Университет Балтимора: История и современность

Public university in Baltimore, Maryland, U. S.

The University of Baltimore (UBalt, UB) is a public university in Baltimore, Maryland. It is part of the University System of Maryland. UBalt's schools and colleges provide education in business, law, public affairs, and the applied arts and sciences. The university is the location of one of Maryland's two law schools.

Founded by a group of Baltimore business professionals, UBalt originally sought to provide educational opportunities for working men and women, meaning that the first classes were held not above the ornate dragons of the current liberal arts and policy building, but in a four story rowhouse on St. Paul St. in 1925. In 1937, after the addition of day programs to augment the initial night courses, a full scale junior college was added to the university's offerings. Other changes in the following decades included the construction of the Langsdale Library in 1966, according to an administrative history of the school. In the 1970s, UBalt merged with Eastern College, Mount Vernon School of Law, and Baltimore College of Commerce. During the presidency of Thomas Granville Pullen, the university became regionally accredited in 1971 with the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools and built the Langsdale Library. For a three decade period that started in 1975 and would eventually end in 2007, UBalt became an "upper division academic institution," offering only third and fourth year undergraduate and post graduate course work. Also in 1975, ownership was assumed by the state of Maryland. In 1988, the state merged UBalt into the new statewide university system, the University of Maryland System, which was later renamed University System of Maryland.

The Lower Division Initiative was a program that began in 2005 to extend the University of Baltimore's position to once again offer the first two years of the baccalaureate degree. In April 2005, the University System of Maryland's board of regents approved plans that would allow UBalt to start accepting freshmen and sophomores. Under the original plan, freshmen and sophomore were to be admitted starting in the fall of 2006. In a unanimous vote on February 15, 2006, the Maryland Higher Education Commission approved a revised mission statement submitted by the University of Baltimore, thus enabling the university to return to four year undergraduate status. This was the same initiative that had received approval from the board of regents in 2005; however, the plan was revised slightly, calling for freshmen to be admitted in the fall of 2007. The university stated that the new program better reflected the current focus and was designed to prepare students in business, pre law, technology, public affairs, and applied liberal arts. It also said that it would offer freshmen "free" tuition for their first year, a benefit made possible by an anonymous private donor. An estimate stated that 140 freshmen were expected in the incoming class of fall of 2007. Near the time of the change, the university also changed the school colors and adopted the new slogan, "Knowledge That Works". As of 2022, the renovation of Langsdale Library, which was renamed to Robert L. Bogomolny Library, was complete. The renovation was designed by the German architectural firm Behnisch Architekten, which had also been responsible for the design of the 2013 law school structure at Charles St. and Mount Royal Ave. Starting in 2005, the university's MBA program has been the target of nearby institutions' criticism regarding a supposed diversion of funds, with UB's status as a traditionally white institution bringing calls for a restructuring of state funding. As of early 2022, that criticism was ongoing.

The university offers numerous undergraduate, graduate, and professional as well as several certificate and joint degree programs. It offers 19 Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degree programs, spanning the arts and sciences, public affairs, and business. At the master's level, UBalt offers a Master of Public Administration (MPA), a Master of Business Administration (previously offered jointly with Towson University), and 13 Master of Science and 3 Master of Art degrees. The MPA program was the first in the state to be fully accredited by the National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration (NASPAA); it was also ranked #72 nationally in U. S. News & World Report's 2023 24 edition of "Best Grad Schools." Additionally, the university offers two Master of Fine Arts degrees. The Practitioner Specialization of the M. S. in Counseling Psychology program is accredited by the Masters in Psychology and Counseling Accreditation Council, and both the undergraduate and graduate programs in Criminal Justice are certified by the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences. The university's Masters degree in Applied Psychology, Counseling Psychology concentration, is accredited by the Masters in Psychology and Counseling Accreditation Council (MPCAC). The law school offers a Master of Laws degree. UBalt also offers a Doctor of Public Administration. Through its law school, UBalt offers the Juris Doctor.

The main campus is located in Baltimore's Mt. Vernon cultural district, close to downtown and the Inner Harbor. The Lyric Opera House, Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall, and the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) are nearby. For the most part, the main academic buildings surround the intersections of Mount Royal Avenue and North Charles Street. Gordon Plaza is at the center of campus.

