The Missouri University of Science and Technology (Missouri S&T or S&T) is a public research university in Rolla, Missouri, United States. It is a member institution of the University of Missouri System. Most of its 6,456 students (2023) study engineering, business, sciences, and mathematics. Known primarily for its engineering school, Missouri S&T offers degree programs in business and management systems, information science and technology, sciences, social sciences, humanities, and arts. It is classified as a "STEM-dominant", R1 university with "very high research spending and doctorate production".
History
Engineering and agricultural education was a rarity in American higher education in 1860, but that changed dramatically in 1862, when the Morrill Land-Grant Acts passed Congress. The law gave generous deeds of public land to states that created schools with programs in engineering and scientific agriculture. Debates over the Civil War and reconstruction slowed progress in Missouri, but finally in 1870 the obvious importance of mining in the state, as well as agriculture, forced the legislature to create the Missouri School of Mines and Metallurgy in Rolla as part of the state system, and a new agricultural program at the University of Missouri in Columbia.Harry J. Eisenman, "Origins of engineering education in Missouri", Missouri Historical Review (1969) 63#4 pp 451–460.
It became the first technological learning institution west of the Mississippi River. Early in its history, the School of Mines was focused primarily on mining and metallurgy. Rolla is located close to the Southeast Missouri Lead District which produces about 70% of the U.S.' primary supply of lead, as well as significant amounts of the nation's zinc.
The school was founded under the auspices of the University of Missouri in Columbia in order to take advantage of the Morrill Land-Grant Acts to "teach such branches of learning as are related to agriculture and the mechanic arts, in such manner as the legislatures of the States may respectively prescribe, in order to promote the liberal and practical education of the industrial classes in the several pursuits and professions in life." The act endowed Missouri a federal land grant of 30,000 acres for each of the state's two senators and nine representatives at the time—or . The endowment said that the land could not be sold for less than $1.25/acre and as such was a minimum endowment of $412,500 for Missouri. There was an intense debate in the state over the location and number of schools before it was finally decided to have one school in Columbia and a branch in the mining area of southeast Missouri.
Iron County (Ironton) and Phelps County (Rolla) made bids for the school, with Phelps County winning in 1870. Classes began on November 23, 1871, in a new building that the city of Rolla had just built. The college had an enrollment of 28 undergraduates and three graduates in 1874. The college bought what is now called the "Rolla Building" for $25,000 in January 1875. Following a $2 million renovation in 1995, that building is now used as the Mathematics and Statistics Department's library, chair's office, part of the main office, and other faculty offices.
Initially, the school only offered degrees in civil engineering, metallurgy, and mining engineering. However, by the late 1920s, the school had added degrees in ceramic engineering, chemical engineering, electrical engineering, and mechanical engineering.Gragg, Larry Dale, Forged in Gold: Missouri S&T’s First 150 Years (Marceline, MO, 2020), 2, 13. The school became home to Missouri's first operational nuclear reactor in 1961.
In 2018, the school was approved by the state's Coordinating Board for Higher Education for designation as "highly selective" in its undergraduate admission criteria, joining only Truman State University among the state's public universities at that level. As such, first-time, full-time students seeking degrees are generally only admitted if they have a "percentile score" of 140 points or greater, a combination of their high school class and college testing (ACT or SAT) percentile ranks. Missouri Department of Higher Education guidelines state that schools in this category may admit up to ten percent of students with lower percentile scores, and will automatically admit those with an ACT (or equivalent SAT) score of 27 or better.
Chancellors
The naming structure for the head of the university has changed reflecting its changes through the years. The head currently reports to the University of Missouri System.
The chancellor lives on campus at the Chancellor's Residence. It was constructed in 1889 as the "Club House" dormitory, then converted to a room house before becoming the Missouri State Geological Survey headquarters and finally the residence for the then-director in 1905.
22 persons have led the Missouri University of Science and Technology, or its predecessors, since 1871. The current chancellor is Mohammad Dehghani who began his service in 2019.
Military service Military service has long been a tradition at the college. Beginning with the American Civil War, students and faculty have served in all major American conflicts.
Civil War Three individuals, James Abert, George D. Emerson, and Robert W. Douthat, served in the American Civil War and as faculty.
World War I When the United States entered World War I in April, 1917, a total of 65 members of the university, students and faculty, entered into the service for First Officers Training Camp.Ebmeyer, Ernest (1920). War Records. Rolla, Mo: University of Missouri. School of Mines and Metallurgy. p. 3. Almost half of the enrolled student population was involved in The Great War in some capacity, as the total enrollment was 186, down from 301 students. In total, nine men from the university sacrificed their lives. Two men received the Distinguished Service Cross from General John J. Pershing. One man, H. F. Allison, is credited with the first shot fired in France from a member of the American Expeditionary Force.
