Grand Valley State University

Grand Valley State University, or GVSU, is a university in the U.S. state of Michigan with two main locations: one in Allendale, and one in Grand Rapids. The main campus in Allendale is situated on over 1,200 acres (4.9 km²) of land. It also has facilities in Muskegon, Holland, and Traverse City.

Grand Valley State University was founded as Grand Valley State College in 1960 and is primarily a four-year teaching institution. However, it does have graduate programs and performs some original research work. 22,063 students were enrolled in GVSU as of 2004.

It has a large health professions program that includes professions like nursing, physician's assistant, physical therapy and pre-med, which attracts many students. It recently added a new health professions building to its Grand Rapids campus.

The GVSU American football team was Division II champions two years in a row (2002 and 2003) and added a third title in 2005, finishing 13-0 and tying the NCAA record for most wins in a 4-year period with 51 wins [1]. The women's volleyball team was Division II champions in 2005 [2]. The athletic program has won the NACDA Director's Cup in 2004 and 2005, which is awarded to the top athletic program in each NCAA division.

The School of Communications started an annual Summer Film Project in 1995, and has been directed by John Harper Philbin since 1998 (except 2004). Notable participants include James Karen (Flickering Blue), Pauley Perrette (A Moment of Grace) and John Dufresne (writer, The Freezer Jesus). [3]. The three most recent films are listed in the Internet Movie Database under the name Grand Valley Pictures (http://www.imdb.com/company/co0141448/). The crew is composed of students, who are led by a professional director and director of cinematography.

The university owns and operates a PBS station, WGVU, and AM and FM radio stations with the same call letters, which feature a mixture of jazz, blues, and news, including local and NPR programming.

The Grand Valley Lanthorn is the student newspaper, published on Mondays (as of Fall 2005) and Thursdays (http://www.lanthorn.com/). WCKS-AM is the student radio station (http://www.wcks.org/). GVBN is the student-run television station on channel 7 on the university cable system.

The mascot of Grand Valley State University is Louie the Laker.

Presidents

• Mark Murray (2001-present)
• Arend Lubbers (1969-2001)
• James Zumberge (1962-1969)

Colleges

In July 2004, GVSU re-organized the academic programs.

College of Community and Public Service

• Hospitality and Tourism Management
• Johnson Center for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Leadership
• School of Criminal Justice
• School of Public & Non-Profit Administration
• School of Social Work

College of Education

College of Health Professions

• Clinical Lab Science Program
• Medical Imaging
• Occupational Safety & Health Management Program
• Occupational Therapy
• Physical Therapy Program
• Physician Assistant Studies Program
• Therapeutic Recreation Program

College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Arts and Humanities Cluster

• Art & Design
• Classics
• English
• History
• Modern Languages and Literatures
• Music
• Philosophy
• Russian Studies
• School of Communications
• Writing

College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Science and Mathematics Cluster

• Annis Water Resources Institute
• Biology
• Biomedical & Health Sciences
• Chemistry
• Geology
• Integrated Science Program
• Mathematics
• Movement Science
• Physics
• Regional Math and Science Center
• Statistics

College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Social Sciences Cluster

• Anthropology
• Geography & Planning
• International Relations
• Political Science
• Sociology

Kirkhof College of Nursing

Padnos College of Engineering and Computing

• School of Computing and Information Systems
• School of Engineering

Seidman College of Business

• Accounting & Taxation
• Economics
• Finance
• Management
• Marketing
• Graduate Business Programs
• Center for Entrepreneurship
• Family Owned Business Institute
• Small Business & Technology Development Center

College of University-wide Interdisciplinary Initiatives

• African/African-American Studies
• East Asian Studies
• Latin American Studies
• Middle East Studies
• Continuing Education
• Freshman Studies
• General Education
• Honors College
• Liberal Studies Program
• Padnos International Center
• Pew Faculty Teaching and Learning Center
• Supplemental Writing Skills
• Writing Center
• Women and Gender Studies

Except for the College of Community and Public Service and College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, the other colleges were labeled as schools (School of Education, etc.). These schools were formed during the 1982 re-organization. The College of University-wide Interdisciplinary Initiatives is new.

