Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology (abbreviated RHIT), formerly Rose Polytechnic Institute, is a small, private, non-sectarian college specializing in teaching engineering, mathematics, and science. RHIT is highly regarded for its undergraduate engineering program.[3] Its 295 acre (1.2 km²) campus is located in Terre Haute, Indiana.
| File:RoseSeal.gif | |
| Motto | Labor et scientia (Labor and Knowledge) |
|---|---|
| Type | private coeducational |
| Established | 1874 (details) |
| Endowment | $156.6 million[1] |
| President | Gerald Jakubowski |
Academic staff | 161 |
| Undergraduates | 1,840 |
| Postgraduates | 130 |
| Location | , , |
| Campus | Small city 295 acres (1.2 km²) |
| Athletics | 22 Division III NCAA teams[2] |
| Colors | Rose and White |
| Nickname | Fightin' Engineers File:RoseHulmanRh.jpg |
| Website | www.rose-hulman.edu |
 | |
Academics
The curricula at RHIT concentrate on engineering and the natural sciences. The school's primary focus is undergraduate education, though there is a small graduate program for Masters students. There are no doctoral programs. In 2005, Rose-Hulman had 161 faculty members, 99% of whom held a Ph.D. The current student to faculty ratio is 12:1.[4] Despite an overall acceptance rate of 14.24%,[5] admission to the institute remains competitive due to its self-selecting admissions class and applicant sharing with MIT, Purdue, and Notre Dame.[6] In 2005, just 470 students enrolled out of over 3,300 applicants.[7]
Degrees are offered in:
- Undergraduate:
- Applied Biology
- Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
- Biomedical Engineering
- Chemical Engineering
- Chemistry
- Civil Engineering
- Computer Engineering
- Computer Science
- Economics
- Electrical Engineering
- Engineering Physics
- Mathematics
- Mechanical Engineering
- Optical Engineering
- Physics
- Software Engineering
- Graduate—-most of the undergraduate engineering majors plus: Environmental Engineering and Engineering Management
Accreditation
Chemical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Mechanical Engineering are accredited by The Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET). The newer programs of Biomedical Engineering, Optical Engineering, Software Engineering, and Computer Science are all seeking first-time ABET accredidation in 2006-07.[8]
Rankings
As of 2007, the college has been ranked first in its category (engineering colleges whose highest degree offered is a Bachelor's or Master's) by U.S. News & World Report for eight consecutive years (2000-2007). Each individual program assessed has also been ranked first since the magazine has published individual rankings. These programs are the chemical, civil, computer, electrical, and mechanical engineering programs.[9]
Other publications giving Rose-Hulman high marks include: Newsweek, Fiske, Peterson's, Barron's, and The Princeton Review.[10]
History
Founding
Founder Chauncey Rose, along with nine friends, created the Terre Haute School of Industrial Science in 1874 to provide technical training after encountering difficulties in local engineer availability during construction of his railroads. Mr. Rose donated the land on 13th and Locust St. and the majority of the funds needed to start the new school. A year later, the cornerstone of the new institution was laid and the name was changed to Rose Polytechnic Institute despite the objections of the president of the board of managers and chief benefactor, Mr. Rose. The original campus was a single building, with no dorms or recreational facilities.[11][12]
The first class of 48 students entered in 1883, chosen from 58 applicants. Of the 48 students, all were male, and 37 came from Indiana. All but four students chose to major in Mechanical Engineering with Civil Engineering and Chemistry the only other majors. Nearly half of the original students would eventually quit their studies before graduation for a number of reasons, including poor grades or conduct.[13] The original president was Dr. Charles O. Thompson, who modeled the education of Rose Poly after eastern institutions. Rose Poly was thus founded as the first private engineering college west of the Alleghenies.[12]
During the beginning years of the school, money was a major concern. A lot of faculty and staff were forced to take pay cuts in order to stay at the institution.[12]
In 1889 the school awarded what it considers to be the first Chemical Engineering degree in the country.[14]
Relocation
In 1917, the school, having grown to more than 300 students, moved from 13th and Locust St. to a new site consisting of 123 acres (0.5 km²) of farm land on U.S. 40 donated by the Hulman family of Terre Haute. The cornerstone of the new campus was laid in 1922. The new campus consisted of an academic building and a dorm - the institute's first.
