- The Georgia Board of Regents approved the creation of a new institution, tentatively named Cobb County Junior College, on October 9, 1963. The original stationery was
labeled "Marietta College" and the Marietta Journal sometimes used the name "Kennesaw Mountain Junior College." The program for the groundbreaking ceremony of November 18,
1964, was simply headed "Cobb County University of Georgia System College."
- Dr. Horace W. Sturgis took office as president of the college on July 1, 1965, and the institution was officially named Kennesaw Junior College in August of that year.
- The college opened its doors in September of 1966 with a student body of 1,014, but the campus was not ready for occupancy, so temporary quarters were set up that fall at Southern
Technical Institute (where most classes were held), the Marietta Housing Authority at Marietta Place (which provided office space for the administrators) and the Banberry Elementary
School. Dr. Sturgis' office was in Southern Tech's administration building. By the summer of 1966 the administrative staff, along with data processing, was at Banberry . The first
registration occurred at Marietta Place in the Recreation Building. Developmental Studies was also housed at Marietta Place.
- By January 9, 1967, the campus was ready for occupancy, although most of the buildings were still in the final stages of construction. The science, humanities and student services
buildings were the first to open. The administration building opened within a month, but the library was not ready until April. Bookshelves were set up in the physics lab as a
temporary library from January through April. (The library held only 4,200 volumes when it opened.)
- The February 2, 1967, issue of the Sentinel ( the student newspaper) reported that the faculty and staff pitched in to ready the campus — teachers, administrators and secretaries alike
were seen hauling in desks, washing windows, attaching lighting fixtures, etc., that January.
- The initial campus also sported a physical education building, social science building and a maintenance building, which opened in 1967, bringing the total to eight buildings.
- The construction costs of the eight initial buildings totalled $4 million, roughly 87% of which came from Cobb County, the City of Marietta and a federal grant.
- The matriculation fee in 1966-67 was $70 per quarter for full-time students and $6 per credit hour for part-time students. The day the college opened, there were only 37 faculty
members on board. According to the annual President's Reports published during those first few years, one-third of the student body attended night classes, and men outnumbered women by a
ratio of 2:1.
- The Kennesaw Junior College Foundation was created during the 1968-69 academic year, with 23 charter members made up of respected, influential businessmen from Cobb and surrounding
counties.
- Before the college even opened in 1966, community leaders and local residents wanted to know when it would become a four-year institution. Thanks to the strong commitment of
community leaders, local government officials, students, faculty and staff, Kennesaw Junior College was granted senior college status in 1976 and renamed Kennesaw College in
September 1977. The junior year was added in the fall of 1978, and the senior year in 1979. In June of 1980, 70 students received the first baccalaureate degrees to be conferred by
the college. Later that year, the college became fully accredited as a four-year institution by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS).
- Buildings added since 1967 include a new student center in 1973, a new library in 1979, a new plant operations building in 1973 and three new academic buildings (humanities in 1979,
continuing education/performing arts in 1989 and business administration in 1991). The original student center later became the Administration Annex, the original library became the W.
Wyman Pilcher Public Service Building, the former plant operations facility became the Music Building, and the initial Humanities Building became Business Administration and later became
the Education Building.
- In 1981, Dr. Betty L. Siegel became the first female president in the University System of Georgia when she succeeded Dr. Sturgis, the founding president at Kennesaw, and acting president
Dr. Eugene Huck.
- Intercollegiate Athletics was originated in 1982.
- In 1983, the college's organizational structure within academic affairs changed from five divisions to four schools and 17 departments better reflecting the college's four-year status.
Major advances in minority faculty, staff and student involvement at Kennesaw were achieved in the 1980s.
- The college's first graduate programs (in business and education) were initiated in 1985.
- In 1986, Kennesaw became one of the first institutions in our region to be reaccredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools under its new criteria, which emphasized
institutional effectiveness.
- Kennesaw was selected to be spotlighted in Searching for Academic Excellence (1986) as one of 20 colleges and universities in the nation "on the move."
- The Kennesaw College Foundation initiated its first capital campaign in 1987-88 with an initial goal of $4 million in cooperation with the Foundation for Southern Tech.
- In keeping with its continuing development as a four-year college with graduate programs, in 1988 the faculty approved a plan to discontinue all associate degrees except the program in
nursing.
- In 1988, Kennesaw College requested a change in name to Kennesaw State College. The change was approved by the Board of Regents and took effect during the 25th year anniversary of
the college.
- Throughout the 1980s, the centrality of effective teaching grew in importance at Kennesaw State. Graduates of the KSC education programs continued to lead all others in the state
with a 98% passing rate on the state's Teacher Certification Test. All (100%) students in the initial graduating class in the Bachelor of Science in Nursing program passed
their licensing exams.
- The initial Master of Business Administration graduates earned perfect grade point averages (4.0). The Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning and its newsletter, Reaching Through
Teaching, focused faculty attention on the excitement of teaching at Kennesaw State.
- Critical demands for space led to the college's construction of four temporary classroom/faculty office buildings in 1988 and 1989.
- The fall of 1988 saw the opening of the A.L. Burruss Institute of Public Service, which was the college's first major public service/applied research center.
- The college added a performing arts auditorium to its physical resources in 1989.
- The School of Business Administration established the nation's first degree program in professional sales in 1990.
