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COPPIN STATE UNIVERSITY

ORIGIN & FUNCTIONS

[photo, New Dining Hall, Coppin State University, Baltimore, Maryland] Set on thirty-eight acres in northwest Baltimore City, Coppin State University is an historically African-American liberal arts college. A four-year institution, Coppin offers academic programs through the Honors College and four schools: Arts and Sciences; Graduate Studies; Nursing; and Professional Studies. The fully accredited residential campus serves Baltimore residents and students from around the world. Coppin offers flexibility in course scheduling with convenient day, evening and weekend classes.

New Dining Hall, Coppin State University, Baltimore, Maryland, 2004. Photo by Thomas Henderson.

The origin of Coppin State University dates to 1900. In that year, the Baltimore City School Board initiated a one-year course for the training of African-American elementary school teachers at Douglass High School on Pennsylvania Avenue. In 1902, the program expanded to a two-year Normal Department within the high school. The Department became a separate institution with its own principal in 1909. This facility for teacher training in 1926 was named the Coppin Normal School to honor Fannie Jackson Coppin (1837-1913), educator, missionary, and outstanding African-American pioneer in teacher education. In 1938, the School was renamed Coppin Teachers College with a four-year curriculum and authority to grant the Bachelor of Science degree. The College became Coppin State Teachers College at its present location in 1952 and was renamed Coppin State College in 1963 when the institution's authority to grant degrees became more comprehensive (Chapter 41, Acts of 1963). In 1988, the College joined the University of Maryland System (Chapter 246, Acts of 1988). The System was renamed University System of Maryland in 1997 (Chapter 114, Acts of 1997). In April 2004, the College was renamed Coppin State University (Chapter 63, Acts of 2004).

The University is organized into the Honors College and six schools: Arts and Sciences; Education; Graduate Studies; Management Science and Economics; Nursing; and Professional Studies.

HONORS COLLEGE

Health & Human Services Building, Coppin State University

In the fall of 1990, the Honors Division was established at Coppin State College. In 2004, under Coppin State University, the Division became the Honors College. It administers the Honors Program, and the Ronald E. McNair Scholars Program.

HONORS PROGRAM
The Honors Program enrolled its first students in 1981. It prepares academically outstanding students for employment or further study in graduate and professional schools. Students earn an honors citation upon graduation by completing required honors courses and maintaining a high grade-point average.

McNAIR SCHOLARS PROGRAM
The McNair Scholars Program prepares junior undergraduates for doctoral study. With funds granted from the U.S. Department of Education, the Program began in 1989. The Program is named for Ronald E. McNair, Ph.D. (1950-1986), NASA Astronaut, who died when the space shuttle Challenger exploded after launch from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

SCHOOL OF ARTS & SCIENCES

Grace Jacobs Building, Coppin State University

Originally, the School of Arts and Sciences began as the Arts and Sciences Division and reformed under its present name in 2004.

The School of Arts and Sciences offers most of the core courses included in the University's general education requirements and provides academic programs leading to a Bachelor of Arts degree or Bachelor of Science degree.

The School includes five departments: History, Geography and Global Studies; Humanities; Mathematics and Computer Science; Natural Sciences; and Visual and Performing Arts.

SCHOOL OF EDUCATION

Grace Jacobs Building, Coppin State University

The School of Education formed in 1900 with the origins of the University as a teacher-training program at Douglass High School in Baltimore. It later reformed as a division in 2004, and became the Education Unit, relocated within the School of Professional Studies. In 2006, the Unit reorganized as the School of Education.

Four main departments constitute the School of Education: Adult and General Education; Curriculum and Instruction; Health and Human Performance; and Special Education.

SCHOOL OF GRADUATE STUDIES

Grace Jacobs Building, Coppin State University

In 1968, the School of Graduate Studies started when a graduate program in special education was initiated. As programs were added, it became a division of the University and in 2004, was renamed the School of Graduate Studies.

The School of Graduate Studies coordinates programs leading to Masters' degrees in Adult and Continuing Education; Alcohol and Substance Abuse Counseling; Correctional Education; Criminal Justice; Curriculum and Instruction; Human Services Administration; Nursing; Reading; Rehabilitation Counseling; Special Education; and Teaching.

SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT SCIENCE & ECONOMICS

Grace Jacobs Building, Coppin State University

The School of Management Science and Economics originated as the Department of Management Science and Economics within the School of Arts and Sciences. In September 2007, it reformed under its present name.

Three departments function within the School of Management Science and Economics: Accounting, Managerial Economics and Finance; Management and Marketing; and Management Science and Management Information Systems. Upon graduation, students receive either a Bachelor of Science degree in management science or a Bachelor of Science degree in entertainment management.

FULD SCHOOL OF NURSING

Health & Human Services Building, Coppin State University

In September 1974, the Helene Fuld School of Nursing began in the Nursing Division at Coppin State University. The School was named in honor of Helene S. Fuld whose son, Dr. Felix Fuld, established the Helene Fuld Health Trust in her memory. The Trust is dedicated to improving the health, education, and welfare of nursing students.

The Fuld School of Nursing offers undergraduate and graduate programs in nursing. The School also manages the Community Health Clinic in Baltimore.

COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER
Health & Human Services Building, Suite 131, West North Ave., Baltimore, MD

The Community Health Center opened in July 1995 as the Coppin State Nursing Center. In 2005, it became the Community Health Clinic, and in 2007, received its present name.

The Center is a primary-care facility which serves as a clinical rotation for nurse practitioner and undergraduate nursing students. To low-income residents of the neighborhood adjacent to the University, the Clinic provides health services at reduced cost. The Clinic also provides health care to the students, faculty, and staff of the School of Nursing.

SCHOOL OF PROFESSIONAL STUDIES

Health & Human Services Building, Coppin State University

The School of Professional Studies was formed in 2004. It offers programs in Applied Psychology and Rehabilitation Counseling; Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement; Interdisciplinary Studies; Social Sciences; and Social Work. Bachelor of Science, Master of Arts, Master of Education, and Master of Science degrees are awarded by the School.

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