The University of Wisconsin’s Platteville branch was founded in 1851, and is the oldest higher learning institute in the UW system. The city itself is based in southwest Wisconsin and is known for its large number of bars and taverns for students to enjoy. In honour its mining history there is a large letter ‘M’ written in stone on a hillside outside the city, which is lit every year in a ceremony by UW Platteville students.
The three colleges at Platteville focus on studies related business, civil engineering, liberal arts and education. There are around 800 students enrolled in the department of Agriculture, which has facilities of a 430 acre farm, green house, and on campus laboratories.
On campus graduate programmes include MS degrees in Computer Science and Education, and an English Language Learner Licensure. Platteville also offers online master’s degrees, though currently there are no doctorate courses taught at the university.
Athletics teams are known as the Pioneers, and compete in the NCAA Division III. There are a total of fourteen sports programmes, including basketball, men’s wrestling and women’s volleyball. American football and soccer games are played at the Davis Pioneer Stadium, which can seat up to 10,000 spectators.
Notable alumni include congressman Arthur Kopp and James Murphy, Pants Rowland, who was manager of the Chicago White Sox, game designer Scott Adams, and versatile character actor John Fiedler. In 2016 UW Platteville celebrated its 150th anniversary, which was celebrated by alumni events, a fireworks display and a Sesquicentennial Gala.
