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University of Mississippi

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The University of Mississippi, also known as Ole Miss, is a public, coeducational research university located in Oxford, Mississippi. Founded in 1848, the school is composed of the main campus, with three branch campuses located in Booneville, Tupelo, and Southaven. UM maintains a field station in Bay Springs as well as the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson. Additionally, it is a sea-grant institute, as well as a space-grant institute.

Sixty-seven percent of undergraduates are from Mississippi, and 18% of all students are minorities. International students come from 66 nations.

Contents

Academic divisions

The degree-granting divisions located at the Main Campus: The colleges in the University Medical Center in Jackson:

History

The Lyceum, built in 1848, is the oldest building on campus. It housed most of the classrooms and faculty offices of the University. It was used as a hospital during the Civil War for both Union and Confederate soldiers. The Lyceum is now the home of the university's administration offices.

With the outbreak of the Civil War, classes were interrupted when the entire student body and many faculty from Ole Miss enlisted in the Confederate army. Their company was nicknamed the University Greys, and suffered a 100% casualty rate during The War Between the States. A great number of those casualties occurred during Pickett's Charge at the Battle of Gettysburg on July 3, 1863, when the University Greys made the deepest encroachment into Union territory. Some of the soldiers actually crossed the Union defensive fortification wall, only to be killed, wounded or captured. On the very next day, July 4, 1863, Confederate forces surrendered at Vicksburg, Mississippi; the two battles together are commonly viewed as the turning point in the war. When Ole Miss re-opened, only one member of The University Greys was even able to visit the university to address the student body. The university was led, during the post-war period, by former Confederate general A.P. Stewart, a Rogersville, Tennessee native, who was President from 1874-1886.

The University of Mississippi was also the site of rioting during desegregation, when James Meredith of Kosciusko, Mississippi, attempted to enroll in the school to become the university's first black student. Thousands of students and citizens from the surrounding area, a number of whom were armed, swarmed the campus on September 30, 1962 in an effort to prevent Meredith's enrollment. Meredith, thanks to the protection afforded by federal marshals, was able to enroll and attend his first class on October 2, 1962. Two people died during the race riots on campus. Following the riot, an entire U.S. Army division was stationed in Oxford to preserve the peace. Because of this incident, the University itself is mentioned in Billy Joel's history themed song "We Didn't Start the Fire" ("Ole Miss").

Total enrollment on The University of Mississippi’s four campuses and The University of Mississippi Medical Center is almost 16,900, making it the largest university in the state, although its main campus enrollment is not the largest.

Accolades

Interesting facts

Athletics

Colonel Reb
Enlarge
Colonel Reb

University of Mississippi sports teams, nicknamed the Rebels, compete in the competitive twelve-member Southeastern Conference (West Division) of the NCAA's Division I. The school's colors are crimson and navy blue, purposely chosen to mirror the school colors of Harvard and Yale, respectively.

Since 1983, the administration has tried to distance itself from the negative connotations associated with Confederate symbols, including barring faculty from displaying any Confederate imagery in their offices. In 1997, sticks were banned, under the guise of fan safety, to discourage fans from displaying the Confederate battle flag at football games. This controversy began when coach Tommy Tuberville complained that the battle flag was undermining his efforts to recruit black athletes, although such recruitment was probably undermined much more by the general atmosphere of the campus. It should also be noted that Tuberville was working under a probation handed down by the NCAA for numerous recruiting violations committed by his predecessor, Billy Brewer, which more than anything hampered Tuberville's recruiting efforts in his four seasons in Oxford before departing for SEC rival Auburn.

In 2003, the administration eliminated Colonel Reb, the on the field mascot since 1979. A contest was held in which fans were invited to design a replacement. The athletic department chose two finalists, Rebel Bruiser and Rowdy Rebel, and invited fans to vote on their favorite. The limited fan response as well as ridicule from fans of rival schools prompted the administration to cancel the poll, so Ole Miss currently has no mascot. However, the school's students have created "Colonel Too". Supposedly he is the Colonel Reb's cousin, and can be found cheering in the stands.

With a long history in intercollegiate athletics, the university competes in 18 men’s and women’s sports. Student-athletes, 630 in all, received all-conference academic honors from 1995-2004. On the field, Ole Miss has gone through some lean years since the 1960s, but has enjoyed more success recently. Including a SEC Western Division Co-Championship and Cotton Bowl victory in 2003, as the Rebels were lead to 10 victories by Eli Manning, the son of Ole Miss great Archie Manning. Also the Ole Miss Rebel Baseball program has made great strides under the leadership of Mike Bianco, since 2003 the Rebels have hosted three NCAA Regionals and two NCAA Super Regionals. The Rebel baseball team has missed the College World Series by only one game twice, falling to Texas, the eventual National Champion, in 2005 and Miami in 2006.

No family has had more impact upon the shape of Ole Miss athletics than the Manning family. Archie was an Ole Miss football great in the late 1960's and his son Eli Manning led the Rebels to their first ten win season in thirty years in 2003. The impact of Archie Manning, who married a former Ole Miss homecoming queen, is undeniable. His uniform number, 18, has become the official speed limit of the Oxford campus.

Ole Miss' athletic rivals are Louisiana State University (the Tigers) and Mississippi State University (the Bulldogs). The Rebels and Bulldogs close each football season with the Egg Bowl, with the victor receiving possession of the Golden Egg Trophy.

The school's fight song is "Forward Rebels" while the school cheer is Hotty Toddy: The song, "Dixie" could be considered an unofficial song, although the university has limited the song to being played at pre-game tailgates in the Grove. A rendition of the song, known as From Dixie with Love is now played during home and away football games. The song has verses from "Dixie" as well as the "Battle Hymn of the Republic." School Cheer:

Hotty Toddy:

ARE YOU READY!!??
HELL YES! DAMN RIGHT!
HOTTY TODDY, GOSH ALMIGHTY
WHO THE HELL ARE WE? HEY!
FLIM FAM BIM BAM
OLE MISS BY DAMN!!!!

Greek Life

Despite the relatively small number of Greek-letter organizations on campus, many students participate in Greek life at Ole Miss. The sorority chapters are very large, with many around 250 members. Recruitment is fiercely competitive and potential sorority members are encouraged to secure personal recommendations from Ole Miss sorority alumni in order to increase the chances of receiving an invitation to join one of the 9 sororities on campus.

Sororities

Fraternities

Noteworthy alumni

See also

External links

 

From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
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