Early life at Rose consisted of social fraternities, athletics, and the occasional "high jinks." A popular "high jinks" involved the sophomore class inviting the freshmen class to a baseball game but were told to "leave their pipes with the nurse." The freshmen would produce the pipes at a specific time and a brawl would ensue.[12]
War Years
During World War I Rose Poly trained students in technical subjects like vehicle maintence, and created a ROTC Engineer unit. During World War II the ROTC unit was replaced with an Army Specialized Training Unit and students could enter and graduate after every quarter in order to support the war effort. This enrollment schedule continued through the post-war years until 1951. A tank is located behind one of the academic buildings as a reminder of Rose Poly's war contributions.[15]
Renaming and Logan Years
For their gift of their assets of their foundation and continued financial support, in 1971, Rose Polytechnic was renamed Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology in the Hulman family's honor.
During the 1960s and 70s, growth accelerated under president John A. Logan. Five new residence halls, a new student union, library and a student recreation center were all constructed between 1963 and 1976. Permission was sought and received to increase the student population to 1000.[16]
Hulbert Years
For most of its history, Rose-Hulman was a men's-only institution. It voted to become coeducational in 1991, with the first women students starting in 1995. Also in 1995, the college required all incoming freshmen to purchase laptop computers, becoming one of the first schools to do so. Since then, laptops have been required for all freshmen, and the curricula have heavily integrated computers into classroom instruction.
In the decade following 1995, Rose-Hulman's growth was aided by a major fundraising campaign called "Vision to be the Best." Originally a $100 million campaign over ten years, it met its goal in half the time. The goal was extended to $200 million, and by the end of the campaign in June 2004, over $250 million had been raised. In 2002, Hatfield Hall, a state-of-the-art theater and alumni center was opened. Five years earlier Shook Field House was replaced with the $20 million Sports and Recreation Center, which is a major reason that the National Football League's Indianapolis Colts have used the campus for their summer training camp since 1999.
Presidential Crisis
After the 2004 retirement of Samuel Hulbert, a popular president who had led the school for decades, the college faced a leadership crisis. Soon after John J. Midgley arrived as the new president, rumors of conflict between Midgley and the administration started to circulate. Students, sporting shirts reading "Hit the Road Jack", held protests. By the end of the academic year, the faculty, staff, and Student Government Association had approved votes of no confidence. Dr. Midgley resigned as president of Rose-Hulman on 11 June 2005, less than a year into his presidency. Robert Bright, the Chairman of the Board of Trustees, served as interim chief executive officer.
Current
At a press conference on 17 March 2006, Mr. Bright named Gerald Jakubowski, Vice President and Professor of Engineering at Arizona State University, as the thirteenth president of the Institute. Dr. Jakubowski took over effective 1 July, 2006.[17]
Campus
Rose-Hulman's 295 acre campus includes a baseball field, a softball field, and a soccer field at the west end, two ponds (known on campus as "Scum Pond" and "Speed Lake") surrounded by residence halls in the middle, the academic buildings east of that, and a row of fraternities to the east. The Sports and Recreation Center (SRC), Cook Stadium, and other sports-related facilities anchor the north side of campus, and Oakley Observatory sits on the far east edge.
The entrance of the campus leads to Hadley Hall, the main administrative building. The center of campus is marked by the Grace and Anton Hulman Memorial Union, which includes dining facilities and administrative offices.
Residence halls
There are nine residence halls on campus: Deming, Baur-Sames-Bogart (BSB), Speed, Mees, Scharpenberg, Blumberg, Skinner, Percopo, and an unnamed apartment complex. Combined, these halls provide can provide housing for over 1,100 students.[18]
The oldest, Deming Hall, was built in 1926 and is an all-male hall. Deming houses 109 students, mostly freshmen, on four floors.[18] BSB Hall, built in 1956, is an L-shaped building with room for 144 students on three stories, mostly freshmen.[18] The offices and studios of the campus radio station occupy much of BSB's basement.
Speed Hall was built in 1963 and holds 116 freshmen on three floors, all male. North of Speed Hall is Speed Lawn and Speed Lake.[18] Mees, Scharpenberg, and Blumberg (all built in 1966) constitute the Triplets, three halls each housing 76 students on 4 H-shaped floors.[18] Mees and Scharpenberg are identical, with Blumberg being a mirror image of the two. Skinner, built in 1976, is an apartment-style residence hall on the east side of campus. Apartments in Skinner were originally composed of three bedrooms, a bathroom, a living room, and a kitchen shared with three other apartments, but were remodeled to have only two bedrooms and a private kitchen. Skinner is the smallest residence hall, housing only 44 students and 2 resident assistants.[18]
Percopo, built in 1999, is a Sophomore-only hall, designed to retain and help educate Sophomore students. Percopo has in-house tutors and other resources geared towards assisting Sophomores through what is generally considered the hardest academic year. Percopo has 109 double-rooms (sharing a bathroom) on four floors.[18] The newest hall, the yet to be officially named, apartment-style residence hall comprises two buildings connected by a commons area. Apartments East and Apartments West are identical, each having rooms with two bedrooms, a kitchen, a bathroom, and a living room. The commons area contains a Subway restaurant, a convenience store and a barber shop.[18]
Academic buildings
Rose-Hulman has four main classroom buildings plus a library and mechanical engineering lab. The four main buildings are Moench Hall, Olin Hall, Crapo Hall, and Myers Hall. Olin came as a result of a proposal by Sam Hulbert and was later expanded to add six more advanced learning classrooms. Olin includes a large occupancy by the Civil Engineering and Chemical Engineering Departments. Crapo is home to the Mathematics Department and has two floors of classrooms. The John T. Myers Center for Technological Research with Industry, the newest academic building, holds the Graduate Studies Office and some Bioengineering Department labs. The largest, Moench Hall, is composed of four floors of classrooms and offices, and was the original academic building on campus built in 1922. All of the remaining departments have offices in Moench.