Inter-war years In 1920, the college started its Reserve Officer Training Corps.Gragg, Larry Dale (2020). Forged in gold : Missouri S&T's first 150 years. Missouri University of Science and Technology, University of Missouri--Rolla, University of Missouri at Rolla, University of Missouri. School of Mines and Metallurgy. [Marceline, Mo.?]. p. 158. . OCLC 1202414459 An integral part of university life, at least half of all students made ROTC a part of their curriculum from 1924 to 1940. Of the 931 students enrolled in 1940, 534 were also ROTC Cadets.
WWII After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, students sought to immediately enlist. The 1941–42 administration, including Curtis Laws Wilson, instead encouraged the student body to finish their training as that would make them more useful to the military.
Changes in hierarchy and name Until 1964, the school was considered an offsite department of MU's School of Agriculture and Mechanical Arts, reporting to the main campus in Columbia (although it began fielding sports teams in 1935 in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association). As such, its presiding officer was originally called a director (1871–1941), then a dean (1941–1964). In 1963 the University of Missouri System was created with the additions of standalone campuses in Kansas City and St. Louis. A year later, MSM was upgraded to an autonomous standalone campus as the University of Missouri at Rolla and its presiding officer, like that of its sister schools, was granted the title of chancellor. The curriculum was expanded to include most of the science and engineering disciplines, as well as social sciences and liberal arts such as psychology and history. In 1968, the campus name was slightly altered to the University of Missouri–Rolla, thus conforming to the naming scheme of the other three campuses. Business and management programs were gradually added in the following years. On January 1, 2008, UMR became known as Missouri University of Science and Technology or Missouri S&T for short.
In making the case for changing the name, then Chancellor John F. Carney III noted that Rolla in 2007 was "one of the few technological research universities in the nation. A technological research university (polytechnic university or institute of technology) may be defined as one in which a majority of students are enrolled in engineering, the sciences, business or mathematics; the graduate and research programs in those fields are robust; and exceptional academic programs in the liberal arts, humanities and social sciences complement and provide context to the technological strengths of the institution."
He noted that more than 70 percent of its enrollment was in engineering and more than 90 percent was in engineering, business, science and math—significantly higher than engineering schools such as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Georgia Institute of Technology, and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He noted "The university's name, however, does not reflect the distinctive nature of the campus. Often, UMR is viewed as a 'satellite' or 'branch' campus due to its name or as a 'feeder' campus for the University of Missouri-Columbia (commonly referred to as the University of Missouri). This branch-campus designation hinders many of our efforts to achieve national recognition and a strong reputation as a technological research university."
He noted, "Of the 1.1 million seniors in the nation who took the ACT in 2006, only 551 non-Missouri seniors – or .05 percent – sent their scores to UMR." He also noted that the school's acronym of UMR got it confused with the University of Minnesota Rochester.
Among the other names considered were: Missouri University of Science and Engineering, Missouri Technological University, and Missouri Science and Engineering University.
Historic $300 million gift In October 2020, the university received the largest single gift to any university, public or private, in the state of Missouri. The $300 million gift from June and Fred Kummer established a new foundation to establish the Kummer Institute for Student Success, Research and Economic Development. The gift also will establish a new college of innovation and entrepreneurship at Missouri S&T, develop new areas for research, provide scholarships and fellowships for students, and bolster the Rolla region's economy.
Campus
Altman Hall
Originally a dormitory building, Altman Hall now houses student and university organizations including the KMNR radio station, the Missouri Miner student newspaper, the Rollamo yearbook, and a ResLife residential life downtown campus office. The building is named after William Altman, an alumnus killed in World War II.
Bertelsmeyer Hall Bertelsmeyer Hall is located at the intersection of 11th street and State Street. It was named after James E. Bertelsmeyer (BS ChemE 1966), who contributed $5 million towards its construction. The building was dedicated in 2014 and is the current home of the Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Department.
Castleman Hall Castleman Hall, completed in 1991, is a home for the alumni and development offices, and the music and theater departments. Featuring a 660-seat performing arts center, the building occupies the city block between Main and State Streets, and Tenth and Eleventh Streets. The alumni and music offices had been in Harris Hall since the 1970s.
Curtis Laws Wilson Library
The Curtis Laws Wilson Library is the main academic library on campus. Wilson served as dean of the school from 1941 to 1963.
The basement of the library is home to several campus organizations, including: Video Communications Center, which provides video services to the university and produces distance education courses.