Middle Tennessee State University

Middle Tennessee State University, founded 1911, is a university located in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. MTSU was originally known as the Middle Tennessee Normal School. The normal school became a state college in 1943 and officially became a university in 1965.

MTSU's tenth and current President is Sidney A. McPhee, Ph.D. He has served since 2001.

MTSU is a member of the Tennessee Board of Regents System, one of two higher education systems in Tennessee.

Originally known primarily for its Education and Nursing programs, MTSU has more recently gained notoriety for its outstanding Aerospace, Business, and Mass Communication/Recording Industry programs.

MTSU's easy access from Nashville and surrounding cities via Interstate 24 and State Route 840, coupled with its rather low enrollment standards, make it the largest university in the central third of the state.

Enrollment

As of Spring 2005, MTSU has the state's largest undergraduate student body, with approximately 22,000 students.

Beginning May 2005, MTSU will hold two graduation ceremonies each spring and autumn to accommodate the large number of graduates (average 1,600 per class) and their families wishing to attend. The ceremonies are held in the 10,000-seat Charles E. Murphy Athletic Center, the university's basketball arena.

Much of the student body comes from a 50-mile radius of campus.

MTSU's focus in recent years has been on growth, but the university is quickly outgrowing its infrastructure. With the 2004 advent of the Tennessee Lottery (which provides college scholarships to Tennessee students attending in-state schools), more students than ever will have the financial resources to attend MTSU. The current administration seeks to curb growth by raising admission standards and delegating remedial study programs to 2-year community colleges within the Tennessee Board of Regents system.

Only 3,500 students (approximately 15% of enrollment) live in on-campus dormitories, though the landscape surrounding the university is littered with apartments marketed toward students. It is estimated another 35-40% of students rent residential space in the city of Murfreesboro.

Academics

MTSU is divided into seven colleges:

• College of Basic and Applied Sciences
• College of Business
• College of Education and Behavioral Science
• College of Graduate Studies
• College of Liberal Arts
• College of Mass Communication
• University Honors College

MTSU's first Ph.D. was awarded in May 2003, though the university had awarded many Doctorate of Arts degrees in the past.

MTSU was founded on its education program, and it remains one of the highest-enrolled programs at the university. Nursing, another staple among Tennessee universities, also was a large part of MTSU's early identity. In recent years, MTSU has become known for its newer programs, including Aerospace, Journalism, Broadcasting, and Recording Industry.

The Department of Recording Industry (part of the College of Mass Communication, and commonly referred to by the acronym "RIM" for its former name "Recording Industry Management") is the university's most popular program. Students must place themselves on a waiting list before they are allowed admittance into the program. The department recently began rejecting students for the first time, a strong tribute to its popularity, and assuring exclusivity for the best students. Its close proximity to Nashville, a mecca for music recording, provides incredible resources for this outstanding department, which is regularly recognized as one of the best the nation has to offer.

MTSU classifies itself as a regional university, and primarily draws its student base from the areas surrounding Nashville and Murfreesboro. As the school has grown larger, its student base has expanded. The Aerospace and Recording Industry programs regularly draw students from outside the state of Tennessee. Most other programs primarily draw students from inside the state.

Campus Information

• 109 permanent buildings (3.8 million square feet of space)
• 466 acres
• one mile from the geographic center of Tennessee

The campus is 1.3 miles east on East Main Street from downtown Murfreesboro. The oldest building on campus, Kirksey Old Main, lies at the north end of the origional quadrangle. Flanking it to the west are Rutledge Hall, a dormitory, the James Union, and Lyon and Monohan Halls, which are also dorms. Flanking to the east are Jones Hall (now an office building), Todd Hall (the former library), Wiser-Patten Science Hall, and Smith, a mens' dormitory. These are the key original buildings on campus and form its historic core. Between these buildings are Peck Hall, (English and History departments), Walnut Grove, and Cope Administration Building. Further east are newer additions, such as the Keathley University Center, John Bragg Mass Communications Building, James Walker University Library, Business and Aerospace Building, Campus Recreation Center, and the campus' newest building, the Paul W. Martin, Sr. Honors College. In the early 2000s, nine fraternities moved to the university's state-of-the-art Greek Row, located on the extreme eastern side of campus.

The campus takes the shape of a square and is largely cut off to non-university traffic, but is surrounded by four heavily-traveled Murfreesboro thoroughfares:

• Middle Tennessee Boulevard to its west
• East Main Street to its south
• North Rutherford Boulevard to its east
• Greenland Drive to its north

Middle Tennessee State University has no auxiliary campuses.

