{{Short description|Public university in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, US}} {{Use American English|date=August 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=November 2022}} {{Infobox university | name = Southeast Missouri State University | image = Southeast Missouri State University Seal.png | former_name = Southeast Missouri State Normal School (1873–1881)<br />Missouri State Normal School—Third District (1881–1919)<br />Southeast Missouri State Teachers College (1919–1946)<br />Southeast Missouri State College (1946–1973) | image_upright = .8 | established = {{start date and age|1873}}<ref name="SEMO History">"[https://semo.edu/about/history.html Southeast Missouri State University History and Traditions] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120314032225/http://www.semo.edu/whyse/history.htm |date=March 14, 2012 }}".</ref> |accreditation = [[Higher Learning Commission|HLC]] | type = [[Public university]] | endowment = $114 million (2021)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://datausa.io/profile/university/southeast-missouri-state-university|title=Southeast Missouri State University &#124; Data USA }}</ref> | president = Brad Hodson | students = 9,677 (fall 2023) <ref name="2023 Enrollment" >{{Cite web|url=https://dhewd.mo.gov/data/documents/Fall2023EnrollmentReport.xlsx|title=Enrollment Report for Missouri Public and Comprehensive Independent Institutions|date=December 1, 2024|accessdate=February 3, 2024|work=Missouri Department of Higher Education}}</ref> | undergrad = 8,454 (fall 2022) | postgrad = 1,473 (fall 2022) | city = [[Cape Girardeau]] | state = [[Missouri]] | country = United States | campus = [[College town|Small city]] |campus_size={{convert|328|acre|ha|1}} | nickname = [[Southeast Missouri State Redhawks|Redhawks]] | mascot = Rowdy the Redhawk | sporting_affiliations = {{hlist|[[NCAA Division I]] [[NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision|FCS]] – [[Ohio Valley Conference|Ohio Valley]]|[[Midwest Independent Conference|MIC]]}} | website = {{URL|www.semo.edu}} | faculty = 407 | colors = Red and black<ref>{{cite web |url=https://semo.edu/marketing-communications/brand/brand-guidelines.html#colors |title=Brand & Web Guidelines {{!}} SEMO |access-date=November 13, 2022}}</ref><br />{{color box|#C8102E}}&nbsp;{{color box|#000000}} |logo = [[File:Southeast Missouri State University logo.svg|200px]] }}

'''Southeast Missouri State University''' ('''Southeast''' or '''SEMO''') is a [[public university]] in [[Cape Girardeau, Missouri]]. In addition to the main campus, the university has four regional campuses offering full degree programs and a secondary campus housing the Holland College of Arts and Media. The university is accredited by the [[Higher Learning Commission]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=About the University {{!}} SEMO |url=https://semo.edu/about/index.html|access-date=October 7, 2021|website=Southeast Missouri State University|language=en}}</ref>

Enrolling 9,677 students, Southeast offers more than 175 undergraduate degree programs and 75 graduate programs. Originally founded in 1873 as a [[normal school]], the university has a traditional emphasis on teacher education. Five academic units make up the university: the Holland College of Arts and Media; the Harrison College of Business and Computing; the College of Education, Health, and Human Studies; College of Humanities and Social Sciences; and the College of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. The university's thirteen athletics teams compete in the [[Ohio Valley Conference]] of [[NCAA Division I]] and are known as the [[Southeast Missouri State Redhawks|Redhawks]]. The football team competes in the [[Football Championship Subdivision]] of Division I.

==History== Southeast Missouri State University was founded in 1873 when a group of businessmen and politicians successfully lobbied the State of [[Missouri]] to designate [[Cape Girardeau]] as the home of the Third District [[Normal School]]. Originally known as Southeast Missouri State Normal School, the first classes were taught at the nearby Lorimier School until April 1875, when the first university building was completed.