During the 1970's, Grand Valley used a multiple college concept: College of Arts and Sciences, Thomas Jefferson College, William James College, and "College IV".

Campuses

Grand Valley has four campuses. The main campus in Allendale and three satellite campuses in surrounding areas

Allendale Campus

The Allendale Campus opened in 1963, and is the location of most of the university's programs. Michigan State Highway 45 links the campus in rural Allendale to U.S. Highway 31 to the west and Grand Rapids, Michigan to the east. The football stadium is located here.

Pew Grand Rapids Campus

The Pew Grand Rapids Campus is located in downtown Grand Rapids. It includes the Richard DeVos Center, L.V. Eberhard Center, Cook-DeVos Center for Health Sciences, The Depot (houses the Michigan Small Business and Technology Development headquarters), Keller Engineering Laboratories, Peter F. Secchia Hall (housing), and Winter Hall (housing).

Transportation

Interurban Transit Partnership, operates several "The Rapid" bus routes under contract with the university. The public can ride these buses by paying the fare, but rides are free to Grand Valley students, faculty and staff while classes are in session on all Rapid routes.

Muskegon Campus

GVSU has three locations in Muskegon:

• Stevenson Center for Higher Education at Muskegon Community College, which offers several graduate and undergraduate programs.
• Lake Michigan Center, which houses the Annis Water Resources Institute.
• Michigan Alternative Renewable Energy Center.

Lake Michigan Center and Michigan Alternative Renewal Energy Center are located along Shoreline Drive in downtown Muskegon.

Holland Meijer Campus

The Meijer Campus in Holland houses continuing education programs. The land was donated to the university by the Meijer family. A Meijer store is located nearby.

Athletics

Grand Valley supports varsity teams in the following sports: Baseball, men's and women's Basketball, men's and women's Cross Country, Football, men's and women's Golf, women's Soccer, Softball, men's and women's Swimming and Diving, men's and women's Tennis, men's and women's indoor and outdoor Track, and women's Volleyball. The athletics department has recently enjoyed great success with two Division II national championships so far this year. One of them being their football team in an exciting win in the national championship over NW Missouri State that came down to the final play. and five sports claiming conference titles and a wrestling team affiliated with the NCWA.

Community Outreach

Special programs at Grand Valley include:

• Autism Center
• Charter schools
• Center for Business Ethics
• Dorothy A. Johnson Center for Philanthropy and Non-Profit Leadership
• Hauenstein Center for Presidential Studies
• Michigan Small Business and Technology Development Center
• Jay Van Andel Global Trade Center
• West Michigan Science and Technology Initiative
• WGVU TV and Radio

Public Safety

The Department of Public Safety is the police department for the Allendale Campus. While the department is self-empowered to enforce its jurisdiction, many officers are deputized by the Ottawa County Sheriff's Department. Because Allendale doesn't have its own police department, the Grand Valley State University Police handle cases anywhere in Ottawa County, mainly in Allendale and the area surrounding the campus.

The department handles other security issues, such as parking and driving violations, community policing, and lost and found.

Allendale's fire department serves the campus.

Pew Campus Security handles security issues and contacts Grand Rapids Police when necessary.

Carillon

Grand Valley has two carillons.

• Beckering Family Carillon (2000): Located in the Pew Campus, adjacent to the Steelcase Library.
• Cook Carillon (1994): Located in the Allendale Campus, near Kirkhof Center and Cook-DeWitt Center.

Food Service

Aramark operates all food services in Allendale and Grand Rapids.

Famous Alumni

• Kevin Clemens - Arena Football League player
• Greg Colton - Family Guy
• Patrick Sheane Duncan - screenwriter, director (Mr. Holland's Opus, Courage Under Fire)
• John Keating - Fox Sports Net personality who used on air name of Steve Knight while in Grand Rapids.
• David Kircus - former wide receiver for the Detroit Lions
• Tommy Remengesau - President of Palau
• Mike Sheldon - former offensive tackle for the Chicago Bears

External links

• Official website