2000

January
Newly renovated Café Court opens in University Center with the addition of Chick-Fil-A and Noble Roman Pizza.

March
Southeast’s men’s basketball team wins the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament, giving the team its first-ever automatic bid to the NCAA Division I tournament.

June 30
The Kennett Area Higher Education Center is dedicated at 1230 First Street in Kennett, the site of a former Kroger supermarket building.  The City of Kennett purchased the facility valued at $750,000 and donated it to the Southeast Missouri University Foundation.  The City of Kennett then invested $450,000 in renovating the building for educational purposes.  The original renovated area included an office area, a computer classroom, an ITV room, two standard classrooms and a small open computer lab.

August
The newly constructed Sikeston Higher Education Center opens, with an enrollment of nearly 500. The 33,000-square-foot building features eight classrooms, a science lab, computer lab, ITV classroom, electronics lab, industrial maintenance lab, manufacturing lab, customized training lab, computer-aided design and drafting (CADD) lab, and a student resource/study room.

August 21
Grand opening of the $1.5 million Towers Cafeteria upgrades.

Southeast begins fall 2000 with new FieldTurf synthetic grass playing surface recently installed at Houck Field.

The exterior of Houck Field is resurfaced. Improvements also are made to the press box.

September 16
Grand opening and ribbon cutting ceremonies are held for the new Sikeston Higher Education Center with Gov. Mel Carnahan as featured speaker. 

The fourth-week census shows total enrollment at 8,951, up 82 from fall 1999. Undergraduate enrollment is up 3.7% and beginning freshmen enrollment is up 2.2%. Residence halls are near capacity in fall 2000 with more than 2,000 living on campus.

November 2000
Southeast and Three Rivers Community College (TRCC) enter into a cooperative agreement to bring several TRCC associate degree programs to the Southeast campus and allow qualified graduates from A+ Schools-designated high schools in the Cape Girardeau area to receive tuition and book benefits while pursuing associate degrees offered by both institutions. The associate programs will be offered on the Southeast campus in Cape Girardeau and at the Sikeston Area Higher Education Center.

December
The Southeast Missouri University Foundation's "125 Years: Prologue to the 21st Century" Campaign nets $25.4 million. The campaign next enters its public phase with a revised goal set at $35 million.

Jazz Musician Clark Terry is awarded an honorary Doctor of Letters.

Facilities Management Service Center is completed

A tennis complex is completed on the northwest corner of Bertling and Sprigg.

Work is underway on an internal campus transitway.

2001

University enters into a lease-purchase agreement with the Congregation of the Mission to renovate a library at St. Mary’s of the Barrens Seminary in Perryville for use as a higher education center.  The Perryville Development Corp. makes a $400,000 commitment to assist in renovating the building and Southeast and Mineral Area College agree to offer classes in the outreach facility.

Spring
Southeast receives full 10-year re-accreditation from the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools.

April 30
KRCU becomes a full member of National Public Radio.

May
The Board of Regents accepts $260,000 Missouri Department of Transportation grant for the River Campus Terrace project.

May 4
The Board of Regents approves the first-ever University Strategic Plan.

The Board of Regents accepts a study to develop the Multi-Modal Transfer Facility.

June 2
Southeast is awarded a $2.6 million federal grant to be used for architectural consulting services in planning for the development of a regional museum at the River Campus.

June 28
A groundbreaking ceremony is held for the River Campus Terrace project which will include a picnic area, parking and continuation of a hiking/biking trail for the River Campus area.

July 30
Kent Library joins the state’s common library platform, MOBIUS – the Missouri Bibliographic Information User System, increasing student access from 450,000 volumes to more than 14 million volumes.

September 15
Southeast holds the dedication and ribbon cutting for the Otto and Della Seabaugh Polytechnic Building. U.S. Sen. Christopher “Kit” Bond and U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson are keynote speakers.  This event was delayed following the Sept. 11, 2001, national tragedy of the attack on the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and the crash of United Airlines Flight 93 in which 2,996 people died.

Southeast sets an all-time enrollment record with combined undergraduate and graduate student headcount at 9,352, prompting the University to defer fall semester enrollment.

