Oakland University


Oakland University is a public research university in Auburn Hills and Rochester Hills, Michigan. It is the second largest university in the Detroit Metropolitan Area with 20,012 students and it is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity." The university offers 132 bachelor's degree programs and 138 professional graduate certificate, master's degree, and doctoral degree programs, including those offered by the Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine.
Oakland University was created in 1957 when the heiress to the Dodge automaker fortune, Matilda Dodge Wilson and her second husband, lumber baron, Alfred Wilson, donated their estate to Michigan State University, for the formation of Michigan State University-Oakland, later renamed Oakland University. The donation included two million dollars, their contiguous mansions Meadow Brook Hall and Sunset Terrace, which now forms the Oakland University campus, and all associated collections of cultural artifacts. Covering and with 110 rooms, the Tudor-Revival style Meadow Brook Hall is the fourth largest historic mansion museum in the United States, a National Historic Landmark, and is classified as one of America’s Castles.
The university's athletic teams compete in Division I of the NCAA and are collectively known as the Golden Grizzlies. They are members of the Horizon League.

History

Origins

In 1908, John Francis Dodge and his wife Matilda purchased a farmhouse and of land known as Meadow Brook Farms, located in central Oakland County.
In 1920, Matilda inherited John's fortune upon his death, soon remarrying to a lumber baron, Alfred G. Wilson. Between 1926 and 1929, the couple built Meadow Brook Hall on the land.

Michigan State University–Oakland to Oakland University

Oakland University was created in 1957 when Matilda Dodge Wilson and her second husband, Alfred Wilson, donated their estate to Michigan State University, including Meadow Brook Hall, Sunset Terrace and all the estate's other buildings and collections, along with $2 million. Main campus buildings were completed on Squirrel Road in Pontiac Township. Originally known as Michigan State University–Oakland, the university enrolled its first students in 1959, was renamed Oakland University in 1963, and has been officially independent of Michigan State University since 1970.

Mailing address

Wilson demanded that U.S. Postmaster General Arthur Summerfield let the university use a Rochester, Michigan, mailing address, even though the main campus was in Pontiac Township. After Wilson reminded him that she had contributed to his administration, Summerfield granted her request.

Presidential primaries

During the 2012 Republican presidential primaries, Oakland University hosted a debate between Republican presidential candidates on November 9, 2011. CNBC televised the debate nationally, and the Michigan Republican Party co-sponsored the debate with CNBC. Eight candidates participated: Michele Bachmann, Herman Cain, Newt Gingrich, Jon Huntsman, Ron Paul, Rick Perry, Mitt Romney, and Rick Santorum.

Campus expansion

On February 12, 2013, the Oakland University Board of Trustees approved a $65 million investment in campus expansion and improvement projects. Completed in the fall of 2014, projects included: construction of a nearly $30 million student housing complex; dramatic enhancement of outdoor recreation and athletic fields; construction of a 1,240-space parking structure, and; construction of new headquarters for facility and grounds maintenance operations. Longtime supporters of the university, Hugh and Nancy Elliott, made a donation to construct the Elliott Tower on the campus. The 151-foot carillon tower was completed in fall 2014 and houses the last bells to be cast by the Royal Bellfoundry Petit & Fritsen of the Netherlands.

Continued growth in the 21st century

For the fall 2013 semester, Oakland University had an enrollment of 20,169 students. Oakland University is the 12th largest college or university in Michigan, 8th largest of 4-year universities.

University administration

The board appointed George W. Hynd president of the university in July 2014. He replaced Dr. Gary Russi, who retired in August 2013.
On May 4, 2017, the board announced Ora Hirsch Pescovitz, M.D., as Oakland University's seventh president. Her tenure began on July 1, 2017, under a 5-year contract.

University administration controversies

In September 2009, tenured faculty members represented by the Oakland University chapter of the American Association of University Professors went on strike. Issues of contention included the university claiming ownership of professors' copyrights and patents, refusing to allow faculty input into matters of class size and curricula, reduction of health benefits and a three-year salary freeze. The salary freeze was in contrast to university president Gary Russi, who had just received a $100,000 raise. The university's board of trustees maintained that the strike was illegal and filed a lawsuit against the Oakland AAUP. After a week's strike, the faculty and administration came to an agreement on a three-year contract, which was implemented.

Academics

Oakland University offers 132 bachelor's degree programs and 138 graduate programs. The main academic units of the university are the College of Arts and Sciences, the School of Business Administration, the School of Education and Human Services, the School of Engineering and Computer Science, the School of Health Sciences, School of Nursing, and the Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine. Additionally, Oakland University supports an Honors College and various study abroad programs.

Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine

In 2007, plans were established to start a medical school on the Oakland University campus in partnership with William Beaumont Hospital, called the Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine came to fruition. The medical school was founded in 2008 with classes starting in fall of 2011. OUWB is the fourth medical school in the state of Michigan to offer the M.D. degree, received over 3,200 applications for the inaugural class of 50 students. OUWBSM has 225 students as of Fall 2013 and 500 were planned for 2017. The founding dean of the medical school is Robert Folberg, M.D.

