University of Illinois at Chicago

The University of Illinois at Chicago traces its origins to several private health colleges founded during the late 19th century, including the Chicago College of Pharmacy, which opened in 1859, the College of Physicians and Surgeons (1882), and the Columbian College of Dentistry (1893).[11]

The University of Illinois was chartered in 1867 in Champaign-Urbana, as the state's land-grant university. In exchange for agreeing to the Champaign-Urbana location, Chicago-area legislators were promised that a "polytechnical" branch would open in Chicago.[12] The Chicago-based health colleges affiliated with the University in 1896–97, becoming fully incorporated into the University of Illinois in 1913, as the Colleges of Medicine, Dentistry, and Pharmacy. Medical education and research expanded in the succeeding decades, leading to the development of several other health science colleges, which were brought together as the Chicago Professional Colleges. In 1935, the first act of newly elected state representative Richard J. Daley was to introduce a resolution calling for the establishment of an undergraduate Chicago campus of the University of Illinois.[13]

As World War II was drawing to a close, Congress passed the G.I. Bill in 1944, which sought to reward veterans for their military service. Among other benefits, it provided educational funding, making college degrees far more attainable to a much-wider selection of the American public. In 1945, Daley, who was then a state senator, introduced four bills calling for a university in Chicago.[13] In 1946, realizing that they would be "besieged with applications", University of Illinois officials opened what was to be a temporary branch campus called the Chicago Undergraduate Division (CUD) on Navy Pier.[14] The campus was not a junior college, but rather had a curriculum based on Urbana's courses, and students who successfully completed the first two years' requirements could go on to Urbana and finish their degree.

Classes at the CUD campus began in October 1946, and approximately 4,000 students enrolled each semester.[15][16] Nicknamed "Harvard on the rocks", three-quarters of its students were veterans on the G.I. Bill, many of whom were immigrants and most of whom worked other part-time jobs to support themselves. It also accommodated first-generation college students from working families who commuted from home. (Navy Pier makes an appearance in Robert Pirsig's Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance; its protagonist taught freshman English there.)[14]

Due to high demand for a public university education in Chicago, the university made plans to create a permanent degree-granting campus in the Chicagoland area. Students at CUD needed to transfer after two years to a more expensive private college in Chicago or go to the main campus in Champaign-Urbana, where there were fewer job opportunities.[14]

1963 campus model and the circle interchange

Daley succeeded in getting the state senate in 1951 to pass a bill calling for a Chicago campus. Daley then became mayor of Chicago in 1955 and pressed the University of Illinois to upgrade the Chicago Undergraduate Center to a full-fledged four-year institution.[13] After a long and controversial site decision process,[17] in 1961, Mayor Daley offered the Harrison and Halsted Streets site for the new campus.[18] In December 1961, the final decision to establish a four-year university in Chicago was made. In that same year, the Chicago Professional Colleges became the University of Illinois at the Medical Center (UIMC).[19]

Florence Scala led the fight against Mayor Richard J. Daley's plan to demolish her Italian-American neighborhood to construct the campus . In 1963, the trustees of Hull-House accepted an offer of $875,000 for the settlement building. Jessie Binford and Scala took the case to the Supreme Court. Scala led marches and staged a sit-in at City Hall to protest the construction. Lawsuits filed by her and others dogged Daley’s construction plans for almost two years. The struggle officially ended in 1963, when the U.S. Supreme Court declined to consider an appeal brought by neighborhood activists and the settlement was closed on March 28, 1963. During the construction of the 100-acre (0.40 km2) UIC campus, 200 businesses and 800 homes were bulldozed in Little Italy, with 5,000 residents displaced. [20][21]

In 1963, construction began on the University's new Chicago campus at Harrison and Halsted Streets at the ground of the former Greektown, Chicago. In February 1965, the new Chicago campus opened and was named the University of Illinois at Congress Circle (UICC) referencing the nearby Circle Interchange of I-290 and I-90/I-94).[22] Shortly before opening, the Congress Expressway was renamed the Eisenhower Expressway and the campus was renamed to University of Illinois at Chicago Circle (UICC). UICC was designed in the brutalist style by Walter Netsch of Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, a Chicago-based architectural firm responsible for many of today's tallest skyscrapers.[23][24][25] Unlike the CUD campus, Circle was a degree-granting institution. Within five years of the campus' opening, in addition to undergraduate degrees, virtually every department offered graduate degrees.

