Shirak State University ( hy, Շիրակի պետական համալսարան), also known as Shirak State University named after Mikayel Nalbandian ( hy, Շիրակի Միքայել Նալբանդյանի անվան պետական համալսարան) is a

public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociological concept of the ''Öffentlichk ...

university in

Gyumri Gyumri ( hy, Գյումրի, ) is an urban municipal community and the second-largest city in Armenia, serving as the administrative center of Shirak Province in the northwestern part of the country. By the end of the 19th century, when the city w ...

, the capital of

Shirak Province Shirak ( hy, Շիրակ, ) is a province ('' marz'') of Armenia. It is located in the north-west of the country, bordering Turkey to the west and Georgia to the north. Its capital and largest city is Gyumri, which is the second largest city ...

Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ' ...

, opened in 1934.

Overview

Shirak State University is the largest educational institute in the northern part of Armenia. It was opened in 1934 as a pedagogical institute during the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

, through the efforts of S. Movsisyan. In 2016, the institute was restructured to become the public university of the Shirak Province. It currently offers 28 bachelor's degrees as well 16 master's degrees. As of 2017, the university has around 6,000 students. It has produced around 80,000 graduates throughout its existence since 1934. In 2014, the university celebrated its 80th anniversary. Shirak State University has its own emblem as well as an anthem written by Sonik Khachatryan and composed by

Robert Amirkhanyan Robert Amirkhanyan ( hy, Ռոբերտ Ամիրխանյան; born November 16, 1939) is an Armenian composer and songwriter. He is a professor at the Yerevan State Conservatory. He wrote over 300 songs, vocal series, operettas. Career In 196 ...

. The university complex is located on Paruyr Sevak Street of Ani district at the northwestern suburbs of Gyumri.

History

Leninakan Pedagogical Institute was founded in 1934 as a branch of the

Armenian State Pedagogical University Khachatur Abovian Armenian State Pedagogical University (ASPU) ( hy, Խաչատուր Աբովյանի անվան հայկական պետական մանկավարժական համալսարան, ՀՊՄՀ), is a state university and higher educa ...

. During the first year of admission, it engaged 16 lecturers and had around 100 students. The first rector was S. Movsisyan who enrolled best teachers from Gyumri as well as specialists from the capital

Yerevan Yerevan ( , , hy, Երևան , sometimes spelled Erevan) is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's oldest continuously inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerevan is the administrative, cultural, and i ...

. In 1949, the institute was named after

Mikayel Nalbandian Mikayel Nalbandian ( hy, Միքայել Նալբանդյան; ) was a Russian-Armenian writer, poet, political theorist and activist. Nalbandian was born in Nakhichevan-on-Don, an Armenian town in southern Russia, and traveled extensively, al ...

and functioned as a branch of the Armenian Pedagogical University until 1966, when it was given the status of an independent higher educational institution. After the independence of Armenia in 1991, it became known as the Gyumri State Pedagogical Institute named after Mikayel Nalbandian. On December 2, 2016, the institute was restructured and turned into a university foundation being known as Shirak State University named after Mikayel Nalbandian.

Structure

A of 2017, Shirak State University is home to 7 faculties:Faculties of GSPI
/ref> * Faculty of Physics, Mathematics and Economics * Faculty of History and Philology * Faculty of Biology and Geography * Faculty of Foreign Languages * Faculty of Pedagogy * Faculty of Physical and Preliminary Military Training * Faculty of Philosophy and Social sciences

Notable alumni

Susanna Amatuni Susanna (Shushanik) Amatuni ( hy, Շուշանիկ (Սուսաննա) Բակենի Ամատունի, February 28, 1924, Yerevan - March 20, 2010, Yerevan) was a Soviet Armenian art critic, musicologist, Dr. of Arts (1988), professor (1997), Honor ...

, art critic *

Samvel Balasanyan Samvel Balasanyan is an Armenian politician. He is the current Mayor of Gyumri and a former Deputy Speaker of National Assembly of Armenia. Early life Samvel Balasanyan was born on October 12, 1954 in Gyumri, which was named Leninakan at the time ...

, mayor of

Hovhannes Shiraz Hovhannes Shiraz ( hy, Հովհաննես Շիրազ) (April 27, 1914 – March 14, 1984) was an Armenian poet. Biography Shiraz was born Onik Tadevosi Karapetyan in the city of Alexandropol, then part of the Russian Empire (now Gyumri, Arme ...

, notable Armenian poet

References

External links

* Universities in Armenia Buildings and structures in Gyumri Educational institutions established in 1934 1934 establishments in the Soviet Union {{Armenia-university-stub