Оклендский университет: история и современность

Public university in Oakland County, Michigan, US

Oakland University (OU or Oakland) is a public research university in Auburn Hills and Rochester Hills, Michigan. Founded in 1957 through a donation of Matilda Dodge Wilson and husband Alfred G. Wilson, it was initially known as Michigan State University Oakland, operating under the Michigan State University Board of Trustees, before gaining institutional independence from the board in 1970. Oakland University is one of the eight research universities in the State of Michigan and is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity." The university offers 132 bachelor's degree programs and 138 professional graduate certificate, master's degree, and doctoral degree programs, including those offered by the Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine. It had a total enrollment of more than 20,000 students in 2016. The university's site comprises the Main Campus, Meadow Brook Estate, and two nationally ranked golf courses spread across 1,443 acres (5.84 km2). Meadow Brook Hall, a U. S. National Historic Landmark and the fourth largest historic house museum in the United States, is located on the site. Previously known as the Pioneers, Oakland's athletic teams were renamed the Golden Grizzlies in 1998. They compete in the NCAA Division I Horizon League.

In 1908, John Francis Dodge and his wife Matilda purchased a farmhouse and of land known as Meadow Brook Farms, located in central Oakland County. In 1920, Matilda inherited John's fortune upon his death, soon remarrying to a lumber baron, Alfred G. Wilson. Between 1926 and 1929, the couple built Meadow Brook Hall on the land. Oakland University was created in 1957 when Matilda Dodge Wilson and her second husband, Alfred Wilson, donated their estate to Michigan State University, including Meadow Brook Hall, Sunset Terrace and all the estate's other buildings and collections, along with $2 million. Main campus buildings were completed on Squirrel Road in Pontiac Township (now the city of Auburn Hills). Originally known as Michigan State University–Oakland, the university enrolled its first students in 1959, was renamed Oakland University in 1963, and has been officially independent of Michigan State University since 1970. Wilson demanded that U. S. Postmaster General Arthur Summerfield let the university use a Rochester, Michigan, mailing address (201 Meadow Brook Rd., Rochester, Michigan 48309), even though the main campus was in Pontiac Township (now the city of Auburn Hills). After Wilson reminded him that she had contributed to his administration, Summerfield granted her request. In September 2009, tenured faculty members represented by the Oakland University chapter of the American Association of University Professors went on strike. Issues of contention included the university claiming ownership of professors' copyrights and patents, refusing to allow faculty input into matters of class size and curricula, reduction of health benefits and a three year salary freeze. The salary freeze was in contrast to university president Gary Russi, who had just received a $100,000 raise. During the 2012 Republican presidential primaries, Oakland University hosted a debate between Republican presidential candidates on 9 November 2011. CNBC televised the debate nationally, and the Michigan Republican Party co sponsored the debate with CNBC. Eight candidates participated: Michele Bachmann, Herman Cain, Newt Gingrich, Jon Huntsman, Ron Paul, Rick Perry, Mitt Romney, and Rick Santorum. In 2013, the Oakland University Board of Trustees approved a $65 million investment in campus expansion and improvement projects. Completed in the fall of 2014, projects included: construction of a nearly $30 million student housing complex; dramatic enhancement of outdoor recreation and athletic fields; construction of a 1,240 space parking structure, and; construction of new headquarters for facility and grounds maintenance operations. Longtime supporters of the university, Hugh and Nancy Elliott, made a donation to construct the Elliott Tower on the campus. The 151 foot carillon tower was completed in fall 2014 and houses the last bells to be cast by the Royal Bellfoundry Petit & Fritsen of the Netherlands. On 4 May 2017, the board announced Ora Hirsch Pescovitz as Oakland University's seventh president. Her tenure began on 1 July 2017, under a 5 year contract. In 2021, her contract was extended to June, 2025. For the fall 2022 semester, Oakland University had an enrollment of 16,108 students. Oakland University is the 6th largest of the 4 year universities in Michigan.

In addition to its location in the cities of Auburn Hills and Rochester Hills, Oakland University maintains an official "hometown" relationship with the nearby but not adjacent city of Rochester, Michigan. University and city officials signed a partnership agreement in 2003 to officially recognize the relationship between Rochester and Oakland University. In 1959, Rochester Village (now city) officials renamed the Fifth Street in downtown Rochester "University Drive" to showcase Rochester as a "college town". The road is called Walton Boulevard adjacent to the University in Rochester Hills and Auburn Hills. This is often confused with University Drive in Auburn Hills, which originates at Oakland University's main entrance in Auburn Hills, and continues west into downtown Pontiac. In 2005, the Rochester area was ranked 39th in the CNN/Money Magazine list of the Top 100 American cities in which to live. Oakland University's campus, which encompasses , includes trails and biking paths and two nationally ranked golf courses.

The university's land in Auburn Hills and Rochester Hills is divided into the Main Campus, Meadow Brook Estate, and two golf courses.

