Northern Arizona University

1899 - Northern Arizona Normal School opened its doors on Sept. 11, 1899 with 23 students, one professor, and two copies of Webster's International Dictionary bound in sheepskin. The Normal School's first president, Almon Nicholas Taylor, later assisted by Frances Bury, had scoured the countryside in horse and buggy seeking students to fill the classrooms of the sole building, now known as Old Main. From the students they recruited, four women made up the first graduating class of 1901 and received lifetime teaching certificates for the Arizona Territory.

The fall of 1915 marked the first time that the boys' athletic teams were referred to as the "lumberjacks," when they played their first interscholastic football game against Winslow High School.

2009 is an important landmark in Northern Arizona University’s history. It marks 110 years of academic excellence.

Today, Northern Arizona University welcomes students from 48 states and 65 countries and reaches out to students regionally with satellite campuses and opportunities for distance learning. The Arizona Board of Regents oversees the educational opportunities offered by the university. Internationally known, NAU has established partnerships with colleges and universities throughout the world that enhance its comprehensive academic programs.

For more than twenty years, the campus has been the site of the summer training camp of the Arizona Cardinals, 2009 NFC Champions.

Under the leadership of its fourteenth president, John D. Haeger, NAU meets the challenges of a global society and the needs of its students.