History
Croatan Normal School was created by the General Assembly on March 7, 1887 in response to a local petition, sponsored by NC Representative Hamilton McMillian of Robeson County. Fifteen students and one teacher composed the initial complement. With the goal of educating American Indian teachers for children, enrollment was limited to the American Indians of Robeson County.
In 1909, the school moved to its present location, about a mile east of the original site. The name was changed in 1911 to the Indian Normal School of Robeson County, and again in 1913 to the Cherokee Indian Normal School of Robeson County, tracking the legislature's designation for the Indians of the county, who at one time claimed Cherokee descent. In 1926 the school became a two-year post-secondary normal school; until then it had provided only primary and secondary instruction.
In 1939 it became a four-year institution, and in 1941 was renamed Pembroke State College for Indians. The next year, the school began to offer bachelor's degrees in disciplines other than teaching. In 1945 the college was opened to members of all federally recognized tribes. A change of name to Pembroke State College in 1949 presaged the admission of white students, which was approved in 1953 for up to forty percent of total enrollment. The Brown v. Board of Education ruling the following year by the United States Supreme Court ended race restrictions at the college.
In 1969 the college became Pembroke State University, a regional university that was incorporated into the University of North Carolina system in 1972. The first master's degree program was implemented in 1978. On July 1, 1996, Pembroke State University became the University of North Carolina at Pembroke.
In recent years, the university's profile has been heightened as the result of a statewide advertising campaign, in which billboards, radio and television advertisements have touted UNCP as a place "where learning gets personal," due to small class sizes, among other factors.
On March 14, 2012, UNC Pembroke kicked off a 14-month celebration of its 125th anniversary, to conclude with the spring 2013 Commencement ceremonies in May 2013.
Read more about this topic: University Of North Carolina At Pembroke
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