What is a university? Whose university?

There is no single university at UIUC today or in the past. One might think about the "university" as a rich and always in-motion debate about what the university is, should be, and can be.

• Chancellor Nancy Cantor's Welcome to UIUC

"We are interested in ideas here. We solve real problems. We study the physical world, culture and society. To do that, we employ the tools of many disciplines, from genetics to computer science, from anthropology to literary criticism."

• University of Illinois Extension

"University of Illinois Extension provides practical, research-based information and programs to help individuals, families, farms, businesses and communities in Illinois."

• The College Land Grant Act

"The leading object shall be, without excluding other scientific and classical studies, and including military tactics, to teach such branches of learning as are related to agriculture and the mechanic arts, in order to promote the liberal and practical education of the industrial classes in the several pursuits and professions of life."

• The University of Illinois Extension

"The mission of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, as the land-grant university in Illinois, is to serve the people of the State with research, teaching, and outreach programs. The nature of this mission is quite broad and places critical demands upon the limited resources of the university. Despite these limitations, the University of Illinois has established itself as one of the premier land- grant universities in the nation and as a world-class resource for Illinois."

• Illinois Board of Higher Education

"Higher education will help Illinois business and industry sustain strong economic growth."

• A Framework for the Future Document 1 | Document 2

"The Framework for the Future . . . takes account of the history of the University of Illinois and its land-grant mission, intertwining undergraduate and graduate teaching; scholarship and research; and outreach and service. It describes a history of achievement by students, alumni, and faculty, and a tradition of innovation and invention in building a productive campus environment."

• Carnegie Classification (The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching)

Doctoral/Research Universities-Extensive: "These institutions typically offer a wide range of baccalaureate programs, and they are committed to graduate education through the doctorate. During the period studied, they awarded 50 or more doctoral degrees per year across at least 15 disciplines."

• Graduate-Employees' Organization IFT/AFT, UIUC

"Graduate employees are responsible for one-third of all undergraduate teaching at the U of I. . . . Despite working hard to provide these valuable services, graduate employees do not have a recognized voice in decisions that affect their work lives."

• The American Association of University Professors

"AAUP issues reports each year on subjects of special interest. Recent initiatives include reports on the sue of part-time and non-tenure-track faculty, faculty workloads and state intervention. . . ."