The Logan Library is a small engineering library whose lower floor is occupied by The Learning Center, with tutors and help available to students. Near Myers is the Rotz Mechanical Engineering lab.
Artwork
Public artwork is displayed across the campus. The Flame of the Millennium, designed by Leonardo Nierman, and its surrounding fountain is the newest and largest of the sculptures. Other works can be seen in the Root Quadrangle between Olin, Moench and Crapo, and opposite Olin toward the south end of campus.
Paintings and prints can also be found throughout the school. The largest collection is that of the late Salty Seamon,[19] a Hoosier watercolorist and illustrator. A 115-piece collection of 19th Century British watercolors can be found in the Hulman Memorial Union.
Student life
The student body tends to come mostly from the Midwest United States, though as the school has gained prominence it has gradually attracted a more geographically and ethnically diverse applicant pool. A 2003 gift of $7 million from an alumnus was specifically established to increase geographic diversity. International students currently make up about 3% of the student body. Approximately 20% of students are female. A sizable population is involved in Army and Air Force ROTC programs. [citation needed]
Athletics
There are many facilities for sports events. The Sports and Recreation Center (SRC) is home to basketball courts, racquetball courts, an indoor track, an 8-lane, 25-yard swimming and diving pool, a weight-lifting room, a basketball arena (Hulbert Arena), and a multi-use room (for dance, wrestling, etc). Outside of the SRC is Cook Stadium and its football field surrounded by the William Welch Outdoor Track & Field Complex. Inside of Cook Stadium grandstand is the RHIT rifle range. Adjacent to the football field is a series of tennis courts as well as two intramural fields (used by the Indianapolis Colts) near these courts. Rose-Hulman's sports facilities also include the Art Nehf baseball field, a softball field, and the Jim Rendel soccer field.
In 2007, the SRC will be home to the Division III Men's and Women's Indoor National Track Championships, after having previously hosted the Division III Women's Basketball National Championships in 2002 and 2003.
Rose-Hulman currently competes in the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference, an NCAA Division III athletic conference. It was previously a member of the Southern and Indiana Collegiate Athletic Conferences. The men and women's Swimming and Diving team will participate in the Bluegrass Mountain Conference. The colors of the Rose-Hulman Fightin' Engineers are rose and white, and their mascot is Rosie the Elephant.
As of 2005, Rose-Hulman has had a student athlete named to an NCAA Division III Academic All-America Team for 21 consecutive years. Sixty-four Academic All-Americans have been named from the school since 1978.[20]
Fraternities and sororities
There are eight social fraternities and three social sororities, some of which have their houses on campus. The fraternities are: Alpha Tau Omega, Delta Sigma Phi, Lambda Chi Alpha, Phi Gamma Delta, Pi Kappa Alpha, Sigma Nu, Theta Xi, and Triangle. The established sororities are Chi Omega and Delta Delta Delta, plus a colony of Alpha Omicron Pi, established in 2006. As of 2003, nearly half of the students were members of Greek social organizations.[21]
Various academic honor and service organizations are also represented, including Alpha Phi Omega, Alpha Chi Sigma, Tau Beta Pi and Upsilon Pi Epsilon.
Media
The campus radio station is WMHD 90.7 FM, "The Monkey." Until recently, the station broadcast with a very low power antenna on campus, but now operates an off-site transmitter at 1400 Watts. The studio facilities are in the basement of the BSB residence hall. The station is operated entirely by volunteers, and all disc jockeys choose their own format and playlists.
The school also supports a weekly student-run newspaper, The Rose Thorn, focusing on campus news.
Outreach
The college operates several educational and entrpreneurial outreach programs.