Oakland University Beaumont Nurse Anesthesia Graduate Program

The Oakland University – Beaumont Nurse Anesthesia Graduate Program started in 1991. In 2011, U.S. News & World Report ranked the program tied for 17th in the United States.

Oakland University School of Business

Oakland University's School of Business Administration is accredited by the AACSB-International accreditation in both business and accounting. It also offers Michigan's only Executive MBA program with concentrations in Health Care and IS Leadership. In 2009, the SBA celebrated its 40th anniversary.

Research centers and institutes

As part of its research mission, Oakland University also supports a number of major research centers and institutes, including the Center for Biomedical Research, the Center for Robotics and Advanced Automation, the Fastening and Joining Research Institute, the Human Systems Initiative, and the renowned Eye Research Institute. Furthermore, Oakland University's Smart Zone Business Incubator provides entrepreneurial resources and expertise to support and foster new technology-based and life science businesses.
Some Oakland University Research Centers and Institutes include:
In addition to its location in the cities of Auburn Hills and Rochester Hills, Oakland University maintains an official "hometown" relationship with the nearby but not adjacent city of Rochester, Michigan. University and city officials signed a partnership agreement in 2003 to officially recognize the relationship between Rochester and Oakland University. In 1959, Rochester Village officials renamed the Fifth Street in downtown Rochester "University Drive" to showcase Rochester as a "college town". The road is called Walton Boulevard adjacent to the University in Rochester Hills and Auburn Hills. This is often confused with University Drive in Auburn Hills, which originates at Oakland University's main entrance in Auburn Hills, and continues west into downtown Pontiac. In 2005, the Rochester area was ranked 39th in the CNN/Money Magazine list of the Top 100 American cities in which to live.
Oakland University's campus, which encompasses, includes trails and biking paths and two nationally ranked golf courses.

Oakland County

The university's land in Auburn Hills and Rochester Hills is divided into the Main Campus, Meadow Brook Estate, and two golf courses.

Main Campus

Meadow Brook Theatre, which was founded in 1967, is the largest non-profit professional theater in Michigan, and presents a wide variety of award-winning productions throughout the year. Additionally, the Oakland University Art Gallery, which was formerly known as the Meadow Brook Art Gallery, presents at least six different exhibitions each academic year, in addition to hosting a variety of lectures, performances and symposia.
Kresge Library is the main library of Oakland University. It consists of four floors of study rooms and open-area tables. It also contains the Oakland University Archives, the Historical Abraham Lincoln Collection, the Jane M. Bingham Historical Children's Collection, and a tech center. The library is named after Stanley and Sebastian Kresge who were both present for the library's opening in 1962.
In 2009, an 18-hole disc golf course opened. Grizzly Oaks was co-designed by student Jarrett Schlaff and licensed by the Professional Disc Golf Association.
Oakland University's student union, the Oakland Center, was renovated and expanded in 2018. The Oakland Center houses the offices of student organizations, a large food court with multiple restaurants, the student bookstore, a cafe, a pool hall and gaming center, a Student Technology Center, the campus newspaper , computer labs, conference rooms, as well as the offices of the university radio station, WXOU. Oakland University also has its own television station which is broadcast on-campus and to the local community.
The campus has recreational facilities for intramural sports and for Oakland University's 16 NCAA Division I athletic teams, including the lighted Upper Athletic Fields, the indoor Sports Dome, fields for varsity baseball, softball, and soccer, and facilities for basketball, handball, track, and weight training. The campus recreation center houses Oakland University's natatorium, and the Athletics Center O'rena, a 4,000-seat field house, is the home court for Oakland University basketball and volleyball.
Near the center of campus is the Elliot Tower. This clock tower was finished in 2014 after many delays to its construction that began toward the end of 1945 just after the end of WWII, making it both the oldest and one of the newest structures simultaneously at Oakland University.

Meadow Brook Estate

This portion of Oakland University consists of the historic Meadow Brook Hall and the land and buildings surrounding it. The hall, which is a 110-room Tudor revival–style mansion completed in 1929 as Oakland University founder Matilda Dodge Wilson's Oakland County estate, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Meadow Brook Hall is the fourth-largest historic house museum in the United States, and houses a vast collection of historically significant art and furniture, including paintings by Rembrandt, Anthony van Dyck, Rosa Bonheur, Gilbert Stuart, Joshua Reynolds, John Constable, and Thomas Gainsborough, as well as sculptures by Antoine-Louis Barye, Frederic Remington, Cyrus Edwin Dallin, and Herbert Haseltine. Meadow Brook Hall is frequently utilized as a site for select university functions, including the Meadow Brook Ball, a popular student event. Until 2010, Meadow Brook Hall and its grounds were the site of the annual Meadow Brook Concours d'Elegance, one of the largest collector car shows in the world.
The Meadow Brook Music Festival is an outdoor entertainment venue with an on-site pavilion which accommodates close to 8,000 people. In addition to being the site of spring-time graduation ceremonies, Meadow Brook Music Festival also hosts comedians and musical acts. Meadow Brook Music Festival is managed by Palace Sports and Entertainment.

