Park University is a

private university Private universities and private colleges are higher education institutions not operated, owned, or institutionally funded by governments. However, they often receive tax breaks, public student loans, and government grants. Depending on the count ...

Parkville, Missouri Parkville is a city in Platte County, Missouri, Platte County, Missouri, United States and is a part of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area. The population was 7,177 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. According to the 2022 census, the ...

, United States. It was founded in 1875. In the fall of 2023, Park had an enrollment of 6,389 students.

History

The school which was originally called Park College was founded in 1875 by John A. McAfee on land donated by George S. Park with its initial structure being the stone hotel Park owned on the bluff above the Missouri River. The original concept called for students to receive free tuition and board in exchange for working up to half day in the college's farm, electrical shop or printing plant. According to the terms of the arrangement if the "Parkville Experiment" did not work out within five years, the college grounds were to revert to Park. There were 17 students in the first school year and in the first graduation class there were five women. McAfee led until his death in 1890. His son Lowell M. McAfee became the second president of Park until stepping down in 1913. The first international student at Park University arrived in 1880 from Japan. The defining landmark of the campus is Mackay Hall, named after

Carroll County, Illinois Carroll County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. As of the 2020 census, the population was 15,702. Its county seat is Mount Carroll. History Carroll County was formed in 1839 out of Jo Daviess County. The county is named f ...

banker Duncan Mackay who donated $25,000 in materials for the structure shortly before his death. The building was constructed using

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

mined on the campus grounds and built with the labor of students. Construction began in 1883 and was finished by 1893. Mackay Hall is the main focal point of the campus and dominates the hillside, overlooking the town of Parkville. It is on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

. For decades the school was affiliated with the Presbyterian Church but it no longer has that affiliation. The college has had a relationship with the military since 1889. However, the relationship was greatly expanded in the late 1960s with the establishment of a Military Degree Completion Program and later in 1972 with the Military Resident Center System. Park's total enrollment has grown from its small base since 1996 when it first began offering online courses. In 2000, it was renamed Park University.

Locations

Parkville campus

The flagship campus of Park University is in the city of

. The Park University Graduate School is in downtown

Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more t ...

. There are 41 campuses in 22

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

s including four campuses in the Kansas City area (downtown Kansas City,

Independence Independence is a condition of a nation, country, or state, in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the status of ...

, Lenexa, and Parkville) and a campus center in

Austin, Texas Austin ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat and most populous city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and W ...

. Most of the

satellite campus A satellite campus, branch campus or regional campus is a campus of a university or college that is physically at a distance from the original university or college area. This branch campus may be located in a different city, state, or country, ...

es are on or near United States military bases and share quarters with other businesses/organizations.

Gilbert campus

In 2018, the university opened a campus center in

Gilbert, Arizona Gilbert is a town in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States. Located southeast of Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix, Gilbert is home to 288,128 residents. It is the fifth-most populous municipality in Arizona and is considered a suburb of Phoenix. I ...

, in the city's Heritage District. Park leased at the University Building. The university continued to expand the Gilbert campus in 2019, leasing an additional and extending the initial three-year term with the city to five years. The university continued to expand the Gilbert campus with the addition of college athletics. Initially playing as an independent during the 2019–20 academic year, the university announced membership in the NAIA and

California Pacific Conference The California Pacific Conference (Cal Pac) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). The conference commissioner is Don Ott. Conference leadership is shared among the member in ...

(Pac West) starting in 2020–21.

Rankings

*Ranked second in the “online and nontraditional” category on the ''Military Times’'' "Best for Vets: Colleges 2016" list. *Ranked second among all private colleges/universities in the country with a 9.5 percent annual ROI by 2015 PayScale College ROI Report. *2015-16 Colleges of Distinction list. * Ranked by '' U.S. News & World Report'' as the 126-165 best Midwest college in 2018.

Athletics

Park Pirates

The athletic teams of the Park University main campus are called the Pirates. The university is a member of the

National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) established in 1940, is a college athletics association for higher education, colleges and universities in North America. Most colleges and universities in the NAIA offer athletic schola ...

(NAIA), primarily competing in the

Heart of America Athletic Conference The Heart of America Athletic Conference (HAAC or The Heart) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). Member institutions are located in Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska in ...

(HAAC) since the 2020–21 academic year. The Pirates previously competed in the

American Midwest Conference The American Midwest Conference (AMC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) with 12 member institutions located in Arkansas and Missouri in the United States. History The ...

(AMC) from 2009–10 to 2019–20; which they were a member on a previous stint from 1986–87 to 1993–94; and in the defunct

Midlands Collegiate Athletic Conference The Midlands Collegiate Athletic Conference (MCAC) was an intercollegiate athletic conference that competed in National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics. Members of the conference were located in the Midwest United States and were locate ...

