University of California, Riverside

Infobox_University
name = University of California, Riverside
motto = "Fiat lux" (Latin)
mottoeng = Let there be light


image_size = 150px
established =1954
type =Public, land and space grant
calendar = Quarter
endowment =US $121 million cite web |url=http://www.ucop.edu/treasurer/foundation/foundation.pdf |title=UC Annual Endowment Report, Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 2007 |accessdate=2008-03-28 |publisher=Office of the Treasurer of the Regents of the University of California|year=2008|format=PDF]
chancellor =Timothy P. White
provost = Ellen A. Wartella [cite web | title= UCR Organization Chart | url= http://vca.ucr.edu/orgchart/all.pdf |format=PDF| publisher= University of California, Riverside | accessdate= 2007-08-10]
faculty = 549cite web | title=Academic and PSS personnel
url=http://www.ucop.edu/ucophome/uwnews/stat/headcount_fte/oct2007/er1rvh.pdf | format=PDF| publisher = University of California, Office of the President, Department of Information Resources and Communications | year= 2007 | accessdate=2008-01-05]
staff = 1,938
undergrad =14,973cite web | title=Fall Headcount Enrollment
url=http://www.ucrapb.ucr.edu/institutional_planning/enrollment/2007-08/f07major.shtml | publisher = University of California, Riverside Office of Institutional Planning | year= 2007 | accessdate=2007-08-22]
postgrad =2,214
students =17,187 (Fall 2007)
doctoral =
alumni = >65,000
city =Riverside and Palm Desert|state =California
country =United States
campus =Suburban, 1,160 acres (4.7 km²) in Riverside; rural in Palm Desert
address = 900 University Avenue. Riverside, Ca. 92521 [cite web | title= About the Campus | url= http://www.ucr.edu/about/index.html | publisher= University of California, Riverside | accessdate= 2007-08-10]
athletics = NCAA Division I
mascot =
Scotty the bear
fightsong =
colors =Sky Blue and Gold color box|#2D6CC0color box|#F1AB00
affiliations = University of California
Big West Conference
website = [http://www.ucr.edu www.ucr.edu]
logo =
free_label = Fight song
free = "Brave Scots"cite web | title= "Brave Scotts" Fight Song | url= http://www.athletics.ucr.edu/administrative/bravescots.html | publisher= UCR Athletics Department | accessdate= 2007-08-10]
nickname = The Highlanders
publictransit = Riverside Transit Agency

The University of California, Riverside, commonly known as UCR or UC Riverside, is a public research university and one of the 10 general campuses of the University of California system. The main campus sits on convert|1200|acre|ha|0|sp=us in a suburban district of Riverside, California, with a branch campus of convert|20|acre|ha|0|sp=us in Palm Desert. Founded in 1907 as the UC Citrus Experiment Station, Riverside pioneered research in biological pest control and the use of growth regulators responsible for extending the citrus growing season in California from four to nine months. Some of the world's most important research collections on citrus diversity and entomology, as well as science fiction and photography, are located at Riverside.

UCR's undergraduate College of Letters and Science opened in 1954. The Regents of the University of California declared UCR a general campus of the system in 1959, and graduate students were admitted in 1961. To accommodate an enrollment of 21,000 students by 2015, more than $730 million has been invested in new construction projects since 1999.cite web | title=UCR Factsheet | url=http://www.ucr.edu/about/factsheet.html | publisher= University of California, Riverside | accessdate=2007-08-22] cite web | title=UCR Facts and Impacts 2007| url=http://www.ucr.edu/about/facts.html | publisher= University of California, Riverside |accessdate= 2007-08-20] Plans are underway to open a medical school—California's first new one in 40 years—by 2012. [cite news | last=Mangan | first= Katherine | title=A Growth Spurt for Medical Schools| url=http://www.inthenews.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/display.cgi?id=13555 | journal= The Chronicle of Higher Education | date=2007-01-08 | accessdate = 2007-08-20]

The "Washington Monthly" ranked UCR 15th in the United States in terms of social mobility, research achievement and community service, while "US News and World Report" ranked UCR's undergraduate program 89th in the nation based on peer assessment, student selectivity, financial resources, and other factors.cite news | title=The Washington Monthly College Rankings 2007 | url= http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2007/0709.natlrankings.pdf|format=PDF | work= The Washington Monthly | accessdate=2007-10-10] cite web | title= University of California, Riverside, at a glance | url=http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/college/national-search/page+4 | work= US News and World Report | accessdate=2007-10-10 (registration required for public institution ranking)] "U.S. News" also ranked UCR as the third most ethnically diverse and, by the number of undergraduates receiving Pell Grants (42 percent), the 15th most economically diverse student body in the nation.cite web | title=Ethnic Diversity: National Universities | url=http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/usnews/edu/college/rankings/brief/natudoc_campdiv_brief.php | work=US News and World Report | accessdate = 2007-08-10] cite web | title=Economic Diversity Among All National Universities | url=http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/usnews/edu/college/rankings/brief/natudoc_ecodiv_brief.php | work=US News and World Report | accessdate= 2007-08-10] Nearly two-thirds of all UCR students graduate within six years, without regards to economic disparity.cite news | last= Hebel | first= Sara | title= In California, a Public Research University Succeeds Because Its Low-Income Students Do | date= 2007-03-19 | work= The Chronicle of Higher Education | url= http://www.inthenews.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/display.cgi?id=14037 | accessdate= 2007-08-24] UCR's extensive outreach and retention programs have contributed to its reputation as a "campus of choice" for minority students, including LGBT students.cite news | last= Paddock | first= Richard C. | url=http://www.inthenews.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/display.cgi?id=13592 | title=For many minorities, UC Riverside is the campus of choice | work=Los Angeles Times | date= 2007-01-15 | accessdate=2008-01-05] In 2005, UCR became the first campus in the nation to offer a gender-neutral housing option.cite press release
url=http://out.ucr.edu/campus/100best.htm
title=LGBT Resource Center UC Riverside Named Among 100 Best for LGBT Students
publisher=University of California, Riverside
accessdate=2008-02-03
date=2006-08-11
last=
first=]

UCR's sports teams are known as the Highlanders and play in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I of the Big West Conference. Their nickname was inspired by the high altitude of the campus, which lies on the foothills of Box Springs Mountain. The UCR women's basketball team won back to back Big West championships in 2006 and 2007. In 2007, the men's baseball team won its first conference championship and advanced to the regionals for the second time since the university moved to Division I in 2001.

