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500
Alcuin's Legislation
Alcuin, an advisor to Charlemagne, enacted legislation which required every abbey to conduct lessons for boys in basic education -
500
Early Middle Ages
Political, economic, cultural, and educational disjointedness throughout Europe 500 - 1000 -
1000
Studium Generale Established
Cathedral schools enact liberal arts curriculum and are the precursors to universities -
1000
Universitas Established
Expanding populations and demand for education revealed the inadequacy with cathedral schools. Masters and students then set up universitas, or groups of scholars whose academic methodology mirrored craft guilds in that scholars apprenticed under masters. -
1231
Parens Scientiarum Granted
Pope Gregory IX grants papal privilege to university chancellors to confer university degrees. This edict legitimizes universities and contributes to the power they wield. -
Virginia Colony Founded
The first American colony, Virginia, was founded in 1607 and signaled an influx of European colonists to the new world, namely from England, Ireland, Scotland, and Germany. -
Harvard College Founded
In 1636, 35 Massachusetts Bay Colony members and graduates of Emmanuel College, Cambridge founded Harvard College in the “collegiate way” of their alma mater in that residential life among students and faculty was of utmost importance within education. -
College of William and Mary Founded
1693 the College of William and Mary was founded on a royal charter with nearly 2,000 English pounds in funding. -
Phi Beta Kappa Established
Phi Beta Kappa, the first student society dedicated to political discussion and debate founded at William and Mary College in 1776 -
Treaty of Paris
New territory acquired as a result of the Treaty of Paris in 1783. -
Population Growth in the American Colonies
The American Colonies grow in population from 1.1 million in 1750 to 4 million within 40 years. -
Curriculum Changes
Early to mid 1800s curriculum changes include parallel courses which stray from the classics and attract more students. -
Louisiana Purchase
Louisiana Purchase in 1803 nearly doubles the size of the new nation. -
Dartmouth v. Woodward
1819 Dartmouth v. Woodward Supreme Court rules that Dartmouth’s colonial charter constitutes an inviolable contract, granting private institutions corporate status. -
Georgia Female College (Wesleyan) Established
1839 Georgia Female College (Wesleyan) first women’s college established. -
Morrill Act
The Morrill Act of 1862 endows states with funds to create colleges which would educate students in the useful arts. -
Civil War Ends
In 1865 the Civil War ends, leaving the South financially and industrially devastated. -
Second Morrill Act
In 1890 the second Morrill Act was passed which withheld funds to those states who practiced race based admission discrimination, thus greatly benefitting colleges for Blacks and women. -
Association of American Universities Founded
The Association of American Universities is formed in 1900 to standardize measures of quality for American higher education -
College Entrance Examination Board Founded
The College Entrance Examination Board is founded in 1900 to standardize admissions tests. -
Servicemen's Readjustment Act
As WWII draws to a close, the federal government passes the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944 -
Science, the Endless Frontier Published
In 1945 Vannevar Bush publishes Science, the Endless Frontier which creates a competitive research environment within higher education whereby universities vie for federal grant money, a practice which continues today. -
Truman Commission Report
The Truman Commission Report calls for expansion and investment in higher education in 1947 -
Brown v. Board of Education
Supreme Court case Brown v. Board of Education rules against segregation in 1954. -
Title IX
Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 prohibits gender based discrimination and brings about gender equity within intercollegiate athletics. -
Information Age
1976 computing technology ushers in the start of the information age. -
Mississippi University for Women v. Hogan
1982’s Mississippi University for Women v. Hogan determined that public institutions could not discriminate based on gender. -
Bob Jones University v. United States
In 1983 Bob Jones University v. United States ruled that race based discrimination in admissions would result in institutions losing their tax-exempt status. -
The Cold War Ends
The Cold War ends with the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. -
Bishop v. Aronov
In 1991 Bishop v. Aronov states that institution administrators could control speech content in school-sponsored activities -
Application and Financial Aid Innovations
As institutions sought to boost institutional performance and value, they fought to attract the best and brightest students, especially from 1994 to 2008. Innovations such as early decision admissions and an increase in merit-aid availability hoped to woo these high performing students. -
September 11, 2001
Terrorists kill thousands on September, 11, 2001 in the deadliest attack on American soil since Pearl Harbor. -
Grutter v. Bollinger and Gratz v. Bollinger
Supreme Court cases Grutter v. Bollinger and Gratz v. Bollinger confirm the legality of narrowly tailored race-conscious admissions policies, and usher in a new focus on diversity in faculty, curriculum, and other areas of campus life. -
National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Study Published
National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) study of teenage literacy reveals the positive correlation between economic status and educational opportunities. -
Population Growth Increases Number of Students
Rise in the number of eighteen-year-olds leads to a 22% increase in college students from 1994 to 2005.