(MCAC) from 1994–95 to 2008–09. Park competes in 18 intercollegiate varsity sports: Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, track & field (indoor and outdoor) and volleyball; while women's sports include basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, softball, track & field (indoor and outdoor) and volleyball; and co-ed sports include eSports. The Department of Athletics at Park University was led by

Claude English Claude W. English (born December 26, 1946) is an American former professional basketball player and collegiate coach. He spent one season in the National Basketball Association (NBA) with the Portland Trail Blazers during their inaugural 1970– ...

, Director of Athletics, who was also the Pirates’ men's basketball coach from 1992 to 2005 and retired in 2021. From 1980 to 1984, English was the head men's basketball coach at his alma mater, the

University of Rhode Island The University of Rhode Island (URI) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Kingston, Rhode Island, United States. It is the flagship public research as well as the land-grant university of Rhode Island. The univer ...

, and he played one season in the NBA with the

Portland Trail Blazers The Portland Trail Blazers (colloquially known as the Blazers) are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. The Trail Blazers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (N ...

in 1970–1971. Seven former Park Pirates competed for the Kansas City Comets of the

Major Arena Soccer League The Major Arena Soccer League (MASL) is a professional indoor soccer league in North America. The MASL features teams playing coast-to-coast in the United States and Mexico. The league is the highest level of arena soccer in North America. The le ...

Championships

* 2018 Women's Volleyball (NAIA National Champions) * 2017 Men's Volleyball (NAIA Invitational Tournament) * 2014 Women's Volleyball (NAIA National Champions) * 2014 Men's Volleyball (NAIA Invitational Tournament) * 2012 Men's Volleyball (NAIA Invitational Tournament) * 2008 Men's Volleyball (NAIA Invitational Tournament) * 2003 Men's Volleyball (NAIA Invitational Tournament)

Park–Gilbert Buccaneers

The athletic teams of the Gilbert campus of Park University (Park–Gilbert) are called the Buccaneers. The university added a college athletics program to the Gilbert campus center in 2019. After playing as independent institution during the 2019–20 academic year, the university announced membership in the

(NAIA), primarily competing in the

(Cal Pac) starting in the 2020–21 academic year. Park–Gilbert competes in 15 intercollegiate varsity sports: Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, track & field (indoor and outdoor) and volleyball; while women's sports include basketball, beach volleyball, cross country, golf, soccer, softball, track & field (indoor and outdoor) and volleyball.

Notable people

Marsia Alexander-Clarke Marsia Alexander-Clarke is an American video installation artist. She is a Guggenheim Fellow. Personal life and education Marsia Alexander-Clarke was born in 1939 in Valparaíso, Chile. Her parents were missionaries from the United States. Due ...

, artist *

Sebastian James Anderson Sebastian James Anderson (born 1992), known professionally as Sebastian James, is an American singer, songwriter, and musician known as the former drummer for the Nigel Dupree Band. Early life and education James started touring at age 18 foll ...

(2018) - rock musician and former drummer for

Nigel Dupree Band Nigel Dupree Band is an American southern rock band from Kennesaw, Georgia, started by Nigel Thomas Dupree, the son of Jackyl lead vocalist Jesse James Dupree. Having performed at events such as Full Throttle Saloon, Rocklahoma Rocklahoma ...

Vlatko Andonovski Vlatko Andonovski (; born 14 September 1976) is a Macedonian-American association football manager and former player who is the head coach and sporting director of the Kansas City Current of the National Women's Soccer League. He was the head c ...

(2008) - professional soccer coach * James J. Barry Jr. (1969) - former

New Jersey General Assembly The New Jersey General Assembly is the lower house of the New Jersey Legislature. Since the election of 1967 (1968 session), the Assembly has consisted of 80 members. Two members are elected from each of New Jersey's 40 legislative districts f ...

man and

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

Director of

Consumer Affairs Consumer protection is the practice of safeguarding buyers of goods and services, and the public, against unfair practices in the marketplace. Consumer protection measures are often established by law. Such laws are intended to prevent businesse ...

* Ralph von Frese (1969) - American

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the structure, composition, and History of Earth, history of Earth. Geologists incorporate techniques from physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics, and geography to perform research in the Field research, ...

Tsiang Tingfu Tsiang Tingfu (; 17 February 1895 – 9 October 1965), was a historian and diplomat of the Republic of China who published in English under the name T.F. Tsiang. Early life and education Tsiang was born in Shaoyang, Hunan. Tsiang's educatio ...

(Chinese: 蔣廷黻)- Chinese scholar and diplomat. In 1911, he attended the Park Academy * Don H. Compier (1985) - founding Dean of the Community of Christ Seminary * Steve Cox (1988) - freelance writer * John R. Everett (1942) - President of Hollins College, first Chancellor of the Municipal College System of the City of New York, and President of the

New School for Social Research The New School for Social Research (NSSR), previously known as The University in Exile and The New School University, is a graduate-level educational division of The New School in New York City, United States. NSSR enrolls more than 1,000 stud ...

