History

On March 21, 1906 the Kentucky General Assembly approved legislation to establish two teacher training institutions, or “normal schools,” in the state. A locating commission chose Bowling Green to be the site of one, and the Western Kentucky State Normal School was created.

The new state-supported school took over the building and student body of the privately owned Southern Normal School. The owner of the Southern Normal School, Henry Hardin Cherry, had been actively involved in the campaign to establish teacher training schools and became Western’s first president. Classes began on January 22, 1907.

On February 4, 1911 the school moved to its present site on “the Hill,” approximately 125 feet above downtown Bowling Green and formerly the site of The Pleasant J. Potter College. Over the next decade, the curriculum focused on teacher training and certification. Students received practical experience at the Training School, and a model one-room Rural School was opened on campus in 1924. In 1922 the state renamed the institution Western Kentucky State Normal School and Teachers College and authorized it to grant four-year degrees. The first such degrees were awarded in 1924.

WKU’s campus expanded in 1927, when it merged with Ogden College, a private young men’s school located on the east side of the Hill. WKU’s name was shortened to Western Kentucky State Teachers College in 1930, and the following year the Master of Arts degree was first offered. President Cherry died in 1937 and was succeeded by Dr. Paul Garrett.

As WKU’s mission broadened, its name was shortened in 1948 to Western Kentucky State College. Dr. Garrett died in 1955, and Kelly Thompson became WKU’s third president.

Under Thompson, both WKU’s curriculum and its campus underwent major reorganization and expansion. In June 1963, WKU merged with the Bowling Green College of Commerce, formerly the Bowling Green Business University. Along with the Graduate School, the Bowling Green College of Commerce became a separate college within WKU’s structure. In 1965, the Board of Regents approved the formation of three more colleges: the Potter College of Liberal Arts, the College of Education, and the Ogden College of Science and Technology. On June 16, 1966, Western Kentucky State College became Western Kentucky University.

The University’s seven colleges now are:

Since 1969 Dero G. Downing, John D. Minton, Donald W. Zacharias, Kern Alexander and Thomas C. Meredith have served as WKU’s presidents. WKU’s current president, Gary A. Ransdell, was elected on September 12, 1997. A century of growth has made WKU a respected center of learning where qualified students may receive general and specialized higher education at the undergraduate and graduate levels.