Northern Illinois University facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Northern Illinois University

Former name	Northern Illinois State School (1895–1921) Northern Illinois State Teachers College (1921–1955) Northern Illinois State College (1955–1957)
Type	Public research university
Established	May 22, 1895; 130 years ago (1895-05-22)
Accreditation	HLC
Academic affiliation	URA Space-grant
Endowment	$99.8 million (2023)
President	Lisa Freeman
Provost	Laurie Elish-Piper
Students	15,649 (Fall 2022)
Undergraduates	11,429 (Fall 2022)
Postgraduates	4,220 (Fall 2022)
Location	DeKalb , Illinois , United States
Campus	University town; 945.13 acres (382.5 ha)
Colors	Cardinal and Black
Nickname	Huskies
Sporting affiliations	NCAA Division I — MAC

Northern Illinois University (NIU) is a public research university located in DeKalb, Illinois. It was started in 1895 by Illinois Governor John P. Altgeld. The main goal was to train college-educated teachers for the state.

Besides its main campus in DeKalb, NIU also has smaller centers. These are in Chicago, Naperville, Rockford, and Oregon, Illinois. The university has seven colleges that offer different degrees. About 16,000 students attend NIU. Its sports teams are called the Huskies. They compete in NCAA Division I as part of the Mid-American Conference (MAC).

History of NIU

Altgeld Hall and Still Hall along College Avenue. Altgeld Hall was the first building built at NIU.

Northern Illinois University began as a "normal school" in 1895. Normal schools were places that trained teachers. It was first called the Northern Illinois State Normal School.

Over the years, the school's name changed several times as it grew.

• In 1921, it became Northern Illinois State Teachers College. It started offering a four-year Bachelor of Education degree.
• In 1951, it began offering a Master of Science degree in education. This led to the creation of its Graduate School.
• In 1955, the name changed to Northern Illinois State College. At this point, it started offering more than just teacher training. Students could now earn Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees.
• Finally, on July 1, 1957, the school was renamed Northern Illinois University. This new name showed that it had grown into a full university with many different study areas.

NIU Presidents

Thirteen different people have served as president of Northern Illinois University.

What You Can Study at NIU

Swen Parson Hall, home of the NIU College of Law.

NIU has seven colleges where students can earn degrees. They offer more than 60 different majors for undergraduate students. There are also 70 minors and nine special programs to prepare for professional careers. For students who want to continue their education, there are 79 graduate programs. This includes a College of Law. NIU also offers 24 areas of study for doctoral degrees (the highest degree).

Many of NIU's programs are recognized nationally for their high quality. This includes programs in business, engineering, nursing, arts, and all teacher training programs.

NIU Rankings

In 2021, NIU was ranked among the top colleges in the U.S. for helping students improve their social standing. U.S. News & World Report ranked NIU as a National University. It was also ranked highly for its Public Affairs programs. Within that field, NIU was ranked 4th for Local Government Management and 11th for Public Finance & Budgeting. Forbes magazine also included NIU on its list of top universities in 2021.

Science and Research at NIU

Davis Hall, an old science building at NIU.

The NIU College of Engineering building.

NIU is known for its high level of research activity. It is part of the Universities Research Association. This group helps manage several federal physics laboratories, like Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory. NIU is also growing its programs in accelerator technology.

Since 1963, NIU has had a Center for Southeast Asian Studies (CSEAS). This center is one of only seven in the U.S. that focuses on Southeast Asian languages and studies. The center helps over 1,500 students each year learn about this region.

NIU Campus Life

The main campus of NIU covers 756 acres in DeKalb. It has 64 main buildings. There are also other campus locations. These include the Lorado Taft Field Campus, the Rockford Campus, and the Naperville Campus.

One of the most famous buildings is the castle-like Altgeld Hall. It was one of five castle-themed buildings suggested by Governor John Peter Altgeld. The auditorium inside Altgeld Hall has been restored. It can hold up to 500 people. The NIU Art Museum is also located in Altgeld Hall.

Altgeld Hall, the first building on campus.

The East Lagoon near Altgeld Hall is a nice place for recreation on campus. The Holmes Student Center has a hotel with 78 rooms.

The Martin Luther King Commons at night.

