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The University of Minnesota, Morris (UMM) is an undergraduate liberal arts campus of the University of Minnesota. Today, UMM offers courses leading to a bachelor's degree in 30 disciplines, as well as coursework in 7 pre-professional programs. One of the nation's few public liberal arts colleges, UMM's mission is highly distinctive as an academically rigorous, public undergraduate liberal arts college. Opening its doors in 1960, UMM's guiding principles of selective admissions and academic excellence in a residential campus atmosphere have become ever stronger during the following decades. The University of Minnesota, Morris is one of the most respected public liberal arts colleges in the nation. UMM's mission as an affordable, undergraduate college complements its small, residential atmosphere. Because of its instructional excellence, a commitment to collaborative research between students and faculty, extracurricular programs and services, and a strong sense of community, UMM is recognized as one of the best public liberal arts colleges in the country. UMM's strength as a liberal arts institution comes primarily from three factors: a focused, narrowly defined mission which provides a rigorous liberal arts program; a select, intellectually gifted student body; and a faculty dedicated to teaching, to personal contact with students, and to research often involving student participation. UMM has repeatedly received national recognition for its distinctive mission and strong academic quality. It is the goal of the University of Minnesota, Morris, an undergraduate liberal arts campus of the University of Minnesota, to be the best public liberal arts college in the America. UMM is one of seven public institutions ranked by the Carnegie Foundation as a national liberal arts college. UMM has repeatedly received national recognition for its distinctive mission and strong academic quality, including feature articles in U.S. News and World Report, Kiplinger's, Changing Times, and rankings in Peterson's Guide to Competitive Colleges and the Fiske Guide to Colleges. UMM's curriculum and faculty are organized into four divisions rather than departments: Science and Mathematics, Humanities, Social Sciences, and Education. Thirty majors are offered. A 14:1 student-faculty ratio and strong institutional commitment to individual attention bring UMM students into close contact with faculty. Students often assist faculty in research and professional activities. Ninety-eight percent of UMM tenured and tenure-track faculty hold terminal degrees appropriate to their teaching and research activities. Thirty faculty are recipients of the University of Minnesota's highest teaching award - one of the highest percentages within the University. UMM is built on a 100-year old campus, originally an American Indian boarding school and later an agricultural boarding high school. The college has grown from an initial enrollment of 238 students in 1960 to nearly 2,000 students, over 350 faculty and staff, and over 9,600 graduates. UMM students come from throughout Minnesota, 32 other states and 15 countries. The student body is predominantly of traditional age. UMM has consistently attracted one of the most academically able student bodies in the state - the strongest of any public institution. The 2001 median high school rank percentile of entering freshmen is 82. UMM maintains the highest percentage of minority students of any campus within the University, at over 15% of total enrollment. In 2000-2001, over 90% of UMM students received some form of financial aid. The average aid per student was $7,415. 
UMM is situated in the prairie region of west central Minnesota, 160 miles northwest of the twin cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul. The college is one of four campuses of the University of Minnesota, the state's land grant and doctoral research institution. The other campuses are in Minneapolis-St. Paul, Duluth, and Crookston. The city of Morris, with an approximate population of 5,600, is the Stevens county seat. Morris is also home to two agricultural science research entities - one federal, and one affiliated with the University's Minneapolis-St. Paul campus. The Morris community offers a variety of retail, manufacturing, agricultural and service-related businesses. The cultural atmosphere is strengthened through community theater, band, and a thriving local artists community. In addition, UMM offers lectures and performances of national stature and international flavors. Opportunities to enjoy outdoor recreation are numerous, including biking, hiking, canoeing, hunting, camping, fishing, and cross country skiing. 
The fall 2001 enrollment at UMM was 1,927 students: 82% are from Minnesota and 49% live on campus. Over 15% are minority students (see the Campus of Difference page for more information about multiculturalism and diversity at UMM). Admission is based upon merit and compatibility between the students' educational objectives and the college's liberal arts mission. Thirty-two percent of the 2001 entering freshmen came from the top 10% of their high school class; the median ACT composite was 24. UMM offers majors in the traditional liberal arts disciplines, elementary education, and licensure in secondary education. The campus boasts a student-teacher ratio below 15:1.
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