In September 1982, the University of Illinois system consolidated UICC and UIMC to form the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC).[26] In 2000, UIC began developing the South Campus. The expansion of UIC south of Roosevelt Road increased on-campus living space and research facilities.[27] In 2019, the John Marshall Law School (founded 1899) became affiliated with the university.[28]

The University of Illinois at Chicago offers 86 bachelor's degrees, 111 master's degrees, and 66 doctoral degrees[31] through its 16 colleges, in addition to the university's specialized Honors College (for undergraduates) and the omnibus Graduate College (for graduate students).

UIC offers eleven inter-college programs, some of which are organized as centers: Cancer Center, Center for Structural Biology, Neuroscience program, Council for Teacher Education, Graduate Education in Medical Sciences, Guaranteed Professional Programs Admissions program, Moving Image Arts program, National Center of Excellence in Women's Health, Office of International Affairs, Study Abroad Office, and the Office of Special Scholarship Programs.

The university is governed by the chancellor who is supported by seven vice chancellors, one CEO for administrative functions, and fifteen college deans. There is a library dean and three regional deans for colleges of medicine.[32]

The Undergraduate Division was regarded as an offsite department of the main campus in Urbana-Champaign. As such, it was first headed by a dean (1946-1957), then an executive dean (1957-1960), then a vice president in charge (1960-1966) who reported to U of I's president. When the Chicago Circle campus, UIC's direct ancestor, opened in 1967, its chief executive was given the title of chancellor. At the same time, day-to-day leadership of the Urbana-Champaign campus was transferred to a chancellor as well, and both reported on an equal basis to the president.

UIC's East Campus in October

The student body at UIC consists of more than 30,000 total students, of which nearly 21,000 are undergraduate students.[33] Demographic statistics for the student body as of 2018 were:

The chancellor operates six diversity-related committees on Asian Americans, Blacks, Latinos, LGBT issues, Persons with disabilities, and Women. UIC has been publicly recognized as diverse. US News & World Report repeatedly ranks UIC in the top 10 most diverse universities in the nation.[34]

In the 2019 U.S. News & World Report's ranking of colleges and universities, the University of Illinois at Chicago ranked as the 129th best national university[45] and the 61st best national public university.[46] In the 2018 Washington Monthly ranking of national universities, UIC ranked as the 26th best national university in the U.S.[47] In 2014–15, Academic Ranking of World Universities placed UIC in the 150–200 bracket in the world and 68–85 in the U.S.[48] In 2016–17, the Times Higher Education World University Rankings placed UIC 63rd in the U.S. and 200th in the world.[49] In 2014, Times Higher Education 100 Under 50 University Rankings[50] (a comparison of universities less than 50 years old) placed UIC in the 3rd position in the U.S. and 13th in the world.[51] The 2014/15 QS Worldwide University rankings placed UIC in the 186th position. Forbes ranked the University of Illinois at Chicago 361st out of 650 universities in "America's Top Colleges 2014".

UIC is classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity".[10] According to the National Science Foundation, UIC spent $361 million on research and development in 2018, ranking it 69th in the nation.[52]

In the 2012 rankings by the Institute of Higher Education in Shanghai, UIC tied for 51st–75th in the subject area of social sciences,[53] 76th–100th in the subject area of medicine,[54] and 101st–150th in the subject areas of life/agricultural sciences[55] and natural sciences and mathematics.[56]

In U.S. News & World Report's 2015 rankings, published in 2014, The University of Illinois at Chicago Liautaud Graduate School of Business was ranked 92nd for among best business schools for its full-time MBA program.[57]

Many programs ranked in the top 50 overall graduate program rankings by U.S. News & World Report in 2013 (released in 2012)[58] including: Clinical Psychology (42) Criminology (19), Education (38), English (41), Fine Arts (45), History (36), Mathematics (36), Nursing (11), Occupational Therapy (4), Pharmacy (14), Physical Therapy (16), Public Affairs (37), Public Health (16), Social Work (24), and Sociology (41). The June 2007 issue of the Communications of Association for Computing Machinery published a ranking of graduate computer science programs based on recent scholarly publications. That list ranked UIC 34th, tied with Caltech, among the top 50 U.S. graduate programs.

