Arkansas State University



Arkansas State University (also known as ASU, ASTATE or "stAte") is a public university and is the flagship campus of the Arkansas State University System, the state's second largest college system and second largest university by enrollment. It is located atop 800 acre on Crowley's Ridge at Jonesboro, Arkansas, USA. The university marked its centennial year in 2009.

Campuses
For other Arkansas State University campuses, see Arkansas State University System.


 * Main campus, Jonesboro, Arkansas
 * Arkansas State University Paragould, an instructional site of the Jonesboro campus

Degree programs
Master's degree graduate programs were initiated in 1955, and ASU began offering its first doctoral degree, in educational leadership, in the fall of 1992. A second doctoral program, in environmental science, was begun in the fall of 1997, and the doctoral program in heritage studies began in the fall of 2001. The doctoral program in the biomedical sciences kicked off in fall 2006.

Today, the institution has more than 55,000 alumni. Programs at the specialist's, master's, bachelor's and associate's degree levels are available through the various colleges: Agriculture, Business, Communications, Education, Engineering, Fine Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, Nursing and Health Professions, Sciences and Mathematics, and University College.

The ASU System
The ASU system includes campuses in Jonesboro (Craighead County), which offers degree programs through the doctoral level; Beebe (White County), Mountain Home (Baxter County), and Newport (Jackson County), where associate degree programs are offered; and at Heber Springs, Marked Tree, and Searcy. Arkansas State University-Beebe became part of the ASU system in 1955. It associated with White River Vo-Tech at Newport in 1992; that campus has attained stand-alone status and is now Arkansas State University-Newport. The Mountain Home campus officially became ASU-Mountain Home on July 1, 1995. Delta Technical Institute at Marked Tree merged with ASU and became Arkansas State University Technical Center on July 1, 2001. A new campus is being built for ASU-Heber Springs, which operates as a sister campus of ASU-Beebe. Foothills Technical Institute at Searcy was merged with ASU-Beebe on July 1, 2003, and is now ASU-Searcy, a technical institute of ASU-Beebe.

ASU offers bachelor's degree programs, master's degree programs and upper level courses through ASU degree centers at ASU-Beebe, ASU-Mountain Home, and three other cities -- Blytheville, Forrest City, and West Memphis—where partnership agreements have been established in cooperation with the local community colleges. ASU also operates an instructional site at nearby Paragould in Greene County.

ASU has grown rapidly over the past 20 years. Current enrollment for the Jonesboro campus stands at about 12,000, and the system has an enrollment of greater than 17,000.

History
ASU was founded as the First District Agricultural School in Jonesboro in 1909 by the Arkansas Legislature as a regional agricultural training school. Robert W. Glover, a Missionary Baptist pastor who served in both houses of the Arkansas Legislature from Sheridan (1905–1912), introduced in 1909 the resolution calling for the establishment of four state agricultural colleges, including the future ASU.

In 1918, ASU began offering a two-year college program. In 1925, it became First District Agricultural and Mechanical College. A four-year degree program was begun in 1930. A & M College became Arkansas State College in 1933. In 1967, the Arkansas Legislature elevated the college to university status and changed the name to Arkansas State University.

On April 16, 2010, following a Jonesboro 911 telephone call, University Police Department officers on patrol responded to the university-owned Collegiate Park Apartments to find 24-year-old Michael Gilmore, a senior from West Helena, the victim of a gunshot wound. The student later died and the suspect was never identified or apprehended. Following the shooting, the university chancellor convened a task force to address issues of campus safety.



Administration

 * Dr. Charles Welch, ASU System President
 * Dr. Tim Hudson, ASU-Jonesboro Chancellor

Media
ASU-Jonesboro's College of Communications features two student-led media outlets. The Herald, a twice-weekly student newspaper, was founded in 1921 and has a circulation of 5,000. ASU-TV, a program under the Department of Radio-Television, gives students hands-on experience in the field of television broadcasting.

Athletics
ASU participates as a member of the NCAA Division I Sun Belt Conference. The athletic teams, previously known as the Indians, are now known as the Red Wolves.

