Higher Education

Topeka is a hub of higher education allowing Shawnee County residents access to a wide spectrum of undergraduate and graduate level programs.

Washburn University

Washburn University is rated sixth in the Midwest among public masters level universities in the 2007 America's Best colleges rankings issued by U.S. News and World Report. This is the seventh consecutive year that Washburn has earned a top 10 rating.

Washburn provides broadly-based liberal arts and professional education by combining the most effective modes of educating: accomplished faculty, small class sizes, state-of-the-art technology, modern learning techniques, and unique opportunities available through an interactive campus and community relationship. Here are some facts on the school:

• Enrollment: 7,153 (Fall, 2006)
• Classes: 41 percent of undergraduate classes have fewer than 20 students.
• Faculty: 87 percent of full-time faculty holds doctorates or the highest degree in their discipline.
• Faculty/student ratio: 16:1
• Academic programs: Washburn offers more than 200 programs leading to certification, associate, bachelor, master's and juris doctor degrees through the College of Arts and Sciences and the Schools of Applied Studies, Business, Law and Nursing.
• Graduates: More than 1,200 degrees and certificates are awarded annually.
• Internships: Each year 1,000 students participate in internship opportunities at more than 125 sites in Topeka.
• Financial aid: More than $50 million in financial aid is available to students annually. Scholarships awarded from university resources are $5.4 million.
• Endowment funding of approximately $113 million ranks Washburn second in the state on a per-student basis among the public institutions.
• Athletics: Ten athletic teams compete at the NCAA Division II level in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA) Conference. WU sports are baseball, basketball (men and women), football, golf, soccer (women), softball, tennis (men and women), and volleyball.
• Alumni: The University boasts more than 30,000 alumni. WU alumni are found in every county in Kansas and in every state in the U.S.
• University funding sources: The University is funded by local sales tax, a state operating grant, and student tuition.
• Mascot: The Ichabod. Washburn's mascot honors the school's early benefactor, Ichabod Washburn, a 19th century Massachusetts industrialist. The original design of the studious-looking, tuxedo-clad figure was created in 1938 by Bradbury Thompson (ba '34), who became an internationally renown graphic artist.
• Also on campus:
  Recent additions to the campus include a Student Recreation & Wellness Center; an art building, Carole Chapel; and Washburn Village, a 192-bed apartment-style housing complex.
  
  The Mulvane Art Museum is the oldest accredited art museum west of the Mississippi River. The museum's permanent collection, though international in scope, emphasizes the work of artists of Kansas and of the Midwest.
  
  Washburn is home to KTWU, the first public television station in Kansas.
  
  Crane Observatory houses an 1898 Warner & Swasey refracting telescope.
  
  The Kuehne Bell Tower features a quartet of bells once housed in the clock tower of Thomas Gymnasium, which was destroyed during a 1966 tornado.

Is Washburn private or public?

Washburn is a publicly funded, independently governed, state coordinated university. The school was established in 1865 as Lincoln College by a charter issued by the State of Kansas and the General Association of Congregational Ministers and Churches of Kansas. In 1941, the citizens of Topeka endorsed Washburn by voting to establish a municipal university, supported in part by the city and governed by a local board of regents. In 1999, the university's primary funding was moved from city property tax to county sales tax sources, with the school retaining status as a municipal subdivision of the state. In addition to local financial support, Washburn has received state funds since 1961, which have been coordinated by the Kansas Board of Regents since 1991. Washburn is governed by its own nine-member Board of Regents.

Washburn's place

Washburn's place in the community extends beyond the traditional classroom. Hundreds of youngsters are welcomed to campus each summer as participants in sports camps, while others explore their creativity through programs offered by the Mulvane Art Museum. Washburn also hosts the Quest Academic Competition that brings 500 high school students to Topeka to vie for the opportunity to participate in championship matches produced and televised matches produced by KTWU.

The campus is also a center for cultural, sporting and educational activities. Annual events include Sunflower Music Festival and the Mulvane Mountain/Plains Art Festival as well as regular performances at the Andrew J. and Georgia Neese Gray Theatre.

For more information vist Washburn's web site at www.washburn.edu or call 785-670-1010.