University of Puerto Rico - Río Piedras

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Vision and mission

Our vision is to offer technical services of excellence to the university community of our Campus to guarantee the best use of technological resources.

At DTAA we believe in:

• Provide the university community with a platform of technological services to support the academic, administrative and student sectors.
• Orient the user about the different changes in technology and its application in various work areas within the Río Piedras Campus.
• Disclose the processes for technical support and offer assistance to the user to solve the problems caused by technological equipment related to the daily functions performed by the university community.Poodar Chu / Unsplash

History

1900 - The "Insular Normal School" is established in the municipality of Fajardo, east of the island of Puerto Rico, to train teachers for the public instruction system. The enrollment had only 20 students and a faculty of 5 professors.

1902 - The Insular Normal School moves to the "La Convalecencia" farm in Río Piedras, given the proximity of the capital city of San Juan to the north of the island, and the accessibility of the area.

1903 - The Law of March 12, 1903, creates the University of Puerto Rico. It begins to work in a farm to the outskirts of Río Piedras, with an enrollment of 273 students. Incorporates the Insular Normal School.

1908 - The Morrill-Nelson Law is extended to Puerto Rico, converting the University into a "Land Grant College", which grants federal lands to establish schools of agriculture, science and engineering.

1910 - The College of Liberal Arts is established.

1913 - The Departments of Pharmacy and Law are established.

1918 - The High School (UHS) is founded to offer clinical experiences and supervised internships for postulant teachers, teaching support staff and other professionals.

1923 - The University Law of 1923, reorganizes the University independently administratively from the Department of Insular Instruction; establishes the Board of Trustees as the governing board, and creates the position of Rector as principal officer. In 1924 the first Rector was appointed. The enrollment is 1,500 students.

1924 - The administrative structure and identity of the University of Puerto Rico is completely independent from the Department of Public Instruction.

1925 - The legislature approves Law 50 that grants the UPR educational autonomy, and this leads to a total restructuring and the beginning of a period of rapid growth.

1926 - The College of Commercial Administration and the School of Tropical Medicine were established.

1927 - The first graduate program is inaugurated: the Master of Arts in Hispanic Studies.

1928 - Hurricane San Felipe hit the island of Puerto Rico and caused serious damage to the Río Piedras site. Employees and faculty undertook reconstruction work; the teaching work had to be suspended for more than a month.

1935 - The United States Congress extended to Puerto Rico the benefits of the Bankhead-Jones Act, which granted funds for research and the construction of more buildings.

1936 -1939 - The main historical quadrangle structures are built in Río Piedras, in the Spanish Renaissance style, including emblematic buildings such as La Torre and the University Theater.

1938 - Augusto Rodríguez composes the music and Francisco Arriví the lyrics of Alma Mater, anthem of the University.

1939 - The "Carrillón" is installed, a mechanism that sounds the bells in the tower in the Río Piedras Campus.

1942 - Act No. 135 of May 7, 1942, reform of the University, creates the Superior Council of Education as the governing board of the institution and regulator of the higher education system in Puerto Rico.

1943 - The model of general education is implanted with the modality of the basic courses.

1946 - The University receives accreditation for the first time from the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools.

1950 - The courses begin at the School of Medicine.

1966 - Act No. 1 of 1966 restructures the University. It turns it into a system of three university campuses-River Piedras, Mayagüez and Medical Sciences-and an administration of regional schools to group those that could be created in the future, under the direction of a President. Creates a University Board with representation of the regional schools and colleges, and changes the name of the governing board to the Higher Education Council.

1979 - He began broadcasting the WRTU-FM radio station in the Río Piedras Campus.

1993 - Act No. 16 of June 6, 1993, divides the functions of the Higher Education Council, assigning the functions of government of the University to a newly created Board of Trustees.

1998 - Act No. 186 of August 7, 1998, provides for the autonomy of the regional colleges as the Board of Trustees gradually provides, leading to the establishment of a university system of eleven autonomous units.

2003 - UPR Celebrates its 100 years of service to Puerto Rico and the world.

2006 - The Board of Trustees approves Ten for the Decade, Agenda for Planning 2006-2016.

2015 - The Registrar's Office celebrates its 100th anniversaryHelena Lopes / Pexels