William Woods University history

The school resumed operation in the fall of 1890 and began to accept female students who had not been orphaned by the war, expanding its offerings to include courses for young women wanting to become teachers.

The tradition is believed to have been started in 1899 when members of the graduating class planted ivy on campus.

Known briefly at the beginning of the twentieth century as Daughters College, it changed its name to William Woods College 1900 to honor a major benefactor (William S. Woods, president of the National Bank of Commerce) and began offering a two-year college program.

The three-story brick structure that houses classrooms and offices was completed in 1921.

Kyles was with King when he was assassinated in 1968.

In 1990, William Woods welcomed its first woman President, Doctor Johnae Barnett.

Expanding its mission to address the need for graduate and adult-oriented programs, the institution became known as William Woods University in 1993 and began offering graduate degrees and admitting men as well as women into all of its programs.

In a joint partnership with the city of Fulton, a new athletic complex providing facilities for softball and baseball opens in the spring of 1999, and WWU fields a baseball team for the first time. "Mr.

1,124 graduate from WWU in 2005, setting new record.

Doctor Mary Spratt, WWU Cox Distinguished Professor of Biology and 2008 Missouri Professor of Year, co-authors an article, "Genomics Education Partnership,"; and is published in the science education section of the prestigious weekly journal, Science.

William Woods enrolls record number of students in fall 2010 as 340 new students cause the undergraduate enrollment to reach approximately 990, marking the largest on-campus undergraduate student body in university history.