Harrington School of Communication and Media

University of Rhode Island

Former names	Rhode Island College of Agriculture and the Mechanic Arts (1892–1909) Rhode Island State College (1909–1951)
Motto	Think Big. We Do.
Type	Flagship Public Land Grant Sea Grant
Established	May 19, 1892 (1892-05-19)
Endowment	$124.6 million (2016)
President	David M. Dooley
Provost	Donald H. DeHayes
Administrative staff	675 full time
Students	18,072 (Fall 2017)
Undergraduates	15,092 (Fall 2017)
Postgraduates	3,033 (Fall 2017)
Location	Kingston, Rhode Island, U.S.
Campus	Rural, 1,254 acres (5.07 km2)
Colors	Blue and Metallic Gold
Nickname	Rams
Sporting affiliations	NCAA Division I Atlantic 10 Conference Colonial Athletic Association (football)
Mascot	Rhody the Ram
Website	www.uri.edu

The University of Rhode Island, commonly referred to as URI, is the principal public research as well as the land grant and sea grant university for the state of Rhode Island. Its main campus is located in the village of Kingston in southern Rhode Island. Additionally, smaller campuses include the Feinstein Campus in Providence, the Rhode Island Nursing Education Center in Providence, the Narragansett Bay Campus in Narragansett, and the W. Alton Jones Campus in West Greenwich.

The university offers bachelor's degrees, master's degrees, and doctoral degrees in 80 undergraduate and 49 graduate areas of study through eight academic colleges. These colleges include Arts and Sciences, Business Administration, Education and Professional Studies, Engineering, Health Sciences, Environment and Life Sciences, Nursing and Pharmacy. Another college, University College for Academic Success, serves primarily as an advising college for all incoming undergraduates and follows them through their first two years of enrollment at URI.

The University enrolled about 13,600 undergraduate and 3,000 graduate students in Fall 2015.U.S. News & World Report classifies URI as a tier 1 national university, ranking it tied for 161st in the U.S.

The University was first chartered as the state's agricultural school and agricultural experiment station in 1888. The site of the school was originally the Oliver Watson Farm, whose original farmhouse is now a small museum. In 1892, the school became known as the Rhode Island College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts. The first class had only seventeen students, each completing their course of study in two years. In 1909, the school's name was again changed to Rhode Island State College as the school's programs were expanded beyond its original agricultural education mandate. In 1951 the school was given its current title through an act of the General Assembly following the addition of the College of Arts and Sciences and the offering of doctoral degrees. The Board of Governors for Higher Education, appointed by the governor, became the governing body of the University in 1981 during the presidency of Frank Newman (1974–1983). The Board of Governors was replaced by the Rhode Island Board of Education in 2013. The current president is David M. Dooley.