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Ouachita Baptist University

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File:Seal8-1-.png
MottoVision. Integrity. Service.
TypePrivate
Established1886
Endowment$50 million
PresidentRex M. Horne
Academic staff
117
Undergraduates1,448
Location
Arkadelphia
,
Arkansas
,
USA
CampusSuburban, 160 acres (0.65 km2)
(City of Arkadelphia, Clark County, Arkansas)
Religious AffiliationArkansas Baptist State Convention
MascotTiger
Websitewww.obu.edu

Ouachita Baptist University a is private, liberal arts, undergraduate institution located in Arkadelphia, Arkansas.

Location

Ouachita Baptist University (OBU) is located in Arkadelphia, Arkansas. Arkadelphia, which is near scenic Lake DeGray and historic Hot Springs National Park, is approximately 65 miles southwest of Little Rock and approximately 73 miles northeast of Texarkana. Arkadelphia has a population of over 10,000. The university is named for the Ouachita (pronounced Wash'-uh-taw) River, which forms the eastern campus boundary. There is some disagreement about the meaning of the word "ouachita." Its Choctaw meaning is "big hunt," but it has also been translated as "shining water."

Historical Notes

Ouachita Baptist University opened its doors as Ouachita College on September 6, 1886 and has operated continually since that date. It was originally located on the campus of Ouachita Baptist High School. Its present location is on the former campus for the Arkansas School for the Blind, which relocated to Little Rock. Its first president, Professor J. W. Conger, was elected on June 22, 1886. The organization was originally founded as Ouachita Baptist College. In 1965, the status and name were changed to Ouachita Baptist University due to expansion of the curriculum.

On April 6, 2006 the OBU Board of Trustees unanimously selected Dr. Rex Horne, former pastor of Immanuel Baptist Church in Little Rock, as the fifteenth president of Ouachita Baptist University. Other presidents were: J.W. Conger (1886-1907), Henry Simms Hartzog (1907-1911), Samuel Young Jameson (1913-1916), Charles Ernest Dicken (1916-1926), Arthur B. Hill (1926-1929), Charles D. Johnson (1929-1933), James R. Grant (1933-1949), Seaford Eubanks (1949-1951), Harold A. Haswell (1952-1953), Ralph Arloe Phelps Jr. (1953-1969), Daniel R. Grant (1970-1988), Ben M. Elrod (1988-1998), and Andrew Westmoreland (1998-2006).

In 1949, Old Main, the original administration building and library, was destroyed by fire after being hit by lightning. This happened the evening after graduation, so students--many recent World War II veterans--helped rescue most of the books from the library.

Ouachita has undergone a period of rapid construction for the last decade. A new state-of-the-art science center, the Harvey Jones Science Center, opened in 1997. Hickingbotham Hall, which houses the Frank D. Hickingbotham School of Business, opened in 2006. In 2007, Ouachita began planning construction on two new dormitories and a new river view entrance to the campus.

Academics

Ouachita Baptist University was ranked the number one baccalaureate college in the South according to the 2008 issue of “America’s Best Colleges” by U.S. News and World Report. The university also ranked second in the Best Value category for the South. Ouachita has been ranked in the top five by U.S. News and World Report for best comprehensive colleges in the South for seven consecutive years.

Affiliated with the Arkansas Baptist State Convention, Ouachita offers undergraduate programs of study in the liberal arts. Small classes are the norm rather than the exception, and Ouachita’s student to faculty ratio is approximately 13:1.

Ouachita is accredited by the following organizations:

  • North Central Association of Colleges and Universities
  • National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education
  • National Association for Schools of Music
  • AACSB International- The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business

Ouachita offers class credit on the traditional hour system. A class is weighted based on lecture and instruction time. A one hour class that meets three times a week, or a 90 minute class meeting twice weekly, earns three credits. A class that meets twice a week for one hour is worth two credits. Science classes often include laboratory sessions. A science course meeting three times a week for one hour, with one three-hour lab session is weighted for four credits, while Organic Chemistry, which meets for lecture three times and for lab twice weekly, is the schools only five credit class.

A degree at Ouachita requires 24 credits in a specific degree area, though some plans require up to 60 credits in a specific area. In addition, a CORE curriculum must be met. In keeping with the schools Liberal Arts affiliation, the CORE curriculum emphasizes diverse education, including religion, science, mathematics, and the humanities.

There are 64 degree programs in eight academic schools: School of Interdisciplinary Studies, Frank D. Hickingbotham School of Business, Chelsey and Elizabeth Pruett School of Christian Studies, Michael D. Huckabee School of Education, School of Fine Arts, Sutton School of Social Sciences, J. D. Patterson School of Natural Sciences, and School of Humanities.

Most students at OBU earn a Bachelor of Arts, or a B.A. The school also offers degrees focused within a specific school, such as a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) or a Bachelor of Music (B.M.). A Bachelor of Science requires completing a degree plan from a major within the school of science, as well as a 20-credit minor (a typical minor is 16 credits) from another field of science. A Bachelor of Music requires approximately 60 credits from the School of Music, including a senior project, generally a recital of some form.

Ouachita offers study abroad programs in countries such as the United Kingdom(both England and Scotland), Austria, Japan, China, Spain, Morocco, Hong Kong and Mexico through the Daniel R. Grant Center for International Studies.

