Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi

Texas A&M University•Corpus Christi (abbreviated Texas A&M•Corpus Christi, or TAMU•CC, or A&M-Corpus Christi, or A&M-CC) is a state university located in Corpus Christi, Texas, United States, on Ward Island in Oso Bay. The university is part of the Texas A&M University System. TAMU-CC was formerly known at various times by one of the following three names: Corpus Christi State University, Texas A&I University at Corpus Christi, and the University of Corpus Christi (a Baptist university founded in 1947) before joining the Texas A&M University system. The school became a public university in 1973 when the Baptist General Convention of Texas sold it to the State.^[1]

Academics

TAMU-CC offers 33 undergraduate majors, 25 graduate programs, and two doctoral programs through five colleges. The College of Liberal Arts has 7 departments, housing 12 undergraduate and 6 graduate degrees, ranging from the arts to criminal justice to psychology. The College of Business offers 8 undergraduate and 4 graduate degrees. The College of Education offers teacher certification in more than 30 areas as well as three undergraduate degrees, 11 graduate programs, and 2 doctoral programs. The College of Science and Technology offers 12 undergraduate and 5 graduate degrees in areas like biology, computer science and environmental science. The Geographic Information Science (GIS) program is accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology. The Engineering Technology unit offers two B.S. degree programs: Electrical Engineering Technology (EET) and Mechanical Engineering Technology (MET). The EET program offers three options: Control Systems, Electronic Systems, and Computer Systems. The MET program offers two tracks, Construction and Maintenance, and is accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology. Finally, the recently formed College of Nursing and Health Sciences offers 2 undergraduate degrees in Nursing and Health Science and 1 graduate degree in Nursing.

Research

The Conrad Blucher Institute for Surveying and Science is a research institute dedicated to geospatial science.^[2] The Institute was founded by an endowment from the Conrad Blucher family. Research by the institute includes the Texas Coastal Ocean Observation Network (a tide monitoring system), Texas Spatial Reference Center research for the Texas Height Modernization, and other geospatial research relating to surveying and mapping.

The Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies brings scientists to the campus to strengthen TAMU-CC's research on environmental issues facing the Gulf of Mexico, area wetlands, coastal waterways, and beaches. Other centers on campus conduct research on biodiversity through scientific offshore diving expeditions, and aid in oil spill response, hurricane tracking, and commercial shipping.

Student life

Student government

The Student Government Association at TAMU-CC hosts the officers of the student body. The SGA runs a three-branch system, with the Executive Board consisting of the Student Body Officers, the Legislative Board consisting of the Student Senate, and the Judicial Board consisting of the Chief and Associate Justices.

The current legislative branch, or Student Senate, has two underlying groups of senators: the classification senators, which holds 3 graduate senators, 4 senior senators, 3 junior senators, 3 sophomore senators, and 3 freshman senators, as well as the college senators, which holds two senators for each of the five colleges: Business, Education, Liberal Arts, Nursing, and Science & Technology.

Elections for SGA are held twice a year, once near the close of the spring for all positions, and then at the opening of the fall for the freshman senators and remaining vacancies from the spring elections.

Newspaper

Island Waves is the official student newspaper at TAMU-CC. It was first published in 1993. Island Waves is entirely student-run, on account of the University not having a journalism department. Thus, Island Waves is, in part, funded through student fees and advertisement sales. Issues are put out every Thursday throughout the fall and spring semesters, with two issues printed over the summer.

Athletics

TAMU-CC has joined the Southland Conference as of 2006-07 as a non-football member. Before that, it had been an independent since it began offering Division I sports in 1999.

TAMU-CC offers 5 men's sports: baseball, basketball, cross country, tennis, and track and field; as well as 7 women's sports: basketball, cross country, golf, softball, tennis, track and field, and volleyball.

The mascot for TAMU-CC is Izzy the Islander, a costumed man with a tiki mask headdress, grass skirt and spear.

Men's basketball

The Islanders basketball team is coached by Perry Clark and play their home games at the American Bank Center. They have played in the NCAA tournament once, in 2007, losing in the first round.

Women's Cross Country

The Islander cross country team is regarded as the most successful sport in school history, as the women's team has won 7 out of the 9 conference titles (more than any other team in the history of Texas universities). In 2009, they scored the highest at the regional meet, with a 6th place finish.

Notable alumni

• Film directors Duane Graves and Justin Meeks graduated with Communication Arts degrees in 1999. Their debut motion picture The Wild Man of the Navidad, released by IFC Films, was co-produced by a professor at the university at that time, Kim Henkel, who just so happened to be the co-writer/producer of another famous horror film The Texas Chain Saw Massacre.^[3][4][5]

References

1. ^ The Baptist Standard
2. ^ Conrad Blucher Institute for Surveying and Science
3. ^ Beware: Bigfoot Ahead. The homegrown horror of The Wild Man of the Navidad, Austin Chronicle
4. ^ A&M-CC alums tell Texas-sized ghost story, Corpus Christi Caller-Times
5. ^ http://us.imdb.com/name/nm0377066/ Kim Henkel on the IMDB

External links

• Islanders Athletics
• Message Board for Islanders fans
• Texas A&M University System
• [http://coastalbendinnovation.com/ Business Incubation Program

Coordinates: 27°42′44″N 97°19′31″W / 27.7121°N 97.3254°W

Categories: Southland Conference | Public universities in Texas | Texas A&M University•Corpus Christi | Universities and colleges in Texas | Texas A&M University System | Universities and colleges accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools | American Association of State Colleges and Universities | Education in Corpus Christi, Texas | Educational institutions established in 1947