Bradley University and the community it serves

History

Bradley University is an independent, privately endowed, coeducational institution located in Peoria, Illinois. It was founded in 1897 as Bradley Polytechnic Institute by Lydia Moss Bradley as a memorial to her children and husband, Tobias. Bradley became a four-year college in 1920, and in 1946 became a university and began offering graduate programs. It is fully accredited.

President

Undergraduate Studies

Bradley offers its undergraduate students about 60 majors distributed among five colleges: Communications and Fine Arts; Education and Health Sciences; Engineering and Technology; Liberal Arts and Sciences; and The Foster College of Business Administration.

Graduate Studies

Approximately 900 students are seeking master's degrees and doing graduate coursework at Bradley, which offers 12 graduate degrees in 25 academic areas including an AACSB accredited MBA program.

Enrollment, Fall 1995

Undergraduate students 5,083
Graduate students 890
Total 5,973

1995 Freshmen

Of the 1,016 freshmen who enrolled in the fall of 1995, 30% are from outside Illinois. Forty freshmen are National Merit Scholars, which should again place Bradley among the top private institutions nationwide chosen by these highly qualified students.

Faculty

Bradley's highest priority is excellent teaching supported by research, scholarship, and creative activities. Faculty not only provide personalized attention in learning and academic advising, but also serve as mentors and professional guides to their students. Of the 312 faculty members, over 80% hold the doctorate or other terminal degree. The average class size is fewer than 25 students, and no classes are taught by graduate assistants.

Placement

Typically the overall placement rate for Bradley graduates is 90%, whereas the placement rate for graduates with cooperative education experience is 96%. Over the past five years, 82% of Bradley students applying to medical schools have been accepted; 93% to dental schools, and 99% to graduate schools in the natural sciences.

University Institutes, Centers, and Special Programs

Business Technology Incubator
Center for Business and Economic Research
Center for Cocurricular Development
Center for Economic Education
Center for Executive and Professional Development
Center for Learning Resources
Center for Orientation, Testing and Advisement
Center for Wellness and Counseling
Central Illinois Manufacturing Extension Program
Division of Continuing Education and Professional Development
Institute for Gifted and Talented Youth
International Trade Center/NAFTA Opportunity Center
Small Business Development Center
Small Business Institute
Smith Career Center
Special Degree Completion Program
Technology Center

Special Degree Completion Program

The Special Degree Completion Program, developed with Illinois Central College and the Illinois State Board of Higher Education in 1990 to respond to the need of Peoria-area residents for adequate access to public universities, enables place-bound students to pursue degrees at Bradley on a part-time basis at reduced tuition. As of June 1995, 677 individuals have benefited from this program.

Campus and Physical Facilities

The University's 38 buildings are located on a 65-acre campus.

Cullom-Davis Library

Open to the public, the Cullom-Davis Library houses over one million items, including a variety of audiovisual resources, manuscripts, and archival materials. The Library provides an on-line catalog of library collections throughout Illinois, as well as access to CD-ROM databases and network access to research libraries throughout the world. Annually, more than 450,000 patrons visit the Cullom-Davis Library checking out over 70,000 items. Bradley's Virginius H. Chase Special Collections Center assists more than 1,800 patrons each year and serves as a repository for items of local or historical significance, as well as other special collections.

Computing Services

Bradley's Residence Halls for the Future (RHF) Program equips each room in selected residence halls with a personal computer, printer, and software. Nearly 85% of each freshman class elects to participate in the RHF program, now in its tenth year. The computer network includes faculty offices, other students, and the Cullom-Davis Library. With the continual upgrading of equipment and services to Pentium computers, nearly 1,500 students in 770 rooms have electronic access to campus and global information resources, including the vast array of information available in text, graphics, sound, and video formats on the World Wide Web, with color monitors and software that reflects technological advances. Sophisticated computer laboratories can also be found in nearly every academic building on campus.

Athletics

Known as the Bradley Braves, men's and women's athletic teams compete at the NCAA Division I level and continue a rich tradition including six Missouri Valley Championships and four NIT championships in men's basketball; six Missouri Valley Championships in baseball and two appearances in the collegiate world series; plus numerous individual All-American, conference, and national leaders in both men's and women's sports. The Braves' mascot is the bobcat.

University Finances

Bradley has consistently maintained a balanced budget for almost two decades because of long-term planning and careful management of resources. Over the past seven years, the endowment market value has tripled.The operating budget for fiscal 1995-96 is over $75 million and the market value of Bradley's endowment is approximately $60 million. Private donors provided $13,266,000 in 1994-95 to support University needs. Coupled with 1993-94 this amount approximately equals the total of the four previous years (1989-90 through 1992-93).

