BOISE, IDAHO — The same year KIVI came on the air in 1974, Boise state officially became a university. And you don't have to look far to see just how much things have changed on campus since then. As we continue celebrating our 50-year anniversary, we take a look back at five decades of growth at BSU.
The famous blue and orange colors of Boise State University are one of the only things that hasn't changed within the state's biggest educational institution.
"We have been blue and orange and the Broncos since we were founded in 1932-33. Students chose the mascot and the colors. But it was in 2013 that we got our big B as the logo with the next year building the plaza with the B," said Boise State University Head of Special Collections and Archives Cheryl Oestreicher.
Of course, an enormous amount of events occurred inbetween those times, but let's start at the beginning.
"We were started as a junior college, so either you could get an associate's degree, or you would take preparatory curriculum to then transfer to a four-year university," said Oestreicher.
In 1965, the school attained four-year status, becoming Boise College. It was a big step, but not quite where they wanted to be.
"So colleges are only four-year institutions and don't have the masters or doctoral degrees, and universities do," said Oestreicher.
Which brings us to 1974, not only significant as the debut of Idaho News 6, but also the year Boise College became Boise State University.
"Makes us eligible for different kinds of funding, for research, all kinds of different things," said Oestreicher.
It only took the new university a year to top 10,000 students in 1975, but it wasn't until 1986 that former assistant athletic director Gene Bleymaier had an idea that would become iconic.
"He had an opportunity, he thought hey let's be a little unique and we'll go for that, plus it was actually a discount. And I don't think anyone could have ever foreseen how incredible it would be that we have this today. It actually just won an award for one of the top sports tourist attractions," said Oestreicher.
Not saying that the iconic blue turf had anything to do with it, but just three years later, BSU reached another huge milestone.
"We became the biggest school in the state in 1989 when we had over 12,000 students and have maintained that since then," said Oestreicher.
In 2007, Treasure Valley voters passed a ballot initiative that would eventually lead to the creation of another popular school two years later.
"It was in 2009 that we officially separated the vocational school which is now College of Western Idaho. And they are growing like crazy and it's so wonderful to see that become so active," said Oestreicher.
Today, Boise State University is one of the most celebrated institutions in the state and a huge draw for higher education students in-state and beyond. The proof is in the numbers.
"We have somewhere around 25 or 26,000 students. And so since we became a university, that means we've grown almost three times of what we were 50 years ago," said Oestreicher.
