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Webster University

Coordinates: 38°35′21″N 90°20′45″W / 38.5892°N 90.3457°W / 38.5892; -90.3457
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Webster University
Former name
Loretto College (1915–1924)
Webster College (1924–1983)
TypePrivate university
Established1915; 109 years ago (1915)
FounderSisters of Loretto
AccreditationHigher Learning Commission
Endowment$129.8 million (2020)[1]
ChancellorTim Keane[2]
Academic staff
176 full-time, 546 part-time[3]
Students13,448 (fall 2023)[3]
Location
Webster Groves
,
Missouri
,
U.S.

38°35′21″N 90°20′45″W / 38.5892°N 90.3457°W / 38.5892; -90.3457
CampusSuburban, 47 acres (19 ha)[4]
Colors   Webster blue and gold[5]
NicknameGorloks
Sporting affiliations
NCAA Division III, SLIAC
MascotWebster Gorlok[6]
Websitewww.webster.edu

Webster University is an independent, nonprofit university with its main campus in Webster Groves, Missouri. It has branch locations in the United States and in countries across Europe and Asia.[7] The university has an alumni network of around 200,000 graduates worldwide.[8]

History

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It was founded in 1915 by the Sisters of Loretto as Loretto College, a Catholic women's college, one of the first west of the Mississippi River.[9] One of the early founders was Mother Praxedes Carty.[10] The college's name was changed to Webster College in 1924.[11] The first male students were admitted in 1962.[12] The sisters transferred ownership of the college to a lay Board of Directors in 1967; it was the first Catholic college in the United States to be totally under lay control.[13] In 1983, Webster College's name was changed to Webster University.[11]

Webster was involved in the early racial integration battles in St. Louis. During the early 1940s, many local priests, especially the Jesuits, challenged the segregationist policies at the city's Catholic colleges and parochial schools. The St. Louis chapter of the Midwest Clergy Conference on Negro Welfare arranged in 1943 for Webster College to admit a black female student, Mary Aloyse Foster, which would make it the city's first Catholic college to integrate.[14] However, in 1943 Archbishop John J. Glennon blocked that student's enrollment by speaking privately with the Kentucky-based Superior General of the Sisters of Loretto.[15] The Pittsburgh Courier, an African-American newspaper with national circulation, discovered Glennon's actions and ran a front-page feature on the Webster incident in February 1944.[16] The negative publicity toward Glennon's segregationist policies led Saint Louis University to begin admitting African American students in summer 1944.[17] In the fall of 1945, Webster College responded to pressure by admitting Irene Thomas, a Catholic African-American woman from St. Louis, as a music major.[18] Recent research has shown Webster was unoffically admitting Black students without the knowledge of Glennon.

Academics

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Loretto Hall in 2007

Colleges include:[19]

  • College of Humanities and Social Sciences
  • College of Science and Health
  • Leigh Gerdine College of Fine Arts
  • George Herbert Walker School of Business & Technology
  • School of Communications
  • School of Education.

Webster University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.[20] Specific programs are accredited by specialized accreditors, including the Association of Collegiate Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP),[21] the National Association of Schools of Music (NASM),[22] the National League for Nursing (NLN),[23] the Council on Accreditation (COA),[24] the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE),[25] the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education,[26] and the National Board for Certified Counselors.[27]

In 2023, Webster University was ranked 22nd among regional universities (Midwest) by U.S. News & World Report.[citation needed]

Campus

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Webster University campus in Leiden
The Campus of Webster University Geneva, Switzerland.

Webster University's home campus is located in Webster Groves, a suburb of St. Louis.[13] Many of the domestic campuses are located near military bases; some are located in various metropolitan areas. The international campuses are located in several European countries including Greece, Switzerland, Austria, Georgia, and The Netherlands; several are also located in Asia, such as in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, and China.

The Webster International Network of Schools (WINS) program creates partnerships between Webster and U.S. universities to provide access to Webster's global campus network.

Athletics

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Webster University's athletic mascot is the Gorlok, named in honor of the school's location near the corner of Gore and Lockwood Avenues in Webster Groves. Athletic teams participate in the NCAA Division III and in the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC).[28]

  • Men's sports: baseball; basketball; cross country; golf; soccer; tennis; and, track and field
  • Women's sports: basketball; cross country; soccer; softball; tennis; track and field; and, volleyball

Webster has won more than 100 SLIAC championships across all of its sports programs.

Webster's chess team has won more national titles than any college team in the country and has been ranked #1 continuously since 2012.[29]

Student life

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In fall of 2023, Webster enrolled about 13,448 students worldwide.

There are about 100 student clubs and organizations on Webster's main campus, ranging from culinary clubs to cultural organizations and intramural sports.

Webster University St. Louis has a student newspaper called The Journal. Webster University has other e-newsletters such as Webster Today and departmental publications.

Webster University recently allowed the formation of the first Greek organization on its St. Louis campus, with the founding of the 152nd Chapter of Delta Upsilon and the founding of the Gamma Zeta Chapter of Delta Phi Epsilon.