The university has had five names in its history:<ref>Art Mattingly, Normal to University: A Century of Service (Cape Girardeau: Southeast Missouri State University, 1979), 67, 110, 122.</ref> *'''Southeast Missouri State Normal School''', 1873–1881 *'''Missouri State Normal School—Third District''', 1881–1919 *'''Southeast Missouri State Teachers College''', 1919–1946 *'''Southeast Missouri State College''', 1946–1973 *'''Southeast Missouri State University''', 1973–present

The Normal building was described in 1883 by [[Mark Twain]] in ''[[Life on the Mississippi]]'' as "a bright new edifice, picturesquely and peculiarly towered and pinnacled—a sort of gigantic casters, with the cruets all complete."<ref>{{Cite web |title=Life on the Mississippi by Mark Twain: Chapter 25 |url=https://www.online-literature.com/twain/life_mississippi/26/ |access-date=2024-10-08 |website=www.online-literature.com}}</ref> It burned down on April 8, 1902,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://library.semo.edu/info/building_history.shtml |title=About Kent Library |access-date=February 9, 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100124214123/http://library.semo.edu/info/building_history.shtml |archive-date=January 24, 2010 }}</ref> and was replaced in 1906 by Academic Hall, the school's domed landmark building. Academic Hall was designed by [[Jerome Bibb Legg]], who also designed the [[St. Louis Exposition and Music Hall]], and it includes light fixtures from the [[1904 World's Fair]]. Academic Hall today stands at the center of campus and houses administrative offices, classrooms, and an auditorium.

[[Image:SE Academic postcard.JPG|right|thumb|Academic Hall, ca. 1906]] In the 1950s, Southeast Missouri State College had an enrollment of approximately 1,600 students. Enrollment steadily increased to more than 7,000 students in the 1970s. The college moved away from its focus on training teachers and began to offer courses of study in business, nursing, and the liberal arts. The size campus grew rapidly in this same period. In 1956, the institution had ten buildings on campus. By 1975, the number had increased to twenty-two buildings.{{Citation needed|date=October 2024}}

In 1998, the university acquired the former St. Vincent's Seminary located in downtown Cape Girardeau on the [[Mississippi River]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://apps.lib.depaul.edu/speccoll/guides/CapeGirardeau.htm |title=St. Vincent's College, Cape Girardeau |access-date=February 9, 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071231174910/http://apps.lib.depaul.edu/speccoll/guides/CapeGirardeau.htm |archive-date=December 31, 2007 }}</ref> This property has been redeveloped as the River Campus, which opened in Fall 2007 and houses the Earl and Margie Holland School of Visual and Performing Arts.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.semo.edu/svpa/facilities.htm|title=Facilities - Southeast Missouri State University|first=Web Design & Support, Southeast Missouri State|last=University|website=www.semo.edu}}</ref> The construction of the River Campus began to shift the institution's focus towards the visual and performing arts, which today forms the basis of the university's statewide reputation.

Missouri State Normal School Third District President John Sephus McGhee established the University Schools on June 15, 1897. This allowed prospective teachers to gain real-world teaching experience while earning their degrees.<ref>Special Collections and Archives, Southeast Missouri State University, University Schools Collection, Descriptive Overview. [http://library.semo.edu/archives/collections/Finding%20Aids/University%20Schools/University%20Schools%20Descriptive%20Overview.htm]{{dead link|date=November 2016|bot=InternetArchiveBot|fix-attempted=yes}}</ref> As the university expanded its curriculum and extra-curricular activities, so did the University Schools. In 1903, as recent construction allowed for more space for university classes, the training school was able to expand its class sizes as well. The University Schools consisted of an elementary, junior high, and high school. The University Schools closed at the end of the 1986–1987 school year due to increasing costs.<ref>Special Collections and Archives, Guide to the University Schools Collection. [http://library.semo.edu/archives/collections/Finding%20Aids/University%20Schools/University%20Schools%20Title%20Page.htm]{{dead link|date=November 2016|bot=InternetArchiveBot|fix-attempted=yes}}</ref>

=== University presidents === {{div col|colwidth=30em}} # Lucius H. Cheney (1873–76) # Alfred Kirk (1876–77) # Charles Henry Dutcher (1877–81) # Richard Chapman Norton (1881–93) # [[Willard Duncan Vandiver]] (1893–97) # John Sephus McGhee (1897–99) # Washington Strother Dearmont (1899–1921) # Joseph Archibald Serena (1921–33) # Walter Winfield Parker (1933–56) # Mark F. Scully (1956–75) # Robert E. Leestamper (1975–79) # [[Bill W. Stacy]] (1979–89) # Robert W. Foster (1989–90) # Kala Stroup (1990–95) # Bill Atchley (1995–96) # [[Dale F. Nitzschke]] (1996–99) # Kenneth W. Dobbins (1999–2015) # Carlos Vargas-Aburto (2015–2025) # Brad Hodson (2025-Present) {{div col end}}

