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University of the Pacific

Encyclopedia : U : UN : UNI : University of the Pacific

The University of the Pacific (Pacific or UOP, although the University would rather not be called UOP because most people outside of the Central Valley do not know what UOP stands for, and the University of Phoenix uses the abbreviation of UOP) is a private northern California liberal-arts university originally chartered on July 10, 1851 in Santa Clara, California, under the name California Wesleyan College by the California Supreme Court. In 1858, the college opened the first medical school on the West Coast. The medical school later became part of Stanford University and is now California Pacific Medical Center.

In 1871, the campus was moved from Santa Clara to San Jose and the college opened its doors to women, becoming the first independent co-educational campus in California. In 1878, the Conservatory of Music was established at Pacific, making it the first of its kind west of the Mississippi River. In 1911, the name was changed to College of the Pacific (COP). In 1925, the campus moved to Stockton, and in 1961, it was renamed University of the Pacific.

In 1962, Pacific merged with the San Francisco College of Physicians and Surgeons, and then in 1966, with the McGeorge School of Law (established in 1924 in Sacramento). 

Pacific was one of the state's first institutions for higher learning, chartered at about the same time as the present Santa Clara University. The school now has three professional schools: the Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry in San Francisco, the McGeorge School of Law in Sacramento, and the Thomas J. Long School of Pharmacy and Health Sciences on the main campus in Stockton.





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Demographics

As of 2005, the Stockton campus had about 4,615 students (3,457 undergraduates, 618 professional pharmacy students, and 540 graduate students, mostly in the fields of education and business). Approximately 80% are from California; the rest are from 43 other states and 42 other countries.


Forty-four percent of undergraduates are from ethnic and racially under-represented American minorities, and another 4% are from other countries. (Eight percent did not state ethnicity and are listed as "Unknown.") []


African-American 3%

Asian/Pacific Islander 30%

Hispanic 9%

Multi-Ethnic 1%

Native American 1%

White/Caucasian 45%

International 3%

Unknown 8%



Academics

For an institution its size, the University offers a diverse curriculum (over 100 programs) and issues the following degrees:

These degrees are offered across nine schools and a graduate office within the University. These include:

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy, once an adjunct professor, continues to teach at the McGeorge School of Law. The school's programs of study can be found on the school's [Academics page].



Athletics


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The University of the Pacific competes as the Tigers, primarily in the Big West Conference. Headed by Lynn King, the athletics department sponsors 16 sports: baseball, men's and women's basketball, women's cross-country, women's field hockey, men's golf, women's soccer, women's softball men's and women's swimming, men's and women's tennis, men's and women's volleyball and men's and women's water polo. The university's two national championships have come in women's volleyball. The school ended its football program in 1995.


Facilities include the 350-seat Bill Simoni Field for softball, the 6,150-seat Alex G. Spanos Center for basketball and volleyball, the 30,000-seat Amos Alonzo Stagg Memorial Stadium for soccer (and until 1995, football), the Hal Nelson Tennis Courts and the Chris Kjeldsen Pool. The 1,100-seat Klein Family Field for baseball was completed in 2006.



Administration

The University is currently headed by President Donald DeRosa, who became the university's 23rd president in 1995. During his tenure, the university has undertaken a $200 million fundraising campaign to construct, among other things, a University Center, Biological Sciences Center, multipurpose gymnasium, a library addition, and the Klein Family Field for baseball. Serving under the president are various vice presidents. In 2005, former Stanford Athletic Director Ted Leland announced that he had decided to return to his undergraduate alma mater as Pacific's Vice President of University Advancement. 


The president is selected by the University's Board of Regents, consisting of 27 members, including U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Janice Brown, U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Connie M. Callahan. Former members are occasionally named Emeritus Board Members, including Alex G. Spanos, San Diego Chargers owner, and Bob Monagan, former California Speaker of the House.


The provost, Philip N. Gilbertson, serves as the University's chief academic officer, overseeing all of the University's schools and divisions. The Council of Deans, consisting of all academic deans, associate and assistant provosts, the Director of Planning and Research, and the Academic Budget Officer.



Greek Life

Greek life plays an important role at University of the Pacific where there are four on-campus social fraternity houses, four on-campus social sorority houses, and four professional pharmaceutical fraternities. 


Fraternity Houses


Sorority Houses

Professional Pharmaceutical Fraternities

Approximately 20% of Pacific students are involved in Greek life at Pacific.






Notable Alumni



Notable Coaches



External links
















 





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