Alumni


Well-known alumni of Arkansas State University include:
 * John Mark Schafer- Federal Judge
 * Larry P. Arnn- President, Hillsdale College
 * Mike Beebe - Governor of Arkansas (2006–Present)
 * Earl Bell - Olympic bronze medalist in pole vaulting (1984) and former world record holder
 * Lonnie D. Bentley - Professor and the Department Head of Computer and Information Technology at Purdue University.
 * Bill Bergey - NFL player
 * Fred Barnett - NFL player
 * Ray Brown - NFL player
 * Rodger Bumpass - Comedian and voice of Squidward on the popular TV show SpongeBob SquarePants
 * John Dickson- Former ABA player
 * Carlos Emmons - NFL player
 * Maurice Carthon - NFL player and coach
 * Rick Crawford (politician) - United States Representative for the First District of Arkansas.
 * Patrick Eddie - NBA player
 * Brad Franchione - 2 time NJCAA National Championship head football coach
 * Jeff Hartwig - Former US record holder in pole vault
 * Thomas Hill - Olympic bronze medalist in 110-meter hurdles (1972)
 * Robert C. Hinson - U.S. Air Force Lieutenant General
 * Beth Holloway - Speech pathologist and motivational speaker, mother of Natalee Holloway
 * Tyrell Johnson - NFL Player, Minnesota Vikings
 * Ken Jones - NFL player
 * Al Joyner - Olympic gold medalist in the triple jump (1984)
 * Cleo Lemon - NFL player
 * D. Price Marshall - federal judge, United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas
 * Ron Meeks - NFL and CFL player
 * Dennis Meyer - CFL coach
 * David Nail - Mercury and MCA Nashville recording artist
 * Jerry Mooney ('75) - Memphis entrepreneur, former President of VHA Long Term Care and former board member of Servicemaster
 * Maj. General Bobby Porter - Former commanding general of US Army's 82nd Airborne Division
 * Mike Randleman - Actor— has appeared on numerous television shows including The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
 * Jerry Rook - former American Basketball Association player
 * Elbert Shelley - NFL player
 * Maj. General James Simmons - Former deputy commander of the U.S.-led multinational force in Iraq
 * George K. Sisler - Posthumous Medal of Honor recipient from Vietnam War
 * Maj. General Eugene Stillions - Former commanding general of Army's Fort Lee, Virginia
 * Kellie Suttle - Two-time Olympic pole vaulter and silver medalist at 2001 World Indoor Championships and 1999 Pan American Games
 * Phillip Sweet of the country music group Little Big Town
 * Charley Thornton - Sports figure
 * Debbye Turner - Miss America, 1990
 * Corey Williams - NFL player
 * Miller Williams - Poet
 * David Johnson - NFL player

Greek life
Approximately 15% of ASU's students are members of one of the more than 25 Greek organizations located on the campus. Most other student organizations, including the Student Government Association, the Student Activities Board, and the Student Orientation Staff, are led by and populated by mainly Greek students.

Sororities

 * Alpha Gamma Delta 1948
 * Alpha Kappa Alpha(reinstated in 2009)
 * Alpha Omicron Pi 1949
 * Chi Omega 1961
 * Delta Sigma Theta (suspended since 2006)
 * Delta Zeta 1991
 * Kappa Delta 1968
 * Phi Mu 1951 (closed since 2007)
 * Sigma Gamma Rho
 * Zeta Phi Beta
 * Zeta Tau Alpha 1968 (closed since 1991)(reinstated in 2012)

Fraternities

 * Alpha Gamma Rho 1969
 * Alpha Phi Alpha 1973
 * Alpha Tau Omega 1968
 * Kappa Alpha Order 1967
 * Kappa Alpha Psi 1975
 * Lambda Chi Alpha 1959
 * Phi Beta Sigma
 * Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia
 * Pi Kappa Alpha 1948
 * Omega Psi Phi
 * Sigma Chi 1987
 * Sigma Phi Epsilon (closed in 2001)
 * Sigma Pi 1948
 * Tau Kappa Epsilon 1949 (closed in 2007)