== Campus == === River Campus === [[Image:BedellHalll.jpg|thumb|upright|Donald C. Bedell Performance Hall]]The River Campus is home to the Earl and Margie Holland School of Visual and Performing Arts. The facilities incorporate two buildings: the Seminary Building and the Cultural Arts Center. These buildings contain the Donald C. Bedell Performance Hall, the Rosemary Berkel and Harry L. Crisp II Museum, the John and Betty Glenn Convocation Center, the Wendy Kurka Rust Flexible Theatre, the Robert F. and Gertrude L. Shuck Music Recital Hall, and the River Campus Art Gallery. It is home to the departments of Art, Music, Theater and Dance. The River Campus hosts many performance series: the Theater and Dance Series, the Symphony Series, the Southeast Ensemble Series, the Jazz Series, the Faculty Recital Series and Sundays at Three chamber music Series. The Rosemary Berkel and Harry L. Crisp II Museum and Art Gallery features rotating touring exhibitions.

=== Regional campuses === Southeast and [[Three Rivers Community College (Missouri)|Three Rivers Community College]] in [[Poplar Bluff, Missouri|Poplar Bluff]] agreed in 2004 to share higher education facilities at three locations in southeast Missouri: [[Sikeston, MO|Sikeston]], [[Kennett, MO|Kennett]], and [[Malden, MO|Malden]]. In spring 2005, Southeast eliminated Three Rivers courses from those centers, citing failure of the community college to pay approximately $10,000 in facilities-use fees. Southeast took over all course offerings at the centers, which have subsequently been named regional campuses of Southeast Missouri State University. Three Rivers Community College filed a lawsuit in March 2005 against Southeast.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.semissourian.com/story/157524.html |title=seMissourian.com: Story: Southeast severs ties to Poplar Bluff community college|publisher=www.semissourian.com|access-date=May 11, 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.semissourian.com/topic/trcc/ |title=seMissourian.com: News : TRCC vs. SEMO dispute |publisher=www.semissourian.com |access-date=May 11, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071029194029/http://www.semissourian.com/topic/trcc/ |archive-date=October 29, 2007 }}</ref> The lawsuit was subsequently dropped, and Southeast and Three Rivers recently announced plans to develop a joint bachelor's degree program in social work.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bnd.com/336/story/753393.html|title=Missouri colleges collaborate on program – Missouri|publisher=Belleville News-Democrat|access-date=May 11, 2009}} {{Dead link|date=September 2010|bot=H3llBot}}</ref> Southeast now operates four regional campuses, at Kennett, Malden, Sikeston, and [[Perryville, Missouri|Perryville]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.semo.edu/extlearn/satellite.htm|title=Satellite Campuses, Southeast Missouri State University |publisher=www.semo.edu|access-date=May 11, 2009}}</ref>

==Athletics== {{Main|Southeast Missouri State Redhawks}} Southeast Missouri State has been a member of [[NCAA Division I]] ([[Football Championship Subdivision|Division I FCS]] for football) since moving up from [[NCAA Division II|Division II]] in 1991. As a result of the promotion in classifications, Southeast Missouri State left the Division II athletic conference [[Mid–America Intercollegiate Athletics Association]] (MIAA) and joined the Division I [[Ohio Valley Conference]] (OVC).