History

At the turn of the 20th century, Southern California was a major producer of citrus, the region's primary agricultural export. The industry developed from the country's first navel orange trees, planted in Riverside in 1873. Lobbied by the citrus industry, the UC Regents established the UC Citrus Experiment Station (CES) on February 14, 1907, on convert|23|acre|ha|0|sp=us of land on the east slope of Mt. Rubidoux in Riverside. The station conducted experiments in fertilization, irrigation and crop improvement. In 1917, the station was moved to a larger site, convert|475|acre|ha|0|sp=us near Box Springs Mountain.cite book | last = Ruther | first = Walter | coauthors= E. Clair Calavan, Glen E. Carman | title=The Citrus Industry, Volume V, Chapter Five: The Origins of Citrus Research in California | publisher = Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of California | year= 1989 | url=http://lib.ucr.edu/agnic/webber/citrus_history.pdf | format=PDF | location=Oakland | accessdate= 2007-08-21 | isbn=0-931876-87-7]

The 1944 passage of the GI Bill after World War II set in motion a rise in college enrollments that necessitated an expansion of the state university system in California. A local group of citrus growers and civic leaders, including many UC Berkeley alumni, lobbied aggressively for a UC-administered liberal arts college next to the CES. State Senator Nelson Dilworth, former Assemblyman Philip L. Boyd and Riverside State Assemblyman John Babbage were instrumental in shepherding the legislation through Congress.cite press release | title=University of California, Riverside Campus Timeline | url=http://www.info.ucr.edu/announce/20020722timeline.html | year=2002 | publisher=UCR News | accessdate=2008-01-10] [cite web | title=Gabbert Oral History transcript | url=http://www.ucrhistory.ucr.edu/pdf/gabbert.pdf | format=PDF | publisher=University of California, Riverside, Oral History Project | date=1998-04-02 |accessdate=2007-08-22] Governor Earl Warren signed the bill in 1949, allocating $2 million for initial campus construction.cite journal | last=Lovekin | first=Kris | title= Enjoying Our Past | journal=Fiat Lux | volume=14 | issue=2 | pages=14–17 | publisher= University of California, Riverside | month= February | year= 2004 | url=http://www.fiatlux.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/display.cgi?id=583 | accessdate= 2007-08-22]

Gordon S. Watkins, dean of the College of Letters and Science at UCLA, became the first provost of the new college at Riverside. Initially conceived of as a small college devoted to the liberal arts, he ordered the campus built for a maximum of 1,500 students and recruited many young junior faculty to fill teaching positions. [cite web | title=Adrian Oral History Transcript| url= http://www.ucrhistory.ucr.edu/pdf/adrian.pdf | format=PDF | date=1998-07-02 | publisher=University of California, Riverside Oral History Project | accessdate=2007-01-10] He presided at its opening with 65 faculty and 127 students on February 14, 1954, remarking, "Never have so few been taught by so many." [cite news | last= Agha | first= Marisa | title= UCR's half-century of progress CELEBRATION: The university is marking its 50th anniversary with a variety of events. | work= Press Enterprise | date= 2004-01-19 | url= http://www.belltower.ucr.edu/subpage.php?content=news/ucr_half_century011904.html | accessdate= 2007-08-20]

UCR's enrollment exceeded 1,000 students by the time Clark Kerr became president of the UC system in 1958.cite web | last=Stadtman | first=Verne A. | title=The Centennial Record of the University of California | year=1967 | publisher=Office of the Regents of the University of California, Office of the Secretary
url=http://content.cdlib.org/xtf/view?docId=hb4v19n9zb&doc.view=frames&chunk.id=div00792&toc.depth=1&toc.id=div00792&brand=calisphere | accessdate= 2007-08-10] Anticipating a "tidal wave" in enrollment growth required by the baby boom generation, Kerr developed the California Master Plan for Higher Education and the Regents designated Riverside a general university campus in 1959. [cite book | last=Kerr | first=Clark | title=The Gold and the Blue: A Personal Memoir of the University of California, 1949-1967 Volume I: Academic Triumphs | year=2003 | url=http://books.google.com/books/ucpress?id=jMEZ_47vXkAC&pg=RA1-PA153&sig=1kwWHJEx2HM8ZwUehn6l4uMBtsg | location=Berkeley | publisher=University of California Press | accessdate=2007-01-10 | isbn=0520223675] UCR's first chancellor, Herman Theodore Spieth, oversaw the beginnings of the school's transition to a full university and its expansion to a capacity of 5,000 students. UCR's second chancellor, Ivan Hinderaker led the campus through the era of the free speech movement and kept student protests peaceful in Riverside.cite web | title=Hinderaker Oral History Transcript| url=http://www.ucrhistory.ucr.edu/pdf/hinderakeri.pdf | format=PDF| publisher=University of California, Riverside Oral History Project| date=1998-05-05 | accessdate=2008-01-10] According to a 1998 interview with Hinderaker, the city of Riverside received negative press coverage for smog after the mayor asked Governor Ronald Reagan to declare the south coast air basin a disaster area in 1971; subsequent student enrollment declined by up to 25 percent through 1979. [cite web
url=http://ucrapb.ucr.edu/institutional_planning/trend/yearavgenr.shtml
title=Academic Planning and Budget:Year-Avg Headcount Enrollment
publisher=Institutional Planning, Office of Planning and Budget, University of California, Riverside
accessdate=2008-03-22
last=
first=] Hinderaker's development of innovative programs in business administration and biomedical sciences created incentive for enough students to enroll at Riverside to keep the campus open. [cite news | last= Parsavand | first= Shirind | title=Former UCR chancellor Ivan Hinderaker dies at 91 | date= 2007-09-25 | url= http://www.pe.com/localnews/rivcounty/stories/PE_News_Local_D_hinderaker25.4033be3.html | work= Press Enterprise | accessdate= 2007-09-26]

In the 1990s, the UC experienced a new surge of enrollment applications, now known as "Tidal Wave II". [cite web |title=Tidal Wave II Revisited, A Review of Earlier Enrollment Projections For CA Higher Education| last1= Hayward| first1= Gerald C. | last2= Brenman | first2= David W. | last3= Estrada | first3= Leobardo F. | publisher= National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education | format=PDF | location=San Jose and Washington, D.C. | month= September | year= 1998 | url=http://www.highereducation.org/reports/tidalwave/wave.pdf |accessdate= 2007-08-21] The Regents targeted UCR for an annual growth rate of 6.3 percent, the fastest in the UC system, and anticipated 19,900 students at UCR by 2010.cite press release | title=UC Enrollment Growth| publisher= News and Communications, University of California, Office of the President | url=http://www.ucop.edu/ucophome/commserv/FS000302Enroll.pdf | format=PDF | accessdate= 2007-08-22] By 1995, African American, American Indian,and Latino student enrollments accounted for 30 percent of the UCR student body, the highest proportion of any UC campus at the time. [cite web | last=Robinson | first= Nina | title=Undergraduate Access to the University of California After the Elimination of Race Conscious Policies | location=Oakland | publisher= UC Office of the President | month= March | year= 2003 | url=http://www.ucop.edu/sas/publish/aa_final2.pdf | format=PDF | accessdate= 2007-08-21] The 1997 implementation of Proposition 209—which banned the use of affirmative action by state agencies—reduced the ethnic diversity at the more selective UC campuses but further increased it at UCR.cite news | title= Diversity in the affirmative, Some point to UCR as an example of why race-based policies are not necessary. | last = Knott Ahern | first = Louise | work = Press Enterprise | date = 2003-05-05 | url = http://www.inthenews.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/display.cgi?id=3472 | accessdate = 2007-08-21 ]