October 19
Donald C. Bedell makes a seven-figure gift to the Southeast Missouri University Foundation to support the establishment of a premier performance hall at the River Campus. The hall, expected to be the “crown jewel” of the River Campus, will be named in Bedell’s honor. His gift is the largest single cash gift in the 18-year history of the University Foundation, the largest given to the River Campus project, and the largest ever made for a new facility at the University.

December 2001
Southeast alumna and NASA astronaut Linda Godwin travels into space aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavor.

December 14
Grammy-winning singer and songwriter and Kennett, Mo., native Sheryl Crow presents a concert, "Sheryl Crow Unplugged," in Academic Auditorium to benefit the School of Visual and Performing Arts and the Kennett Area Higher Education Center.

Singer Sheryl Crow presents the December commencement address and is awarded an honorary Doctor of Letters.

December 17
Board of Regents approves a reduction in the fund balance, reserve equipment and operating budgets to meet state deficits.

A new early warning system is implemented, building evacuations are practiced, and many employees complete the Community Emergency Response Team Training program to become more prepared for a major disaster.

The number of internet-connected computers on campus increases to 2,500; email accounts increased to 7,500; and all buildings on campus were connected to the fiber optic backbone and Internet.

With FCC approval, KRCU increases its broadcast area with future planned expansion in Park Hills and Poplar Bluff, Mo.

For the first time, Southeast sponsors a coordinated symphony series.

Southeast leads the Ohio Valley Conference Medal of Honor recipients with 12.

Southeast women’s soccer team wins the OVC Championship and finishes with a record 13 shutouts.

Southeast alumni athletes excel at the next level with ace pitcher Todd Pennington signing with the Cleveland Indians, football athlete Kelvin “Earthquake” Anderson a premiere running back in the Canadian Football League, and Kerry Robinson a St Louis Cardinals outfielder.

Engineering Physics receives ABET accreditation.

2002

A budgetary crisis reaches a severe level as a result of additional withholdings from the University’s state appropriations in fiscal 2002 - $2.2 million in August 2001, $900,000 in December 2001, and $4 million in May 2002.  An additional $5 million was cut from the University’s base budget appropriation for fiscal 2003.  These additional withholdings reduced the University’s state appropriation to the fiscal 1997 level, causing Southeast to spend all savings and to take other actions to reduce expenditures.

Southeast receives the first award from the Federal Transit Authority for the largest shuttle ridership increase among all Region 7 transit providers.

January 21
Construction of a Show Me Center two-story addition is underway to provide 5,000 square feet of additional storage space and new office space for the basketball programs.

February 25
The Board of Regents approves a long-term Residence Life Master Plan.

March 22
Campus radio station KRCU-FM increases its broadcast area substantially with expansion in Park Hills and Poplar Bluff, Mo., using a $140,000 federal grant.

May 17
Southeast is awarded recognition by the Missouri Department of Conservation for its state champion beech tree located on the grounds of the River Campus. The beech tree is the largest tree of its species in the State of Missouri as recorded by the Forestry Division of the Missouri Department of Conservation.

June 12
The Board of Regents declares a financial emergency to manage financial issues through a reduction in personnel and meeting targets for spending reductions.

The University’s higher education centers at Kennett, Malden, Sikeston and Perryville are placed on a four-day work week.

August 19
The Perryville Area Higher Education Center opens its doors at St. Mary’s of the Barrens seminary. The facility was renamed the Perryville Higher Education Center Oct. 26, 2006.

Vandiver Hall, the first new residence hall in more than 30 years, opens. Vandiver is a five-story, 300-bed residence hall on the east side of Henderson between Broadway and Normal. The University Center also is expanded with a new dining space, Skylight Terrace, providing added seating, a new entrance and new food service concepts.

September 6
The University establishes the University Press.

September 27
Gov. Bob Holden appoints President Dobbins to the Missouri Commission of the federal Delta Regional Authority.

October 4
The first Southeast student takes a full semester of web-only courses.

October 18
The Board approves a restructuring and consolidation plan to streamline administrative structures to reduce expenses.  Under the plan, several academic departments are restructured and consolidated, building maintenance and repair budgets and equipment purchases are reduced, operating budgets of almost every unit are cut, and Parker Pool is closed.

