About GSU
GSU History
Governors State University is the only public university in Chicago’s rapidly growing south suburban area, serving approximately 6,000 students during the course of a year. GSU provides affordable and accessible undergraduate and graduate education to culturally and economically diverse life-long learners. The university’s high-quality educational programs are enhanced by its commitment to maintaining and increasing accessibility to its students and the community.
At its founding on July 17, 1969, Governors State University embodied the most optimistic vision of the 1960s. It believed in its students and their ability to learn and succeed. So it took a deliberate step away from the “establishment” and forged opportunity through experimentation.
It didn’t have grades; it had competencies. It didn't have departments; it had “interdisciplinary studies.” Most importantly, it didn't exclude. GSU made education available to a growing population of community college students and to all adults who sought a higher education—a higher purpose.
Thirty-eight years later, GSU has changed in many ways. With more “establishment” now, the university has grades. It has professionally respected departments and disciplines, and over 80 percent of its faculty possess Ph.D.s or the highest degrees in their fields. But in very important ways, GSU has also retained that 60s spirit. It continues to experiment, and it never excludes. With a belief in its students, GSU matches the best ideals of the past with the most promising innovations of the future.
Diversity
Diversity is nothing new for Governors State University. In 1972 GSU proclaimed its "responsibility to serve the educational needs of low-and middle-income and minority students." Today the world calls that diversity, and GSU's historical commitment to it has produced the most diverse student body in the nation. GSU's full-time faculty is 28 percent minority, double the national average for American universities. More significantly, GSU triples the national average for African-American faculty, with 15 percent compared to the national average of 5 percent.
Campus
A campus for working adults, GSU is remarkably self-contained, convenient, and beautiful. It is situated on 760 acres of natural and preserved landscapes, coupling aesthetic surroundings with excellent academic programs. Inside, GSU has a complete library, Center for Performing Arts, Student Environmental Contract Laboratory, Follett Bookstore, cafeteria, child-care (housed within the Family Development Center ), and a fully-equipped fitness center, with swimming pool, weight room, and basketball courts. Outside, the campus is home to the world renowned Nathan Manilow Sculpture Park, the 120-acre GSU Environmental Research Preserve, an organic farm, and several ponds.
Trimesters
GSU is a year-round university. Instead of semesters, the university operates on trimesters of 15 weeks that continue through Fall, Winter, and Spring-Summer. Those trimesters, in turn, are broken down into "Blocks." A Block 1 course goes the full trimester. Block 2 and 3 courses are taught at an accelerated rate and compressed into 7½ week periods. Block 2 courses continue through the first half of the trimester, block three classes through the second. The result is a wide range of scheduling options that meet the various needs of adult learners.