1910: First campus residence hall completed,
named for Mayetta Wilkinson Carter, wife of railroad and
business magnate whose donation of 120 acres helped ensure
the establishment of East Tennessee State Normal School
in Johnson City
1911
- East Tennessee State Normal School opens on October
2; 29 students register first day; Normal School dedicated
October 10
- Navy Blue and Old Gold chosen as school colors
1912: “No young woman student in
the normal school will be permitted to dine at a public
hotel with an escort and without a chaperon; and no young
woman student will be permitted to attend any public dance.” - President
Sidney G. Gilbreath
1915: Alumni Association is organized
1918: Women’s basketball team completes
the season undefeated, 6-0
1920: Committee on commencement costumes
favors caps and gowns
1921: First student body party
1922: First gymnasium completed
1923
- Structure now housing B. Carroll Reece Museum completed
to house the library
- First school newspaper – Chalk Line – published
1927: Accreditation granted by the Southern
Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools
1928: The Training School, now University
School (Alexander Hall), constructed
1929
- Radios first allowed in dormitories
- Women first awarded athletic letters
1930: Enrollment at 1,420
1931-1960
1931: Sherrod Library, called “the
fireproof library,” constructed
1935: Athletic teams first referred to
as the "Buccaneers"; previous teams called “The
Teachers”
1936
- Tennessee state legislature debates closing the college
as “an unnecessary luxury”
- The Amphitheatre, a federal Works Progress Administration
(WPA) endeavor, completed on campus
1940: Largest-ever graduating class has
nearly 70 students
1946: Bucs basketball team wins Smoky
Mountain Tournament
1947: Enrollment reaches record as servicemen
attend college on the GI Bill
1949: Graduate School organized
1952: ETSC withdraws from Smoky Mountain
Conference and joins Volunteer State Athletic Association
1954: ETSC adopts rules of compliance
to 1954 U.S. Supreme Court ruling against racial segregation
1956: First bookstore opens on campus
1957: ETSC joins Ohio Valley athletic
conference
1958: Lambda Chi Alpha opens first fraternity
house in Tennessee at 431 W. Maple Street
1959:The university’s Kingsport
Center opens
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1961-1980
1961: ETSC celebrates 50th Anniversary;
congratulatory telegram from President John F. Kennedy;
enrollment tops 5,000
1962: Record 2,000 freshmen enroll
1963: ETSC achieves university status
1964: Enrollment reaches 7,000
1965
- B. Carroll Reece Museum formally dedicated
- Traffic regulations require registration of vehicles
for first time
1966: University centers open in Bristol
and Greeneville
1967: Student body president Jerry S.
Jones announces that freshmen will be welcomed on campus
during “School Spirit Week” rather than being
harassed as in previous years during “Rat Week”
1969: ETSU Buccaneers defeat Louisiana
Tech, led by quarterback Terry Bradshaw, in the Grantland
Rice Bowl
1970: President Richard M. Nixon delivers
speech on the steps of Burgin E. Dossett Hall
1971: Kingsport University Center is
constructed near Allandale Mansion
1972: ETSU placed under control of central
Board of Regents
1974
- Tennessee legislature creates ETSU’s College
of Medicine
- Women athletes join intercollegiate athletic program
- WETS-FM (89.5) begins broadcasting
- Cross-country All-American Neil Cusack of ETSU’s “Irish
Brigade” wins Boston Marathon with third-fastest
time ever
1975
- First Faculty Senate meeting
- Shelbridge acquired as the presidential residence
1976: Construction completed on D.P.
