Stanford University

Stanford University

Campus from above
Motto	Die Luft der Freiheit weht
Type	Private
Established	1891
Endowment	$17.2 billion
President	John L. Hennessy
Students	17,256
Undergraduates	7841
Postgraduates	9688
Location	Stanford , California , United States
Campus	Suburban
Nickname	Cardinal
Mascot	Cardinal
Website	stanford.edu

Not to be confused withSamford University.

TheLeland Stanford Junior University,often calledStanford University(or simplyStanford), is aprivateuniversitynext toPalo AltoinCalifornia,in the middle ofSilicon Valley, about 37 miles (60 kilometers) southeast ofSan Franciscoand about 20 miles northwest ofSan José,inSanta Clara County.LelandandJane Stanfordopened the university on1 October1891.They named the university after their son, Leland Stanford Jr., who died at young age.

With one of the largest university campuses in the United States, the university includes the Schools of Engineering, Law, Medicine, Education, Business, Earth Sciences, and Humanities and Sciences. Stanford also hostsvolunteerprograms and a teaching hospital.

History

Leland Stanford Jr. died in Europe in 1884. His parents,LelandandJane Stanford,were rich and influential Californians. They chose to turn a farm they already owned into a large university as a memorial to their curious son.Stanford had early trouble, as the school ran low on money, and was hurt by the1906 San Francisco Earthquake.

Herbert Hoover,who later became theUS President,helped the school improve its operations, and later university leaders pushed students and alumni to develop the surrounding area. By the 1950s, cities around Stanford University were filling with technology companies, starting what becameSilicon Valley.

Campus

Stanford has many special areas. In honor of Stanford graduate and US president Herbert Hoover, Stanford hosts a largethink tankand archive called theHoover Institution.Many former students, like the founders ofHP,donate lots of money and have buildings named after them. A largeradio telescopecalled "The Dish" sits on the hills above Stanford.

Student Body

Stanford has about 7,000 undergraduate students, and a larger number of students working on advanced degrees.Few high school students who apply to Stanford are accepted - over the last several years, only four out of every hundred students who applied were offered a spot.

People who worked at or graduated from Stanford University

People who graduated from Stanford University are:

• Nicolas Sadirac(1989), founder and current head of theÉcole pour l'informatique et les nouvelles technologies

People who have worked at Stanford are:

• Mary Sheldon Barnes

Related pages

• Volunteers in Asia- Americannon-profit organizationclosely related to Stanford