The Board approves an addition to the Facilities Management Service Center for Central Receiving/Mail Services.

To accommodate Southeast’s growing enrollment, Vandiver Hall, a new five-story, 300-bed residence hall is dedicated on the east side of Henderson between Broadway and Normal. 

The Board of Regents approves plans to convert the space housing Parker Pool for the operations of Printing and Duplicating, which will relocate from 221 N. Fountain after the University Foundation sold the building.

October 19
Ground is broken adjacent to the Student Recreation Center for a Multi-Modal Transfer Facility, which will become a tiered “park and ride lot” with a public transportation bus transfer facility.

December 6
Students can access their grades through Southeast Online Services.

A section of the transitway is completed from near Scully Building to Academic Hall.

Southeast inducts its first class into the Southeast Missouri State University Athletics Hall of Fame.

2003

President Ken Dobbins forms a committee to determine whether to replace the Indian mascot.

Januaury 27
Southeast announces the inauguration of the Jack Buck Scholar Leadership Award.

February 11
Southeast President Kenneth W. Dobbins signs grant agreements with the Delta Regional Authority to provide $600,000 in federal support for a new University greenhouse, the addition of four new classrooms to the Kennett Area Higher Education Center and to create an Entrepreneurial Training and Micro-Loan Program for small businesses in the region.

February 18
Southeast sets an all-time enrollment high for spring semester enrollment with combined undergraduate and graduate student headcount totaling 8,993.

Two studies conducted by students and faculty in the Donald L. Harrison College of Business show the University’s total economic impact on the Cape Girardeau area is $125.6 million.

May 16
The University Foundation Executive Committee purchases the properties of First Baptist Church and the Baptist Development Association at 926 Broadway. The properties are on 3.4 acres and include a large parking area and three buildings – the Sanctuary Building, Education Building and Activity Building. The Sanctuary Building eventually becomes Aleen Vogel Wehking Alumni Center. The Education Building becomes the Douglas C. Greene Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, and the Activity Building becomes the Holcomb Success Center.

The Board of Regents approves the preliminary design for the River Campus Terrace Park, to be located on the east side of the former St. Vincent's College and Seminary property, running along Aquamsi Drive.

May 20
Dr. Dale Nitzschke's contract as Southeast's federal legislative consultant is renewed for a third year by the Southeast Board of Regents.

May 27
Southeast holds a groundbreaking ceremony for the River Campus, which will become home to the University’s School of Visual and Performing Arts on the 16.6-acre St. Vincent’s College and Seminary property on the banks of the Mississippi River, adjacent to the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge.

The women’s outdoor track team claims an Ohio Valley Conference championship.

June 2003
The Southeast Missouri University Foundation finishes FY2003 with giving in excess of $4.7 million, a 57% increase over the previous year.

June 27
The Board of Regents approves a partnership between the University’s Child Enrichment Center and the Community Day Center to provide more student experiential learning opportunities. The University’s Child Enrichment Center, which provides childcare for children of students, faculty and staff, will partner with the Community Day Care Center and rent space in its facility at 1912 Broadway. The University’s Child Enrichment Center will relocate from its current site in the Scully Building.

July 10
President Dobbins is selected to serve on the President’s Leadership Group of The Higher Education Center for Alcohol and Other Drug Prevention.

July 11
President Dobbins is elected President of the Council on Public Higher Education in Missouri.

July 29
President Dobbins accepts a new five-year contract to continue as president of Southeast.

August 27
A ribbon-cutting ceremony marks the opening of a new 5,000-square-foot addition at the Harry L. Crisp Bootheel Education Center (CBEC) in Malden, Mo. The $500,000 addition featured four classrooms and a Rice Research lab.

Southeast opens a Student Recreation Center-South in the former First Baptist Church Activity Center.

Fall 2003
New basketball offices are completed on the north side of the Show Me Center.

September 2003
Total combined undergraduate and graduate student headcount for fall 2003 is 9,570, up .4 percent from fall 2002.

Ronald E. McNair Postbaccalaureate Achievement Program begins at Southeast. The McNair Scholars Program, one of the seven federal TRIO programs, prepares first generation, limited income and underrepresented students for doctoral studies through involvement in research and other scholarly activities. Southeast was awarded a five-year $1.01 million federal grant to establish the program.

