The
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, also known as UNC, or
simply Carolina, is a coeducational public research university located
in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States. After being chartered in
1789, the university first began enrolling students in 1795, which also
allows it to be one of three schools to claim the title of the oldest
public university in the United States. North Carolina is one of the
original eight Public Ivy schools that are claimed to provide an Ivy
League experience for a public schooling price.
The
first public institution of higher education in North Carolina, the
school opened its doors to students on February 12, 1795. The university
offers degrees in over 70 courses of study through fourteen colleges
and the College of Arts and Sciences. All undergraduates receive a
liberal arts education and have the option to pursue a major within the
professional schools of the university or within the College of Arts and
Sciences from the time they obtain junior status. Under the leadership
of President Kemp Plummer Battle, in 1877 North Carolina became
coeducational and began the process of desegregation in 1951 when
African-American graduate students were admitted under Chancellor Robert
Burton House. In 1952, North Carolina opened its own hospital, UNC
Health Care, for research and treatment, and has since specialized in
cancer care. The school's students, alumni, and sports teams are known
as "Tar Heels".
The
campus of North Carolina is located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, a
university town. The campus covers 729 acres (3 km2) over Chapel Hill's
downtown area, encompassing places like the Morehead Planetarium and the
many stores and shops located on Franklin Street. Students can
participate in over 550 officially recognized student organizations. The
student-run newspaper The Daily Tar Heel has won national awards for
collegiate media, while the student radio station WXYC provided the
world's first internet radio broadcast. North Carolina is one of the
charter members of the Atlantic Coast Conference, which was founded on
June 14, 1953. Competing athletically as the Tar Heels, North Carolina
has achieved great success in sports, most notably in men's basketball,
women's soccer, and women's field hockey.