University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, is the eleventh-oldest institution of higher education (and the oldest public institution) in the United States. Known to many as Carolina, or simply UNC, it is consistently ranked among the elite American Universities in academics and is considered a "Public Ivy." Carolina has developed an excellent reputation in numerous academic fields, as well as in its successful and very popular basketball program, which last won the National Championship on April 4, 2005.

Sports, clubs, and traditions

As one of the oldest institutions of higher learning in the United States, UNC has developed a long series of traditions associated with its athletics and student organizations.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Athletics

The school's sports teams are called the Tar Heels and the mascot is the ram. They participate in the NCAA's Division I-A and in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Related Topics:
Tar Heel - NCAA - Atlantic Coast Conference

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The University of North Carolina has won 36 team national championships in five different sports and 51 individual national championships: The women's soccer team has won eighteen national championships since 1981, the men's soccer team has won in 2001, the women's basketball team has won in 1994, the men's basketball team has won in 1957, 1982, 1993, and 2005, the men's lacrosse team has won in 1982, 1986, and 1991, the women's field hockey team won in 1985, 1995, 1996, and 1997, the women's team handball team has won in 2004, and the men's team handball team has won in 2004 and 2005.

Related Topics:
National championships - 2001 - Team handball

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

From 1961 to 1997 the men's basketball team was coached by Dean Smith, who holds the record (as of 2005) for the most victories by an NCAA Division I men's basketball coach with 879 wins. Roy Williams coached the championship team in 2005, reinforcing his position as one of the all-time notable coaches.

Related Topics:
Dean Smith - As of 2005 - Roy Williams

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In 1994, the University's athletic programs won the Sears Directors Cup 'all-sports national championship' which is awarded for cumulative performance in NCAA competition.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Notable graduates from the athletic programs include Mia Hamm, Davis Love III, Eddie Pope, Roy Williams, Marion Jones, and many others. Notable athletes from the athletic programs include Michael Jordan, Vince Carter, Julius Peppers, Phil Ford, and Rasheed Wallace.

Related Topics:
Mia Hamm - Davis Love III - Eddie Pope - Roy Williams - Marion Jones - Michael Jordan - Vince Carter - Julius Peppers - Phil Ford - Rasheed Wallace

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Student organizations

The Carolina Student Biotechnology Network http://www.carolinabiotech.org/, Dialectic and Philanthropic Societieshttp://www.unc.edu/di_phi, Black Student Movementhttp://www.unc.edu/student/orgs/bsm/, and the Campus YMCAhttp://campus-y.unc.edu, as well as over 400 other recognized clubs and 48 Greek organizations contribute to a diverse and vibrant student life. A "secret society" known as The Order of Gimghoul exists at the university, which selects or "taps" ten men from the junior class each year and secretly meets at Gimghoul Castle in west Chapel Hill. This castle was constructed from 1924-1926 and is the only bona-fide castle in the state of North Carolina. Many honor societies, such as the Order of the Golden Fleece, the Order of the Grail-Valkyries, and the Order of the Old Well, round out the student body.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Founded in 1977, WXYC 89.3 FM is UNC's award winning student radio station, broadcasting 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Though programming is left up the student DJs, WXYC typically plays little heard music from a wide range of genres and eras. On November 7th, 1994 it became the first radio station in the world to broadcast its signal over the internet. There is also a student-run television station, STV.

Related Topics:
WXYC - STV

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Traditions

Every Halloween is marked by celebration on the UNC-Chapel Hill campus. In recent years, an estimated 70,000 costumed students and onlookers have packed into the mile-long length of Franklin Street abutting campus.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The South's Oldest Rivalry between UNC and its first opponent, the University of Virginia, has cooled somewhat in recent years. U.Va. is still referred to by some as "Mr. Jefferson's university to the north," but the bitterness of this rivalry has been recently replaced by somewhat less historical rivalries with North Carolina State University, a state institution of similar size with a greater focus on technical sciences; Duke University, a private university only 8 miles away.; and Wake Forest University, a private university in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. It is traditional to exchange pranks with North Carolina State, and to refer to Duke University as "Dook." North Carolina's rivalry with Duke is especially intense in men's basketball. For several decades, each team has been a frequent contender for the national championship, and, located just ten miles apart, the students and fans of the two schools are quite focused in their enmity. In 2005, the UNC Men's Basketball team won the National Championship.

Related Topics:
South's Oldest Rivalry - University of Virginia - North Carolina State University - Duke University - Wake Forest University - Winston-Salem, North Carolina

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

An honor code exists to resolve issues with students accused of academic and nonacademic offenses against the university community.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~