With UCR scheduled for dramatic population growth, efforts have been made to increase its popular and academic recognition.cite web | title=UCR's Long Range Development Plan | month= October | year= 2005 | format=PDF | url=http://www.lrdp.ucr.edu/LRDP05-Oct2005.pdf | publisher= University of California, Riverside, Office of Academic Planning & Budget, Capital & Physical Planning | accessdate=2007-08-10] The students voted for a fee increase to move UCR athletics into NCAA Division I standing in 1998.cite press release
url=http://www.athletics.ucr.edu/pressreleasearchives/9900prarchives.html
title=UCR Invited to Join Big West Conference, Clearing Major Hurdle in Division I Bid
publisher=UC Riverside Athletics
accessdate=2008-02-06
date=1999-10-01
last=
first=] Proposals to establish a law school, a medical school, and a school of public policy at UCR have been in development since the 1990s. [cite press release | title= UC Riverside Updates Plan for Future Law School, Campus has long-range plans for a medical school, a law school and a school of public policy | publisher= University of California, Riverside, Office of Strategic Communications | date= 2006-05-19 | url=http://www.newsroom.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/display.cgi?id=1347| accessdate= 2007-08-21] In June 2006, UCR received its largest gift, 15.5 million from two local couples, in trust towards building its medical school. [cite news | last= Agha | first= Marisa | coauthors= Quan, Douglas | title= UC Riverside receives its largest gift, $15.5 million | work= The Press Enterprise | date= 2006-06-16 | url=http://www.pe.com/localnews/inland/stories/PE_News_Local_R_donor17.1d1979b.html | accessdate=2007-08-21 ] The Regents formally approved UCR’s medical school proposal in 2006. Projected to be completed by 2012, it will be the first new medical school in 40 years built in California.cite news | last= Agha | first= Marisa | title= Regent's ratify Med School | work= The Press Enterprise | date= 2006-11-16 | url=http://www.pe.com/localnews/riverside/stories/PE_News_Local_D_ucrmed17.371bb52.html | accessdate= 2007-08-21 ] cite news | last= Regus | first= Elaine | title= UC Riverside taking final steps in planning medical school | work= The Press Enterprise | date=2007-10-29 | url=http://www.pe.com/localnews/inland/stories/PE_News_Local_D_medskl23.368812d.html | accessdate= 2007-10-29 ]

Campus

UCR's main campus sits at an elevation of ft to m|1100|abbr=yes to ft to m|1450|abbr=yes near Box Springs Mountain, 3 miles (5 km) east of downtown Riverside, and comprises convert|1112|acre|ha|0|sp=us divided into eastern and western areas by the State Route 60 freeway. [cite web | title=University of California, Riverside Botanic Gardens: The Physical Site | publisher=University of California, Riverside, Center for Visual Computing | url=http://www.gardens.ucr.edu/gardens/thesite.html | accessdate= 2007-08-22]

East Campus, occupying approximately convert|600|acre|ha|0|sp=us, hosts the core cluster of academic buildings and services. The original buildings that formed the earliest kernel of the campus included the UC Citrus Experiment Station, residential buildings, and barn, all of which are still in use. They were designed by Lester H. Hibbard, in association with H.B. Cody. Built by 1917 at a cost of $165,000, the architecture of the major buildings followed the Mission Revival style suggesting the Spanish colonial heritage of Southern California.

Further major construction largely ceased on the site until the groundbreaking for the College of Letters and Science (CHASS) in April 1951. A group of five buildings designed by different architects in a decidedly more Modern style were completed by 1954: the Rivera Library, Webber Hall, Geology Building, Physical Education Building and Watkins Hall. After the Regents declared UCR a "general campus" of the UC system in 1958, many new buildings and additions were laid out over the following decade. Following an east–west axis, new student residence halls and athletic facilities were developed along the southeastern quadrant of the main campus, while academic and research facilities were built along the central campus area closer to the freeway. The Bell Tower, one of only four carillons in California, was built in this period. Designed by A. Quincy Jones, the tower is ft to m|161|abbr=yes tall and contains 48 bells, each weighing from lb to kg | 28 | abbr | American | precision | wiki to lb to kg | 5091 | abbr | American | precision | wiki, covering four chromatic octaves. [cite web | title= History of the Bell Tower | publisher= UCR Bell Tower Fund | url= http://www.belltower.ucr.edu/subpage.php?content=history.html | accessdate= 2007-08-23]

After the drop in enrollment and subsequent restructuring of academic programs in 1970s, little capacity construction was undertaken over the next two decades. However, enrollment growth in the late 1980s justified considerable further campus expansion over the 1990s. Major additions built in the period include: Bourns Hall, completed in 1995; the Humanities & Social Science building, completed in 1996; and the Science Library, completed in 1998. The Pentland and Stonehaven residence halls were completed in 2000, and the Arts building was completed in 2001. Active construction projects include new buildings for Engineering and Materials Science, Psychology Research, and Genomics. [cite web | title=Building for the Future | publisher= University of California, Riverside, Office of Design and Construction | url= http://pdc.ucr.edu/pdf_files/Construction_Progress.pdf | format=PDF | accessdate= 2008-01-05] [cite journal | last= Forgey | first= Mary | title=UC Riverside Plays 'Catch-Up' | journal= California Construction | month= May | year= 2004 | url = http://california.construction.com/features/archive/0405_Feature11.asp | accessdate= 2007-08-22] The first phase of a new Commons was completed in 2007, and phase II is in development. Other ongoing projects include a new CHASS Instructional and Research Center and Students Academic Support Services Building. [cite web | title=Commons | url=http://www.commons.ucr.edu/default.htm | publisher= University of California, Riverside | accessdate= 2007-10-10] Since 1999, more than $730 million has been invested in construction projects.

Of the convert|511|acre|ha|0|sp=us of UCR property constituting West Campus, approximately convert|216|acre|ha|0|sp=us along University Avenue have been developed. These include facilities such as University Extension, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Germplasm Repository, International Village (student housing), Human Resources and Highlander Hall. University Village, a mixed use commercial development, features a movie theater, stores, restaurants, office space, and an apartment complex, along with a parking structure and surface parking. Citrus groves and row crops occupy the remaining convert|295|acre|ha|0|sp=us stretching northwest to the intersection of Chicago Avenue and Le Conte Drive. Plans for future expansion include converting a portion of these fields into new UCR infrastructure.

In downtown Riverside, the UCR/California Museum of Photography and Sweeney Art Gallery occupy adjacent historical buildings along the Main Street pedestrian mall. In 2009, a third institution, the Culver Center for the Arts, is expected to round out the UCR/ARTSblock, a collaboration with the city that includes art exhibition and studio space. [cite web | title=UCR/ARTSblock | publisher= University of California, Riverside, College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences | url=http://artsblock.ucr.edu/about_mission.lasso |accessdate= 2007-08-22] [cite news | last= Haberman | first= Doug | title= Riverside colleges to bring arts schools downtown | url= http://www.pe.com/localnews/rivcounty/stories/PE_News_Local_H_arts24.39f70e1.html | work= The Press Enterprise | date= 2007-10-23 | accessdate=2007-10-23]

Palm Desert graduate center

The Richard J. Heckmann International Center for Entrepreneurial Management was founded in Palm Desert in 2001. After the convert|540|acre|ha|0|sp=us|adj=on Coachella Valley Agricultural Research Station, it is UCR's second institutional presence in the Coachella Valley. Initially funded by a $6 million gift from Richard J. Heckmann, a water treatment entrepreneur, the institution was planned as a teaching and research center of the A. Gary Anderson Graduate School of Management. The center encourages local entrepreneurship through the Coachella Valley Angel Network, an angel investment network. [cite news | last=Tucker | first=Darla Martin | title= Angels seek startups to shepherd | url=http://cvangelnetwork.com/bizpress112606.html | work=The Business Press | date=2006-11-26 | accessdate=2007-08-23] A further investment of $10 million from the State of California and a donation of convert|20|acre|ha|0|sp=us of land from the City of Palm Desert allowed for the opening of an expanded graduate center on April 15, 2005, adjacent to the California State University, San Bernardino Palm Desert Campus. The center is also home to university researchers in conservation biology, technology transfer and Native American studies. Master's level instruction in business management and creative writing is available at the center. [cite web | title= UCR Palm Desert Graduate Center | publisher=University of California, Riverside | url=http://www.palmdesert.ucr.edu/index.php?content=/about/index.html | accessdate= 2007-08-23]

