University of South Alabama

History

Founding

USA was founded to provide public higher education to the Gulf Coast region. Classes began in June 1964 with 276 students, and the first graduation was in 1967. Frederick Palmer Whiddon served as founding president.

21st-century developments

USA now has 11 colleges and schools and continues to expand in research and healthcare. Football and other athletic programs have grown, including the opening of Hancock Whitney Stadium in 2022.

Academics

The university offers a range of undergraduate and graduate degrees in ten colleges and schools. Several programs offer masters level degrees in addition to undergraduate degrees. Doctoral level degrees are offered in several areas, including a Doctor of Pharmacy degree offered in collaboration with Auburn University.

USA also offers classes in nearby Baldwin County at its Fairhope campus, and in 2015 opened Gulf Coast Campus. Students at South Alabama can choose from more than 50 bachelor's degree and certificate programs and more than 40 master's degree programs. As of 2011, USA ranks as the 22nd best public university in the southern United States, and 52nd overall in the South. It has an acceptance rate of 86.5%.

The student-faculty ratio at USA is 18:1. USA students are 57% female and 43% male. As of 2018, the university had a 44% six-year graduation rate and a 22% four-year graduation rate for bachelor's degree programs.

Colleges

The University of South Alabama has ten colleges and schools:

• Pat Capps Covey College of Allied Health Professions
• College of Arts and Sciences
• Mitchell College of Business
• College of Education and Professional Studies
• College of Engineering
• Frederick P. Whiddon College of Medicine
• College of Nursing
• School of Computing
• Honors College
• Graduate School

Administration

The university is governed by a board of trustees appointed by and including the governor of Alabama. The board appoints a president of the university. Frederick Palmer Whiddon served as president from 1963 until 1998 and was succeeded by V. Gordon Moulton who served until 2013. John W. Smith, the current executive vice president, served as an interim president until the arrival of Tony G. Waldrop in 2014 and after his retirement in 2021. Jo Bonner was appointed as university president in 2021.

Athletics

Main article: South Alabama Jaguars

The South Alabama Jaguars compete in the Sun Belt Conference with 17 varsity sports. Football began in 2009 and baseball, basketball, and other programs have national recognition.

Football

The football games are played on Abraham A. Mitchell Field on the Hancock Whitney Stadium since 2020.

Basketball

South Alabama men's and women's basketball play in the 10,000 seat Mitchell Center that opened in 1999.

Baseball and softball

South Alabama's home park is Eddie Stanky Field, a 3,775-seat stadium with a natural grass playing surface. The stadium was opened in 1980, renovated in 2004, and received new turf in 2024.

Softball is played at Jaguar Field since 2007. In 2015, the capacity was increased to 1,050.

Legal and other matters

Police shooting

On October 12, 2012, 18-year-old freshman Gil Collar was shot and killed by a campus police officer, after appearing naked outside the police station. Collar was 5 foot 7 and weighed 135 pounds. The student's family filed suit against the university, the officer involved, and the police chief, Herbert Earl "Zeke" Aull. In February 2013, a Mobile County judge ruled that the university was not liable for the student's death. in 2014 the case moved to federal court. In 2015, the officer was cleared in a civil suit. The shooting inspired Brian Burghart, then editor of the News & Review in Reno, to found Fatal Encounters, a database that tracks killings by law enforcement officers.

2014 federal discrimination lawsuit

In 2014, a group of students belonging to Students for Life USA, a pro-life student organization, filed a complaint about alleged discrimination in federal court against University of South Alabama officials. The university later settled the lawsuit, paying the students an undisclosed amount of money. According to a copy of the settlement document provided by the Alliance Defending Freedom, the university "denied all material allegations and Plaintiff's claims of constitutional infirmities". USA agreed to change a portion of its policy on use of its space and facilities, and to pay an unspecified sum settling "all of plaintiff's remaining claims, including liability, damages, and attorney's fees".