September 13
Ribbon-cutting and grand opening for the new Southeast Missouri Regional Crime Lab, 122 S. Ellis. U.S. Sen. Christopher “Kit” Bond is the featured speaker.

October 15
The Board of Regents approves the final schematic design by Jacobs Facilities, Inc., of St. Louis, for the River Campus.

November 10
Chartwells at Southeast was named 2002-2003 National Account of the Year at its national awards celebration. Chartwells provides residential dining, retail operations and catering services and serves 20,000 meals weekly at Southeast.

November 13
The Board of Regents approves articles of incorporation and bylaws of The Missouri Research Corporation and appoints its first board of directors.

Board of Regents votes to eliminate three academic programs with low numbers of majors – geography, sociology and geosciences – modify other academic programs and reduce the scope of several non-academic units, including intercollegiate athletics. To reduce expenses, the Board of Regents votes to eliminate the men’s golf program effective June 30, 2005.

December 2003
The Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge opens near the River Campus.

Cape Girardeau businessman Jim Drury reaches a settlement with Cape Girardeau officials, ending more than five years of lawsuits that stalled the $36 million River Campus project.

Southeast introduces the President’s Plus Scholarship and increased the value and expanded the eligibility of its President’s Scholarship program. Southeast’s improved scholarship program could earn a student with a 23 or higher composite ACT score as much as $3,000-$3,500 during their first year of college.

Southeast set a record with 144 student-athletes honored as Southeast-Scholar Athletes for having a 3.0 or higher cumulative grade point average.

Southeast expands the availability of online courses, including a full Bachelor of General Studies, with 105 web-based courses offered in summer 2003. More than 100 were available in fall 2003.

The Towers Complex parking lot was repaved to provide 100 more surface spaces, and a parking deck was constructed to provide 212 spaces.

Southeast receives a $1.1 million four-year grant for Project Upward Bound, one of the federal TRIO programs, enables high school students with low income and who are potential first-generation college students with a need for academic support to achieve their educational goals.

The Department of Nursing is awarded a $699,478 federal grant for its “Advanced Education Nursing: Rural Linkages” initiative. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources, and Services Administration (HRSA) awarded the grant in September for a three-year period. The grant is designed to change the health status of the rural disadvantaged region in the Missouri Bootheel.

2004

February 26
The Board of Regents approves a plan to refurbish and make minor renovations to the University Center to provide more student-centered spaces and improve the ambience of the building. Enhancements begin in summer 2004 and are completed in summer 2005. Under the plan, Textbook Services moves from the second floor of the University Center to the first floor of Kent Library. A Student Organization Complex is created on the second floor of the University Center, offering an open, student-friendly design to accommodate Student Government, Student Activities Council, Inter-fraternity Council, National Panhellenic Council (NPC), National Pan-Hellenic (NPHC) individual chapter offices, and work and office space for some of the more than 100 student organizations. Minority Student Programs, including the new McNair Scholars Grant offices, moves from the third floor of the University Center and consolidates with the offices of the Dean of Students on the fourth floor. The computer lab is relocated within the open design of the Student Organizations Complex, interiors are refurbished and external entrances enhanced.

June 20
The School of Polytechnic Studies is highlighted in the Southern Growth Policies Board’s “Southern Growth Idea Bank.”

Summer 2004
Second phase of Multi-Modal Transfer facility begins.

Board of Regents votes to retire the Indians/Otahkians nickname and mascots and to adopt Redhawks as the official nickname effective spring 2005.

Southeast enters into an agreement with Three Rivers Community College resulting in the acquisition of the regional campuses, increasing Southeast’s presence in the Missouri Bootheel.

2005

January
Construction documents for the River Campus are completed. 

The University celebrates the centennial of Academic Hall during the 2005-2006 academic year.

The area higher education centers begin offering the Bachelor of General Studies degree completion program.

The Southeast Explorer, the University’s new mobile museum, is launched.  The Explorer allows the Southeast Missouri Regional Museum to transport exhibitions, art and archeology programs to locations throughout the region.