Notable people

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Faculty

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See also: List of Presidents of Webster University

Professors for the university have included Chess grandmaster Susan Polgar, actor/dancer Lara Teeter, dancer Alicia Graf Mack, poet David Clewell,[30] video artist Van McElwee,[31] political scientists Daniel Hellinger and Johannes Pollak, United Nations Special Rapporteur for Violence Against Women Rashida Manjoo,[32] activist and writer Sulak Sivaraksa, sound engineer Bill Porter, Holocaust scholar Harry J. Cargas, and former Missouri Governor Bob Holden.[33]

Alumni

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See also: List of Webster University alumni

There were over 190,000 alumni as of 2017.[41]

References

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  1. ^ As of June 30, 2020. U.S. and Canadian Institutions Listed by Fiscal Year 2020 Endowment Market Value and Change in Endowment Market Value from FY19 to FY20 (Report). National Association of College and University Business Officers and TIAA. February 19, 2021. Retrieved February 20, 2021.
  2. ^ "Chancellor Tim Keane". Webster University. n.d. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
  3. ^ a b "College Navigator - Webster University". National Center for Education Statistics. 2024. Retrieved September 30, 2024.
  4. ^ "Webster University". U.S. News. U.S. News & World Report. n.d. Retrieved May 8, 2019.
  5. ^ "Brand Guidelines" (PDF). Webster University. n.d. Retrieved May 8, 2019.
  6. ^ "What is the Webster Gorlok?". Webster University. n.d. Retrieved May 8, 2019.
  7. ^ "Study Abroad Programs | Webster University". www.webster.edu. Retrieved August 3, 2020.
  8. ^ "Worldwide Webster".
  9. ^ "Commemorating the centennial of Webster University". Bill Text: 113th Congress (2013–2014): S.RES.465.ATS. June 3, 2014. Archived from the original on January 7, 2016. Retrieved September 3, 2014.
  10. ^ Lee, Barbara (April 17, 2012). "Honoring the Sisters of Loretto" (PDF). Congressional Record: E545.
  11. ^ a b "Webster University History Timeline". Webster University. Retrieved February 24, 2020.
  12. ^ "Webster University Forbes". Forbes. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
  13. ^ a b "About Webster". Webster University. Retrieved November 19, 2011.
  14. ^ "Webster University 100 years". Webster University 100 Years. April 2014.
  15. ^ Donald J. Kemper, "Catholic Integration in St. Louis, 1935–1947," Missouri Historical Review, October 1978, pp. 1–13.
  16. ^ Ted LeBerthon, "Why Jim Crow Won at Webster College," Pittsburgh Courier, February 5, 1944, p. 13.
  17. ^ "Pressure Grows to Have Catholic College Doors Open to Negroes," Pittsburgh Courier, February 19, 1944, p. 1; "St. Louis U. Lifts Color Bar: Accepts Five Negroes for Summer Session," Pittsburgh Courier, May 6, 1944, p. 1.
  18. ^ "Missouri College Admits Race Girl," Pittsburgh Courier, October 13, 1945, p. 1.
  19. ^ "Colleges". Webster University. Retrieved September 16, 2022.
  20. ^ "The Higher Learning Commission website". Ncahlc.org. Retrieved November 19, 2011.
  21. ^ "Association of Collegiate Business Schools and Programs website". Acbsp.org. Retrieved November 19, 2011.
  22. ^ "National Association of Schools of Music website". Nasm.arts-accredit.org. Retrieved November 19, 2011.
  23. ^ "National League of Nursing website". Nln.org. Retrieved November 19, 2011.
  24. ^ "Council on Accreditation website". Retrieved October 23, 2018.
  25. ^ National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education website Archived September 29, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  26. ^ "Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education website" (PDF). Dese.mo.gov. Retrieved November 19, 2011.
  27. ^ "National Board for Certified Counselors". Nbcc.org. March 21, 2011. Retrieved November 19, 2011.
  28. ^ "Webster University Athletics". Websterathletics.com. Retrieved November 19, 2011.
  29. ^ "Webster chess wins 3 national titles in 2021 under new coach". October 19, 2021. Retrieved February 24, 2022.
  30. ^ "English – Faculty". Webster University. Retrieved July 29, 2010.
  31. ^ "Webster University: School of Communications: Van McElwee". Webster University. Retrieved July 29, 2010.
  32. ^ "Violence Against Women: South African legal expert takes over as new UN Special Rapporteur". Archived from the original on June 4, 2011. Retrieved March 7, 2010.
  33. ^ "Holden Public Policy Forum". Webster University. Retrieved July 29, 2010.
  34. ^ "Black-ish Actress, Kinloch Native Jenifer Lewis Will Give Webster U. Commencement Speech". The Riverfront Times. Retrieved February 10, 2015.
  35. ^ "Broadway, Film Star Returns to Webster | Webster University". Webster.edu. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
  36. ^ a b c "Alumni Award Recipients" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on May 27, 2010. Retrieved March 12, 2023.
  37. ^ [1] Archived October 4, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  38. ^ "Webster University". Admissions.webster.edu. Retrieved July 29, 2010.
  39. ^ "Leyna Nguyen". Archived from the original on October 2, 2014. Retrieved September 10, 2014.
  40. ^ "Astronaut Bio: Sidney M. Gutierrez". Jsc.nasa.gov. February 11, 2015. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
  41. ^ "Webster University Facts" (PDF). Webster University. Fall 2017. Retrieved May 8, 2019.
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