Culp University Center
1977: Memorial Center (the “Mini-Dome”)
opens
1978
- First class of 24 medical students enrolls
- ETSU joins Southern Conference after 21 years in the
OVC
1979: Sherrod Library designated state
document depository
1980
- ETSU implements the semester system
- Parrot mascot “Pepper” arrives in big egg, “hatched” during
homecoming festivities
- First NCAA riflery championships held at ETSU
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1981-1990
1981: Construction of WETS-FM transmitter
tower and building on Holston Mountain begins
1982
- College of Medicine receives full accreditation from
Liaison Committee on Medical Education
- First Doctor of Medicine (M.D.) degrees awarded
1983: Medical school facility opens on
VA grounds at Mountain Home
1984
- ETSU’s Center for Appalachian Studies and Services
opens as a state Center of Excellence
- First “dry” (non-alcoholic) rush held by
fraternities
1985
- ETSU launches yearlong celebration of its 75th Anniversary;
letter of congratulations from President Ronald Reagan
-
Vice President George H.W. Bush visits ETSU to honor
U.S. First District Congressman and Mrs. James H. Quillen
upon creation of the Cecile Cox Quillen Chair of Medicine
in Geriatrics and Gerontology, a state Chair of Excellence
- ETSU named a Homecoming ’86 community by the
State of Tennessee
- Medical Library dedicated at College of Medicine
1986
- ETSU celebrates its diamond anniversary – 75
years of tradition and vision in East Tennessee
- University establishes Presidential Distinguished
Lecture Series
- ETSU historical marker dedicated
- ETSU enjoys a 75th anniversary party on October 2
- ETSU buries a time capsule
- ETSU holds a rededication day
- Golf program reinstated after three-year hiatus
1987
- College of Business achieves full accreditation of
its bachelor’s and master’s degree programs
by the American Assembly of Collegiate Schools of Business
- Initial funding of AFG Industries Chair of Excellence
in Business and Technology, designated for the College
of Business and School of Applied Science and Technology
- ETSU signs formal exchange agreement with North China
University of Technology
- Total university enrollment of 10,198 marks ETSU’s
largest enrollment in 10 years
- Center for Adult Programs and Services dedicated
1988
- Division of Health Sciences is created: College of
Medicine, College of Nursing, and College of Public & Allied
Health
- ETSU unveils new university mountain logo
-
Ground broken to construct new studio-office building
for WETS-FM, ETSU’s National Public Radio affiliate
- ETSU’s third endowed chair of excellence – the
Allen and Ruth Harris Chair of Excellence in Business – established
- The Commission on the Future of East Tennessee State
University conducts initial meeting on campus
- ETSU School of Continuing Studies approved by State
Board of Regents
- Total university enrollment of 11,156 students marks
largest enrollment in ETSU’s 77-year history
- Nearly 6,000 people spend “An Evening with Jimmy
Carter” as part of ETSU’s Presidential Distinguished
Lecture Series
1989
- College of Medicine becomes the James H. Quillen College
of Medicine by unanimous vote of the State Board of Regents,
now officially referred to as Tennessee Board of Regents
- WETS-FM begins broadcasting 24 hours a day
- Historic exchange agreement signed by ETSU and the
University of Edinburgh in Scotland, allowing the two
institutions to study cultural, social, and historic
connections between the Scottish and Appalachian Highlands
- The fourth endowed chair of excellence at ETSU – the
Carroll H. Long Chair of Excellence in Surgical Research – established
in College of Medicine
- “Turning Toward 2011,” a report by the
Commission on the Future of East Tennessee State University,
published. Charting a course into the 21st century and
the university’s centennial was the challenge accepted
by the Commission, a distinguished group of alumni and
community leaders whose report is the blueprint for the
ETSU of a different era
- ETSU enrollment tops 11,000 mark for second consecutive
year, setting another record for the 78-year-old institution – 11,570
students
- Tennessee Board of Regents approves the Paul Dishner
Chair of Excellence in Medicine
- James H. Quillen College of Medicine dedicated in
honor of the man who has represented the 1st District
of Tennessee in the United States Congress since 1962.
As a member of the Tennessee legislature, Representative
Quillen helped draft the bill leading to university status
for ETSU in 1963, and his efforts in Congress brought
the College of Medicine to ETSU through the Teague-Cranston
Act in 1974.