Athletics

OBU competes in the Gulf South Conference in sports and maintains NCAA Division II status in major sports. Team mascot is the Tiger, and colors are blue-violet and old gold.

The Ouachita swimming and diving teams compete in the New South Intercollegiate Swim Conference. In 2007, the men's team finished sixth in the nation, while the women's team finished eighth in the nation. Ouachita's baseball team is also a strong presence in the Gulf South program. The team was ranked first in the nation and hosted the regional tournament in 2007. In 2008, the baseball team finished second in Division II.

Men's varsity sports include football, basketball, baseball, swimming and diving, tennis, golf, and soccer. Women's sports include basketball, swimming and diving, volleyball, cross country, and softball.

One unique characteristic of Ouachita athletics is the intense crosstown rivalry with Henderson State University, a public university located across a small ravine from the Ouachita campus. The closely-contested "Battle of the Ravine" between the two universities is the fifth oldest football rivalry in college sports. The teams first met on the gridiron in 1895. As of Fall 2008, The hotly-contested football series is tied at 38-38-6.

Academic Buildings

Ouachita has nine academic buildings which house the various schools and academic programs:

Verser Theatre and the Jones Performing Arts Center houses the theatre department. JPAC also is the site of concerts, musical and theatre productions, and the weekly chapel program.

Moses Provine Hall is home to OBU's communication sciences and disorders department and visual arts department.

Mabee Fine Arts is the site of the music and mass communication departments.

McClellan Hall contains most of the School of Social Sciences and the Huckabee School of Education.

Lile Hall houses the humanities program, as well as the history department.

Hickingbotham Hall houses the Hickingbotham School of Business.

The Harvey Jones Science Center is home to the Patterson School of Natural Sciences.

Berry Bible Building houses the Pruett School of Christian Studies.

Additionally, there are conference centers, administrative buildings, two school libraries, and a commons area for dining on campus. There are also eight 24-hour computer labs located at various sites for student use, though some are major-specific.

Dorm Life

Ouachita is a residence campus, so students live in one of eight dorms on campus or one of five university-maintained apartment complexes. Male and female students are not allowed to visit dorm rooms of the opposite sex, except during special visiting hours arranged four times a week. Lobby visitation is permitted during the day and evening, ending around 11 p.m. There is no alcohol permitted in dorm rooms even for students over the age of 21.

Men's dormitories include Daniel Hall North (freshmen) and South, Ernest Baily Hall (varsity athletes), Conger Hall (varsity athletes), and Anthony Hall (upperclassmen). Upperclassmen may also live in the other dormitories. Women's dormitories include Francis Crawford Hall (freshmen), O.C. Bailey Hall, Flippen-Perrin Hall, and Maddox Hall (upperclassmen).

Upperclassmen may apply to live off campus in school-owned apartments beginning their junior year. Only students who have family in the area, or who are over the age of 22, are allowed to live off-campus. There are five apartment complexes: OBU Apartments, Caddo Apartments, Lancelot Apartments, Pine Square Apartments, and Starlite Apartments.

Student Life

Eighty-four percent of Ouachita’s student body lives in campus housing. Approximately 45% are male and 55% female.

Ouachita offers more than 40 honor, service, performance and professional organizations for student participation. The Campus Activities Board hosts several activities each year, including free movies, concerts, and benefits. The Student Senate is the student governing body.

Ouachita’s Office of Campus Ministries offers more than 30 different programs for student involvement. The office coordinates international mission trips during the summer and national mission trips during spring break.

The Elrod Center for Family and Community offers Ouachita students the opportunity to get involved in community service. Students give back to the community twice a year during Tiger Serve Day.

Ouachita also has a joint Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) program with neighboring Henderson State University. Ouachita's ROTC program dates back to 1886 and was once known as the "West Point of the Ozarks" for the large number of U.S. Army officers it produced.

Ouachita does not allow nationally-affiliated social fraternities or sororities but does have local fraternities and sororities euphemistically called "social clubs." Approximately 20% of the student body are social club members. The social clubs contribute most of the campus social life, including Tiger Tunes, an annual musical show hosted by the Ouachita Student Foundation and presented during Homecoming Weekend. Sororities and their founding or charter dates are: EEE (October 1925), Chi Delta (December 1, 1970), Pi Kappa Zeta (Summer 1973), Chi Chi Chi (Tri Chi or TC) (December 1988), and Chi Rho Phi (November 1999). Fraternities and their official charter dates are: Rho Sigma (March 6, 1935), Sigma Alpha Sigma (November 12, 1935), Beta Beta (December 8, 1941), Kappa Chi (November 10, 1981), Eta Alpha Omega (April 1, 1997), and Chi Iota Sigma (January 12, 1998).

Several intramural sports are available for both men and women, including football, basketball, softball, racquetball, volleyball, dodgeball, indoor hockey, and tennis. Ouachita intramural teams compete in state and regional tournaments.

Religious Affiliation

OBU is affiliated with the Arkansas Baptist State Convention and dedicated to Christian and educational excellence. The school's Southern Baptist roots are furthered in two mandatory classes that are part of the core curriculum: Bible Survey and Bible Interpretation. Seven credits of chapel are also required to graduate. Chapel credit is earned by attending at least 12 chapel programs during a semester.

Notable alumni

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