Meadow Brook Theatre, which was founded in 1967, is the largest non profit professional theater in Michigan, and presents a wide variety of award winning productions throughout the year. Additionally, the Oakland University Art Gallery, which was formerly known as the Meadow Brook Art Gallery, presents at least six different exhibitions each academic year, in addition to hosting a variety of lectures, performances and symposia. Kresge Library is the main library of Oakland University. It consists of four floors of study rooms and open area tables. It also contains the Oakland University Archives, the Historical Abraham Lincoln Collection, the Jane M. Bingham Historical Children's Collection, and a tech center. The library is named after Stanley and Sebastian Kresge who were both present for the library's opening in 1962. In 2009, an 18 hole disc golf course opened. Grizzly Oaks was co designed by student Jarrett Schlaff and licensed by the Professional Disc Golf Association. The campus has recreational facilities for intramural sports and for Oakland University's 16 NCAA Division I athletic teams, including the lighted Upper Athletic Fields, the indoor Sports Dome, fields for varsity baseball, softball, and soccer, and facilities for basketball, handball, track, and weight training. The campus recreation center houses Oakland University's natatorium, and the Athletics Center O'rena, a 4,000 seat field house, is the home court for Oakland University basketball and volleyball. Near the center of campus is the Elliot Tower (above). This clock tower was finished in 2014 after many delays to its construction that began toward the end of 1945 just after the end of WWII, making it both the oldest and one of the newest structures simultaneously at Oakland University.

This portion of Oakland University consists of the historic Meadow Brook Hall and the land and buildings surrounding it. The hall, which is a 110 room Tudor revival–style mansion completed in 1929 as Oakland University founder Matilda Dodge Wilson's Oakland County estate, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Meadow Brook Hall is the fourth largest historic house museum in the United States, and houses a vast collection of historically significant art and furniture, including paintings by Rembrandt, Anthony van Dyck, Rosa Bonheur, Gilbert Stuart, Joshua Reynolds, John Constable, and Thomas Gainsborough, as well as sculptures by Antoine Louis Barye, Frederic Remington, Cyrus Edwin Dallin, and Herbert Haseltine. Meadow Brook Hall is frequently utilized as a site for select university functions, including the Meadow Brook Ball, a popular student event. Until 2010, Meadow Brook Hall and its grounds were the site of the annual Meadow Brook Concours d'Elegance, one of the largest collector car shows in the world. The Meadow Brook Music Festival is an outdoor entertainment venue with an on site pavilion which accommodates close to 8,000 people. In addition to being the site of spring time graduation ceremonies, Meadow Brook Music Festival also hosts comedians and musical acts. Meadow Brook Music Festival is managed by 313 Presents.

Oakland University has two nationally ranked golf courses that make up most of the southern portion of its land. Katke Cousins sits on Some of the course's 18 holes remain from the 9 hole course John Dodge built when he lived at the estate. The other course, opened in 2000, is the R & S Sharf course.

An office plaza in downtown Mount Clemens, in Macomb County, was donated to the university in 2010 by Gebran Anton and Stuart Frankel. It was repurposed and opened for the fall 2011 semester as the Anton/Frankel Center. It offers several undergraduate and graduate programs. Oakland University is also among the 12 colleges and universities offering programs at Macomb Community College's University Center.

The Oakland University Art Gallery is a civic art exhibition venue in Rochester Hills, Michigan. Founded in 1966, it is part of Oakland University and occupies a portion of the University’s Wilson Hall. The gallery’s exhibitions have garnered national and international attention, and have been reviewed in publications including Art in America, Sculpture and W Magazine.

The collection has over 1,500 art objects. The gallery collection includes twentieth and twenty first century paintings and sculptures by artists Richard Artschwager, Fernando Botero, Alex Katz, Malcolm Morley, Carlos Rolón, and Terry Winters. Oakland University was used as a training camp for the Detroit Lions in 1989. Oakland University's men's soccer team became the first Oakland team to move past the first round of their sport's respective NCAA tournament in 2007. The men's basketball team defeated Kentucky in the 2024 NCAA Tournament.

Although many of Oakland's students commute from surrounding areas, there are more than 3,000 who live on campus in a variety of residence halls and student apartments. The residence halls include Hillcrest Hall, Oak View Hall, Hamlin Hall, and Vandenberg Hall. Residential learning communities on Oakland University's campus include Scholars Tower and the Residential Honors College community. Eight additional buildings make up the George T. Matthews student apartments, and six major Tudor style buildings house the Ann V. Nicholson student apartments, which were completed in 2002. Campus life is enhanced by more than 200 registered student organizations, ranging from cultural and religious groups to Greek organizations. Fraternities at Oakland University include Theta Chi, Sigma Pi, Tau Kappa Epsilon, Alpha Phi Alpha, Alpha Sigma Phi, Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, and Iota Phi Theta. Sororities include Alpha Delta Pi, Alpha Sigma Tau, Gamma Phi Beta, Phi Sigma Sigma, Sigma Alpha Iota, Sigma Sigma Sigma, Alpha Kappa Alpha, Delta Sigma Theta, Zeta Phi Beta, and Sigma Gamma Rho. The so called Cottage District of campus, which consists of homes originally built for workers employed at the old Meadow Brook Estate, now contain fraternity and sorority houses. Additionally, the university owns an adjoining tract of land to the east of the main university campus, which was developed into a neighborhood in which many faculty members currently live.