Recreation has been integral to the JMU experience since the university's earliest days as the State Normal and Industrial School for Women in the early 1900s. From some of the first organized tennis, basketball, field hockey, volleyball, and swimming programs on campus, to today's comprehensive recreation opportunities, movement and community have long been woven into JMU's history. Today, University Recreation continues a tradition that spans more than a century: creating opportunities for students to stay active, connect, grow, and lead throughout their JMU experience. 

Awards
Employee Alumni
30th Anniversary Merch Store
History of Recreation at JMU
Recreation began with the student body (all female) organizing opportunities for themselves. Over the next several decades, those early tennis and basketball teams evolved into a broader culture of physical activity supported by facilities, traditions, clubs, and an Athletic Association.
  • Fall 1909: Tennis is the first sport to be organized at the State Normal and Industrial School for Women at Harrisonburg

  • November 1909 – February 1910: First basketball teams are organized​

  • March 23, 1910: Athletic Association established, led by a student Athletic Council to supplement the existing physical education program

  • March 1, 1911: Ashby Hall (now Harper Allen Lee) opens, and this dormitory housed the first real gymnasium (later known as the "Little Gym") on campus, located in the basement of the building

  • June 10 – 12, 1911: First graduation commencement / Field Day​

  • Fall 1912: First field hockey teams organized, and the first Student Handbook is published, which provided several recommendations for incoming freshmen, which included “take plenty of outside exercise”

  • ​Fall 1913: First reported volleyball program ​

  • 1919: Athletic Association adds May Day​

  • Summer 1924: The school’s first swimming facility, an outdoor swimming pool, ​opens between the present-day buildings of Moody and Varner

  • October 13, 1926: Walter Reed Hall (now Keezell Hall) officially opened. The building was a new dual-use gymnasium-auditorium and was known as the “Big Gym" 

  • February 21, 1927: Keezell Hall indoor swimming pool opens when President Duke took the first plunge

  • Fall 1927: Construction of a nine-hole campus golf course begins

  • April 1943: Madison College became one of the first institutions in the country to offer a wartime swimming and water safety course to women
As Madison College changed, recreation changed with it. Growing enrollment, particularly the increasing presence of men on campus, led to more sports, more participants, new organizational structures, and growing demand for facilities.
  • October 1946: With limited male day-student enrollment under the G.I Bill, male students at Madison College organized the first male sports team, basketball, named the “Madison Dukes” in honor of Madison President Samuel P. Duke

  • Fall 1950: First Athletic Association Handbook is published. There were twelve organized sports that the Athletic Association oversaw: Archery, Badminton, Basketball, Bowling, Golf, Hockey, Modern Dance, Softball, Swimming, Table Tennis, Tennis, and Volleyball

  • March 1954: Fencing introduced​ into the intramural curriculum

  • 1956: The intramural program was re-named to a new broader title, Recreational Sports

  • 1959: Lacrosse introduced

  • 1954 & 1961: Dr. Lee Morrison and Dr. Patricia Bruce accept faculty positions, who were pioneers in advancing physical education, wellness, and competitive opportunities for women on campus
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  • 1970: Women's Athletic Association renamed Women's Recreation Association
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  • ​1972: Godwin Hall Opens, a shared facility between Athletics, recreation, intramurals, and academics
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  • 1974: Men’s Rugby Club, JMU's first extramural Sport Club is founded​
Recreation transformed from a collection of intramural activities into a professionally managed university program. New leadership, clubs, fitness, special events, student development, and administrative independence laid the foundation for a future recreation facility.
  • Summer 1975: George Toliver named the first full-time Manager of Recreational Activities​

  • 1976: Additions of Intramural Sports and Intramural Executive Council Established​

  • 1978: First women's Intramural Soccer program

  • February 6, 1979: University Recreation Center is announced in the Breeze, however, during construction planning, this was changed to the Convocation Center
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  • 1980: Introduction of instructional clinics to expose new sports to the student body
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  • 1982: Sports Officiating School implemented 
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  • Fall 1986: S.T.A.R.T program is introduced, which incorporated high impact aerobics and a low-impact alternative

  • ​1987: Hillside Fitness Center opens, an expansion for fitness on campus to Godwin Hall, dedicated to group exercise classes
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  • November 1988: The Recreational Activities Department, which had been a part of Intercollegiate Athletics was changed to became a part of the Department of Student Affairs
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  • Summer 1988: Juliette Moore is named new Manager of Recreation Programs
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  • 1992: Godwin Wellness Center opens​

  • 1992: First recorded recreation Graduate Assistants

  • November 1994: Dr. Ronald Carrier, JMU’s fourth president, and other university leaders broke ground for construction to begin on the James Madison University Recreation Center. The project included a synthetic turf field, which was the first synthetic field designated for recreational use on campus.
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  • April 1, 1995: Donna Harper, Director of Health & Recreation hires Associate Director for Health and Recreation, Eric Nickel, who would become the first Director of University Recreation in 1997​
The opening of UREC gave campus recreation something it had never truly possessed before: a home designed specifically for students' recreational needs. Recreation became increasingly connected to wellness, leadership, student employment, professional development, and community, not only defined primarily by intramural competition.
  • September 2, 1996: After 10 years of planning, designing, and construction, the JMU University Recreation Center ("UREC") opened 