Summer 2005
Southeast launches the S.H.O.W. Mobile (Southeast Healthcare on Wheels) that will travel to southeast Missouri counties to perform screenings for diabetes, cholesterol, blood pressure, speech, hearing and vision problems.

The entrance to the campus from Henderson Street is improved thanks to a widening of the intersection of Broadway and Henderson. New gateway entrance signs to the University are installed that include a water curtain. Houck Field House also gets a new façade.

The University Center gets its first facelift in 30 years with the addition of an outside bistro area, a new outside entrance to the University C-Store and remodeled office space for student organizations.

The University implements the SCT Banner software system to replace and improve the University’s administrative system. 

Web portals are established for students, faculty, staff and alumni to provide personalized access to campus news, email, grades and personal accounts.

February 4
The University’s Southeast Outreach Office relocates to the Chesterfield area.

April 29
Officials with Southeast and Hunan Normal University and Sichuan Normal University enter into articulation agreements offering educational opportunities to students, faculty and staff from both China and Southeast.

May 13
The Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications (ACEJMC) accredits Southeast’s mass communication program, including the five professional-track options in mass communications. Southeast is one of only two universities in Missouri with this accreditation.

May 14
Donald L. Dickerson, former president and member of the Southeast Board of Regents for 12 years, receives an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Southeast during commencement exercises.

May 20
Southeast University Foundation purchases a 252-acre farm near Gordonville to be used for education and research for the Department of Agriculture.

Donald L. Dickerson is honored with an honorary Doctor of Laws.  Dickerson was first appointed to the Southeast Board of Regents in April 1993 by the late Gov. Mel Carnahan, and was elected president of the Board of Regents on October 4, 1996. He served as president through December 2004.

June 24
Southeast is honored with a regional Innovator award from the Southern Growth Policies Board, recognizing the University for its area higher education centers, which provide access to postsecondary education for rural residents along the southeast corridor of Missouri.

June 30
Southeast closes its men’s golf program.

Summer 2005
Southeast’s MBA general management option and its Bachelor of Science in Business Administration option in organizational administration are now available online.

September 1
Ribbon cutting and grand opening ceremony for the Southeast Missouri Innovation Center and business incubator located in the education building of the former First Baptist Church complex.  The Center is one of only four in the state not connected to the University of Missouri system.

September 2005
Total fall semester enrollment is 10,292, the largest in Southeast history. A record 873 African Americans attend Southeast in fall 2005

October 27
The River Campus is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

November 2
Ribbon-cutting and grand opening of the newly created Student Involvement Center in the University Center.

Southeast’s School of Polytechnic Studies creates Energy Management Laboratory.

Southeast’s men’s cross-country team is honored as an All-Academic Team with Distinction by the U.S. Cross Country Coaches Association.

Miles Smith wins the OVC indoor and outdoor 400-meter championships and was the first track and field All-American from Southeast since 1994. He placed 14 ^th in the world at the NCAA Track & Field Championships. He also was selected as a member of the U.S. Track & Field team for the World Championships in Helsinki, Finland, where he won a gold medal as a team of the U.S.A. 4 x 400-meter relay team.

Southeast has 17 student-athletes achieve a total of 21 OVC Medals of Honor.

Derek Winans, member of the 2004-2005 Southeast men’s basketball team, is named to the ESPN The Magazine first team Academic All-America basketball team.

Southeast’s men’s cross-country team is honored as an All-Academic Team with Distinction by the U.S. Cross Country Coaches Association.

Southeast’s women’s indoor track team wins the 2005 OVC Indoor Track and Field Championship.

Both the men’s and women’s outdoor track teams win their respective 2005 Ohio Valley Conference Track and Field Championships.

2006

Sadie’s Place is inaugurated in Kent Library. Sadie’s Place features a coffee bar, comfortable furniture, Wi-Fi access and conference rooms for group projects.

A new “e-learning certificate” for teacher education students debuts on campus, preparing teacher education majors to embrace and use technology in classroom instruction.

January 24
Martin Luther King III is the keynote speaker for the first annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration Dinner.

January 26
Ribbon-cutting and grand opening of the 10,800-square-foot expansion to the Sikeston Higher Education Center, including additional classroom and office space, a science laboratory and a new childcare center.

