University of Montana
Missoula, MT
MISSION
The University of Montana Campus Recreation provides opportunities to thrive through innovative staff, facilities, and programming.
FACILITIES
Campus Recreation at the University of Montana includes the 110,000 square foot Fitness and Recreation Center (FRC) built in 2001. The FRC includes cardio suites, weight room, functional training areas, an indoor track, basketball/volleyball/racquetball/squash courts, 3000 square foot climbing wall and bouldering cave, multipurpose rooms, locker rooms with towel service and saunas and a juice bar.
The Grizzly Pool is the only regulation 25-yard competition pool in the city of Missoula. The seven lane pool also includes its own weight room, sauna, meeting space and locker room facilities.
The Outdoor Program Center, located in the FRC, offers an extensive selection of gear rentals, instructional courses, outdoor trips and certifications.
The University Golf Course is a community treasure, nestled against Mount Sentinel, the course offers 9 holes of championship golfing in a truly spectacular setting. The course features a pro shop, driving range and a full service restaurant.
Campus Recreation also oversees Schreiber Gymnasium, the oldest indoor athletic facility in western Montana. Built in 1922, Schreiber is a popular venue for intramural programs, club sports and rental groups.
The Riverbowl fields and South Campus fields are home to the various outdoor intramural programs as well as a large number of club sport practices and tournaments.
FUN FACTS
- The South Campus sports fields are a popular landing spot for hang gliders and paragliders who launch from the summit of Mount Sentinel.
- Originally known as the Missoula Country Club, the University of Montana Golf Course is the oldest course in the city, established in 1924.
- The FRC is home to a number of pieces of fine art, sculptures, and interesting installations due to the requirement that 1% of the total appropriations for a building in the State of Montana be used for artwork.
- Students can walk out of the Outdoor Program and raft or tube the Clark Fork River in one direction, or climb to the summit of 5,157 foot Mount Sentinel in the other. No car needed.
- Campus Recreation strives to be a leader for sustainability. In the last 4 years the department has committed thousands of dollars to solar panels, new lighting systems, variable speed drives for pumps and air handlers, insulation and other projects geared to reducing both our carbon footprint and our long term expenditures.
- The Grizzly Pool staff conducts the CPR and First Aid trainings for the entire university.
- Campus Recreation hosts 10 weeks of Summer Youth Camps for local kids from kindergarten to 6th grade. The Griz Glow 5K, put on by the camp staff, raises thousands of dollars in scholarships each year to send kids to camp.
- Due to the FRC’s proximity to two of campus’ biggest concert venues, the facility, and its immediate surroundings are often frequented by celebrities on site to do a show.
- The Outdoor Program, along with the Wilderness Institute, conducts the Freshmen Wilderness Experience each August. This program places groups of incoming freshmen on the trails and rivers of the surrounding wilderness areas for 4 days prior to starting school each fall. The goals of this experience is to foster peer networks and engage the incoming students with the University of Montana and its surroundings, both of which are directly correlated to student retention. A recent cohort retained at a level 14% higher than a control group. This video is a great summary of the experience:
