University Establishment and Charter

The University of Kansas was established by a charter granted by the Kansas State Legislature in 1864 and opened its doors to students in 1866.   The original charter empowered the University, through its own Board of Regents, to confer degrees.

The University of Kansas is a public institution of higher education and operates as an agency of the State of Kansas. K.S.A. §§ 76-711(a), 76-712.  As established by constitutional amendment in 1966, the state educational institutions, including the University of Kansas, are controlled and managed under the supervision of the Kansas Board of Regents. Kansas Constitution Article 6, Section 2.  The Kansas Board of Regents approves the degrees which may be granted by each state educational institution.  K.S.A. § 76-716.  Those approved degree programs are shown at https://www.kansasregents.gov/academic_affairs/program_search.

The Chancellor for the University of Kansas is considered its chief executive officer and is appointed by the Board of Regents. K.S.A. § 76-714.

The University of Kansas Medical Center (KUMC), which is comprised of the Schools of Medicine, Nursing, and Health Professions, is under the jurisdiction of the University of Kansas and is not a separate entity.

KUMC was established in 1905 through the merger of a number of proprietary medical schools; the first building on the present site was opened in 1924. KUMC’s Executive Vice-Chancellor reports directly to the Chancellor of the University of Kansas.

University Charter 1864
Approved Degree Programs

DISCLAIMER: The Office of the General Counsel of the University of Kansas publishes these web pages for general information only. The pages are not intended to provide specific legal advice for any specific situation. Legal advice can be provided only in the course of an attorney-client relationship with reference to all the facts of a specific situation. This information, therefore, must not be relied on as a substitute for obtaining legal advice from a licensed attorney. While we try to provide links to timely and authoritative information, the content of linked sites is subject to local disclaimers, and the Office of the General Counsel makes no guarantees, express or implied, concerning its accuracy. We recommend that users obtain confirmation from official sources of all information found on World Wide Web sites.