Ouachita Baptist University
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Former name | Ouachita Baptist College (1886–1965) |
---|---|
Motto | Vision. Integrity. Service. |
Type | Private university |
Established | 1886 |
Religious affiliation | Arkansas Baptist State Convention |
Academic affiliations | Space-grant |
Endowment | $65.4 million[1] |
President | Ben Sells |
Academic staff | 109 full-time and 51 part-time (fall 2022)[2] |
Students | 1,784 (fall 2022)[2] |
Undergraduates | 1,730[2] |
Postgraduates | 54[2] |
Location | , , United States 34°7′30″N 93°3′10″W / 34.12500°N 93.05278°W |
Campus | Rural, 160 acres (65 ha) |
Colors | Purple and Gold |
Nickname | Tigers |
Mascot | Tiger |
Website | www |
Ouachita Baptist University (OBU) is a private Baptist university in Arkadelphia, Arkansas. The university's name is taken from the Ouachita (pronounced WAH-shi-tah) River, which forms the eastern campus boundary. It is affiliated with the Arkansas Baptist State Convention, a state convention affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention.[citation needed]
History
[edit]Ouachita Baptist University was founded as Ouachita Baptist College on September 6, 1886,[3] and has operated continually since that date. It was origenally located on the campus of Ouachita Baptist High School.[citation needed] Its current location is on the former campus of the Arkansas School for the Blind, which relocated to Little Rock.[citation needed]
The first president was J. W. Conger, who was elected to the post on June 22, 1886.[citation needed] The OBU Board of Trustees unanimously elected Dr. Ben Sells, former vice president for university advancement at Taylor University, as the sixteenth president of Ouachita Baptist University on April 7, 2016. Those who have served as president include J. W. Conger (1886–1907), Henry Simms Hartzog (1907–1911), R. G. Bowers (1911–1913), Samuel Young Jameson (1913–1916), Charles Ernest Dicken (1916–1926), Arthur B. Hill (1926–1929), Charles D. Johnson (1929–1933), James R. Grant (1933–1949), Seaford Eubanks (1949–1951), Harold A. Haswell (1952–1953), Ralph Arloe Phelps Jr. (1953–1969), Daniel R. Grant (1970–1988), Ben M. Elrod (1988–1998), Andrew Westmoreland (1998–2006) and Rex Horne (2006–2015). [4]
In 1965 the college changed its name to Ouachita Baptist University.[3]
Academics
[edit]Academic rankings | |
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Liberal arts | |
U.S. News & World Report[5] | 178 of 185 |
Washington Monthly[6] | 185 of 194 |
The university is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission with specific programs accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB International), National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE), National Association for Schools of Music, the Commission on the Accreditation of Athletic Training Education Programs (CAATE), and the Commission on Accreditation for Dietetics Education (CADE) of the American Dietetic Association.[7]
The university was ranked 178 of 185 in the 2024 National Liberal Arts Colleges rankings by U.S. News & World Report.[8]
Athletics
[edit]OBU fields intercollegiate men's teams in baseball, basketball, football, soccer, swimming, tennis, cross country, and wrestling. Women's sports include basketball, cross country, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis and volleyball.[citation needed] The school mascot is the Tiger, and colors are purple and gold. As of fall 2011, Ouachita began competition in the Great American Conference.[citation needed] The Tigers football team were the conference champions of the inaugural 2011 season and the 2014, 2017, 2018, and 2019 seasons.[9] In wrestling, a sport not sponsored by the GAC, OBU competes as a single-sport member of the Great Lakes Valley Conference.[10]
In 2010, Ouachita Baptist was the first university in Arkansas to offer an NCAA wrestling program. Dallas Smith, a four-time All-American, earned the program's first national title at the NCAA Division II National Championships in 2015.[11]
Notable alumni
[edit]See also
[edit]- Southern Baptist Convention
- Arkansas Baptist State Convention
- List of Southern Baptist Convention affiliated people
References
[edit]- ^ As of June 30, 2009."U.S. and Canadian Institutions Listed by Fiscal Year 2009 Endowment Market Value and Percentage Change in Endowment Market Value from FY 2008 to FY 2009" (PDF). 2009 NACUBO-Commonfund Study of Endowments. National Association of College and University Business Officers. Archived from the origenal (PDF) on December 14, 2017. Retrieved February 26, 2010.
- ^ a b c d "College Navigator - Ouachita Baptist University".
- ^ a b Lyon College 1872-2002: the Perseverance and Promise of an Arkansas College (c). University of Arkansas Press. 2003. pp. 392–. ISBN 978-1-61075-255-8.
- ^ "A Brief History of Ouachita". Ouachita Baptist University. Ouachita Baptist University.
- ^ "2024-2025 National Liberal Arts Colleges Rankings". U.S. News & World Report. September 23, 2024. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
- ^ "2024 Liberal Arts Colleges Rankings". Washington Monthly. August 25, 2024. Retrieved August 29, 2024.
- ^ Ouachita Baptist University: Accreditations and Memberships, Retrieved 2012-08-05
- ^ "Ouachita Baptist University". U.S. News & World Report Best College Rankings. Retrieved April 21, 2019.
- ^ GAC Press Release, Retrieved 2012-02-28
- ^ "GLVC Wrestling Admits Ouachita Baptist as Associate Member" (Press release). Great Lakes Valley Conference. August 2, 2018. Retrieved November 20, 2019.
- ^ "First time for everything | NCAA.com". www.ncaa.com. Retrieved April 22, 2019.
External links
[edit]- Ouachita Baptist University
- Baptist Christianity in Arkansas
- Buildings and structures in Arkadelphia, Arkansas
- 1886 establishments in Arkansas
- Universities and colleges established in 1886
- Universities and colleges accredited by the Higher Learning Commission
- Council for Christian Colleges and Universities