The university, the Bozzuto Group, and the Gould Property Co. entered into a public private joint venture to develop UBalt's Bolton Yard parking lot into a mixed use development, including apartments, a UBalt student bookstore, other retail, and garage parking. The project, which is named the Fitzgerald at UB Midtown, broke ground in 2008 and was largely complete by 2011. The Fitzgerald project was viewed at the time of its inception as a prelude to future public private development projects—for instance more student housing. The student housing tower was largely complete by mid 2012. According to a 2014 Baltimore Sun article, the university was considering building additional dormitory space on West Oliver Street, at the site of a facility currently used for postal vehicle maintenance. That development has yet to be named. According to a 2023 Baltimore Sun article, the university intends to enter into a ground lease arrangement with the development firm Zahlco for the eventual creation of apartments and ground floor retail on the former postal site.

The University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) and University of Baltimore (UBalt) began a public safety collaboration in the first quarter of 2022. All police officers on the UBalt campus are employed by the UMB Police Department (UMBPD). The UMBPD is a fully certified law enforcement agency through the Maryland Police and Correctional Training Commissions (MPCTC). UBalt maintains responsibility for campus security performed by unarmed, civilian security personnel known as the UBalt Safety and Security team. Uniformed officers from UMB — sworn, armed, and professionally trained and certified — are assigned to patrol the UBalt campus. At the same time, UBalt's Safety and Security staff provides building access and control, including office lockouts, welcome desk staffing, interior/exterior patrols, and more.

Penn Station, with connections to Amtrak and MARC service, and a Light Rail stop, are just to the north of campus. The University of Baltimore/Mt. Royal station on the Baltimore Light Rail system is on the northwest edge of campus. The State Center station on the Baltimore Metro system is just a few blocks from campus. UBalt runs shuttle bus service between its academic buildings, parking garages, and the nearby public transportation/local transit stops.

In conjunction with the University System of Maryland, UBalt offers courses and several undergraduate and graduate degree programs at the Universities at Shady Grove in Rockville, Maryland. Through a partnership with the College of Southern Maryland, UBalt offers the upper level undergraduate coursework leading toward the bachelor's degree in business in Southern Maryland. UBalt also offers online classes.

UBalt has numerous academic clubs, student organizations, and an active student government; as of May 2017, more than 90 were listed on the university's website. The academic clubs usually sponsor a host of programs and speakers throughout the school year. Not all clubs are academic or sports related, however: Clubs related to improv, crafting, religions, languages, and film are among the non academic, non sports options. The UB Post is the monthly student newspaper, which serves the purpose of keeping the general student population informed of upcoming campus activities, as well as relevant news. Run by students, it is available in print and online, and has been published since 1933. Leonard Robinson is the editor in chief. A student run press, Plork, provides additional printing experience for students majoring in fields related to media design, publishing, and writing, as does the university's 50 year old literary magazine, Welter. The Student Center is the central place for students—housing The Hive market and cafe, the UB Campus Pantry, the Interfaith Space, student government and organization offices, and study lounges. The University of Baltimore has not offered any varsity sports since 1983.

In the years 2012–2017, the number of UBalt students living near campus increased 134 percent. Students have the option to reside in The Varsity, located on West Biddle Street 0.2 miles from the campus, or in other private complexes nearby.

UBalt has an athletic/fitness center named Campus Recreation and Wellness, which is continually growing for the betterment of the university and surrounding community. It has an aerobics studio, a sparring/boxing room, two indoor racquetball courts, a well equipped gym, a basketball court, and locker rooms. The Recreation Center, located on the third and fourth floor of the Academic Center, offers fitness classes free of charge on a first come, first served basis to all members and hosts the Sport Club and Intramural Sports teams. At one time, UBalt owned and operated a golf driving range in the Mount Washington neighborhood of Baltimore. However, this facility has been leased to the city. Campus Recreation and Wellness seeks to serve the recreation, fitness, health, and leisure needs of the university community through instructional and competitive sport activities, including aerobics classes, golf lessons, intramural sports, informal recreation, and sport clubs. The Recreation Center facilities include basketball, racquetball, badminton and volleyball courts, weight and cardio rooms, aerobic and spinning studios, indoor golf cage, foosball, darts, Wii gaming system, as well as locker rooms and a sauna. The facilities are open to students, faculty, staff and Recreation Center members with valid UBalt BeeCards. The UBalt men's lacrosse team won four USILA Division II national championships in four consecutive years, 1956–1959.