|

|
|
In 1890, when advanced
education was often reserved for society's elite, Chicago minister Frank
Gunsaulus delivered what came to be known as the "Million Dollar
Sermon." From the pulpit of his South Side church, near the site
Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) now occupies, Gunsaulus said that
with a million dollars he would build a school where students of all backgrounds
could prepare for meaningful roles in a changing industrial society.
Philip Danforth Armour, Sr. (1832-1901)
Benefactor who, inspired by minister Frank Wakely Gunsaulus’ vision of building a school to provide accessible higher education to all, gave $1 million to found Armour Institute. P.D. Armour, Sr. initiated a family legacy of financial personal contribution to the university, starting with his wife, Malvina Belle Ogden Armour (1842-1927) and their son J. (Jonathan) Ogden Armour (1863-1927).
Business tycoon, captain of industry, philanthropist, the richest man in Chicago – all of these terms identify Philip Danforth Armour, Sr. The small meat-packing company he and his brothers purchased, Armour & Co., became the country’s largest meat-packer with world-wide subsidiaries. He invested in, purchased, built and operated railroads, grain farms, banks, and by-product businesses. P.D. Armour built an empire and a model of business practice for others to emulate. He also set a standard for philanthropy, a demonstration of how one man’s personal wealth could be redistributed to workers, residents, and citizens who purchased his products.
His specific beneficence to the city of Chicago came in the founding of Armour Institute, established with the intention of making quality education available to the young people willing to apply themselves to study.
When Armour Institute
opened in 1893, the institute offered professional courses in engineering,
chemistry, architecture and library science. IIT was created in 1940 by
the merger of Armour Institute with Lewis Institute (est. 1895), a West
Side Chicago college that offered liberal arts as well as science and
engineering courses. The Institute of
Design, founded in 1937, merged with IIT in 1949.
|
|
|
In 1969, IIT became
one of the few technology-based universities with a law school when
Chicago-Kent College of Law, founded in 1887, became an integral part
of the university. Stuart School
of Business was added in 1969, with a gift from the estate of Lewis
Institute alumnus and Chicago financier Harold Leonard Stuart. The school
became the Stuart School of Business in 1999. Midwest College
of Engineering, founded in 1967, joined the university in 1986, forming
the nucleus for IIT's west suburban campus.
Today, IIT is a private,
Ph.D.-granting university with programs in engineering, science, psychology,
architecture, business, design and law. One of the 16 institutions that
comprise the Association of Independent Technological Universities (AITU),
IIT offers exceptional preparation for professions that require technological
sophistication. Through a committed faculty and close personal attention,
IIT provides a challenging academic program focused by the rigor of the
real world.
|
|
|
The university and
its contract research affiliate, IIT
Research Institute (IITRI), have an annual research volume of $130
million. Current research strengths include fluid dynamics and aerospace,
synchrotron radiation science, environmental engineering and regulatory
policy, polymer science and recycling, food safety and technology, and
transportation and infrastructure.
IIT has more than
38,000 living alumni and is known as the alma mater of accomplishments
as well as of people. IIT and IITRI scientists and engineers have made
some of the century's most important technological advances, such as the
invention of magnetic recording and the development of re-entry technology
for spacecraft. IIT architects have shaped the skyline of Chicago and
cities throughout the world.
IIT
Research Institute has several locations throughout the United States,
and the university has four campuses in the Chicago area. The 120-acre
Main Campus, at 33rd and State in Chicago, as well as many of its buildings,
was designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, who directed the architecture
program at IIT from 1938 to 1958 and was one of the 20th century's
most influential architects. In 1976, the American Institute of Architects
recognized the campus as one of the 200 most significant works of architecture
in the U.S.
The state-of-the-art,
10-story Downtown Campus at 565 West Adams Street houses Chicago-Kent
College of Law, the Center for
Law & Financial Markets, the Master
of Public Administration Program, and the
Stuart School of Business.
The Institute
of Design, an international leader in teaching systemic, human-centered
design, is located at 350 N. LaSalle Street in Chicago's Near North neighborhood.
The 19-acre Daniel
F. and Ada L. Rice Campus in Wheaton complements area community colleges,
serving west suburban residents and employees in Illinois' high-tech corridor
by offering graduate programs, upper-level undergraduate courses, and
continuing professional education.
The five-acre Moffett
Campus in Bedford Park houses the
National Center for Food Safety and Technology, a unique consortium
of government, industry and academia that seeks to improve the quality
of our nation's food supply.
Check out these current facts about IIT.
|
|