==Student life== {| class="wikitable floatright sortable collapsible"; text-align:right; font-size:80%;" |+ style="font-size:90%" |Undergraduate demographics as of Fall 2023<ref>{{cite web |title= College Scorecard: Southeast Missouri State University|url=https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/school?179557-Southeast-Missouri-State-University|website=College Scorecard |publisher=[[United States Department of Education]] |access-date=June 23, 2025 }}</ref> |- ! Race and ethnicity ! colspan="2" data-sort-type=number |Total |- | [[Non-Hispanic whites|White]] |align=right| {{bartable|75|%|2||background:cyan}} |- | [[African Americans|Black]] |align=right| {{bartable|8|%|2||background:purple}} |- | [[International student]] |align=right| {{bartable|5|%|2||background:#008080}} |- | Unknown |align=right| {{bartable|4|%|2||background:grey}} |- | [[Hispanic and Latino Americans|Hispanic]] |align=right| {{bartable|3|%|2||background:green}} |- | [[Multiracial Americans|Two or more races]] |align=right| {{bartable|3|%|2||background:violet}} |- | [[Asian Americans|Asian]] |align=right| {{bartable|1|%|2||background:orange}} |- ! colspan="4" data-sort-type=number |[[Economic diversity]] |- | [[American lower class|Low-income]]{{efn|The percentage of students who received an income-based federal [[Pell grant]] intended for low-income students.}} |align=right| {{bartable|36|%|2||background:red}} |- | [[Affluence in the United States|Affluent]]{{efn|The percentage of students who are a part of the [[American middle class]] at the bare minimum.}} |align=right| {{bartable|64|%|2||background:black}} |} ===''Arrow'' student newspaper=== The ''Arrow'' is the university's [[student newspaper]]. The second editor of the ''Capaha Arrow'' was [[Rush Limbaugh Sr.]], who became a nationally recognized Missouri attorney and practiced law in Cape Girardeau until just before his death at the age of 104 in 1996; he was the grandfather of the media personality [[Rush Limbaugh]]. After the university changed its mascot from Indians/Otahkians to Redhawks, the newspaper dropped ''Capaha'' and is now known as simply ''The Arrow.'' It is still run by students in the Department of Mass Media and publishes a biweekly newspaper distributed throughout campus. Microfilm and print copies of the ''Capaha Arrow'' dating back to the first issue are available at Kent Library<ref>{{cite web|url=http://library.semo.edu/index.html |title=Kent Library Learning & Research |access-date=February 9, 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140319062720/http://library.semo.edu/index.html |archive-date=March 19, 2014 }}</ref> and Special Collections and Archives,<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://library.semo.edu/archives/index.htm |title=Archived copy |access-date=February 9, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304023217/http://library.semo.edu/archives/index.htm |archive-date=March 4, 2016 |url-status=dead }}</ref> and some stories are also put on ''The Arrow'' website.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.capahaarrow.com|title=The Arrow|website=capahaarrow.com}}</ref>

==Notable alumni== * 1941 [[Velmer A. Fassel]], scientist * 1955 [[Kenneth Dement]], football player, lawyer, and local community leader * 1960 [[Dick Hantak]], football referee * 1960 [[Ken Iman]], football player * 1961 [[Roy Thomas]], comic book writer and editor * 1968 [[Clyde A. Vaughn]], director of the [[Army National Guard]] * 1969 [[James T. Conway]], United States Marine * 1974 [[Linda Godwin]], astronaut * 1976 [[Peter Kinder]], politician * 1979 [[Steve Tappmeyer]], basketball coach * 1980 [[Desi Barmore]] (born 1960), basketball player * 1987 [[Cedric The Entertainer|Cedric Kyles]], entertainer * 1988 [[Jill Pizzotti]], basketball coach * 1990 [[Rodney Charles Wilson]], educator, LGBTQ advocate * 1994 [[Steven Tilley]], Speaker of the [[Missouri House of Representatives]] * 1994 [[Kerry Robinson]], former Major League outfielder for the [[St. Louis Cardinals]] * 1998 [[Angel Rubio]], football player * 2000 [[Jason Witczak]], football player * 2001 [[Neal E. Boyd]], 2008 winner of ''[[America's Got Talent]]'' * 2003 [[Willie Ponder]], football player * 2004 [[Eugene Amano]], football player * 2005 [[Dan Connolly (American football)|Dan Connolly]], football player * 2006 [[Edgar Jones (tight end)|Edgar Jones]], football player * 2007 [[Joe Tuineau]], rugby player * 2014 [[Tyler Stone (basketball)|Tyler Stone]] (born 1991), basketball player in the [[Israeli Basketball Premier League]] * 2016 [[Joey Lucchesi]], baseball player * 2017 [[Antonius Cleveland]], basketball player * 2018 [[Drew Forbes]], football player * 2021 [[Dylan Dodd]], baseball player

==Notes== {{noteslist}}

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== {{commons category}} * {{Official website}} * [https://semoredhawks.com/ Athletics website]

{{Southeast Missouri State University}} {{Ohio Valley Conference navbox}} {{Colleges and universities in Missouri}} {{authority control}} {{coord|37|18|54.45|N|89|31|45.81|W|region:US|display=title}}

[[Category:Southeast Missouri State University| ]] [[Category:Universities and colleges established in 1873]] [[Category:Buildings and structures in Cape Girardeau, Missouri]] [[Category:Public universities and colleges in Missouri]] [[Category:Education in Cape Girardeau County, Missouri]] [[Category:Education in Scott County, Missouri]] [[Category:Education in Dunklin County, Missouri]] [[Category:Education in Perry County, Missouri]] [[Category:Education in Butler County, Missouri]] [[Category:Tourist attractions in Cape Girardeau County, Missouri]] [[Category:1873 establishments in Missouri]]