OMAHA AND THE UNIVERSITY IN ITS MIDST

Known as "River City," Omaha began on the rolling hills on the west bank of the Missouri River. Omaha has an enviable cosmopolitan position--a vibrant, thriving and diverse economic base, solid and financially secure school systems, inviting tax incentives for attracting and retaining business, nationally renowned medical facilities, a broad spectrum of religious affiliations and a cultural arts community with an acclaimed ballet, theatre, opera and symphony.

Omaha was ranked as one of the nation's ten best places to raise a family, according to Parenting Magazine, and is nineteenth among the nation's top 95 housing markets and second in housing affordability, according to U.S. News and World Report. As reported in USA Today, the median price of an existing home in Omaha during 1990 was 35 percent lower than the U.S. median. Additionally, Omaha boasts a low unemployment rate and was cited by the 10th Federal Reserve District as one of a group of cities most likely to grow rapidly in the 1990s.

Omaha's population of more than 350,000 and metropolitan area population of some 600,000 take pride in their educational institutions which feature public, private and parochial elementary and secondary schools. The famed Boys Town, the "city of little men," remains an enduring symbol of a community that cares deeply for its children.

Established in 1908, the University of Nebraska at Omaha has embraced and nurtured a relationship with its community. Preferring to be "of" the city, rather than merely "in" it, UNO has forged partnerships and linkages that benefit both Omaha and the University. It shows in the prosperity of our city, its organizations and businesses and in the support of UNO from the public and private sector. UNO enjoys the respect of civic and business leaders and it returns to its community a skilled work force, research resources and public service programs. The relationship works...and it is why UNO is "setting the pace."