- In the spring of 1990, the library was named in honor of Horace W. Sturgis, the founding president.
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- Telephone registration was successfully implemented during the Spring Quarter 1990.
- In the fall of 1990, a campus-wide policy prohibiting smoking in any building was implemented to promote the healthiest possible environment for the faculty, staff and students.
- In the fall of 1989, KSC was one of only five institutions in the South named by U.S. News and World Report as one of the nation's "TopUp-And-Coming Regional Colleges and Universities."
In 1990, U.S. News and World Report again spotlighted Kennesaw State, along with George Mason University, as among the "best up and coming colleges" in the South. KSC was again singled
out as a "rising star" in 1991
- The Physical Education Annex was completed and opened for use in the fall of 1990.
- From 1986 to 1990, as a result of raised admission standards and more stringent exiting requirements, developmental studies enrollment decreased 28% while the University System's
developmental enrollment grew by 60%.
- The fall 1990 enrollment surpassed 10,000 students for the first time in the history of the college.
- In 1990, the admissions office added a new system called Telephone Admissions Status Inquiry (TASI) that offers students 24-hour, seven-days-a-week access to admissions information,
including the status of their application, admissions deadlines, test-score requirements and other valuable information.
- A campus chapter of Phi Kappa Phi National Honor Society was installed during the 1990-91 year.
- In 1990, the Department of Curriculum and Instruction was divided into the departments of Elementary and Early Childhood Education and Secondary and Middle School Education. A new
Department of Communication was also created.
- After five years of careful study and preparation, a new general education (core) program was fully implemented in 1991.
- The 100,000-square foot A.L. Burruss Building, home for the School of Business Administration, opened in 1991, setting the precedent for other large academic buildings to be planned for
KSC.
- Evidence of solid student outcomes continued to emerge in the 1980s and 1990s. In the last decade, more than 90% of the nursing graduates passed the licensing exam on the
first attempt. KSC teacher education graduates led the state in passing rate on the Teacher Certification Exam. More KSC graduates taking the Certified public accountant exam
passed initially than graduates from any of the universities in the University System.
- An 18-month Master of Business Administration for Experienced Professionals program was initiated with the first 51 graduate students in January, 1993.
- A new Department of Public Administration and Human Services was formed in 1992 and initiated a Master of Public Administration program in the fall of 1993 with 45 graduate students.
- The Master of Accounting degree officially enrolled its initial class of graduate students during the fall of 1993.
- In an effort to creatively expand space for the college, a 50,000-square foot office complex at Chastain Center, located near the campus, was leased. The Division of Continuing Education,
the School of Nursing and the Small Business Development Center moved to that location.
- Additionally, in 1993, 30 acres across Frey Road were acquired by the college and will be used for future campus expansion including a multi-purpose building and additional parking.
- The Lex and LeoDelle Jolley Lodge, made possible through the KSC Foundation and a major gift by the Jolleys, was officially opened in the fall of 1993. It provides more than
6,000 square feet of space on campus to be used for retreats, meetings and social gatherings.
- The Educational Technology Center, established in 1993, houses a $2 million state-of-the-art laboratory with a distance learning classroom for pre-service and in-service teacher training
for instructional improvement.
- The School of Business Administration was named after entrepreneur and philanthropist, Michael J. Coles in 1994 who donated in excess of $1 million to the KSC Foundation.
Additionally, a second endowed chair in the business school was established—the Tony and Jack Dinos Chair of Entrepreneurial Management.
- In July, 1994 the School of Nursing was approved by the Board of Regents, becoming the college's fifth school. The School of Science and Allied Health was renamed to the School of Science
and Mathematics.
- The Michael J. Coles School of Business was granted full accreditation by the American Assembly of Collegiate Schools of Business in 1994. At the same time, KSC completed a highly
successful accreditation visit by the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) meeting all 18 standards and gained accreditation at the advanced and basic
levels.
- Another innovative masters program was approved by the Board of Regents. The Master of Arts in Professional Writing admitted its first class fall quarter 1995.
- The Master of Science in Nursing for primary care nurse practitioners accepted its first class in
the Winter, 1996.
- A $15 million building to house the College of Science and Mathematics opened in January of 1996.
- The rerouting of Frey Road was completed in 1998 enabling the thirty additional acres to be joined with the rest of the campus. On this property, the new Kennesaw Hall, which
will house the Bagwell College of Educa-tion, Student Success, and central adminis-trative offices, is expected to open in the summer of 1999.
- The College of Science and Mathematics' first graduate program opened in spring se-mester 1999 with a Master of Science in Information Systems, enrolling 20 students.
- In 1998-99, KSU added a School of the Arts as a home to the departments of Music, Theater, and Visual Arts. Additionally, the School of Nursing was changed to the Col-lege of Health
and Humanities bringing together related departments of Nursing, Pri-mary Care Nursing, Public Administration, and Health and Physical Education. The College of Humanities and
Scoial Sciences included a new department f Sociology, Ge-ography, and Anthropology.
- Fall 1998 was the first term of the newly implemented semester system.
- Several new building projects were under construction in 1998. The renovation of the Natural Science to the Nursing Building was completed in the summer of 1998. The Legacy
Gazebo, built with funds raised by the KSU Staff Council, opened in 1997 and the accompanying Teahouse opened in 1998.
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