Academics

As a campus of the University of California system, UCR is governed by a Board of Regents and administered by a president. The current president is Mark Yudof, and the administrative head of UCR is Acting Chancellor Robert D. Grey. UCR's academic policies are set by its Academic Senate, a legislative body composed of all UCR faculty members. [cite web | title=The Duties and Structure of the Academic Senate: A Brief Review, Academic Senate Office | publisher=University of California, Riverside | url=http://www.senate.ucr.edu/senate_site/cms.php?node=duties_and_structure | accessdate=2008-01-06]

UCR is organized into three academic colleges, two professional schools, and several interdisciplinary divisions. UCR's liberal arts college, the College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences, was founded in 1954, and began accepting graduate students in 1960. The College of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, founded in 1960, incorporated the CES as part of the first research-oriented institution at UCR; it eventually also incorporated the natural science departments formerly associated with the liberal arts college to form its present structure in 1974. UCR's newest academic unit, the Bourns College of Engineering, was founded in 1989. [cite press release | title= UC Riverside College of Engineering Hires Thirteen New Faculty Members | url = http://www.newsroom.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/display.cgi?id=717 | date=2003-12-22 | publisher = University of California, Riverside | accessdate = 2007-12-07] [cite web
url=http://www.cnas.ucr.edu/about/history.html
title=UCR College of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, History
publisher=University of California, Riverside
accessdate=2008-03-12
last=
first=] Comprising the professional schools are the Graduate School of Education, founded in 1968, and the A. Gary Anderson Graduate School of Management, founded in 1970. These units collectively provide 81 majors and 52 minors, 48 master's degree programs, and 42 Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) programs. [cite web | url = http://catalog.ucr.edu/UCR_Catalog_0708.pdf | format=PDF | title = 2007-08 UCR General Catalog | publisher = University of California, Riverside | accessdate = 2007-08-10] UCR is the only UC campus to offer undergraduate degrees in creative writing and public policy and one of three UCs (along with Berkeley and Irvine) to offer an undergraduate degree in business administration. [cite web | url = http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/admissions/ITU.pdf | title = Introducing the University, 08-09 | publisher = University of California, Office of the President, Student Affairs | format=PDF| month= April | year= 2007 | accessdate = 2007-08-10] Through its Division of Biomedical Sciences, founded in 1974, UCR offers the Thomas Haider medical degree program in collaboration with UCLA. UCR's doctoral program in the emerging field of dance theory, founded in 1992, was the first program of its kind in the United States, and UCR's minor in lesbian, gay and bisexual studies, established in 1996, was the first undergraduate program of its kind in the UC system. [cite news | last= La Rocco | first= Cynthia | title= DANCE; Mind And Body At Yale |url= http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C04E5DE1738F930A1575AC0A9619C8B63 | work=New York Times |date= 2007-09-23 | accessdate= 2007-10-10] [cite news
url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9800E3D61631F93BA15751C1A961958260
title=Study of Sex Experiencing 2d Revolution
work=New York Times
accessdate=2008-02-03
last=Bronner
first=Ethan
date=1997-12-28] [cite journal
url=http://out.ucr.edu/campus/studies_article2001.htm
title=New Schools of Thought
journal=Frontiers
volume=20
issue=3
year=2001
accessdate=2008-02-03
last=Catrone
first=Vince] A new BA program in bagpipes was inaugurated in 2007. [cite news
url=http://www.pe.com/localnews/riverside/stories/PE_News_Local_D_bagpipes11.3ab535f.html
title=UCR's unique bagpipes and drum degree program beckons with top-notch directors
work=Press Enterprise
date=2008-04-10
accessdate=2008-04-12
last=Regus
first=Elaine]

Rankings

Infobox US university ranking
USNWR_NU = 89th overall 40th public
USNWR_LA =
USNWR_Bus =
USNWR_Law =
USNWR_Medr =
USNWR_Medc =
USNWR_Eng =
USNWR_Ed =
ARWU_W = 102nd
ARWU_N = 59th
ARWU_SCI = 77th
ARWU_ENG = 76th
ARWU_LIFE = 76th
ARWU_MED =
ARWU_SOC =
Newsweek =
THES_W =
THES_N =
CMUP =
Wamo = 15th
PR_EE =Institutional rankings of UC Riverside vary widely, depending on the criteria of the publication. For instance, in the 2009 issue of "US News and World Report's" "America's Best Colleges", UCR was ranked in the top tier (89th) among national universities and 40th among public institutions; criteria include peer assessment, student selectivity and retention, as well as faculty and financial resources. US News recognized UCR as one of the up and coming universities to watch for. In the 2007 edition of the "Washington Monthly" college rankings, UCR ranked 15th among national universities. The "Washington Monthly" assesses the quality of schools based on social mobility (e.g., percentage of Pell Grant recipients who graduate), academic quality (e.g., percentage of graduates who go on to earn PhDs), and community service. According to the Faculty Scholarly Productivity Index published by "Academic Analytics" in 2006, UCR as an institution ranked 46th among top research universities considering such criteria as faculty publications, citations, research funding and other honors.cite journal | last= Fogg | first= Piper | title=A New Standard for Measuring Doctoral Programs | journal= The Chronicle of Higher Education | date= 2007-01-12 | url=http://chronicle.com/free/v53/i19/19a00801.htm | accessdate= 2007-08-22] Since 1997, more than 110 UCR faculty members have been elected fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Over the course of UCR's history, seven current or former faculty members have been elected to the National Academy of Sciences, and more than 50 have received Guggenheim Fellowships.

Economic and research impact

that female spiders use to make their egg cases. [cite news
url=http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/08/0802_050802_spidersilk.html
title=Gene for Key Spider-Silk Protein Found
work=National Geographic News
accessdate=2008-02-22
date=2005-08-02
last=Lovgren
first=Stefan] Photograph by Mark Chappell, 2005.]

UCR operated under a $435 million budget in fiscal year 2005–06. The state government provided $153 million, student fees accounted for $111 million, the federal government financed $84 million, and $45 million came from university sales and services. Private support and other sources accounted for the remaining $18 million. Overall, monies spent at UCR have an economic impact of nearly $1 billion in California. Faculty members received nearly $87 million in research funding in 2005–06, mostly from federal agencies such as the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health. [cite web | title=Sponsored Programs Activity, Fiscal Year 2006 Annual Summary Report| publisher= University of California, Riverside, Office of Research | year= 2006
url=http://or.ucr.edu/Files/pdf/annual2006.pdf | format=PDF | accessdate = 2007-08-22] Total research expenditures at Riverside are significantly concentrated in agricultural science, accounting for 53 percent of total research expenditures spent by the university in 2002.cite web | last= ICF Consulting |url = http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/itstartshere/report/fullreport.pdf | format=PDF | title = California's Future: It Starts Here, UC's Contributions to Growth, Health, and Culture | month=March | year=2003 | publisher = University of California, Office of the President | accessdate = 2007-08-10] Top research centers by expenditure, as measured in 2002, include the Agricultural Experiment Station, the Center for Environmental Research and Technology, the Center for Bibliographical Studies, the Air Pollution Research Center, and the Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics.