Where Students Live

NIU has several residence halls (dormitories) for students living on campus. Some halls offer special "living-learning" floors. These floors are for students who share similar interests or majors. Examples include the Health Professions House, Business Careers House, and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics) House. Other options include floors just for men or women, or quiet and alcohol-free floors.

Northern View Community, which opened in 2008, offers apartments. These are for older undergraduate students, graduate students, law students, or students with families.

The Fanny Ruth Patterson Complex opened in 2012. It has 1,000 beds and allows students to live in groups of 12. Many residence halls have been updated and renovated recently.

Residence halls currently in use:

• Gilbert Hall
• Grant Towers
• Neptune Hall
• Fanny Ruth Patterson Complex
• Northern View
• Stevenson Tower

Sports Facilities

On the west side of campus is Brigham Field at Huskie Stadium. This is where the NIU football team plays. It can seat over 23,000 fans. The stadium is surrounded by grassy areas. These are used for recreation and for "tailgating" before football games. There are also fields for baseball, softball, and soccer, plus tennis courts.

Near the stadium are two athletic buildings. The Jeffrey and Kimberly Yordon Academic and Athletic Performance Center opened in 2007. The Kenneth and Ellen Chessick Indoor Practice Center is a large indoor facility. It is used by the football, baseball, and softball teams for practice.

The Convocation Center is a large arena that opened in 2002. It has 10,000 seats. It hosts NIU's basketball, gymnastics, wrestling, and volleyball games. It also holds concerts, job fairs, and other events.

The Chick Evans Field House has activity rooms, a jogging track, and courts for basketball, volleyball, and indoor soccer. It also has a cardio and strength-training room. This field house still hosts smaller sports events and is home to the campus ROTC program.

There are also two swimming pools located in Anderson and Gabel Halls.

Student Life and Activities

Student Facilities

NIU has a Campus Child Care Center for children aged two months to five years. It also has a summer program for kids aged 6 to 8. This center helps students, faculty, and staff with childcare.

The Peters Campus Life Building is a hub for student services. It houses Career Services, the Counseling and Student Development Center, and the student newspaper, Northern Star. It also has offices for student involvement and leadership.

Student Groups

NIU has over 400 student organizations. These include sports clubs like lacrosse, volleyball, and ice hockey. There are groups for many interests, such as academics, community service, arts, and different cultures. The university also has many fraternities and sororities.

Each year, some of the Greek organizations hold "IFC Tugs." This is a competition similar to tug-of-war. NIU's unique version of the sport was even featured in a documentary film called Tugs Untied.

Arts and Culture

The NIU Anthropology Museum in Cole Hall.

The "Olive Goyle" sculpture near McMurry Hall.

Jack Arends Hall, home of the NIU College of Visual and Performing Arts.

Students, teachers, and guest artists at NIU's College of Visual and Performing Arts put on many events each year. These include over 200 art shows, music concerts, and theater and dance performances. NIU students can attend ticketed events for free.

The NIU Art Museum is in Altgeld Hall. It shows different art exhibitions throughout the year. Jack Arends Hall, where visual arts are taught, has three other gallery spaces.

The Pick Museum at NIU is in Cole Hall. It displays items from the university's collection of cultural artifacts. It focuses on Native American collections and items from Southeast Asia. NIU also has a large collection of art from Burma.

NIU has a School of Art and Design, a School of Music, and a School of Theatre and Dance. Theater performances are held in the Stevens Building. This building has four different theater spaces.

The Department of Communication hosts the annual Reality Bytes Film Festival. This festival started in 2002. It allows NIU students to show their films and compete. Films from all over the country and even other parts of the world have been shown at this festival.

NIU Sports

Northern Illinois Huskies football players in 2021.

The NIU Huskies compete in NCAA Division I sports. They are part of the Mid-American Conference.

NIU's sports teams, especially football, became much more well-known in the late 1990s and early 2000s. In 2003, the Huskies football team was ranked as high as 10th in the national polls. This was after big wins against strong teams like Maryland and Alabama. In 2010, the NIU football team had a perfect record in their conference (8-0). In 2012, after winning another MAC Football Championship, NIU football made history. They were the first team from the Mid-American Conference to play in a major "BCS Bowl" game, the Orange Bowl.

Famous NIU Alumni

See also

• Northern Illinois University Press