History & Traditions

The University of West Alabama was chartered in 1835 as a church-related female academy and admitted its first students in 1839. After difficult times during the Civil War and Reconstruction periods, the school reopened in the late 1860s or early 1870s. Although it appears that a few male students were admitted following the reopening, a resolution by the Board of Trustees in 1876 excluded boys and this policy was followed until the beginning of the 20th century.

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The UWA Mission

Our mission is to provide opportunities for students to pursue a quality education through associate, baccalaureate, master’s and education specialist degrees in liberal arts, natural sciences and mathematics, pre-professional programs, nursing, technology, business and education. Our curricula facilitates the development of enhanced skills in critical thinking, communication, leadership and computer literacy. We also seek to offer students opportunities for growth beyond the classroom through a wide range of extracurricular activities, programs and services, all in an environment rooted in cultural and intellectual diversity.

1881

From 1881 to 1910, the school at Livingston was under the direction of the noted educator and reformer Julia Tutwiler, who succeeded in getting a small appropriation from the State Legislature in 1883 to establish normal school training for girls at Livingston Female Academy. According to statements in the University archives, this is believed to be the first State appropriation in Alabama made exclusively for the education of women. The first normal school diplomas were granted in 1886.

1907

Livingston Female Academy and State Normal College continued as a private institution with some State support until 1907, when the State assumed full control. However, it remained under its own board of trustees until the Legislature created a State Board of Trustees for all the normal schools in 1911. In 1919, this board was abolished and all state normal schools were placed under the supervision of the State Board of Education. During these early years, the school offered both secondary education and normal school programs for the training of teachers.

1929

In 1929, the school at Livingston became State Teachers College, Livingston, Alabama, with the authority to confer the degree of Bachelor of Science. The Bachelor of Arts degree was authorized in 1947. Although the institution had begun accepting male students soon after 1900, the student body remained predominantly female through the 1950s.

1957

In 1957, the name was again changed by an act of Legislature — this time to Livingston State College — and the following year, the mission of the institution was broadened when the Graduate Division was established and the College was authorized to confer master’s degrees in the field of professional education. In 1967, an act of the Legislature created Livingston University with its own Board of Trustees.

1995

In 1995, the institution recognized its broader mission as a regional university serving the educational needs of all the citizens of the area by changing its name to the University of West Alabama.

Meet the President 

Dr. Todd G. Fritch

Dr. Todd G. Fritch became the thirteenth president of the University of West Alabama on January 2, 2025. He holds a B.S. in Geology from Lake Superior State University, an M.S. and Ph.D. in Geology from Baylor University, and completed the Institute for Educational Management program at Harvard.

Previously, he served as Executive Vice President and Provost at the State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota, and held leadership positions at Shorelight Education, American International College, The American College of Greece, and Northeastern University. He has been recognized for his contributions to higher education, workforce partnerships, and community engagement.