University of Tennessee at Martin

The University of Tennessee at Martin

Motto	"Discover UT Martin"
Type	Public
Established	1927
Endowment	$27.2 million
Chancellor	Keith Carver
Administrative staff	835
Students	7,421 (fall 2013)
Undergraduates	7,025 (fall 2013)
Postgraduates	396 (fall 2013)
Location	Martin, Tennessee, U.S.
Campus	Rural, 250 acres (100 ha)
Colors	Blue and Orange
Athletics	NCAA Division I FCS – Ohio Valley Conference
Nickname	Skyhawks
Affiliations	UT System
Website	www.utm.edu

The University of Tennessee at Martin (UT Martin, or UTM), located in Martin, Tennessee, in the United States, is one of the five campuses of the University of Tennessee system. Prior to the acquisition of Lambuth University in Jackson by University of Memphis in 2011, UTM was the only public four-year university in West Tennessee outside of Memphis. Although regionally accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, the university was placed on probation in December 2015 for "falling short of standards related to evidence of institutional effectiveness and general education competencies."

UTM operates a large experimental farm and several satellite centers in West Tennessee.

Although UT Martin dates from 1927, it is not the first educational institution to use the current site. In 1900, Ada Gardner Brooks donated a site on what was then the outskirts of Martin to the Tennessee Baptist Convention for the purposes of opening a school. The school opened as the Hall-Moody Institute, named for two locally prominent Baptist ministers. It originally offered 13 years of study, from elementary grades to the equivalent of the first years of collegiate work. The institute changed its name to Hall-Moody Normal School in 1917, as teacher training became its primary focus. Five years later, Hall-Moody changed its name again to Hall-Moody Junior College. Due to declining enrollment and financial difficulties in the mid-1920s, Hall-Moody Junior College was in danger of closing. In 1927, the Tennessee Baptist Convention made the decision to consolidate Hall-Moody with a similar institution, Union University, in nearby Jackson.

Upon hearing of the impending closure of the Hall-Moody campus, area civic and political leaders asked the state of Tennessee to step in and take over the former Hall-Moody facilities under the auspices of the University of Tennessee. University of Tennessee president Harcourt Morgan agreed to accept the proposition on the condition that the Martin community would acquire the property as well as space for expansion. The City of Martin and Weakley County sold bonds to purchase the campus and some surrounding land. On February 10, 1927, Senate Bill Number 301 established the University of Tennessee Junior College in Martin. On March 29, it was officially approved by Governor Austin Peay. Hall-Moody closed for the last time on June 1, and the new UT Junior College began operations on September 2 with 120 students