1990
- ETSU achieves its highest spring enrollment ever recorded – 10,831
students
- Officials at ETSU and Tri-Cities State Tech (now Northeast
State Technical Community College) sign a transfer agreement
- Then U.S. Senator Albert Gore Jr. keynotes ETSU’s
International Week observance, addressing the global
environment
- Aethlon: The Journal of Sports Literature begins publishing
at ETSU
- Dr. Ronald C. “Ronnie” Hamdy named holder
of the Cecile Cox Quillen Chair of Medicine in Geriatrics
and Gerontology
- School (now College) of Nursing and City of Johnson
City work together to establish a downtown clinic for
the homeless
- The Southeastern Association for Research in Astronomy
(SARA) -- a consortium of the Florida Institute of Technology,
ETSU, the University of Georgia, and Valdosta (Ga.) State
College -- approved by the National Science Foundation
to recommission a large telescope at Kitt Peak National
Observatory near Tucson, Arizona
- School of Nursing (now a college) opens Mountain City
Extended Hours Health Center
-
The ETSU Bluegrass Band, including future country music
star Kenny Chesney, participates in the Soviet Union’s
International Folk Festival in Moscow
- Enrollment exceeds 11,000 for third consecutive fall
semester and establishes new record – 11,749
- The Mountain City Family Health Center, established
by ETSU’s department of family medicine, dedicated
- Exchange agreement formalized between ETSU and Sultan
Qaboos University, Sultanate of Oman
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1991-1999
1991
ETSU’s Division of Health Sciences receives the
largest grant in university history, $6 million from
the W.K. Kellogg Foundation to improve health care delivery
in rural communities
1992
- Buccaneer basketball team defeats Arizona in first
round of NCAA Tournament in Atlanta
- Cecile Cox Quillen Chair of Medicine facilities dedicated
at VA
- 10th anniversary of the first College of Medicine
graduating class
1993
-
ETSU honored as one of the South’s 10 best regional
universities based on quality and cost by U.S. News & World
Report
- ETSU reaccredited for the maximum 10-year period by
the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association
of Colleges and Schools
1994
- ETSU announces the James H. Quillen Chair of Excellence
in Education
- ETSU and Eastman Chemical Company form partnership
for recycling
- The Wayne G. Basler Chair of Excellence for the Integration
of the Arts, Rhetoric, and Science announced
- ETSU officials plan campus lighting program
1995
- Shelbridge, ETSU’s presidential residence, named
to National and Tennessee Registers of Historic Places
- ETSU golf team ranked number one in two national polls
- ETSU opens new 20,000-square-foot facility in Bristol
1996
- Ground broken for new ETSU library
- University opens ETSU at Greeneville site
- ETSU football team wins its first ever Southern Conference
championship and progresses for the first time to the
NCAA Division IAA Playoffs, defeating Villanova in a
first round game.
1997
- First ETSU PRIDE Week offers region an opportunity
to show pride in and support for the university while
welcoming new students to campus
- The Quillen College of Medicine dedicates a new Osteoporosis
Center
1998
- University opens new astronomy observatory, naming
it later for its mentor, Dr. Harry Powell, Department
of Physics, Astronomy and Geomatics
- U.S.News and World Report’s “1998 Best
Graduate Schools” listing ranks ETSU’s Quillen
College of Medicine sixth in the nation for its programs
in rural medicine, in a tie with the University of North
Carolina at Chapel Hill. ETSU’s College of Nursing
was ranked 26th in this listing among the nation’s
more than 300 graduate schools offering the family nurse
practitioner program.
- Ground is broken at the James H. Quillen Veterans
Affairs Medical Center for a new Basic Sciences Building
for ETSU’s Quillen College of Medicine. This $36
million facility is a joint venture between the U.S.
Department of Veterans Affairs and the State of Tennessee.
- ETSU co-sponsors and ETSU President Dr. Paul E. Stanton
Jr. co-hosts the Tri-Cities Tennessee/Virginia Economic
Summit, the fourth in a series of East Tennessee economic
development conferences.
- A third grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation comes
to ETSU to establish an Expanding Community Partnerships
Program. This project offers interdisciplinary learning
opportunities for faculty and students in the colleges
of Arts and Sciences, Applied Science and Technology,
Business, and Education, along with the Center for Appalachian
Studies and Services and the Division of Student Affairs.
In addition to Hawkins and Johnson counties, the program
is developing new outreach projects in Hancock and Unicoi
counties.
