General Information

Idaho State University has served the citizens of the state since 1901 when the institution was first established as the Academy of Idaho. Renamed the Idaho Technical Institute in 1915 and reorganized as the Southern Branch of the University of Idaho in 1927, it was established as Idaho State College in 1947. By action of the 37th Idaho Legislature, the institution became Idaho State University on July 1, 1963.

Bachelors and masters degrees in a variety of fields are awarded by the College of Arts and Sciences, College of Business, College of Education, College of Engineering, College of Health-Related Professions, and the Graduate School. Terminal degrees offered at ISU include Master of Fine Arts, Doctor of Philosophy, Doctor of Arts, and Doctor of Education. Certificate programs of varying lengths and an Associate Technology degree are included in the curricula of the School of Applied Technology.

Role and Mission

Idaho State University is a regional university located in Pocatello an economic center for southeastern Idaho. Because of its location and character, the university serves a diverse population which includes traditional students, non-traditional students, working professionals and senior citizens.

The university, consistent with its Role and Mission statement as adopted by the State Board of Education, provides both general education and specialized programs in the arts, humanities, sciences, the professions and technologies.

Through its programs in pharmacy and health-related professions, ISU is a center for education in the health professions. Its programs in education, business and engineering are in response to a variety of current and emerging demands within the region and the state. It serves as a national center for the Doctor of Arts degree programs. The university also has responsibility for Idahos dental education program. Several of the programs in vocational-technical education, the largest in the state, are nationally recognized.

The university offers certificates, diplomas, and associate, baccalaureate, masters and doctoral degrees. In addition, the School of Applied Technology offers programs in Adult Basic Education and Academic Skill Development. The university also has statewide responsibility for enhancing student access to specifically approved programs and courses beyond the main campus and beyond the regular school day and academic calendar.

Accreditation

Idaho State University is accredited by the Northwest Association of Schools and Collegs. In addition the university is accredited or approved for specific programs by the following organizations: American Council on Pharmaceutical Education, the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education, the National Association of Schools of Music, the American Chemical Society, the National League for Nursing, the American Dental Association Commission on Dental Accreditation, the American Assembly of Collegiate Schools of Business, the Council for the Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs, American Speech, Language, Hearing Association, Council on Social Work Education, and Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology.

The university holds membership in numerous organizations which have specific academic requirements. Among these are the American Association of University Women, the Council of Graduate Schools in the United States, the Western Association of Graduate Schools, the National Commission on Accrediting, and the American Association of State Colleges and Universities.

University Library

The University Library, located in the Eli M. Oboler Library building, contains major collections of books, maps, microforms, periodicals and government publications and provides a full range of services to students and staff.

The book collection of approximately 350,000 volumes is accessed via an on-line catalog which is linked to an automated circulation system. The library subscribes to some 3,100 periodicals and has periodical backfiles totalling 120,000 volumes. The government publications collection comprises over 330,000 items. ISU has been a depository for federal publications since 1908 and for Idaho state publications since 1972. The government publications department contains a collection of more than 1,200,000 items published in microform.

In addition to supplying informational materials from its own collections, the library provides an interlibrary loan facility which is equipped to locate and deliver books and periodical articles from other libraries holdings. Utilizing Fax transmission as well as postal services, the interlibrary loan service handles over 2,500 transactions each year.

An integral part of library service is the provision of reference and research assistance to patrons. General reference service is provided at the reference desk and is available during most hours that the library is open. Those patrons exploring the periodical and government document collections can utilize a wide range of paper and CD-Rom indexes and may obtain librarian-assisted access to on-line databases. Library instruction is available to classes and student groups and is tailored to address students specific needs, from general library orientation to subject-specific bibliographic research.

Student Union

The Student Union serves the campus as the focal point for an informal education. Among its many facilities are lounges, check cashing service, automatic teller machine, food service areas, bowling, billiards, film theatre, computer lab, opy service, ballroom, barber shop, bookstore, meeting rooms, and much more. The facilities are in constant use by various campus groups, individual students, and off-campus groups from the community and area. The Program Board, appointed by the Student Senate, is responsible for the entertainment and social programs which take place on campus. This student committee has the responsibility of programming movies, dances, homecoming, concerts, art displays, games tournaments, speakers, family programming, and many other activities.