Athletics

Middle Tennessee State's colors are blue, silver, and white, with black trim. Their nickname is the Blue Raiders. Middle Tennessee State sports teams participate in NCAA Division I (I-A for football) in the Sun Belt Conference. MTSU competed in the Ohio Valley Conference until 1999.

MTSU's mascot is a pegasus named "Lightning". Former mascots include a blue hound dog and a confederate soldier.

Main athletic building (which houses basketball arena) is named in honor of Charles E. Murphy, standout MTSU athlete in the 1930s.

Basketball arena is named in honor of local sports writer and broadcaster Monte Hale, though it is more commonly called "Murphy Center", the name of the building that houses it.

Football stadium is named in honor of Johnny "Red" Floyd, former MTSU football coach.

The athletic facilities, including Murphy Center and Floyd Stadium, are located in the northwest corner of campus.

Murphy Center features an indoor track, and is regularly home to the Sun Belt Conference indoor track championships.

The university's athletic teams simply refer to the school as "Middle Tennessee" or "MT", abandoning the words "State University". This is being done in case the university changes its name to "University of Middle Tennessee", as has been long-rumored.

Floyd Stadium features 27,000 seats and an AstroTurf playing surface. The stadium has never been filled to capacity since its expansion in 1997.

Football and Men's Basketball are broadcast on two flagship radio stations: university-owned 89.5 WMOT, and Salem Communications' 104.9 WBOZ. Women's Basketball is broadcast on university-owned 88.3 WMTS.

Chief football rival is the University of North Texas Eagles. Chief basketball rival is the Western Kentucky University Hilltoppers.

Distinguished Alumni

• James M. Buchanan, Ph.D. (Graduated 1940) -- 1986 Nobel Laureate in Economic Sciences
• U.S. Congressman Bart Gordon (Democrat-6th District Tennessee, 1984-Present) (Graduated 1971)
• Terry Weeks (Graduated 1972, 1974) - National Teacher of the Year, 1988
• U.S. Senator Albert Gore, Sr. (Democrat-Tennessee, 1953-1971) (Graduated 1932)

Trivia

Alumni and boosters have repeatedly tried to persuade the state to change the university's name to the University of Middle Tennessee, but the request has been consistently rejected by the Tennessee Board of Regents.

Middle Tennessee State University has its own zip code (Murfreesboro, Tennessee 37132) and telephone prefix (615)898-****

Parking is abundant on campus, but mostly lies on the outside perimeter. Parking is a constant gripe among students.

The university's newspaper is entitled "Sidelines"

MTSU holds the licenses to two FM radio stations:

• 88.3 WMTS (680-watt, typical student-programmed college radio station)
• 89.5 WMOT (100,000-watt, professionally-programmed jazz station, home to MTSU athletics)

MTSU has been awarded Comcast's channel 10, which has been named "MTTV", throughout Rutherford County and southeastern portions of Davidson County/Nashville for student-created programs and official university announcements.

Home to Tennessee's high school volleyball, basketball, and football championship games.

Floyd Stadium, the university's football field, is thought to be the geographic center of Tennessee, though the official marker sits approximately a half-mile north of the stadium on Old Lascassas Pike.

The three main roads through campus were named A Street, B Street, and C Street until 2001. Then they were renamed Alumni Avenue, Blue Raider Drive, and Champion Way in correlation with their original A, B, C names. Another road, Faulkinberry Drive, kept its original name.

Middle Tennessee State University has its own police force.

Middle Tennessee State University is a "dry campus", meaning alcoholic beverages are prohibited at all times. If a student is discovered to have alcohol on campus, he/she is suspended and possibly expelled.

Charles E. Murphy Athletic Center on the northwest corner of the MTSU campus was once the Nashville area's premier concert venue, hosting concerts from artists such as Elvis Presley, Kiss, Elton John, and Garth Brooks. Murphy Center was the site of country/western duo The Judds' 1992 farewell concert.

Contact Information

Middle Tennessee State University

1301 East Main Street

Murfreesboro, TN 37132

(615) 898-2300

External links

• http://www.mtsu.edu/ - official university site
• http://www.goblueraiders.com/ - official athletics site
• http://www.mtsusidelines.com/ - university newspaper
• http://www.wmot.org/ - 89.5 WMOT, university radio station