February 2006
Total spring semester enrollment is 9,743. Southeast is offering 171 web courses in spring 2006, up from 147 in fall 2005 and from 129 in spring 2005.

March 4
The women’s basketball Redhawks win the first-ever OVC Championship title and advance to the NCAA Division I Tournament.

The gymnastics team earns a berth in the NCAA regionals.

Southeast’s track and field won the OVC men’s and women’s outdoor championships and the women’s indoor title.

Southeast All-American Miles Smith participates in the national NCAA Track and Field Championships, emerging 14 ^th in the world and fifth in the nation.

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia speaks at the Show Me Center.

May 24
Under a new initiative developed by Missouri Southern State University (MSSU) in Joplin and Southeast, satellite clinical facilities will be established at two locations, the Sikeston Higher Education Center and the Rolla Technical Center.

Summer 2006
The public relations option in Southeast’s mass communication program is certified by the Public Relations Society of America.

September 2006
Total fall enrollment is 10,477, the largest enrollment in history.

Groundbreaking ceremony for a new East Main Street interchange on I-55. Southeast plans to convert the nearly 400-acre University Farm near the site into a University Technology Village with a life-science research park, retail stores, commercial businesses and a residential development.

Southeast continues plans to relocate the University Farm from the current location just north of Cape Girardeau along I-55 to a 252-acre farm the University Foundation purchased on the east side of Highway 25, just south of Gordonville, Missouri.

Southeast signs an agreement with Soonchunhyang University in Korea, providing a dual degree program between the two institutions.

Southeast partners with Missouri Southern State University to offer a joint Master of Science program in criminal justice.

Fall 2006
Groundbreaking for the new Aquatic Center on the northwest corner of the Student Recreation Center-North. The facility will feature a recreational pool and whirlpool, and 25-yard lap pool.

Total headcount at Southeast’s regional campuses in Kennett, Sikeston and Malden, Missouri, is 1,180, up 4% from fall 2005.

Southeast and the Southeast Missouri Hospital College of Nursing and Health Sciences announce a cooperative new associate degree Licensed Practical Nurse to Registered Nurse (LPN to RN) Bridge Program at Southeast Missouri State University-Kennett. Twin Rivers Regional Medical Center in Kennett donates $125,000 to the program. A $664,379 Missouri Foundation for Health Award helps underwrite start-up costs.

October 2006
Southeast designates its area higher education centers as regional campuses under a proposal adopted by the Board of Regents. The new campus designations are “Southeast Missouri State University-Malden,” “Southeast Missouri State University-Kennett” and “Southeast Missouri State University-Sikeston”.  The Board also adopted a new name for the center at Perryville, designating it the Perryville Area Higher Education Center.

The women’s soccer team wins the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament and advances to the NCAA Tournament.

Southeast football players David Simonhoff and Edgar Jones are named First Team All-American in football.

The Beanery is a new addition to the University Center.

Rowdy’s is a new addition on the ground floor of the Towers Complex.

The Southeast Missouri University Foundation records total giving at nearly $3 million. Net assets increase by nearly $3 million to more than $34 million.

The Advancement Division launches The Magazine of Southeast Missouri State University.

The Missouri Statewide Early Literacy Intervention Program locates a Reading Recovery® University Training Center on campus.

KRCU inaugurates repeater station KSEF 88.9 FM in Farmington, Missouri, expanding its programming to an additional 1.5 million people in the University’s northern service region.

Southeast begins offering shuttle service – W.I.N.G.S. (When in Need, Go Shuttle) -- for students between the main campus and shopping sites on the west side of Cape Girardeau.

The Athletic Training Education Program at Southeast Missouri State University is reaccredited for five years by the Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education (CAATE). Southeast’s athletic training program, based in the Department of Health, Human Performance and Recreation, was first accredited by the Commission in 1998.

December 2006
U.S. Marine Corps Commandant Gen. James Conway, a 1969 Southeast graduate and member of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, presents the December commencement address and is awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws.

December 19
Dr. Dale F. Nitzschke, president of Southeast from 1996 until 1999, is named president emeritus. The Board of Regents conferred the honorary title.

