History
Colorado State University (CSU), located 65 miles north of Denver in Fort Collins, was established in 1870 as Colorado’s land-grant college. From its first class in 1879, the University has grown to its present enrollment of approximately 25,000 students.
Colorado State University has a unique mission in the State of Colorado. The land grant concept of a balanced program of teaching, research, extension, and public service provides the foundation for the University’s teaching and research programs. Colorado State University is accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools with a mature status and is on the accepted list of the Colorado State Department of Education and the American Association of University Women. It is also listed by numerous other accrediting agencies. Colorado State University is governed by the State Board of Agriculture, which consists of eight members, appointed by the governor and confirmed by the Colorado Senate for four-year terms. This eight-member committee supervises statewide planning for higher education, and implements the assigned roles, including the appointment of personnel and the enactment of rules and governing regulations.
The University has over 150 programs in eight colleges as well as the CSU Graduate School, Cooperative Extension, and numerous research programs. Landscape Architecture’s BSLA and MLA degree programs reside within the Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture.
1975: The Department of Recreation Resources replaced the concentration in Park Planning with a Concentration in Landscape Planning. A full-time equivalent (FTE) faculty position in landscape architecture was established and filled and an FTE faculty position in park systems planning was redefined with partial responsibilities in landscape architecture.
1978: The proposal for a baccalaureate Concentration in Landscape Architecture was approved, replacing the Concentration in Landscape Planning.
1979: Increased student interest in landscape architecture required the establishment of an enrollment cap of 40 for the first year and 20 for the remaining three years of the program.
1980: A third FTE faculty position was established and filled to replace two part-time faculty positions.
1981: The proposal for a baccalaureate Major in Landscape Architecture was approved, replacing the Concentration in Landscape Architecture.
1982: The University received initial accreditation from the American Society of Landscape Architects – Landscape Architectural Accreditation Board for the Major in Landscape Architecture.
1983: The Department of Recreation Resources received approval to change its name to the Department of Recreation Resources and Landscape Architecture, and the prefixes for courses were changed from Outdoor Recreation (OR) to Landscape Architecture (LA).
1984: The University received full accreditation for a five year period from the American Society of Landscape Architects – Landscape Architectural Accreditation Board for the Major in Landscape Architecture.
1989: The University received full accreditation for a period of three (3) years from the American Society of Landscape Architects – Landscape Architectural Accreditation Board for the Major in Landscape Architecture.
1992: The Major in Landscape Architecture was transferred to the Department of Horticulture, College of Agricultural Sciences from the Department of Recreation Resources and Landscape Architecture, College of Natural Resources.
1992: The University received provisional accreditation for a period of two (2) years from the American Society of Landscape Architects – Landscape Architectural Accreditation Board for the Major in Landscape Architecture.
1993: The proposal to change the BSLA degree program from four years to five years was approved, including implementation of subject matter cognates permitting increased flexibility for study and specialization by students.
1994: The Program in Landscape Architecture moved to a new facility, the Natural and Environmental Sciences Building.
1994: The University received full accreditation for a period of five (5) years from the American Society of Landscape Architects – Landscape Architectural Accreditation Board for the Major in Landscape Architecture.
1995: The Department of Horticulture received approval to change its name to the Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture.
1995: The Program in Landscape Architecture received from the Intergraph Corporation a grant of computing equipment and applications totaling $870,000, and from the university funds for Sun SPARC workstations and studio equipment totaling $137,000.
1996: A fourth FTE faculty position was established and filled.
1999: The University received full accreditation for a period of five (5) years from the American Society of Landscape Architects – Landscape Architectural Accreditation Board for the Major in Landscape Architecture.
2001: A fifth FTE faculty position was established.
2002: The fifth FTE faculty position was filled.
2004: The University received full accreditation for a period of six (6) years from the American Society of Landscape Architects – Landscape Architectural Accreditation Board for the Major in Landscape Architecture.
2005: The Landscape Architecture course prefix was changed from LA to LAND.
2008: The Colorado Landscape Architects Professional Licensing Act went into effect.
2009: Colorado Commission on Higher Education approved the Master in Landscape Architecture degree.
2010: The program submitted curriculum revisions to reflect a four year undergraduate baccalaureate (proposed to be effective Fall 2010).