University of Texas at El Paso facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
The University of Texas at El Paso

Former names	Texas State School of Mines and Metallurgy (1913–1918) University of Texas Department of Mines and Metallurgy (1918–1921) Texas College of Mines and Metallurgy (1921–1948) Texas Western College (1948–1966)
Motto	Scientia et Humanitas (Latin)
Motto in English	"Knowledge and Refinement"
Type	Public research university
Established	April 16, 1913; 112 years ago (1913-04-16)
Parent institution	University of Texas System
Accreditation	SACS
Academic affiliations	CONAHEC Space-grant
Endowment	$241.7 million (Fall 2017)
President	Heather Wilson
Academic staff	1,303 (Fall 2016)
Administrative staff	1,519
Students	25,151
Undergraduates	21,341
Postgraduates	3,810
Location	El Paso , Texas , United States
Campus	Large City, 366 acres (1.48 km2)
Newspaper	The Prospector
Colors	Dark blue, orange, and silver accent
Nickname	Miners
Sporting affiliations	NCAA Division I FBS – C-USA
Mascot	Paydirt Pete

The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) is a large public university in El Paso, Texas. It is part of the University of Texas System. UTEP is special because most of its students (about 80%) are Mexican American. This makes it the second-largest university in the U.S. with so many Mexican American students.

UTEP is known as an "R1: Doctoral University." This means it does a lot of important research. The university is home to the Sun Bowl stadium. This stadium hosts a big college football game called the Sun Bowl every winter.

One cool thing about UTEP is its unique buildings. They are built in a style called Dzong architecture. This style is usually found only in places like Bhutan or Tibet. The campus sits on hills overlooking the Rio Grande river. You can even see Ciudad Juárez in Mexico from there!

A Look Back: UTEP's History

Starting Small: The Early Days

College of Mines seal

UTEP started on April 16, 1913. The Texas governor signed a law to create a new school. This made UTEP the second-oldest school in the University of Texas system. It opened on September 28, 1914, with only 27 students. The first buildings were next to Fort Bliss.

The school was first called the State School of Mines and Metallurgy. There's even an old practice mine shaft on campus! By 1916, 39 students were enrolled, including the first two female students, Ruth Brown and Grace Odell.

A New Style: Bhutanese Architecture

On October 29, 1916, a big fire destroyed the main school building. This meant the school had to move. In 1917, new buildings were built on its current spot. This land was given by people in El Paso.

Kathleen Worrell, whose husband was the dean, saw pictures of buildings in the country of Bhutan. These buildings were in the dzong style. She noticed that the mountains around El Paso looked like the mountains in Bhutan. She suggested building the new school in this unique style. Everyone loved the idea!

Dzong architecture has special features. These include sloping sides, roofs that hang out far, and colorful decorations. This style has been used for all new buildings, even the Sun Bowl stadium.

Name Changes and Growth

The school's name changed a few times. In 1919, it became the Department of Mines and Metallurgy. Then, in 1920, it was called the College of Mines and Metallurgy of the University of Texas (TCM). In 1949, it changed again to Texas Western College of The University of Texas (TWC).

Many important things happened at UTEP. In 1961, the first Peace Corps class in the U.S. was trained there. The Sun Bowl Stadium was built in 1963. And in 1966, the school's basketball team won the national championship!

Becoming UTEP: The Modern Era

In 1967, the school's name officially changed to The University of Texas at El Paso. People usually call it "UTEP." The students have been known as the "Miners" since 1914. In 1923, they painted a big "M" for Miners on the Franklin Mountains. This "M" was later moved near the Sun Bowl Stadium.

Buildings modeled after Bhutanese monasteries, or dzongs. To the left is the College of Business Administration, to the right the College of Engineering

UTEP has done great things in both academics and sports. In 1969, UTEP won its first of seven national championships in cross country. In 1974, UTEP started its first doctoral degree program in Geological Sciences. That same year, UTEP won its first of seven national championships in indoor track and field. UTEP is one of only a few universities to win at least 21 national championships in different sports.

The campus grew in 1976 with new buildings. The College of Nursing was also started then. In 1977, the Don Haskins Center was built. It can hold 12,000 people for sports and concerts. The Sun Bowl Stadium was made bigger in 1982. The main library opened in 1984.

In 1988, Diana Natalicio became UTEP's first woman president. She was the longest-serving president of a major public research university when she retired in 2019. UTEP started more doctoral programs in the years that followed.

"Mining Minds" by Michael Clapper, a 25-foot tall pickaxe sculpture

In 1999, UTEP started an online MBA program. In 2000, it was recognized for its high research activity. New buildings for sports, communication, and science opened in the early 2000s. UTEP celebrated its 90th birthday in 2004.

In August 2019, Heather Wilson became UTEP's 11th president. She used to be the Secretary of the U.S. Air Force. UTEP always works to meet high standards for its programs and staff.

Learning and Research at UTEP

A portion of the campus

UTEP has nine colleges and schools. They offer many different degrees. You can get undergraduate, master's, and doctoral degrees. UTEP offers 74 bachelor's degrees, 76 master's degrees, and 22 doctoral degrees. The school year is divided into spring, summer, and fall semesters. There's also a short "wintermester" in January.

UTEP has the only bilingual (two-language) M.F.A. creative writing program in the USA. The university spends a lot of money on research. In 2018, it spent $91 million on research. UTEP is known as an "R1: Research University." This means it does a lot of important research.