Abuse lawsuits

In September 2021, a lawsuit was filed against a former University of South Alabama volleyball coach due to alleged sexual and mental abuse in 2019 and 2020. The lawsuit included eight former players as plaintiffs. The amendment also alleged that university administrators had knowledge of the abuse and added the university's athletic directors and coaches as defendants. A second lawsuit was filed in 2022 by a former player uninvolved in the first lawsuit. WKRG-TV reported that the claims of abuse made by the second lawsuit was similar to the first and that both allegations included inappropriate touching and overtraining. The volleyball coach was hired by the University of South Alabama in December 2018 and resigned in February 2021.

Notable alumni

• Luis Gonzalez, baseball player
• David Freese, baseball player
• Michael Kearney, child prodigy
• Heath Slocum, golfer
• Juan Pierre, baseball player
• Jon Lieber, MLB pitcher

Publications

• USA Vanguard
• College Student Journal (founded 1966).

Notes

References

References

1. "Brief History".
2. (February 12, 2025). "U.S. and Canadian 2024 NCSE Participating Institutions Listed by Fiscal Year 2024 Endowment Market Value, Change in Market Value from FY23 to FY24, and FY24 Endowment Market Values Per Full-time Equivalent Student". National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO).
3. "Summary Enrollment Profile".
4. "IPEDS-University of South Alabama".
5. "Orientation".
6. "University of South Alabama, 2019 Spring Commencement".
7. "Carnegie Classifications Institution Lookup". Center for Postsecondary Education.
8. "University of South Alabama Engagement".
9. "History of the University of South Alabama".
10. (September 12, 2020). "USA opens Hancock Whitney Stadium". WKRG News.
11. "USA Baldwin County Campus". University of South Alabama.
12. "USA Opens Gulf Coast Campus in Gulf Shores". Southalabama.edu.
13. [http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/south-alabama-1057 South Alabama. University of South Alabama. Best College. US News]. Colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com. Retrieved on 2012-05-25.
14. "About USA Page".
15. "University of South Alabama - 4 Year Graduation Rates, Gender, Race - Scholarships.com".
16. "University of South Alabama names new president".
17. "South Alabama Athletics".
18. (15 March 2019). "South Alabama to name new football field after longtime patron Abraham Mitchell". al.
19. (30 June 2010). "USA Mitchell Center".
20. (14 October 2024). "South Alabama to install artificial turf at Stanky Field for 2025 baseball season".
21. Gray, Melissa. (7 October 2012). "Campus officer kills naked freshman at University of South Alabama". [[CNN]].
22. Fambro, Cassie. (October 6, 2014). "Two years later, the death of Gil Collar still haunts the University of South Alabama in Mobile". AL.com.
23. Kirby, Brendan. (26 July 2014). "University of South Alabama student fatally shot by officer was seeking help, lawsuit says".
24. (8 February 2013). "Ala. Judge Dismisses Shooting Suit Against College".
25. (July 28, 2014). "Gil Collar death suit will become a federal case". [[WSFA]].
26. Fambro, Cassie. (September 15, 2015). "Campus cop who shot and killed Gil Collar cleared in civil case". AL.com.
27. (June 5, 2020). "Interview: For 7 Years, This Journalist Has Tried To Track Every Police Killing In The U.S.". [[CapRadio]].
28. Lozano, Alicia Victoria. (July 11, 2020). "Fatal Encounters: One man is tracking every officer-involved killing in the U.S.". [[NBC News]].
29. "In the United States District Court for the Southern District of Alabama Southern Division". [[Alliance Defending Freedom]].
30. Perez, Andrew. (9 April 2014). "Pro-life students file suit against University of South Alabama". Fox 10 TV.
31. (11 May 2016). "USA, pro-life student group settle free speech lawsuit". Al.com.
32. Benbow, Dana Hunsinger. "Purdue-Fort Wayne volleyball coach put on leave after allegations of abusing former players".
33. (2022-06-07). "Second sexual harassment lawsuit filed against former University of South Alabama women's volleyball coach".
34. (2021-12-20). "New claims contend South Alabama officials knew of alleged abuse of athletes".
35. (2021-09-04). "Lawsuit claims former USA women's volleyball coach abused former players".
36. "College Scorecard: University of South Alabama". [[United States Department of Education]].
37. "The Vanguard | South Alabama Student Newspaper". thevanguardusa.com.
38. "A Journal Pertaining to College Students: ''College Student Journal''". Project Innovation, University of South Alabama.