Southeast’s MBA program enters into an agreement with the University of Applied Sciences in Schmalkalden, Germany, giving students the opportunity to complete one year of graduate studies in Southeast’s MBA Program and one year in Schmalkalden’s Master of Arts program in international business and economics. Students can earn both degrees in the time it would normally take to earn one.

2007

January
Southeast is offering 160 credit-bearing online courses and five non-credit online courses.

A presentation lab in Dempster Hall is giving business students multi-operational space and resources, such as multiple work areas, wireless laptops and video recording equipment to create first-rate presentations.

March 2007
Southeast initiates a partnership with the prestigious Center for Strategic and International Studies and sends 30 students and four faculty to Washington, D.C., during spring break to tackle seminar issues such as defense and security, energy and climate change, global trends and forecasting.

April 2007
Southeast opens a Business Incubator in the Southeast Innovation Center, 920 Broadway.

May 11
The University Board of Regents meets for the first time in the renovated River Campus Seminary Building to officially name various venues on the campus, including the Earl and Margie Holland School of Visual and Performing Arts, the Donald C. Bedell Performance Hall, the Rosemary Berkel and Harry L. Crisp II Southeast Missouri Regional Museum, the John and Betty Glenn Convocation Center, the Wendy Kurka Rust Flexible Theatre and the Robert F. and Gertrude L. Shuck Music Recital Hall.

Aug. 20
Fall classes are held at the River Campus for the first time.

October 2007
Aleen Vogel Wehking Alumni Center opens in former First Baptist Church property acquired by the University in 2003.

October 23
Ribbon-cutting and grand opening ceremonies are held at the River Campus.  Featured speakers include Missouri Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder; U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson; President Kenneth W. Dobbins; the Very Rev. James Swift, C.M., Provincial Superior of the Congregation of Missouri Midwest Province; former Board of Regents President Donald L. Dickerson; Student Regent Leni Fluegge; Dr. Gary L. Miller, associate dean of the Holland School of Visual and Performing Arts; Missouri Sen. Jason Crowell; Cape Girardeau Mayor Jay Knudtson; Board of Regents President Brad Bedell; Kathy Swan, chair of the Missouri Coordinating Board for Higher Education; and Albert M. Spradling III, vice president of the Board of Regents.

October 24-28
“Big River” is the first production performed on the stage of the Donald C. Bedell Performance Hall at the River Campus.

Fall 2007
A dental hygiene training center opens at Southeast Missouri State University-Sikeston as part of a partnership between Southeast and Missouri Southern State University.

December 2007
The new Student Aquatic Center opens, featuring a four-lane lap pool, a recreational pool with a rock wall and a zip line, a hot tub and locker rooms.

Southeast Missouri State University’s engineering physics program in the Department of Physics and Engineering Physics has been reaccredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of the Accreditation Board of Engineering and Technology (ABET) Inc., the recognized accrediting body of college and university programs in applied science, computing, engineering and technology. The program initially was accredited in 2000.

The Southeast Missouri Gymnastics Team is named the Academic National Champions as voted on by The National Association of Collegiate Gymnastics Coaches/Women (NACGC/W). Southeast earned the win with a remarkable team G.P.A. of 3.74.

2008

October 24
KRCU holds a grand opening and dedication of its new studios located in the Serena Building

The Southeast Missouri University Foundation announces receipt of a seven-figure gift, the largest single gift in its history, to benefit the Southeast Missouri State University Agriculture Research Center and the University’s agriculture program.

A Strategic Plan is adopted.

2009

January 23
A groundbreaking ceremony marks the start of construction on a future 11,582-square-foot Southeast Missouri State University Autism Center for Diagnosis and Treatment. The Center is located on the grounds of the former Washington School at the corner of Middle and Mill streets in Cape Girardeau.

May 4
Southeast dedicates its new David M. Barton Agriculture Research Center near Gordonville, Mo.  June Barton of Catron, Mo., a 1963 alumna of Southeast, donated 850 acres of prime farmland in New Madrid County, making the purchase of the farm possible. With the gift, the University’s Research Farm in Gordonville, Mo., was renamed the David M. Barton Agriculture Research Center in memory of Mrs. Barton’s late husband.

May 2009
The Southeast Missouri Symphony Orchestra presents a series of concerts in China as part of the 2009 American Celebration of Music in China.  

