sessionLaws/68-0/SB_235_CH_41.pdf
  32. ^ http://www.lrl.state.tx.us/LASDOCS/68R/SB235/SB235_68R.pdf#page=31
  33. ^ a b Stancill, Nancy (1986-12-13). "Panel proposes new groupings for state universities". chron.com. Houston Chronicle. Retrieved 2010-05-25. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  34. ^ Adair, Wendy (2001). The University of Houston: Our Time: Celebrating 75 Years of Learning and Leading. Donning Company Publishers. ISBN 978-1-57864-143-7.
  35. ^ lrl.state.tx.us
  36. ^ Mayberry, Ed (2011-11-17). "UH Sugar Land To Get New Name, New Course Offerings". KUHF. Retrieved 2012-08-30.

29°43′13″N 95°20′37″W / 29.72037°N 95.34374°W / 29.72037; -95.34374