The History of
The University of North Carolina at Greensboro

The first state-supported school for the higher education of women in North Carolina was chartered in 1891 as the STATE NORMAL AND INDUSTRIAL SCHOOL. It opened on October 5, 1892 to 223 students, a 15-member faculty, and classes in three departments: business, domestic science, and teaching. In 1896 its name changed to the STATE NORMAL AND INDUSTRIAL COLLEGE.

Charles Duncan McIver, who with other pioneers in public education crusaded for women's education, was the first president, serving from 1892 until his death in 1906. In 1995, Patricia A. Sullivan became the ninth chancellor and the first woman chancellor of the University.

In 1919, the school was renamed NORTH CAROLINA COLLEGE FOR WOMEN, as it continued to educate women in the liberal arts with particular emphasis in the fields of teaching, home economics, music, and physical education. The first graduate degree, the Master of Arts, was awarded in 1922.

The General Assembly of 1931 combined the North Carolina College for Women, the University of North Carolina (at Chapel Hill) and the North Carolina State College of Agriculture and Engineering (at Raleigh) into a Consolidated University. The campus at Greensboro thus became THE WOMAN'S COLLEGE OF THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA.

"W.C." became coeducational in 1963 when laws were amended to authorize admission of both men and women at all levels of instruction on all University campuses. At that time, the Greensboro campus was again renamed as THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA AT GREENSBORO. The first doctoral degree was awarded in 1963.

In October 1971 the General Assembly adopted legislation which combined all 16 of the state-supported institutions of higher education into a single University of North Carolina, governed by a board of governors and administered by a president. Each constituent institution has a separate board of trustees and is administered by a chancellor.

Currently, UNCG has approximately 12,998 students, 21% of whom are graduate students, and 622 full-time faculty members. UNCG offers six baccalaureate degrees in over 100 areas of study, 12 master's degrees in a wide variety of concentrations, and three doctoral degrees in 15 areas of study. The campus on Spring Garden Street, its original location, has grown to 200 acres and 76 buildings.