  • October 4, 1996: Dr. Ronald Carrier cut the ribbon at the Grand Opening of UREC​

  • December 5, 1997: UREC wins the Athletic Business Facilities of Merit Award​

  • 1998: UREC Hosts NIRSA National Facilities Institute & Collegiate FitExpo Conferences ​

  • June 1998: Atrium Climbing Wall installed 

  • 2000: UREC Wins NIRSA Outstanding Sports Facility Award
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  • 2004: JMU establishes the Morrison Bruce Center
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  • September 29, 2006: Elimination of 10 varsity sports to comply with Title IX. These teams would eventally become Sport Clubs
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  • 2008: UREC’s Upper Turf opened, which provided much needed field space for the Intramural and Sport Club programs

  • 2008: Dr. Linwood Rose, JMU’s fifth president, approved the planning and construction of University Park

  • 2008: Campus Recreation Concentration added to the Sports and Recreation Leadership – Master's Degree program, making it the first and only concentration in the country
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  • 2008: Then-Presidential Candidate Barack Obama Spoke on UREC Lower Turf, prior to a campaign event in the Convocation Center

  • May 2010: First cohort of the Sport & Recreation Leadership, Campus Recreation concentration Graduates
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  • July 2010: University Park, an 85-acre recreational outdoor complex, construction begins
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  • September 11, 2012: Jon Alger. JMU’s sixth president, cut the ribbon to officially open University Park during the Grand Opening
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  • 2013: UREC assumes responsibilities for East Campus Fields and added an Archery Range in 2013
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  • April 4, 2013: 18-hole Disc Golf Course opens at University Park

  • January 24, 2013: The Breeze reports that UREC will be working on the expansion of UREC - that will nearly double its size - due to student population increase and crowded spaces

  • October 24, 2013: TEAM Challenge Course opens at University Park

  • 2014: Synthetic Multi-Purpose Turf Field Installed on East Campus (now John Carr Field)​​
Campus recreation expanded beyond traditional gyms, leagues, and fitness programs. New outdoor spaces, wellness initiatives, adventure programs, technology, innovative facilities, and trails created opportunities for students to find recreation in increasingly diverse ways.
  • January 10, 2016: In January 2016, UREC’s facility addition opened, effectively doubling the building size, located directly behind UREC, on the former site of the UREC Lower Turf. The addition was certified LEED Silver for sustainable construction efforts. Facilities are included in the new space: weight spaces, fitness spaces, cardio spaces, six group fitness studios, three multi-activity centers, an indoor track, fitness/instructional pool, spa, and an outdoor courtyard on the backside of the facility.

  • August 2016: Renovations were completed on the original 1996 building to re-purpose spaces to create dynamic new spaces including an adventure center, wellness center, demonstration kitchen, food service operation, a meditation/mindfulness space and a wet/dry classroom

  • October 7, 2016: President Jon Alger spoke at the Grand Re-Opening and 20th Anniversary Celebration 

  • 2017: UREC wins 2017 NIRSA Outstanding Sports Facility Award
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  • May 2019: First UREC Student Employee Scholarship is awarded
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  • 2020: Eric Nickel wins the NIRSA Honor Award
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  • March- June 2020: James Madison University Recreation Center closes due to Covid-19 pandemic
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  • August 2020: UREC Wins President's Purple Star Award for Innovation in re-opening after the pandemic
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  • ​Fall 2021: Health Promotion professionals move from the University Health Center into University Recreation
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  • Spring 2022: Two racquetball courts are renovated into a Group Training Room
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  • Fall 2023: Health Promotion becomes a Department (Well Dukes) and remains located in UREC
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  • Summer 2024: UREC installs signage for JMU Trail Loops in partnership with the Edith J. Carrier Arboretum

  • Fall 2024: JMU adopts the Okanagan Charter, committing to embedding health into all aspects of campus culture
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  • 2025: Harper-Allen Lee Dance Studio (in the former first gymnasium on campus) and Hillside Pickleball Court renovations are completed

  • October 2026: UREC's 30th Anniversary Celebration

The information presented on this timeline features portions of Kara McClure's James Madison University Campus Recreation Center’s independent study research project as a part of James Madison University’s Graduate Program of Sports and Recreation Leadership. ​Research included content found in this Annotated, Historical Timeline of JMU:

CLICK HERE: An Annotated, Historical Timeline James Madison University: 1908-1909 to 1958-1959
Researched and Written by L. Sean Crowley, 2006

​Several individuals from the JMU community gave their time and expertise for this project. Their efforts added to the verification of several key pieces of information.​

  • Julia Wallace Carr, Professor and SRL Asst. Program Director (Campus Recreation Concentration), Hart School, JMU​
  • Eric Nickel, Director of University Recreation, JMU​
  • George Toliver, Former Manager of Recreational Activities, JMU ​
  • Kristin Gibson, Associate Director for UREC Services & Engagement, JMU​

​There is a margin of error that could have occurred throughout the research method. This is due to the lack of technology and documentation in the years before 1960. ​

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