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History
The University of the Virgin Islands was chartered on March 16, 1962, as the College of the Virgin Islands — a publicly funded, coeducational, liberal arts institution — by Act No. 862 of the Fourth Legislature of the U.S. Virgin Islands. According to that law, UVI’s cornerstone objective is to provide for “...the stimulation and utilization of the intellectual resources of the people of the Virgin Islands and the development of a center of higher learning whereby and wherefrom the benefits of culture and education may be extended throughout the Virgin Islands.”
The enabling legislation was the result of at least two years of preparation and planning. In 1960, the V.I. Legislature created a temporary body called the Virgin Islands College Commission, comprised of interested island residents, to survey the need for a territorial college. In April 1961, Governor Ralph M. Paiewonsky pledged to establish such a college in his inaugural address. And in July 1961, Governor Paiewonsky hosted a Governor’s Conference on Higher Education, at which twenty educators observed and analyzed the Virgin Islands’ educational scene, and made recommendations for the creation of the College of the Virgin Islands (CVI).
The first campus opened on St. Thomas in July 1963, on 175 acres donated by the federal government. The first board of trustees took office in August 1963. In 1964, the college founded a second campus on St. Croix, on 130 acres also donated by the federal government.
CVI began by offering only associate of arts degrees. In 1967 it added bachelor’s degree programs in liberal arts and education. The first baccalaureate degrees were awarded in 1970, and in 1976 the college awarded its first master’s degrees in education. Two years later, master’s degree programs in business administration and public administration were instituted on both campuses.
In 1972, the College of the Virgin Islands was awarded land-grant status by the U.S. Congress. This allowed for the establishment of an Agricultural Experiment Station, and a Cooperative Extension Service. Since then, many other programs and services have been added. These include the Reichhold Center for the Arts, the Eastern Caribbean Center, and the William P. MacLean Marine Science Center, among others.
In 1986, the College of the Virgin Islands was renamed the University of the Virgin Islands to reflect the growth and diversification of its academic curricula, community and regional services, and research programs. That same year, the United States Congress named UVI one of America’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU). It is the only HBCU outside of the continental United States, and the only one to offer an undergraduate degree program in marine biology.
In 1990, Dr. Orville Kean was named the third president of the University of the Virgin Islands, succeeding Dr. Arthur A. Richards, who became president in 1980. Lawrence C. Wanlass served as the first president of the College of the Virgin Islands from 1962 to 1980.
Today, UVI enrolls approximately 3,200 full-time and part-time students on its two campuses. It continues to offer a high quality, affordable liberal arts education in a culturally diverse environment.
As UVI prepares to enter the 21st century, its objective is to be recognized as a leading American institution of higher learning in the Caribbean, “...committed to advancing knowledge through instruction, research and public service, particularly in areas that contribute to understanding and resolving issues and problems unique to the Virgin Islands and the Caribbean.”
The University of the Virgin Islands holds active membership in the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools and is accredited by the Commission on Higher Education of the Middle States Association. The University is also an active member of the American Association for Higher Education, the American Association of State Colleges and Universities, the American Association of University Women, the American Council on Education, the Association of Caribbean Information Systems, the Association of Caribbean Universities and Research Institutes, the Association of Governing Boards, the National Association for Equal Opportunity, and the National Association of State Universities and Land Grant Colleges. The bachelor and associate programs in nursing education are accredited by the National League for Nursing, and the Business Administration Division is a member of the Assembly of the American Association of Collegiate Schools of Business.
Location, Facilities and Access
The University of the Virgin Islands, located in the Eastern
Caribbean, is 45 miles east of Puerto Rico. The University is located
on two campuses. On St. Croix, the largest of the U.S. Virgin Islands,
the campus includes academic facilities, a student life complex, the U.S.V.I.
Cooperative Extension Service, and the Agricultural Experiment Station.
The St. Thomas Campus contains academic facilities, administrative and
student service buildings, residence halls, and the Reichhold Center for
the Arts. In addition to these campuses, the University maintains
an Environmental Resources Station on the island of St. John.
St. Croix and St. Thomas campus maps are shown on the last two pages
of the catalog.
Recently installed equipment facilitates communication between the campuses and connects the University to the Internet. Technological resources consolidated under the Department of Information Technology (DIT) include voice, data, and audio-visual communications, academic and administrative computing. The Center for Educational Technology houses filmstrips, slides, computer software, audio and video tapes, and audio-visual equipment. Data, voice and video networks are combining resources to meet the information access and processing needs of the University. Voice mail, e-mail, audio and video teleconferencing, and computer telecommunications are utilized to bridge the distance between the islands and link the two UVI campuses.
The University offers a number of special programs through the Division of Continuing Education and the Land-Grant Programs. These include certificate programs such as the Legal Assistant Program, special self-improvement courses, and courses in a wide variety of subjects to improve the quality of life for residents.
The University of the Virgin Islands is a member of the National Student Exchange. The National Student Exchange is a program offering undergraduate students an opportunity to study for up to one year at one of 155 colleges and universities in the United States and its territories. Students spend either their sophomore or junior year in the exchange program and return to the University of the Virgin Islands to graduate. Additional information is available in the Office of Student Affairs. Additionally, UVI is a member of the Association of Caribbean Universities and Research Institute (UNICA) and participates in the Caribbean Intercollegiate Exchange program. This program allows UVI students to spend a semester or an academic year at a participating university and allows students from participating Caribbean colleges and universities to spend a semester or academic year at UVI.
A cooperative agreement between the University of the Virgin Islands and Boston University School of Medicine exists whereby University of the Virgin Islands students, after meeting certain qualifications, may be accepted provisionally into the medical school at the end of their sophomore year. These students spend two summers and their senior year at Boston University and graduate with a bachelor of science degree from the University of the Virgin Islands. Additionally, there are less formalized transfer programs in pre-engineering, pre-pharmacy and pre-medical technology for students who wish to study in these fields at the University of the Virgin Islands before transferring to a specialized institution to complete their studies. Interested students should seek additional information from the Chair of the Division of Science and Mathematics.
UVI has entered into several special agreements and collaborative ventures within the last few years. One such agreement is with the University of Charleston. There will be joint collaboration on faculty and student exchanges, faculty research, and program development. Research will be conducted at the Etelman Observatory, located on St. Thomas at an elevation of approximately 1500 ft. The Observatory houses a 16-inch American Optical refracting telescope built in 1962. The telescope has been fitted with a CCD camera, a computer controlled filter wheel, and optical encorders which allow the telescope to be positioned with exceptional accuracy. The facility will be used both for instructional purposes and research, which is sponsored in part by the South Carolina NASA Space Grant Consortium.
A cooperative student and faculty exchange agreement between Emory University and the University of the Virgin Islands is currently in effect. The exchange agreement provides for the regular exchange of students and faculty between the two institutions in order to enhance the education and the mutual understanding of both students and faculty.
The Virgin Islands University Affiliated Program (VIUAP) was established in October 1994 to enhance the quality of life for citizens with developmental disabilities and their families. VIUAP carries out its mission by promoting independence, productivity and full integration into the community through interdisciplinary training, exemplary service, technical assistance and information dissemination.