1999
-
ETSU opens and dedicates the new $28 million Charles
C. Sherrod Library
- James H. Quillen College of Medicine celebrates 25th
Anniversary
- ETSU’s new Advisement, Resources and Career
(ARC) Center opens
- For the second consecutive year, the American Academy
of Family Physicians ranks ETSU’s James H. Quillen
College of Medicine seventh in the nation for the number
of students who entered an accredited family medicine
residency program after graduation
- New ETSU Cancer Center opens at Johnson City Medical
Center – a partnership between the James H. Quillen
College of Medicine and the Mountain States Health Alliance
- ETSU is a partner in the campaign that brings “All-America
City” designation to the Tri-Cities Tennessee/Virginia
region
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2000-present
2000
- Local businessman Louis Gump establishes Roan Scholars
Leadership Program for top high school graduates to attend
ETSU
- ETSU publishes Home and Away: A University Brings
Food to the Table – Recipes and Remembrances from
East Tennessee State University to raise funds for WETS-FM
- The university’s Gray Fossil Site (Miocene epoch)
is discovered during road construction in the neighboring
community of Gray, Tennessee
2001
- University opens, dedicates 13,000-square-foot Scott
M. Niswonger Digital Media Center for computer graphics,
product design, and animation
-
“Hear That Whistle Blow” theatrical production goes to
the Kennedy Center
- Kaplan/Newsweek College Catalog 2002 recognizes ETSU
as a top university in the category “Schools that
offer the best value for your tuition dollar”
- Paleontologist comes aboard faculty to oversee the
Gray Fossil Site
- “ETSU Bluegrass Pride” CD released
- Leadership minor established at ETSU
- School of Graduate Studies marks 50th anniversary
2002
- ETSU creates a Research Foundation – the first
for any state school in Tennessee
- ETSU Research Foundation opens ETSU Innovation Laboratory
to house Tennessee Small Business Development Center
and business incubator
- Stanton-Gerber Hall dedicated on the campus of the
James H. Quillen Veterans Affairs Medical Center
- Doctor of Science in Nursing degree approved
- Doctor of Audiology degree approved
- ETSU earns perfect performance funding score
- ROTC celebrates 50th anniversary at ETSU
- The ETSU Arboretum opens and would become certified
by the Tennessee Urban Forestry Council
- The Campaign for ETSU Tomorrow, officially completed
in June 2002, garnered a final total of $106 million
- The Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association
of Colleges and Schools (SACS) reaffirmed ETSU’s
accreditation for a maximum term of 10 years
2003
- ETSU announces planned expansion of University Innovation
Park along Med-Tech Corridor as partnership with Johnson
City
- The ETSU colleges of Business and Applied Science and
Technology join to form the College of Business and Technology
- Funding for ETSU Research and Sponsored Programs activity
exceeded $36 million in fiscal 2003, up nearly 10 percent
from the previous year
- President’s Pride student service organization
celebrates 25 years on campus
- Doctor of Physical Therapy degree approved
-
ETSU Veterans Memorial dedicated
- ETSU Bluegrass Band performs at NATO headquarters
- Men’s basketball team earns trip to the NCAA
Tournament to play Wake Forest
- ETSU discontinues its football program
2004
- James H. Quillen bequeaths $14.6 million for ETSU and
Quillen College of Medicine scholarships – largest
gift in ETSU’s history
- University names College of Education for longtime
supporter and education advocate Claudius G. Clemmer
- Spring enrollment sets records
- ETSU celebrates the 30th anniversary of the establishment
of its College of Medicine
- ETSU’s James H. Quillen College of Medicine
ranked number three in the nation for excellence in rural
medicine education, according to the 2005 “America’s
Best Graduate Schools” issue of U.S .News & World
Report. And, the College of Medicine tied for 26th place
in family medicine with the University of California-Los
Angeles, University of Vermont, University of Virginia,
and Wright State University.
- Red panda and pregnant rhinoceros discoveries at the
Gray Fossil Site
- ETSU again tops all Tennessee public universities
in performance funding
-
Human Patient Simulation Center unveiled at the College
of Medicine
- ETSU and Bristol Motor Speedway announce academic
partnership in Motorsports Operations
- ETSU Buccaneer men’s team returns to the NCAA
Basketball Tournament versus Cincinnati
- ETSU presents former Tennessee Governor Ned McWherter
the inaugural Quest Award for his pivotal role in establishing
the medical school
- ETSU Friends of Music celebrates 25th anniversary
- Library of Congress’ Veterans History Project
dedicated, housed in Archives of Appalachia
- The Frederick B. Warren-William B. Greene Jr. Golf
Center dedicated
2005
University joins Atlantic Sun Conference in athletics
2011
ETSU celebrates its centennial
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