At North Carolina State University (NC State) over 30 departments are currently active in varying applications of spatial analysis within their respective fields. Eight of our 12 colleges offer coursework in Geographic Information Systems (GIS); our library is a national leader in the provision of campus and community GIS data services and training; and our Information Technology Division has one of the largest distribution networks of GIS software in the world.

Our academic efforts include the first officially sanctioned Graduate School Certificate on our campus, the establishment of a truly multidisciplinary Graduate GIS Faculty, and the leading library GIS program in the country (the NC State Libraries received an International Special Achievement in GIS award in July 2001). Students and faculty have recognized the importance of GIS to the point that enrollment has swelled to 100+ students per semester in the introductory courses. Many of these students are non-traditional students involved in lifelong learning.

The research program in GIS is also experiencing unprecedented growth and includes a wide range of research efforts funded by federal, state, and local government programs, as well as private foundations. In particular, the efforts in Natural Resources, Soil Science, Civil and Biological Engineering, Design, Education, and Veterinary Medicine have competed very well for large federal grants.

NC State sponsors a variety of GIS outreach programs ranging from continuing support of K-12 programs (over 100 teachers trained as well as thousands of students, including our own Centennial Campus Middle School) to economic planning assistance to North Carolina counties.

The North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service, US Environmental Protection Agency, Advantage West, and the NC Department of Environment and Natural Resources are examples of the many cooperators in our engagement program.

Please visit the teaching, research, faculty, and facilities pages to learn more about GIS at NC State. These pages are part of our UCGIS membership application portfolio. NC State delegates to the UCGIS are:

Hugh Devine, Professor and Chair
Graduate GIS Faculty
(Hugh_Devine@ncsu.edu) and

Steven Morris, Head
Digital Libraries Initiative
(Steven_Morris@ncsu.edu)