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Furman University

Image:Furman_Wordmark.gif

Established 1826
School type Private
President David Shi
Location Greenville, South Carolina
Enrollment 2,600 undergraduate, 500 graduate
Faculty 200
Campus Suburban
Athletics 17 varsity teams
Homepage www.furman.edu

Furman University is an independent liberal arts college in Greenville, South Carolina. Furman educates approximately 2,600 undergraduate and 500 graduate students on its 750 acre (3 km²) campus.

The university is dedicated to undergradate education. Professors encourage undergraduate students to author articles, participate in internships, and volunteer in their respective fields of study. Only a few departments, such as education and chemistry, offer graduate degrees.

Furman is best known for its history, psychology, political science, music, and chemistry departments. The psychology, computer science, and chemistry departments have earned high marks among professional organizations spanning the sciences (social, applied, and basic), notable for a liberal arts institution of its size.

Furman competes in NCAA Division I athletics as the Paladins. The university is a charter member of the Southern Conference.

Contents

History

Furman was founded in 1826 as a men's academy and theological institute, in Edgefield, South Carolina. The original school building from that campus resides on the Greenville campus today. In 1933, students from the Greenville Women's College began attending classes with Furman students. Shortly thereafter, the two schools merged to form the present institution.

In the late 1950s, Furman began construction on its new campus, just five miles north of downtown Greenville. Academic buildings and student residences rose to skirt a 30 acre (0.1 km²) lake, centerpiece of the 750 acre (3 km²) wooded campus. The lakeside Belltower, which figures highly in school insignias, was installed a bit later. It is a replica of a bell tower that once existed on the men's campus in downtown Greenville. Today, the campus is anchored by its newly expanded 128,000 square foot (12,000 m²) library.

Furman, an independent liberal arts university, was affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention until 1992.

Notable Alumni

John B. Watson
Charles Townes
Richard Riley
Mark Sanford
Keith Lockhart

Notable Professors

Charles Brewer - Psychology
Hayden Porter - Computer Science
Bob McNamara - Sociology
William M. Baker - Physics
Moses Lee - Chemistry
Willard Pate - English

Majors and Concentrations

Comparable Schools

Rhodes College
DePauw University
Mount Holyoke College
University of the South

External Links

Last updated: 10-18-2005 17:49:33
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