Golf courses

Oakland University has two nationally ranked golf courses that make up most of the southern portion of its land. Katke-Cousins sits on. Some of the course's 18 holes remain from the 9-hole course John Dodge built when he lived at the estate. The other course, opened in 2000, is the R & S Sharf course.

Macomb County

An office plaza in downtown Mount Clemens, in Macomb County, was donated to the university in 2010 by Gebran Anton and Stuart Frankel. It was repurposed and opened for the fall 2011 semester as the Anton/Frankel Center. It offers several undergraduate and graduate programs.
Oakland University is also among the 12 colleges and universities offering programs at Macomb Community College's University Center.

Oakland University Art Gallery, and art collection

The Oakland University Art Gallery is a civic art exhibition venue in Rochester Hills, Michigan. Founded in 1966, it is part of Oakland University and occupies a portion of the University’s Wilson Hall. The gallery’s exhibitions have garnered national and international attention, and have been reviewed in publications including Art in America, Sculpture and W Magazine.

Art collection

The collection has over 1,500 art objects. The gallery collection includes twentieth and twenty-first century paintings and sculptures by artists Richard Artschwager, Fernando Botero, Alex Katz, Malcolm Morley, Carlos Rolón, and Terry Winters.
Other contemporary artworks in the collection include Detroit artists Michael Luchs, Gordon Newton, Robert Sestok, and Gilda Snowden.
Former Professor of Art History and Archeology Carl F. Barnes Jr., and Anna M. Barnes donated their collection of over 500 prints in 1999. Collections highlights include the print oeuvre of English print maker and portrait painter Gerald Brockhurst. Other artist highlights from this collection include William Blake, Eugène Delacroix, Albrecht Dürer, William Hogarth, John Sloan, and James Abbott McNeill Whistler.
The Tagore Collection was donated by Dr. Abanindranath Tagore in 1989. It contains calligraphy, rubbings, and scrolls. Among the scrolls, include works by Qi Baishi, Xu Beihong, Zhang Daqian, Li Keran, and Qigong, among others.
G. Mennen Williams, the 41st Governor of Michigan, donated his collection in to the gallery in 1968. Williams held the position of Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs during the Kennedy administration and bequeathed objects acquired during his tours of duty. A majority of the objects originate from West Africa in what is now Nigeria, Mali, Côte d'Ivoire, Burkino Faso, Ghana and Benin.

Exhibitions and programming

The Oakland University Art Gallery hosts at least five exhibitions per year, in addition to hosting a variety of lectures, performances, and symposium. Although the gallery published catalogues for select exhibitions throughout its history, since 1999 each exhibition has had an accompanying catalogue.
Amongst the exhibitions that have been curated at the Oakland University Art Gallery:
Oakland University Art Gallery is wholly part of Oakland University. Its exhibitions and operations are funded through a variety of university, foundation, and individual contributions.
The gallery is open to the public. There is no general admission fee or special charge for exhibitions.

Athletics

OU Fight is the Oakland University fight song. Previously known as the Pioneers, the school's teams were renamed the Golden Grizzlies.
Oakland University was used as a training camp for the Detroit Lions in 1989.
Oakland University's men's soccer team became the first Oakland team to move past the first round of their sport's respective NCAA tournament in 2007.

Student life

Although many of Oakland's students commute from surrounding areas, there are more than 3,000 who live on campus in a variety of residence halls and student apartments. The residence halls include Hillcrest Hall, Oak View Hall, Hamlin Hall, Vandenberg Hall, Hill House, Van Wagoner House, and Fitzgerald House. Residential learning communities on Oakland University's campus include Scholars Tower and the Residential Honors College community. Eight additional buildings make up the George T. Matthews student apartments, and six major Tudor-style buildings house the Ann V. Nicholson student apartments, which were completed in 2002.
Campus life is enhanced by more than 200 registered student organizations, ranging from cultural and religious groups to Greek organizations. Fraternities at Oakland University include Theta Chi, Sigma Pi, Tau Kappa Epsilon, Alpha Phi Alpha, Alpha Sigma Phi, Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, and Iota Phi Theta. Sororities include Alpha Delta Pi, Alpha Sigma Tau, Gamma Phi Beta, Phi Sigma Sigma, Sigma Sigma Sigma, Alpha Kappa Alpha, Delta Sigma Theta, Zeta Phi Beta, and Sigma Gamma Rho. The so-called Cottage District of campus, which consists of homes originally built for workers employed at the old Meadow Brook Estate, now contain fraternity and sorority houses. Additionally, the university owns an adjoining tract of land to the east of the main university campus, which was developed into a neighborhood in which many faculty members currently live.

Alumni

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