The Princeton Review and Entrepreneur magazine's survey of more than 700 American schools ranked UIC's entrepreneurship program 9th (undergraduate) and 12th (graduate). In 2008 US News & World Report ranked UIC's undergraduate business program 58th and the undergraduate engineering program 57th in the United States. US News & World Report also ranked UIC's part-time MBA 24th out of over 300 programs nationally and the graduate finance program 19th; undergraduate program rankings were accounting (28th) and finance (17th in 2010). In 2010 Princeton Review ranked UIC in the top 50 undergraduate game design programs of 700 universities in the US and Canada. Criteria included the quality of the curriculum, faculty, facilities and infrastructure. The Princeton Review also looked at data on scholarships, financial aid and career opportunities.[59]

UIC merged with the John Marshall Law School in 2019 and formally became the UIC John Marshall Law School. It is the first public law school in the city of Chicago and an addition long overdue for the university striving to broaden the availability of a public law school in the city. John Marshall students officially became UIC students and are entitled to the accessibility to the same resources as all UIC Students.[60]

The University of Illinois at Chicago is a federally designated Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) and is among the most ethnically diverse universities in the United States.[61]

UIC's James Stukel Towers residence hall with downtown Chicago and Willis Tower in the background

UIC offers 9 residence halls for its students. The East Campus contains four residence halls, the South Campus contains three, and the West Campus contains three. Until the South Campus expansion, UIC students were still predominantly commuters. However, the administration has worked to change the campus to one where most students are residential.[65] Nearly 6,000 students live within one-and-a-half miles of campus.[66] 3,800 students, including over half of all freshmen, live in UIC's 9 residence halls.[67] There are also thousands of apartments within walking distance to classes.

On the East Campus, Commons West and Commons South are traditional halls with double rooms opening into a common hallway; each floor shares a common bathroom. Courtyard and Commons North are cluster-style buildings with rooms grouped to share a small private bathroom. These four buildings are connected to the Student Center East which houses a cafeteria, the campus bookstore, a convenience store, bowling/billiards, a barber shop, and the Inner Circle (an assortment of fast food restaurants).

West Campus housing is composed of the Single Student Residence (SSR, apartments for graduate students) and Polk Street Residence (cluster style rooms).

South Campus is home to Marie Robinson Hall and Thomas Beckham Hall, both apartment style buildings. In the fall of 2007, James Stukel Towers opened containing suite style rooms with a bathroom and living room.

In keeping with UIC culture, students often refer to residence halls by abbreviations instead of their full names (e.g. "TBH" instead of "Thomas Beckham Hall").

The main purpose of the SSR is to house graduate students, undergraduate students of the ages 24 and older, and professional students. The third and fourth floors house undergraduate students of the ages of 21 through 23. The nursing house is located on the 16th floor. The fifth floor of the SSR has a pilot program for students with families. The program can house up to 15 families.[68]

Residents of the family program are zoned to Chicago Public Schools.[68] Families living in the SSR are assigned to Washington Irving Elementary School and Crane High School.[69][70]

The brand new Academic and Residential Complex, ARC, was opened in response to the ongoing enrollment increase at the university. The building consists of large lecture halls, smaller discussion section classrooms, meeting rooms, and student housing. The building also has a small gym for student occupants and a Starbucks.[71]

The UIC Student Recreation Facility (SRF) is a recreational complex for UIC students. Opened in spring 2006, the SRF features a three-story climbing wall, multipurpose courts for games, and a pool with adjoining lazy river. There is also a recreational facility on the west side of the campus. The Sport and Fitness Center, SFC, comprises a fitness floor, Olympic pool, steam room, multipurpose courts, and racquetball courts. UIC Campus Recreation also oversees the Outdoor Field Complex, OFC, on the south side of campus. This outdoor complex comprises two large multipurpose fields.[72] Campus Recreation hosts a variety of programs that promotes the wellness and well being of students throughout the academic year. Such events includes RecFest, Destress fest, and many more.

