University of Chicago

The University of Chicago is a private co-educational university located in Chicago, Illinois. Over a century old, it is renowned for its contributions to teaching and research, and recognized as one of the world's leading research institutions. Known as the "teacher of teachers", scholars and researchers affiliated with the University of Chicago have earned more Nobel Prizes than any other institution besides Cambridge University. The academic home of leading intellectuals like Allan Bloom, Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar, Ronald Coase, Milton Friedman, Richard Posner, and Leo Strauss, the University of Chicago is often considered the most intellectual and rigorous of American universities.

Location and campus

The University is located eight miles (13 km) south of the Loop in the Chicago neighborhoods of Hyde Park and Woodlawn.

Related Topics:
Loop - Hyde Park - Woodlawn

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The campus is noted for its English Collegiate Gothic architecture (carried out entirely in limestone); the buildings and layout of the Main Quadrangle have been deliberately patterned after Oxford and Cambridge from the founding of the University. Buildings that are more contemporary have attempted to complement the style of the original buildings with mixed success. One of the most striking buildings is the brutalist Regenstein Library. The campus is home to several significant buildings, including Bertram Goodhue's Rockefeller Memorial Chapel (notable for its solid stone construction), the Oriental Institute, and Frank Lloyd Wright's Robie House. The campus spans the Midway Plaisance, a large linear public park that was a part of the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition and designed by Frederick Law Olmsted. The bulk of the campus, including the main quadrangle and the hospitals, are north of the Midway; several of the professional schools are located south of the Midway.

Related Topics:
Oxford - Cambridge - Brutalist - Regenstein Library - Bertram Goodhue - Rockefeller Memorial Chapel - Oriental Institute - Frank Lloyd Wright - Robie House - Midway Plaisance - World's Columbian Exposition - Frederick Law Olmsted

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A recent $2 billion capital campaign has brought unprecedented expansion to the school. The last few years have featured much change on campus: the unveiling of Max Palevsky dormitory (primarily for first year students), the conversion of Bartlett Gym into a dining hall, the opening of the new Ratner Athletic Center (a César Pelli design) and matching parking/office structure, the construction of the new Comer Children's Hospital, the Graduate School of Business' new Hyde Park Center (a Rafael Viñoly building), and an Interdivisional Research Building for sciences (still under construction). The University has also expanded outside of Hyde Park, opening the new Gleacher Center (a Business School center) in downtown Chicago, and the new Paris Center on the Left Bank (for collegiate study abroad). The University plans to direct the next stage of its “master plan” towards revamping and consolidating dormitories, many of which are far from campus and ageing poorly. Plans are being prepared for the construction of a new undergraduate dormitory on land south of the Midway. The Graduate School of Business also maintains campuses in Singapore and London.

Related Topics:
César Pelli - Rafael Viñoly - Singapore - London

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