Throughout UCR's history, researchers have developed more than 40 new citrus varieties and invented new techniques to help the $960 million-a-year California citrus industry fight pests and diseases. In 1927, entomologists at the CES introduced two wasps from Australia as natural enemies of a major citrus pest, the citrophilus mealybug, saving growers in Orange County $1 million in annual losses. This event was pivotal in establishing biological control as a practical means of reducing pest populations. [cite book | last=Saywer | first= Richard C. | title=To Make a Spotless Orange: Biological Control in California | location=West Lafayette, Indiana | publisher=Purdue University Press | year= 1996 | isbn=1557532850] In 1963, plant physiologist Charles Coggins proved that application of gibberellic acid allows fruit to remain on citrus trees for extended periods. The ultimate result of his work, which continued through the 1980s, was the extension of the citrus-growing season in California from four to nine months. In 1980, UC Riverside released the Oroblanco grapefruit, its first patented citrus variety. Since then, the citrus breeding program has released other varieties such as the Melogold grapefruit, the Gold Nugget mandarin (or tangerine), and others that have yet to be given trademark names. To assist entrepreneurs in developing new products, UCR is a primary partner in the Riverside Regional Technology Park, which includes the City of Riverside and the County of Riverside. [cite news
url=http://www.inthenews.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/display.cgi?id=12520
title=Incubators hatch fledgling firms
work=The Business Press
accessdate=2008-03-09
date=2006-06-19
last=Tucker
first=Darla Martin] It also administers six reserves of the University of California Natural Reserve System. UCR recently announced a partnership with China Agricultural University to launch a new center in Beijing, which will study ways to respond to the country's growing environmental issues. [cite news |last=Bowles | first=Jennifer | title= UCR joins in China venture | url= http://www.pe.com/localnews/environment/stories/PE_News_Local_S_china17.3e41f93.html | work= Press Enterprise | date= 2007-10-17 | accessdate= 2007-10-20]

Libraries and collections

Total library collections at UCR comprise more than 2 million volumes, 14,017 electronic journals, 23,000 serial subscriptions, and 1.7 million microformats.cite web | title= The UCR Libraries | publisher=University of California, Riverside | url=http://library.ucr.edu/content/lfmp/fact-sheet.pdf | format=PDF | accessdate=2007-08-22 ] Two large, four-story libraries house most of the physical collections. The ft to m|179595|abbr=yes Rivera library was constructed in 1954 and named after Tomás Rivera in 1985. It seats a capacity of 956 and houses general humanities and social science collections, as well as special collections, including the world's largest collection of science fiction, horror and fantasy literature, the 110,000-volume Eaton Collection. [cite news | last=Conway | first= Melissa | title= J. Lloyd Eaton Collection of Science Fiction, Fantasy, Horror, and Utopian Literature, Special Collections | url=http://www.celebratingresearch.org/libraries/riverside/eaton.shtml | accessdate=2008-08-27 ] The Rivera Library also hosts the only U.S. Patent and Trademark Depository based on a UC campus. [cite news |last=Regus | first=Elaine | title=UC Riverside becomes an official U.S. Patent and Trademark Depository | url=http://www.pe.com/localnews/inland/stories/PE_News_Local_D_patent27.1834716.html | work=Press Enterprise | date=2007-12-26 | accessdate=2007-12-27] The ft to m|125752|abbr=yes Science Library, built in 1998, seats a capacity of 1,360 and houses 533,000 volumes in the physical, natural, agricultural, biomedical, engineering and computer sciences, with special strengths in the areas of citrus and sub-tropical horticulture, entomology, and arid lands agriculture. [cite web | title= Science Library | publisher=UCR Libraries | url=http://library.ucr.edu/?view=libraries/science | accessdate=2007-08-22 ] Smaller libraries include the Media Library, the Music Library, and a branch digital library in Palm Desert. [cite web | title= UCR Campus Libraries and Collections | publisher=UCR Libraries | url=http://library.ucr.edu/?view=libraries | accessdate=2007-08-22 ] The UCR Library is one of 116 members of the Association of Research Libraries, and is ranked 93rd in this group.

UCR's academic colleges administer significant museum collections in the arts and sciences. The Citrus Variety Collection constitutes 1,800 trees representing two of each of the 640 types of Citrus and 28 other related genera in the Rutaceae family, the largest such collection in the world. [cite conference | last=Kahn | first= T.L. | coauthors= Bier, O.J., Roose, M., Kruger, R., Gumpf, D.J. | title=The UC Riverside Citrus Variety Collection: Cornerstone of the California Citrus Genetic Resources Conservation and Utilization System | url=http://www.ars.usda.gov/research/publications/publications.htm?seq_no_115=148853 | booktitle= International Citrus Congress | pages= 162–163 | location=Orlando, Florida | publisher=International Society of Citriculture | year=2000 | accessdate=2008-02-08] [cite news |last=Sheeran | first=Owen | title=UCR Grows Citrus Treasures | url=http://www.pe.com/lifestyles/stories/PE_Fea_Daily_D_dbltrk1128.1e28499.html | work=Press Enterprise | date=2007-11-27 | accessdate=2007-11-27] The Herbarium houses more than 110,000 dried plant specimens from across the Western hemisphere. [cite web | title= UCR Herbarium | url= http://herbarium.ucr.edu/Herbarium.html | publisher= University of California, Riverside | accessdate= 2007-11-07] [cite journal | last= Holt | first= Jodie | title= UC Riverside: Botanical and Related Pest Management Programs | journal= Noxious Times | publisher= California Interagency Noxious Weed Coordinating Committee | volume = Volume 3 | issue= No. 3 | date= Winter, 2001 | url=http://www.cdfa.ca.gov/phpps/ipc/noxioustimes/pdfs/2001winter.pdf | format= PDF | accessdate= 2007-11-07] The Entomology Research Museum contains more than three million insect specimens, with particular strengths in Hymenoptera, Chalcidoidea, Aphelinidae, Thysanoptera and Meloidae.cite web | title= UCR Entomological Research Museum | url=http://entmuseum.ucr.edu | publisher= University of California, Riverside, College of Natural and Agricultural Resources | accessdate= 2007-08-10] [cite web
url=http://cache.ucr.edu/~heraty/Jerem/aphytis.html
title=Remediation and curation of the University of California, Riverside collection of Aphytis (Hymenoptera; Chalcidoidea; Aphelinidae)
publisher=Aphytis Project, University of California, Riverside
accessdate=2008-03-22
last1=Hearty
first1=J.
coauthors=J. Pinto, S. Triapitsyn] The UCR/California Museum of Photography and Sweeney Art Gallery house UCR's primary art collections. The UCR/CMP includes the world's largest holding of vintage stereographs, one of the three great public collections of photographic apparatus in the US, and the University Print Collection of contemporary and historical images by over 1000 photographers. [cite news
url=http://www.inthenews.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/display.cgi?id=9155
title=Museum of Photography: It's all there in black and white
work=Redlands Daily Facts
accessdate=2008-03-08
date=2005-04-29
last=Dobbs
first=Jennifer M.] Located adjacent to the UCR/CMP, the Sweeney Art Gallery holds approximately 650 unique works, with especially strong collections from the modern to contemporary periods, including pieces by Alexander Calder, Roy Lichtenstein, Millard Sheets and Kara Walker. [cite web | title= UCR/Sweeny Art Gallery | publisher= University of California, Riverside, College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences | url=http://sweeney.ucr.edu/col_topic.lasso |accessdate= 2007-11-05]