Homework Hotline
The Homework Hotline provides free homework help and tutoring to Indiana middle school and high school students. Thirty Rose-Hulman students field calls from around the state and help students answer math and science questions. In the 2005-06 school year, the hotline received a total of 41,849 calls.[22] The program started in 1991 and is funded by the Lilly Endowment and 3M Company.
Operation Catapult
In 1968, the college launched Operation Catapult, a science-based summer camp for rising high school seniors. The three week program is designed to immerse students into the role of an engineer attempting to solve problems posed by their group's project. It continues today. In 1977, the college held the first summer computer camp in the nation for high school students, Camp Retupmoc ('computer' spelled backwards). This camp continues through the summer of 2006, with Operation Catapult LXXX, with intent to continue further.
PRISM
PRISM, Portal Resources for Indiana Science and Mathematics, is a free web portal run by the school for teachers of sixth to eighth grade science, technology, engineering, and mathematics in Indiana. The project is also funded by the Lilly Endowment.
Rose-Hulman Ventures
Rose-Hulman Ventures is a technology-based business incubator located in Aleph Park, three miles south of Rose-Hulman's main campus. It serves as a source of internships and job opportunities with local startups for Rose students and alumni. It hosted more than 100 interns in the summer of 2005. Rose-Hulman Ventures was established in 1999 with a $30 million grant from the Lilly Endowment and received a $24.9 million follow-up grant in 2002.[23]
Noted alumni
- George R. Putnam 1890, First Commissioner of Lighthouses
- Art Nehf 1914, Major League Baseball pitcher
- Leroy A. Wilson 1922, Former President of AT&T
- Abe Silverstein 1929, Aeronautical engineer, NASA center director, and Guggenheim Medal winner
- Lawrence Giacoletto 1938, Transistor pioneer
- Bernard Vonderschmitt 1944, Co-founder of Xilinx
- Frederick W. Garry 1951, Jet designer and National Medal of Technology winner
- Ernest R. Davidson 1958, National Medal of Science winner
- Chris Mack 1982, Noted Lithography expert
- John Hostettler 1983, U.S. Congressman from Indiana
- Michael Hatfield 1984, Co-Founder of Cerent Corp. and Founder of Calix Inc.
External links
References
- ^ "2005 NACUBO endowment study" (PDF). National Association of College and University Business Officers. Retrieved 2006-08-10.
- ^ "NCAA member schools > Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology". NCAA. Retrieved 2006-08-10.
- ^ "USNews 2006 Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs Ranking". US News & World Report. Retrieved 2006-08-10.
- ^ "Rose-Hulman At a Glance". Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology. Retrieved 2006-08-10.
- ^ "Undergratuate Admissions Information". Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology. Retrieved 2006-09-07.
- ^ "A New College Ranking". Lassiez-Faire. Retrieved 2006-09-07.
- ^ "Rose-Hulman At a Glance". Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology. Retrieved 2006-08-16.
- ^ "ABET:First time for some". The Rose Thorn. Retrieved 2006-08-10.
- ^ "USNews 2007 Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs Ranking". US News & World Report. Retrieved 2006-08-17.
- ^ "Passed House Resolution 0018". Indiana General Assembly. Retrieved 2006-08-15.
- ^ "Chauncey Rose". Rose-Hulman Echoes. Retrieved 2006-08-10.
- ^ a b c d "A Brief History of Rose-Hulman". Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology. Retrieved 2006-08-10.
- ^ "Student Demographics - 1883 Style". Rose-Hulman Echoes. Retrieved 2006-08-10.
- ^ "BioCrossraods: Assets". BioCrossroads. Retrieved 2006-08-10.
- ^ "Battalion History". Rose-Hulman Army ROTC. Retrieved 2006-08-10.
- ^ "The Rose-Hulman Story". Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology. Retrieved 2006-08-10.
- ^ "Gerald Jakubowski Begins Duties as 13th President of Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology". Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology. Retrieved 2006-08-10.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Residence Halls". Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology—Student Affairs. Retrieved 2006-08-16.
- ^ "Wabash Valley Profiles - D. Omer "Salty" Seamon". Vigo County Historical Society. Retrieved 2006-08-10.
- ^ "At Rose-Hulman, a great sports story that won't sell". Indianapolis Business Journal Online. Retrieved 2006-08-10.
- ^ "Wondering About Greek Life?". The Rose Thorn. Retrieved 2006-08-10.
- ^ "Lilly Endowment Continues Support for Rose-Hulman's Homework Hotline with $1.8 Million Grant". Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology. Retrieved 2006-08-10.
- ^ "$24.9 Million Lilly Endowment Gift Expands Successful Rose-Hulman Ventures". Rose-Hulman Ventures. Retrieved 2006-08-10.