* Maurice Green Olympic Sprinter; world record holder * Melana Scantlin (2002) - former

Miss Missouri USA The Miss Missouri USA competition is the pageant that selects the representative for the state Missouri in the Miss USA pageant. It is directed by Vanbros and Associates, based in Lenexa, Kansas. In 1993, Missouri joined the Vanbros group of st ...

television personality Celebrity is a condition of fame and broad public recognition of a person or group due to the attention given to them by mass media. The word is also used to refer to famous individuals. A person may attain celebrity status by having great w ...

Chance Browne Robert David "Chance" Browne (June 17, 1948 – March 1, 2024) was an American comic strip artist and cartoonist, painter, and musician. He was born in New York City. After his father Dik Browne died in 1989, Browne took over drawing the family ...

- American musician, painter, and cartoonist * Robert E. Hall - eleventh

Sergeant Major of the Army The sergeant major of the Army (SMA) is a unique noncommissioned rank and position of office in the United States Army. The holder of this rank and position is the most senior enlisted soldier in the Army, unless an enlisted soldier is servin ...

* Charles A. Holland, Los Angeles, California, City Council member, 1929–31 * James A. Roy - sixteenth

Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force The chief master sergeant of the Air Force (acronym: CMSAF) is a unique non-commissioned rank in the United States Air Force. The holder of this rank and position of office represents the highest enlisted level of leadership in the Air Force, ...

* Edwin Kagin - attorney, founder Camp Quest * George Kelly - American

psychologist A psychologist is a professional who practices psychology and studies mental states, perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and social processes and behavior. Their work often involves the experimentation, observation, and explanation, interpretatio ...

therapist A therapist is a person who offers any kinds of therapy. Therapists are trained professionals in the field of any types of services like psychologists, social workers, counselors, etc. They are helpful in counseling individuals for various mental ...

and

educator A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. w ...

Texe Marrs Texe William Marrs (July 15, 1944 – November 23, 2019) was an American writer and radio host, who ran two fundamentalist Christian ministries, Power of Prophecy Ministries and Bible Home Church, both based in Austin, Texas. His teachings inclu ...

- American

preacher A preacher is a person who delivers sermons or homilies on religious topics to an assembly of people. Less common are preachers who Open-air preaching, preach on the street, or those whose message is not necessarily religious, but who preach com ...

* Cleland Boyd McAfee (1884) - American

theologian Theology is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of ...

* Newell A. George - United States

Congressman A member of congress (MOC), also known as a congressman or congresswoman, is a person who has been appointed or elected and inducted into an official body called a congress, typically to represent a particular constituency in a legislature. The t ...

, 1959–1961. *

Carl McIntire Charles Curtis McIntire Jr. (May 17, 1906 – March 19, 2002), known as Carl McIntire, was a founder and minister in the Bible Presbyterian Church, founder and long-time president of the International Council of Christian Churches and the Am ...

radio broadcaster Radio broadcasting is the broadcasting of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radio ...

* Stephen M. Veazey -

Prophet-President In the Latter Day Saint movement, the president of the Church is generally considered to be the highest office of the church. It was the office held by Joseph Smith, founder of the movement, and the office assumed by many of Smith's claimed succe ...

of the

Community of Christ Community of Christ, known legally and from 1872 to 2001 as the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (RLDS), is an American-based international church, and is the second-largest denomination in the Latter Day Saint movement ...

* George S. Robb,

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

(1912) -

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

* Lewis Millet,

(1964) -

Korea Korea is a peninsular region in East Asia consisting of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and smaller islands. Since the end of World War II in 1945, it has been politically Division of Korea, divided at or near the 38th parallel north, 3 ...

*Thaddeus J. Martin, U.S. Air Force, Connecticut Adjutant General *David Grace (basketball) UCLA and Oregon State University men's assistant basketball coach (USAF Retired) *Anthony Melchiorri - Hospitality expert and Travel Channel host *Hollington Tong (Chinese: 董顯光) - transferred to University of Missouri, Republic of China ambassador to the United States *Jan Zimmerman - police chief and chair of the Missouri Gaming Commission

Faculty and staff

*Stanislav Ioudenitch (Professor of Music and Piano) - Pianist and gold medalist of Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in 2001 *Kay Barnes (Senior Director for University Engagement) - Former mayor of

and candidate for Congress in 2008

References

External links

*
Park Pirates athletics website

Park–Gilbert Buccaneers athletics website
{{authority control Park University, Private universities and colleges in Missouri Kansas City metropolitan area Private universities and colleges in Texas Universities and colleges established in 1875 Buildings and structures in Platte County, Missouri Education in Platte County, Missouri 1875 establishments in Missouri