Admissions, enrollment and retention

Historically, UCR has accepted all students who qualify for admission to the UC system based on a 3.0 minimum grade point average (GPA) and average SAT scores of 470 on each of the math, English and writing tests.cite news | last= Agha | first= Marisa | title=UC system fall '07 freshman admission numbers up | work= Press Enterprise
url=http://www.pe.com/localnews/highereducation/stories/PE_News_Local_C_ucadmit06.3bbf195.html | date= 2007-04-15 | accessdate= 2007-08-22] cite news
url=http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/education/20071125-9999-1m25ucsd.html
title=UC looks at ending admission guarantee
work=San Diego Union-Tribune
date=2007-11-25
accessdate=2008-03-21
last=Yang Su
first=Eleanor] Among freshmen admitted for the fall of 2007, high school GPAs averaged 3.59, SAT scores averaged 1673, and ACT Composite scores averaged 23.cite web | title= Freshman Admission Profile — UC Riverside — Fall 2007 | url= http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/admissions/undergrad_adm/selecting/camp_profiles/camp_profiles_ucr.html | publisher=University of California | accessdate=2007-10-05] UCR admitted 75.9 percent of 20,370 first-year applicants in 2007. Its overall yield rate of admitted students was 17.4 percent, for an entering class of 4,025 freshmen. [cite web | title= Statement of Intent to Register (SIRs) Rates for Admitted Freshmen | url= http://www.ucop.edu/news/factsheets/2007/froshsirs_table3.pdf | format = PDF | publisher=University of California | accessdate=2007-10-05] As most other UC schools typically receive more applicants than there are spots available, the UC refers applicants who met minimum UC admission requirements but do not qualify for the more selective campuses in the system to UC Riverside and UC Merced. About 4,100 UC-eligible students who were not offered admission to their campus of choice were referred to Riverside and Merced in 2007; about 300 students accept referral admissions offers each year. In 2006, 43.4 percent of admitted students were first generation college students, 38.7 percent came from low family income backgrounds, and 24 percent graduated from low-performing high schools as measured by Academic Performance Index (API) scores. [cite web | title=California Freshman Admit Profile Fall 2004, 2005, 2006
url=http://www.ucop.edu/news/factsheets/2006/freshman_admit_profile_2006.pdf | format = PDF | publisher = University of California | accessdate=2006-08-22] Enrollment in the fall of 2007 totaled 17,187 students, 15,041 undergraduates and 2,146 postgraduates. In 2007, "U.S. News" ranked UCR as the third most ethnically diverse and, by the number of undergraduates receiving Pell Grants (42 percent), the 15th most economically diverse student body in the nation.

According to statistics released by the Education Trust, a national nonprofit, in 2005 UC Riverside graduated 65.3 percent of its students in six years, a figure consistent with national averages but behind the average set by the top five public research universities by as much as 22 percent. [cite web | title=Measuring Up 2006, The National Report Card on Higher Education | url=http://measuringup.highereducation.org/_docs/2006/NationalReport_2006.pdf |format=PDF | publisher=The National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education | accessdate = 2007-08-10] [cite web | title=University of California, Riverside, Graduation Rates | url=http://www.collegeresults.org/search1a.aspx?InstitutionID=110671 | publisher=The Education Trust | accessdate= 2007-08-10] However, UCR's consistency with the national average is well above the median of 39 percent for low-income-serving institutions as calculated in 2006 by the National Center for Education Statistics, making the campus a model for successful approaches to diversity in higher education.

tudent life

---

thumb|right|University Village. The movie theater doubles as a classroom during the day. [">cite web
url = http://www.ucr.edu/about/history.html
title = History & Description of the Campus
accessdate = 2008-02-21
last =
first =
date =
publisher = University of California, Riverside ]

Much of the student life on campus revolves around extensive local outreach and retention programs. Riverside enrolls the highest percentage of African American students of any of the 10 UC campuses and the second highest percentage of Latino students after Merced, prompting the "Los Angeles Times" and "New York Times" to run stories lauding UCR as a "campus of choice" for minority students.cite news
url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E0DE2DA163DF931A35756C0A96F958260
title=The Class of Prop. 209
work=New York Times Magazine
accessdate=2008-01-29
last=Traub
first=James
authorlink=James Traub
date=1998-05-02] UCR was the first college in California to open a staffed lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) resource center in 1993, the first UC campus to offer a LGBT minor studies program in 1996, and the first campus in the nation to offer a gender-neutral housing option in 2005. In recognition of this, "The Advocate" recognized UCR as one of the nation's best campuses for LGBT students in 2006, although it did not make the top 20. [cite book | last=Windmeyer | first=Shane L. | title=The Advocate College Guide for LGBT Students | publisher=Alyson Publications, Inc. | year=2006 | isbn=155583857X ] In 2007 the "Princeton Review" ranked UCR 11th in terms of low student interest in political participation and 11th in terms of low student happiness due to quality of life issues, although it also listed UCR as a "Best Western College" and one of "America's Best Value Colleges".cite web | title=University of California-Riverside's Best 366 College Rankings | work= Princeton Review | url=http://www.princetonreview.com/college/research/profiles/generalinfo.asp?listing=1023545&LTID=1 | accessdate= 2007-08-22 (registration required)] While 70 percent of students are non-white, there is a tendency for the different ethnic groups to self-segregate, and racial tension is not unheard of, according to some students. [cite news
url=http://www.inthenews.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/display.cgi?id=3473
title=UCR sees diversity, may lack harmony
work= Press Enterprise
2003-05-05
accessdate=2008-03-22
last=Ahern
first=Louise Knott]

Housing

UCR's residence halls consist of three structures—Aberdeen-Inverness, Lothian, and Pentland Hills—which as of 2002 housed 2,930 students in triple, double and single rooms. In addition, UCR features several on-campus apartment complexes such as Stonehaven, Bannockburn Village, University Plaza, Glen Mor and International Village, which together house 959 students. UCR also offers student family housing at Canyon Crest, a low-density residential community that serves 268 and is slated for demolition to make room for higher-density residence halls. Glen Mor, an apartment housing complex adjacent to Pentland Hills, was opened in 2007, and the university also purchased a nearby apartment complex for student housing in 2007.cite press release | title=UC Riverside Buys University House at Highlander Ridge | url=http://www.newsroom.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/display.cgi?id=1575 | publisher=University of California, Riverside | date=2007-04-27 | accessdate=2008-01-03] About half of the student population lives in off-campus apartments, one-fourth commute, and one-fourth live on campus. Thirty percent of students remain on campus for the weekend.cite web | title= University of California, Riverside, campus life | url= http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/usnews/edu/college/directory/brief/drlife_1316_brief.php | work= US News and World Report | accessdate= 2007-08-22]

