Editing University of Northern Iowa (section)

==History==
The University of Northern Iowa was founded as a result of two influential forces of the nineteenth century. First, Iowa wanted to care for orphans of its Civil War veterans, and secondly, Iowa needed a public teacher training institution. In 1876, when Iowa no longer needed an orphan home, legislators Edward G. Miller and H. C. Hemenway started the Iowa State Normal School.<ref name="Northern Iowa 2000">University of Northern Iowa, Gerald L. Peterson, Aracadia Publishing, 2000.</ref>

The school's first building opened in 1867 and was known as Central Hall. The building contained classrooms, common areas, and a living facility for most of the students. It was also a home to the college's first principal, James Cleland Gilchrist. The building was the heart and soul of the school, allowing students to study courses of two-year, three-year, and four-year degrees. In 1965, a fire destroyed Central Hall, and school faculty and Cedar Falls citizens donated over $5,000 to start building Gilchrist Hall.<ref name="Northern Iowa 2000" />

The school has been known under the following names:
*'''Iowa State Normal School''', 1876&ndash;1909
*'''Iowa State Teachers College''', 1909&ndash;1961
*'''State College of Iowa''', 1961&ndash;1967
*'''University of Northern Iowa''', 1967&ndash;present
From 2014 through 2018 the UNI hosted the ''Midwest Summer Institute: Inclusion and Communication for All'', a two-day conference on [[facilitated communication]] sponsored by the Inclusion Connection and Syracuse University's Institute on Communication and Inclusion. Facilitated Communication is a discredited practice, and in 2018 UNI decided to discontinue the conference at the urging of multiple nationwide academics.

=== Presidents ===
[[File:Iowa State Normal School, Cedar Falls, Iowa.jpg|thumb|right|Iowa State Normal School, c. 1904]]
Since its founding, the university has had eleven presidents.<ref name="factsheet"/>

* James Cleland Gilchrist, 1876–1886
* Homer Horatio Seerley, 1886–1928
* Orval Ray Latham, 1928–1940
* Malcolm Poyer Price, 1940–1950
* James William Maucker, 1950–1970
* John Joseph Kamerick, 1970–1983
* [[Constantine W. Curris|Constantine William Curris]], 1983–1995
* Robert D. Koob, 1995–2006
* [[Benjamin J. Allen]], 2006–2013
* [[William Ruud]], 2013–2016
* [[Mark Nook]], 2017–present
[[File:FI0008292.jpg|center|frameless|661x661px|Lang Hall, 1907]]