MidAmerica Nazarene University (MNU) is a Christian liberal arts college in Olathe, Kansas, United States. It was established in 1966 by the Church of the Nazarene.
Video MidAmerica Nazarene University
History
Mid-America Nazarene College (MANC) was founded in 1966. In 1996, Mid-America Nazarene College formally changed its name to MidAmerica Nazarene University (MNU).
Maps MidAmerica Nazarene University
Campus
The 105-acre (42 ha) campus is located at 2030 East College Way, Olathe, Kansas, United States. The land was donated by Robert R. Osborne, a retired banker. Proposed sites for the college also included Wichita, Topeka, and Ottawa, Kansas.
Affiliations
As one of eight U.S. liberal arts colleges affiliated with the Church of the Nazarene, the college receives financial backing from the Nazarene churches in its region; part of each church budget is paid into a fund for its regional school. Each college is also bound by a gentlemen's agreement not to actively recruit outside its respective educational region. MNU is the college for the North Central Region of the United States, which comprises the Dakota-Minnesota, Nebraska, Kansas, Iowa, Kansas City, Joplin and Missouri districts, which include North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Minnesota, Iowa and Missouri.
MidAmerica Nazarene is a member of the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU) and the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (NAICU). MNU has been accredited by the Commission on Institutions of Higher Education of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools since 1974.
Academics
MNU offers undergraduate degrees in 40 majors, and seven graduate degrees in education and business. More than half of the full-time faculty at Mid-America Nazarene hold doctoral degrees. The academic calendar is on a semester system. There were 1,720 students at the college in 2007, 1,295 of whom were undergraduates. The 2007 acceptance rate for students who applied to the college was 81.1 percent.
Athletics
The athletic nickname is "Pioneers" and the colors are scarlet, white, and navy blue. MNU has men's and women's varsity teams in nine different sports. The teams compete in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Division I Heart of America Athletic Conference (HAAC). MNU's athletic facilities include Cook Center (men's and women's basketball, and volleyball in the Bell Family Arena), Land Gym (intramurals), MNU Soccer Field, Pioneer Stadium (torn down summer 2012), Robbie Jones Field at Dixon Stadium (baseball), and Williams Field (softball).
Student life
Enrollment comprises approximately 1,300 undergraduate and 200 graduate students, mostly from the North Central United States. Men and women are fairly equal in number. Over 25 percent of undergraduate students are over 25 years old. Members of the traditional undergraduate population who do not live locally with relatives must reside in campus housing. Students also attend chapel services and must follow the college's policy of no smoking, drinking, gambling or sex. Students participate in religious and service organizations, musical and theatrical groups, publications, intramural sports, and varsity sports.
The men's basketball team won the NAIA Division II basketball championship in 2007 and was the runner up in 2001. The team has been coached by Rocky Lamar (a 1976 MNU graduate) since 1986. It placed second in the NCCAA men's basketball championships in 1997 and 1998. Including its NAIA title games it has appeared in the Final Four in 2001, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009. It moved up to Division I in 2009. The court in the Bell Family Arena is named "Rocky Lamar Court.".
Notable people
- Shayna Baszler - professional mixed martial artist and professional wrestler, currently competing in the WWE
- Donald Owens - President, MNU (1985-1989), later General Superintendent Church of the Nazarene (1989-1997)
- Vince Snowbarger - former U.S. Representative from Kansas and former MNU faculty member
- Randall J. Stephens - author and historian.
References
External links
- Official website
- MidAmerica Nazarene Athletics website
Source of article : Wikipedia