The Student Union Program Office is also home for Special Delivery Productions, the program responsible for providing activities to part-time students. This program modifies traditional student activities to meet the needs of commuting and non-traditional students. Programs are presented both on campus and in outlying towns where commuter students live.

The Student Union and the Union Hypostyle house various other offices in addition to Student Senate. The student affairs offices in the hypostyle include the dean and associate dean of student affairs. Other offices within the building include non-credit continuing education, the arts and crafts center, the outdoor program office, the wilderness equipment rental center, the program board office, the ticket office, reservations and catering, Marriott Foods, the student employment office, post office, and the university newspaper.

Idaho Museum of Natural History

Established for the state in 1934, the Idaho Museum of Natural History collects, preserves, and interprets objects found in Idaho and the Northern Intermountain West. A unique resource for the entire region, the museum has displays of basketry, beadwork, and hidegoods; an exhibit explaining the process of fossilization; a rock and mineral exhibit; a Discovery Room; and the exciting, animated dinosaur exhibit Dinosaurs and More.

More than 410 objects form the basis of interpretive research programs used by university faculty, museum curators, and students. Many university courses in anthropology, biology, and geology use the museum collection as a teaching resource. Classes taught at the museum include anthropology, archaeology, vertebrate paleontology, and museology. The museums educational programs serve public school students from the entire region. A gift shop offers a unique variety of natural history books and related items.

Physical Facilities

Classroom and laboratory buildings include Baldwin Hall, chemistry; Leonard Hall, home of the College of Pharmacy; the Kegel Liberal Arts Building; the Arthur Tranmer Dental Arts Building; the Physical Science Building; the College of Education Complex; the Fine Arts Building; the College of Business Building; Lillibridge Engineering Laboratory; and the Gale Life Sciences Complex, which houses biological, psychological, biochemical, and microbiological sciences, and two departments of the College of Health-Related Professions (nursing, and speech pathology and audiology). The School of Applied Technology is quarteed in the Trade and Technology Building, the Vocational Arts Building, the Industrial Crafts Building, and the Roy F. Christensen Complex. The school also makes use of several off-campus facilities.

Frazier Hall, the universitys main auditorium building, also houses the Department of Communication and Theatre. Other auditorium facilities are located in the Fine Arts Building, the College of Education Building, the Gale Life Sciences Complex, and the Earl R. Pond Student Union Building. The Earl R. Pond Student Union Building provides a central meeting place for students, offering dining facilities, numerous meeting rooms, facilities for bowling and other games, student affairs offices, U.S. Post Office and the University Bookstore.

Alumni Association and Foundations

Alumni Association

The goals of the Idaho State University Alumni Association are based on the principle of service to the university and to the people of the state of Idaho. Founded in 1901, the association is governed by a board of directors and administered through the Office of Alumni Relations, located at 554 South Seventh, Pocatello, in the Magnuson Alumni House.

Specific objectives are to foster, cultivate and maintain a unified alumni association representative of the best traditions of the institution; to generate general concern and interest in the needs of Idaho State University; to encourage its support by a composite of all groups in its history; and to further a constructive program of progress in all aspects of the university.

The officers and directors meet three times each year with the director of alumni relations, who is appointed by the university administration.

An annual minimum contribution of $15 is required to maintain active alumni status.

Idaho State University Foundation, Inc.

The ISU Foundation is a nonprofit corporation established in 1967 under the laws of the State of Idaho. It operates exclusively for the benefit of Idaho State University. The Foundation works to solicit, receive, hold and manage funds and property for the benefit of all the programs of the university. Foundation leaders bring a wide range of business and professional competence to their efforts on behalf of the university.

Gifts to the Foundation may be unrestricted to be used by the university in areas of greatest need, or donors can specify the area where they would like their contributions to go. Private funding helps provide scholarships, professorships, scientific equipment, building funds, and other assistance to academic and vocational/technical programs and instruction. Private support is recognized as a vital and necessary supplement for the funding of Idaho State University. All contributions to the Foundation, when itemized, are tax deductible.

The ISU Foundation is located in the Presidents Office in the Administration Building.

ISU Bengal Foundation

The ISU Bengal Foundation is a non-profit organization of sports fans committed to the support of ISUs athletic program. Luncheon meetings are held weekly during football and basketball seasons.