Reflecting UCR's diversity, a number of residence halls have been established for specific social, cultural and academic needs. Ethnic and gender-oriented theme halls include "Unete a Mundo", for students seeking to support Latino or Chicano students in acclimating to life at UCR; a Pan African Theme Hall for students interested in developing consciousness of African culture in relation to other cultures of the world; and Stonewall Hall, dedicated to students of all gender identities and sexual orientations who wish to live in a gender-neutral community. UCR's three academic colleges in the humanities, sciences and engineering fields are represented by respective theme halls, and halls exist for honor students and transfer students. [cite web | title = UCR Housing Services | publisher= University of California, Riverside |url=http://housing.ucr.edu/CampusLiving/SpecialInterestCommunities.htm | accessdate=2007-08-22]

tudent organizations and activities

UCR hosts 281 registered student organizations, including the Associated Students of the University of California, Riverside (ASUCR), which represents undergraduates on administrative and policy issues. [cite web | title=Student Organizations| publisher= University of California, Riverside |url=http://resources.ucr.edu/studentlife/studentorgs/default.aspx | accessdate= 2007-09-23] ASUCR is guided by a Senate composed of 20 elected officers, who represent the three undergraduate colleges in proportion to their enrollment. Membership is composed of all UCR students who pay mandatory activity fees. [cite web | title=ASUCR Constitution| publisher= Associated Students of the University of California, Riverside |url=http://www.asucr.ucr.edu/uploads/file/ASUCR_CONSTITUTION20071.pdf | format=PDF | accessdate= 2007-08-23] ASUCR assesses these fees and distributes funds to registered student groups on campus, including student lobbying groups, a right that ASUCR won in a federal court case against the Regents in 1999. [cite web | title=ASUCR v. Regents of the University of California (N.D. Ca. C98-00021 CRB) | url=http://www.nacua.org/documents/UniversityOfCalifornia.htm | publisher=National Association of College and University Attorneys | date= accessdate= 2008-03-16]

. [cite web | title=Riverside: Traditions| publisher=Bancroft Library, University Archives, UC History Digital Archives
url=http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/~ucalhist/general_history/campuses/ucr/traditions.html | accessdate= 2007-08-10]

Of the registered student groups, 40 are fraternities and sororities. Ten men's fraternities belong to the North-American Interfraternity Conference; six women's sororities belong to the National Panhellenic Conference; seven men's fraternities and ten women's sororities represent the National Multicultural Greek Council, and two others fall under the campus Raza Assembly and are unique to UCR. [cite web | title= Fraternity and Sorority Life | publisher= University of California, Riverside | url=http://studentlife.ucr.edu/Student+Organizations/Fraternity+and+Sorority+Life.htm | accessdate= 2007-08-22] Thirteen percent of the undergraduate student body participates in Greek life, although chapter houses are not permitted.cite web | title= University of California, Riverside, extracurriculars | url= http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/usnews/edu/college/directory/brief/drextras_1316_brief.php | work= US News and World Report | accessdate= 2007-08-23] Including the Greek letter organizations, more than 60 student volunteer service organizations at UCR contribute to more than 100,000 hours of collective and individual service done in the community each year. [cite web | title= Community Involvement | publisher= University of California, Riverside | url=http://www.impact.ucr.edu/ci.html |accessdate= 2007-08-23]

Student media organizations include "The Highlander" student newspaper, currently published twice weekly, Tuesdays and Fridays, during the academic year. First published in 1954, the Highlander remains an independent student media outlet. It was an entirely self-funded organization until 2001, when ASUCR passed a funding referendum for it. Student fees from the referendum go towards overhead and printing costs, however the Highlander is primarily funded through its own advertising revenue. [cite web | title= Highlander Referendum, 2001 | publisher= Associated Students of the University of California, Riverside |url=http://www.elections.ucr.edu/2001/Referenda/highlanderreferenda.html | accessdate= 2007-08-22] In 2003, the Highlander published a comic depicting a stereotypical Asian American graduate teaching assistant with poor English skills, inciting community backlash and prompting an apology from Editor-in-Chief Kahlil Ford. [cite conference | last=Healy | first=Scott. P. | title=Stop the Student Press: Editorial Cartooning on College Campuses | url= http://www.apsanet.org/imgtest/PSApr07Healy.pdf | format=PDF | month=April | year=2007 | booktitle=The State of the Editorial Cartoon, PS Symposium | publisher=The American Political Science Association | accessdate=2008-03-24] [cite news
url=http://www.peak.sfu.ca/the-peak/2003-2/issue4/ne-censored.html
title= 8,000 copies of California student paper missing
date=2003-05-26
work=The Highlander
accessdate=2008-03-21
last=Gruber
first=Grant] Other student news publications on campus include the "Asian Community Times, Indian Time, Nuestra Cosa, Queeriosity", and the "X-Factor Student Newspaper". Campus literary magazines include "Mosaic", published at UCR since 1959, and "Crate," published by graduate students in UCR's master's level creative writing program since 2005. [cite web | title= Mosaic |publisher= University of California, Riverside | url=http://mosaic.ucr.edu/index.php |accessdate= 2007-08-22] [cite web | title= Crate | publisher= University of California, Riverside | url=http://crate.ucr.edu/index.html |accessdate= 2007-08-22] UCR broadcasts over radio as KUCR at 88.3 FM. [cite web | title= KUCR-FM 88.3-IE | publisher= Radiowatch.com | url=http://www.radiowatch.com/stations/fm/fm88.3-IE.html |accessdate= 2007-08-22] The station programs a variety of independent music, news and commentary. [cite web
url = http://kucr.org/2007/09/20/about-kucr/
title = About KUCR
accessdate = 2008-02-19
last = DEX
first =
date = 2007-09-20
publisher = KUCR]

On-campus entertainment events are planned by a 14-member Associated Students Program Board (ASPB), comprising six student-run divisions that include concerts, films and lectures, cultural events and special events, as well as a marketing and leadership division. ASPB's major events include the Block Party Concert, Student Film Festival, International Film Festival, World Fest, Welcome Week, Homecoming and Spring Splash. [cite web | title= ASPB | publisher= University of California, Riverside | url=http://www.aspb.ucr.edu | accessdate= 2007-08-22]

The Graduate Student Association of the University of California, Riverside (GSAUCR) is ASUCR's counterpart on the graduate level. It is guided by a Graduate Student Council consisting of representatives from every department on campus. GSAUCR assesses fees required of all graduate students and uses them to fund research awards and colloquiums, conference travel grants, and speaker funds. [cite web | title=GASUCR, About the Council| publisher= Graduate Student Association of the University of California, Riverside | url=http://www.gsa.ucr.edu/Council.html |accessdate= 2007-08-23]