Campus Design: A Touch of Bhutan

Academic Services Building

University of Texas at El Paso

College of Engineering complex area

In 1916, a fire destroyed the first campus buildings. The school was rebuilt in 1917. Kathleen Worrell, the wife of the first dean, saw pictures of buildings in Bhutan. She noticed that the mountains around El Paso looked like the mountains in Bhutan. She suggested building the new school in the style of Bhutanese dzongs. These are like monastic fortresses with massive sloping walls and overhanging roofs. Everyone loved this idea!

A famous architect named Henry Trost designed the first four buildings. All buildings since then have followed this unique style. Even though the early buildings only looked like dzongs from the outside, newer buildings also have inside parts that match the dzong style.

The country of Bhutan is proud that UTEP uses their building style. A prince from Bhutan, Jigyel Ugyen Wangchuk, has even visited the campus. In 2009, Bhutan gave UTEP a special hand-carved wooden temple.

Because of its Himalayan style, UTEP's campus was a good place for the Chenrezig Himalayan Cultural Center of El Paso. This is a Tibetan Buddhist center.

School Colors and Logo

UTEP's first colors were orange and white. This was because it started as part of the University of Texas at Austin. In the early 1980s, Columbia blue was added. So now, the official colors are orange, white, and blue. When the new UTEP sports logo came out in 1999, a darker blue and silver were added.

UTEP Sports: The Miners!

Larry K. Durham Sports Center

UTEP was the first college in the American South to have mixed-race sports teams. This happened in the 1950s. When Don Haskins became the basketball coach in 1961, he looked for many talented black players. In 1966, Haskins' team, the Miners, won the NCAA basketball championship. They beat an all-white team from Kentucky.

At that time, some people thought black players couldn't play at a high level. But Haskins started his usual players in the championship game. They were the first all-black team to start in a game at that level. This amazing story was told in Haskins' book Glory Road (2005) and in the 2006 movie Glory Road.

Haskins coached his whole career at UTEP. He won 719 games and lost 353. He was put into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1997. The special events center was renamed the Don Haskins Center after him. He retired in 1999 and passed away in 2008. The entire 1966 UTEP team was also put into the Hall of Fame in 2007.

In 1968, some UTEP track and field athletes protested. They were upset about perceived racism at another university. Their scholarships were taken away. One of these athletes was Bob Beamon, who later won a gold medal and set a world record in the long jump. The coach later said he regretted his actions.

UTEP's sports teams have won 21 national championships from the NCAA Division I. UTEP is tied for 10th place among schools for men's sports championships.

• Men's basketball: 1 (1966)
• Men's cross country: 7
• Men's indoor track & field: 7
• Men's outdoor track & field: 6

UTEP has the two biggest sports places in El Paso:

• Sun Bowl Stadium: It holds 51,500 people. It opened in 1963. It's home to the UTEP football team and the yearly Sun Bowl game.
• Don Haskins Center: It holds 12,000 people. It was built in 1976. It's mainly used for men's and women's basketball games. It's also called "The Bear's Den" and "The Don." Big concerts happen here too.
• University Field (UTEP): It holds 500 people. Built in 1991, it hosts the women's soccer team.
• Kidd Field: It holds 15,000 people. This is where the UTEP Track and Field teams compete.

In 2005, UTEP joined Conference USA.

The Pickaxe Hand Symbol

The Miner pickaxe hand symbol

This hand symbol looks like a pickaxe, a tool miners use. It's also similar to the shaka sign and the letter Y in American sign language. UTEP fans make this sign when UTEP players shoot free throws in basketball games or when the football team kicks off. It started with the UTEP cheerleading squad in the early 1980s.

The Miner Nickname

The name "Miners" was first seen in the school newspaper, The Prospector, in February 1919. But even earlier, in the bill that started the school in 1913, the writer accidentally wrote "Miners" instead of "Mines." So, the school was called the "State School of Miners and Metallurgy." The nickname "Miners" likely came from the school's original focus on mining. Some early names considered were "Ore Diggers" and "Muckers."

A man named John W. (Cap) Kidd was a big supporter of sports. In 1915, when the school didn't have much money, Kidd supposedly gave $800 to buy equipment for the football team. He also helped coach. The track field on campus, Kidd Field, is named after him.

School Songs

"The Eyes of Texas" was chosen by students in 1920. It was already the school song for the University of Texas at Austin.

UTEP's first fight song, "Miners Fight," was also borrowed from Austin. Later, in the 1980s, UTEP's Music Department wrote new words to the tune of Marty Robbins' famous song "El Paso". This gave UTEP its own unique fight song!

Rivalries

UTEP has a big rivalry with New Mexico State University. This rivalry is called "The Battle of I-10" because the two schools are only about 40 miles apart.

Notable People from UTEP

Aerial view of the entire UTEP campus, situated between the US–Mexico border at lower left and the west side and Franklin Mountains of El Paso at the upper right. The Organ Mountains near Las Cruces, New Mexico, are visible in the distance.

Many talented people have studied or taught at UTEP.

Famous Alumni

• F. Murray Abraham – a well-known actor
• Tobi Amusan – a Nigerian track and field athlete
• Nate Archibald – a professional basketball player
• Bob Beamon – a track and field athlete and Olympian, famous for his long jump record
• Sam Donaldson – a famous American reporter and news anchor
• Tim Hardaway – a professional basketball player
• Aaron Jones – a professional football player
• Emmanuel Kipkurui Korir – a Kenyan middle-distance runner and Olympic athlete

Images for kids

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  College of Engineering Department area

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  Physical Science Building

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  Library

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  Centennial Plaza

See also

In Spanish: Universidad de Texas en El Paso para niños

• List of universities in Texas by enrollment
• History of Mexican Americans in Texas