Tuition and Fees

$11,490 for 1995-96

Centennial Campaign

Bradley launched a $100-million capital campaign-- the most extensive fund-raising initiative in the history of the Institution and Central Illinois-- in May 1994. Leading the effort is Donald V. Fites, Chairman and C.E.O. of Caterpillar Inc., which provided a leadership gift of $20 million. Nearly three quarters of the campaign's goal is earmarked for the endowment and will fund student scholarships, faculty development, intellectual and cultural programs, laboratories and equipment, and other priorities identified in the University's strategic plan. The campaign is expected to continue through the University's Centennial in 1997.

Alumni

Alumni total more than 46,000 worldwide; 10,700 reside in the Peoria area and 10,600 in the Chicago area. Among the University's most prominent alumni are: General John Shalikashvili '58, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; Congressman Robert H. Michel '48, retired Republican Leader of the U.S. House of Representatives; David Horowitz '59, consumer advocate; Jerry Hadley '74, leading lyric tenor for the Metropolitan Opera; and Virginia Coker Housholder '40, the first woman to serve on the committee on Administration and Budgets for the United Nations General Assembly.

Economic Impact

• The county's fourth largest non-manufacturing employer, Bradley fuels the economy with an annual $85 million of expenditures that gives rise to more than $285 million in regional personal income.
• With nearly 75% of Bradley students from outside the Tri-County area, an estimated $25 million in "new dollars" are added to the Peoria economy each year in expenditures for such basic items as food, housing, clothing, transportation, and entertainment.
• The University spent in excess of $26 million for acquisition and construction for the six-year period ending May 1995.
• Last year, more than 4,500 individuals participated in one of the 72 continuing education programs offered by the Division of Continuing Education and Professional Development.
• Over the past five years, Bradley faculty brought into the area in excess of $15 million in outside funding through research grants and externally sponsored programs. Many of these dollars are used to support community outreach programs including the Small Business Development Center, Business Technology Incubator, and International Trade Center.
• The Small Business Development Center provides training courses, assistance in developing marketing strategies and business plans, for start-up and existing businesses. Since its creation in 1984, the SBDC annually receives over 500 requests for assistance and information and assists in the creation of several new businesses, an average of 35 new jobs and the retention of over 40 existing jobs.
• In 1972, Bradley's College of Business began utilizing teams of senior-level business students to work on semester-long projects with central Illinois businesses and organizations as part of their curriculum requirements. This Small Business Institute Program has completed over 2000 projects. Participants in these projects are selected from among the clients of the SBDC.
• The Business Technology Incubator, opened in 1986, provides space, administrative services and access to business and technical resources for start-up technology based businesses. Since its beginning, the Incubator has had 28 graduates of which 25 have continued to grow, one merged with another firm and only two have ceased operations.
• The Technology Center which was also created in 1986 assists individuals and businesses in the development of new products and the utilization of new technology through access to the technology resources of the College of Engineering. Some of the over 150 new products developed are marketed nationally and internationally.
• Created in 1989, the International Trade Center (ITC) provides export assistance and information to over 500 businesses each year. Export sales of these client companies now account for $20 million in additional revenues. In 1994, the ITC was designated by the Governor as a NAFTA Opportunity Center to provide specialized assistance for businesses exporting to Mexico or Canada. Together, these Centers present export training programs, assist businesses in developing export programs, do international marketing research and are part of an international network of export assistance providers. Each year the ITC/NOC selects area businesses for participation in international business class projects and co-sponsors the Certificate In International Business course.

• Bradley invests more than $1 million annually in the fine and performing arts.
• The Bradley National Print and Drawing Exhibition, started in 1950 and now held biennially, is one of the best-known and longest-running national juries print and drawing exhibitions. The 26th Bradley National is scheduled for spring 1997.
• Art galleries located in the Heuser Art Center and the Hartmann Center for the Performing Arts host exhibitions of student and professional work. Over 20,000 people visit the galleries annually.
• Dingeldine Music Center is the site for over 80 solo and ensemble recitals of faculty, students, and guest artists and concerts by the University's bands and choirs and community groups.
• The Bradley Chorale, Madrigal Singers, Women's Choir, Symphonic Winds, Chamber Orchestra, Jazz Ensemble, Brass Ensemble, Symphonic Band, and Basketball Band give many performances annually for the enjoyment of the community.
• Many weekends during the academic year there is a University performance given either on the main stage or in the lab theatre. In addition to those attending theatre or dance performances, over 26,000 people come to the Hartmann Center annually to enjoy art, exhibitions, lectures, meetings, receptions and performances by community groups
• Bradley's endowed lectureships in theatre, music, business management, and communication bring professionals to campus to work with students and present public lectures.
• The Intellectual and Cultural Activities Committee brings renowned national and international lecturers and performers to campus to engage the Bradley and Peoria communities. Maya Angelou, Susan Sontag, David Halberstam, the National Theater of the Deaf, the Gus Giordano Dancers, and Stephen Jay Gould are among those who have appeared on campus.
• Bradley University attracted to campus public radio station WCBU-FM and public television station WTVP-TV. Both stations serve all of Central Illinois.