Athletics

UCR's varsity teams compete in the Big West Conference of NCAA Division I. Programs include men and women's soccer, cross country, basketball, track and field, baseball, softball, tennis, golf and women's volleyball. After students voted to assess themselves $35 a quarter to fund the athletic programs in 1998, men's and women's soccer and golf were added, and the athletic department switched from NCAA Division II in 2000. While at Division II, UCR produced national championship teams in men's baseball (1977 and 1982) and women's volleyball (1982 and 1986). Women's volleyball earned an Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) national title in 1977. [cite web | url=http://www.athletics.ucr.edu/volleyball/2007wvbguide.pdf | format=PDF | title=Women's Volleyball Guide | year=2007 | publisher=UCR Athletics Department | accessdate=2007-01-05] As of 2006, UCR had produced 17 individual national champions, 175 All-Americans and many conference and regional champions. The men's golf team represented UCR in the 2004 and 2005 NCAA West Regionals after winning back to back Conference Championships in those respective years while having three athletes ranked in the top 100 in the country. In 2006 and 2007, the UCR women's basketball team represented the conference in the Division I tournament but lost both times in the first round. [cite news | last=Steele | first=Allan | title=UC Riverside has come a long way in women's basketball | url=http://www.pe.com/sports/college/ucr/stories/PE_Sports_Local_D_ucr_women_prev_07.3e82722.html | work= Press Enterprise | date=2007-11-11 | accessdate=2008-01-04] In 2005 the women's soccer team competed in the first round of the NCAA tournament. [cite press release | title=UC Riverside Women's Soccer | url=http://www.athletics.ucr.edu/wsoccer/wsocarchive/ws0506archives.html | date=2005-11-11 | publisher=UCR Athletic Department | accessdate=2008-01-05] In 2007, UCR's baseball team won their first Big West championship and reached the Division I postseason for the second time since 2003, and the cross country team sent its first two athletes to the national championships. [cite news | last=Steele | first=Allan | title=Disappointing end to memorable year for UCR baseball team | url=http://www.pe.com/sports/college/ucr/stories/PE_Sports_Local_D_ucr_base_05.3f2ca3f.html | work= Press Enterprise | date=2007-06-04 | accessdate=2008-01-04] [cite news | last=Steele | first=Allan | title=UCR runners struggle | url=http://www.pe.com/sports/college/local/stories/PE_Sports_Local_D_locals_20.32e0a2c.html | work= Press Enterprise | date=2007-11-19 | accessdate=2008-01-04]
Football was played until 1975, and the team won two CCAA championships before the sport was discontinued because of low attendance and in anticipation of the impact of Title IX regulations. [cite news | last=Alexander | first=Jim | title=UC Riverside Rediscovers Glory Days -- Briefly | url=http://www.pe.com/columns/jimalexander/stories/PE_Sports_Local_D_jacol24.411f3dd.html | work= Press Enterprise | date=2007-06-24 | accessdate=2008-01-04]

The volleyball and basketball teams play home games in the Student Recreation Center (SRC), which seats 3,168. The baseball team competes at the Riverside Sports Complex, just off campus at the corner of Blaine and Rustin streets. UCR graduate Troy Percival personally built UCR's baseball clubhouse to major league quality standards. [cite news | last= Steele | first= Allan | title= Percival gives UC Riverside edge in baseball recruiting | work= Press Enterprise | date= 2007-02-27 | url=http://www.pe.com/sports/college/ucr/stories/PE_Sports_Local_D_percival_ucr.1dc3b54.html | accessdate=2007-10-05] Softball is played at the Amy S. Harrison Field, named after a UCR graduate who donated $300,000 towards its upgrade in 2004. [cite press release | title=UC Riverside to Dedicate Amy S. Harrison Field During Double Header | url=http://www.newsroom.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/display.cgi?id=755 | publisher=University of California, Riverside | date=2004-03-18 | accessdate=2008-01-24] Adjacent to the softball field are the soccer and track fields. The soccer field was resurfaced with artificial turf in 2007, but the track field remains run-down. [cite news | last=Steele | first=Allan | title=Field of Dreams for UCR Soccer Teams | url=http://www.pe.com/sports/college/ucr/stories/PE_Sports_Local_D_ucr_notes_30.3e43232.html | work= Press Enterprise | date=2007-08-29 | accessdate=2008-01-04] cite news | last=Steele | first=Allan | title=Track Appears Run Down | url=http://www.pe.com/sports/college/ucr/stories/PE_Sports_Local_D_ucr_notes_25.33f6725.html | work= Press Enterprise | date=2008-01-24 | accessdate=2008-01-24] UCR has not hosted a track and field meet in five years because of the condition of the field.

Non-varsity student sports clubs that compete with other area universities include the Rugby Football Club, established in 2006, which plays in the Southern California Rugby Football Union. [cite web | title= Southern California Rugby Football Union |url=http://www.scrfu.org | publisher= Southern California Rugby Union | accessdate= 2008-01-30] UCR's Karate Club is organized under the auspices of the American JKA Karate Association, an independent, national karate organization hosted at UCR. It annually holds the Shotokan Karate Championships competition in the SRC. [cite web | title= UCR Karate News | url=http://www.karate.ucr.edu/news.htm | publisher=University of California, Riverside Karate Club | accessdate=2008-01-28] Student clubs also compete in men's soccer and Ultimate Frisbee. [cite web
url=http://recreation.ucr.edu/Programs/RecSportsClubs.htm
title=Rec Center - Recreation and Sports Cubs
publisher=recreation.ucr.edu
accessdate=2008-02-21
last=
first=]

In 1954, UCR's founding class adopted the name "Highlanders", reflecting the campus' high altitude. After the student body passed a referendum to move to Division I competition in 1998, the bear mascot was professionally redesigned to look more ferocious. The new "Scotty" featured a half-blue face in homage to William Wallace, the subject of the movie Braveheart. [cite web | title= The History of UCR's Mascot | publisher= University of California, Riverside, Department of Athletics | url= http://www.athletics.ucr.edu/administrative/mascot.html | accessdate= 2007-08-22] In line with the Scottish motif, UCR assembles a bagpipe band made up of students and staff who play at graduation and other campus events. The blue and gold tartan worn by the pipe band and the mascot is a registered trademark of the University of California. [cite web | title= The University of California Riverside Tartan | publisher= The University of California Riverside Pipe Band | url=http://www.pipeband.ucr.edu/ | accessdate= 2007-08-22] For the women's basketball team's first appearance at the NCAA Tournament in 2006, UCR sent 22 members of the pipe band to play at halftime. [cite journal | last= Durant | first= Celeste | title= Pipe Pep | journal= Inside UCR | volume=2 | issue=8 | date= 2006-04-26 | url=http://www.insideucr.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/display.cgi?id=196 | accessdate= 2006-08-22]

Alumni

More than 65,000 alumni have graduated from UCR over the course of its history.cite web | title= The Alumni & Visitors Center | publisher= The UCR Alumni Association | url=http://www.alumni.ucr.edu/about/avcenter.html | accessdate=2007-09-12] Notable alumni include Charles E. Young, a former chancellor at UCLA; Dr. Richard R. Schrock, a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and winner of the 2005 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, and Billy Collins, the 11th U.S. Poet Laureate. Other UCR alumni include Major League pitchers Troy Percival (holds the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim's all-time record for saves) and Chris Smith (pitcher), Stefani Schaeffer, a defense attorney who recently won Donald Trump's reality show, " The Apprentice". [cite web | title= The Apprentice Los Angeles, Candidates | publisher= NBC Universal, Inc. | url= http://www.nbc.com/The_Apprentice_6/candidates/bio_stefani.shtml | accessdate=2007-09-20] , and Democratic Assemblyman Lloyd Levine who currently serves for California's 40th Assembly District since December of 2002.

ee also

*University of California
*University of California Students Association
*California Master Plan for Higher Education

References

External links

* [http://www.ucr.edu Official UCR site]