Arkansas Tech University

Arkansas Tech University is a public university located in Russellville, Arkansas, with an additional Ozark campus focused on two-year and technical programs. Founded in 1909, the institution offers associate, bachelor’s, master’s, specialist, and doctoral degrees across a range of disciplines. Academic programs are organized into colleges including arts and humanities, business and economic development, education and health, and STEM fields. Arkansas Tech University serves students from across Arkansas and surrounding states, particularly those seeking affordable public higher education in the Arkansas River Valley region. The university competes in NCAA Division II athletics and is known for its Wonder Boys and Golden Suns teams.

Arkansas Tech University was founded in 1909 after the Arkansas General Assembly passed Act 100 creating four regional agricultural schools. The Second District Agricultural School was located in Russellville, Arkansas, and opened its doors to students on October 26, 1910. Originally established as a secondary agricultural high school, Arkansas Tech University gradually expanded its academic scope, adding two years of college instruction in the 1920s. In 1925, the institution was renamed Arkansas Polytechnic College and transitioned away from high school coursework by 1930. Over the following decades, the school developed into a four-year college and broadened its curriculum beyond agriculture to include teacher education, business, and the liberal arts. On July 9, 1976, it officially became Arkansas Tech University. The university continued to expand in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries, including the addition of the Ozark campus in 2003 and the introduction of graduate and doctoral programs.