The University of Illinois College of Medicine offers a four-year program leading to the MD degree at three different sites in Illinois: Chicago, Peoria, and Rockford.

UIC is a major part of the Illinois Medical District (IMD). While IMD's billing itself "the nation's largest urban medical district" may be up for debate, the district is a major economic force contributing $3.3 billion to the local economy and supporting 50,000 jobs.

In popular culture, UIC College of Medicine was the Medical School affiliated with Cook County Hospital in the television series E.R.

Grant Hall (renovated)

After the major $550 million South Campus expansion, the university began renovating existing facilities on campus. This focus is in part due to a constrained state budget: state funds for new buildings are scarce. Since renovation is less costly, this approach is being used to update facilities.

The first such renovations were to three original "pillbox" buildings: Grant Hall, Lincoln Hall, and Douglas Hall.[73] The renovated buildings use solar and geothermal power which required digging fifty wells 500 feet into the ground east of University Hall. The energy savings of 20–25% led to Lincoln Hall and Douglas Hall being certified US LEED Gold. Grant Hall did not apply for LEED certification even though it was the prototype for many of the features found on Lincoln and Douglas Halls.[74][75][76] [77] The new fascia are all glass and the buildings contain facilities for faculty and students. There are plans to expand the renovation project to every lecture hall cluster if the pilot program is successful.

Other campus renovations include the roof of the Behavioral Sciences Building and the terrace of the Education, Performing Arts, and Social Work building.[78]

A brand new building housing the College of Engineering was opened in 2019 to accommodate the increase enrollment in the college. It features the only high bay structural laboratory in the city of Chicago.[79]

The university's Office of Sustainability was founded in January 2008.[80] Current sustainability initiatives include lighting upgrades, building envelope improvements, metering upgrades, and landscape waste composting.[81] Recent work on Grant, Lincoln, and Douglas Halls included upgrading them to use geothermal heat pumps, which efficiently heat and cool the building. The university has approved a Climate Action Plan.[82]

Spark in the Park is an annual music festival that is held on Harrison field, off Halsted and Harrison, except in 2014 and 2015, when it was held in the UIC Pavilion due to construction on the Eisehower Expressway Interstate 290 (Illinois). It is held during the second week of classes in the fall. The first year it was held was in 2010 where Kid Cudi was the headliner, followed by Lupe Fiasco in 2011, Childish Gambino in 2012, Kendrick Lamar in 2013, and J. Cole in 2014. In 2015 Twenty One Pilots were the headliners and also featured Wale. In 2016, rapper Young Thug was the opening act followed by a performance by both Daya and Travis Scott. In 2017, Nick Jonas performed along with DRAM. In 2018 rapper Rich The Kid headlined the show, and in 2019 21 Savage performed at the event.

Greek letter social organizations at the University of Illinois at Chicago create smaller communities within the larger University environment for the purposes of facilitating growth in the areas of scholarship, personal and leadership development, campus involvement and community service. The creeds and rituals that guide the individual organizations are based on values and ethics that foster the highest ideals and behavior.[83]

Fraternal organizations have been a core component of the campus community since the 1970s. Currently there are 27 social fraternities and sororities, including both general and culturally based organizations.[83]

• Alpha Psi Lambda
• Alpha Phi Omega
• Omega Phi Alpha Psi
• Alpha Kappa Psi
• Delta Psi Alpha
• Delta Epsilon Mu

• 234 Magazine – Student-run Art and Culture publication
• Chicago Flame (Pier Illini/Chicago Illini) – A former independent weekly newspaper
• the Argus – A former independent weekly newspaper and media site
• UIC Radio – An internet based radio station
• Red Shoes Review – A review literary and art magazine
• Journal for Pre-Health Affiliated Students (JPHAS)- A student-run medical journal
• UIC ONEWORLD – A journal focusing on social justice issues
• UIC Today – A former daily newspaper
• Housing Cable – TV closed-circuit cable station