June 2009
Transit Nexus is completed as the fourth phase of the Multi-Modal Transfer Facility. The Nexus, along New Madrid Street and west of the Student Recreation Center, provides a turnaround for Southeast shuttles and a centralized hub for pickup and drop off of students riding the University’s shuttle system.

A parking development project gets underway along Broadway that includes removing three structures on the southwest corner of Broadway at Henderson, grading and paving of this area as a parking lot for the new residence hall under construction on the northeast corner of this intersection, and installing lighting and security cameras. The new lot will provide 122 new parking spaces.

October 5
The Southeast Honors Program celebrates its new Honors House at 603 N. Henderson with a ribbon-cutting ceremony.  The program would later be named for former Provost Jane Stephens.

December 17
The Board of Regents approves the naming of the Donald L. Dickerson River Campus Commons. The late Dickerson is a former president and member of the Board of Regents. The Dickerson River Campus Commons connects the original seminary building, original parts of which date from 1845, and the newly constructed portion of the River Campus that opened in fall 2007. The serene area ties the old and new facilities with a breathtaking view of the Mississippi River and the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge.

Southeast contracts with Southeast Missouri Hospital in the operation of the Campus Health Clinic.

Southeast establishes the Douglas C. Greene Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, nationally recognized for innovative, campus-wide co-curricular student programs and award-winning outreach.

Southeast receives a second award from the Federal Transit Authority for the largest shuttle ridership increase among all Region 7 transit providers.

World Events

2000
The first day of the third millennium is celebrated worldwide on New Year’s Day.

Al-Qaeda suicide bombs the USS Cole, killing 17 sailors, injuring 39 others, and damaging the ship.

Sony’s PlayStation 2 released in North America.

George W. Bush is elected president of the United States after a contentious recount in Florida.

The first long-term residents of the International Space Station arrive.

2001
George W. Bush is inaugurated president of the United States.

Al-Queda terrorists hijack four planes, crashing two into the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City and a third plane into the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. A fourth plane crashes in Pennsylvania. In total, 2,977 victims died in the attacks.

The United States invades Afghanistan, toppling the Taliban and marking the start of a long war.

Steve Jobs introduces the first iPod.

2002
The Euro enters circulation.

Tom Brady leads the New England Patriots to their first Super Bowl win. Over two decades, they would appear in nine and win six.

Mozilla Firefox is released.

Steve Fossett becomes the first person to fly solo nonstop around the world.

Elon Musk founds SpaceX.

2003
The space shuttle Columbia disintegrates during reentry; all seven astronauts are killed.

U.S. invades Iraq and Saddam Hussein is ousted.

The Human Genome Project is completed.

The last Volkswagon Beetle is made in Mexico, closing out 65 years of production.

The supersonic transport Concorde makes its final flight.

2004
Facebook is launched.

The Boston Red Sox win the World Series for the first time since 1918, ending the Curse of the Bambino.

Ninety-five U.S. troops are killed in the Second Battle of Fallujah.

A tsunami occurs in the Indian Ocean off the west coast of northern Sumatra, Indonesia, killing 230,000.

Spirit and Opportunity rovers land on Mars.

2005
YouTube is founded.

Pope John Paul II dies. He is succeeded by Benedict XVI.

Hurricane Katrina emerged from the Gulf of Mexico, killing 1,836 people in New Orleans and surrounding areas.

Angela Merkel becomes Germany’s first female Chancellor.

The Irish Republican Army ends its military campaign in Northern Ireland.

2006
Google acquires YouTube for $1.65 billion.

Saddam Hussein is executed.

Twitter is launched.

Nintendo launches the Wii.

2007
The Virginia Tech school shooting leaves 32 dead and 17 wounded.

A global recession begins.

First iPhone is introduced.

2008
Stock Market plunges, marking start of the Great Recession.

Barack Obama is elected to be become the first black president of the United States.

Google Chrome is released.

The Tesla Roadster is launched, making it the first mass produced lithium battery powered car.

2009
Cryptocurrency Bitcoin is launched.

Barack Obama is inaugurated as the first black president of the United States.

Musician Michael Jackson dies.

The swine flu pandemic caused by the H1N1 influenza virus begins in North America.