District of Columbia

District of Columbia

ORIGIN OF STATE NAME: From "Columbia," a name commonly applied to the United States in the late 18th century, ultimately derived from Christopher Columbus.

BECAME US CAPITAL: 1 December 1800, when Congress first assembled in the city.

MOTTO: Justitia omnibus (Justice for all).

FLAG: The flag, based on George Washington's coat of arms, consists of three red stars above two horizontal red stripes on a white field.

OFFICIAL SEAL: In the background, the Potomac River separates the District of Columbia from the Virginia shore, over which the sun is rising. In the foreground, Justice, holding a wreath and a tablet with the word "Constitution," stands beside a statue of George Washington. At the left of Justice is the Capitol; to her right, an eagle and various agricultural products. Below is the District motto and the date 1871; above are the words "District of Columbia."

BIRD: Wood thrush.

FLOWER: American beauty rose.

TREE: Scarlet oak.

LEGAL HOLIDAYS: New Year's Day, 1 January; Birthday of Martin Luther King Jr., 3rd Monday in January; Washington's Birthday, 3rd Monday in February; Memorial Day, last Monday in May; Independence Day, 4 July; Labor Day, 1st Monday in September; Columbus Day, 2nd Monday in October; Veterans' Day, 11 November; Thanksgiving Day, 4th Thursday in November; Christmas Day, 25 December.

TIME: 7 AM EST = noon GMT.

LOCATION, SIZE, AND EXTENT

Located in the South Atlantic region of the United States, the District of Columbia has a total area of 69 sq mi (179 sq km), of which land takes up 63 sq mi (163 sq km) and inland water 6 sq mi (16 sq km). The District is bounded on the n, e, and s by Maryland and on the w by the Virginia shore of the Potomac River. The total boundary length is 37 mi (60 km).

For statistical purposes, the District of Columbia (coextensive since 1890 with the city of Washington, DC) is considered part of the Washington, DC, metropolitan area, which since 1985 has embraced Calvert, Charles, Frederick, Montgomery, and Prince George's counties in Maryland and Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun, Prince William, and Stafford counties in Virginia, along with a number of other Virginia jurisdictions, most notably the city of Alexandria.

TOPOGRAPHY

The District of Columbia, an enclave of western Maryland, lies wholly within the Atlantic Coastal Plain. The major topographical features are the Potomac River and its adjacent marshlands; the Anacostia River, edged by reclaimed flatlands to the south and east; Rock Creek, wending its way from the northwestern plateau to the Potomac; and the gentle hills of the north. The district's average elevation is about 150 ft (46 m). The highest point, 410 ft (125 m), is in the northwest, at Tenleytown; the low point is the Potomac, only 1 ft (30 cm) above sea level.

CLIMATE

The climate of the nation's capital is characterized by chilly, damp winters and hot, humid summers. The normal daily average temperature is 58°f (14°c), ranging from 36°f (2°c) in January to 79°f (26°c) in July. The record low, −15°f (−26°c), was set on 11 February 1899; the all-time high, 106°f (41°c), on 20 July 1930. Precipitation averaged 39.4 in (100 cm) yearly during 1971–2000; snowfall, 17 in (43 cm). The average annual relative humidity is 75% at 7 am and 53% at 1 pm.

FLORA AND FAUNA

Although most of its original flora has been obliterated by urbanization, the District has long been known for its beautiful parks, where about 1,800 varieties of flowering plants and 250 shrubs grow. Boulevards are shaded by stately sycamores, pin and red oaks, American lindens, and black walnut trees. Famous among the introduced species are the Japanese cherry trees around the Tidal Basin. Magnolia, dogwood, and gingko are also characteristic. The District's fauna is less exotic, with squirrels, cottontails, English sparrows, and starlings predominating. Two species (Hay's Spring amphipod and the puma) were listed as endangered and one (the bald eagle) as threatened by the US Fish and Wildlife Service as of April 2006.

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

The Environmental Regulation Administration (ERA) administers district and federal laws, regulations and mayoral initiatives governing the environment and natural resources of the District of Columbia and the surrounding metropolitan area. The main duty is the protection of human health and the environment as they relate to pesticides, hazardous waste, underground storage tanks, water, air, soils, and fisheries programs. The ERA is responsible for administrating over 30 statutes and regulations.

In 1996, the District had about 250 acres of wetlands, all palustrine (marsh) or riverine, mostly along the tidal reaches of the Potomac and the Anacostia Rivers. The Potomac is an important tributary of the Chesapeake Bay Estuarine Complex, which was designated as a Ramsar Wetland of International Importance in 1987.

In 2003, the US Environment Protection Agency (EPA) database listed 29 hazardous waste sites in the District. Only one site, the Washington Naval Yard, was on the National Priorities List as of 2006. In 2004, the District received a federal EPA grant of $1.2 million for water pollution control projects.

POPULATION

In 2005, the District of Columbia ranked 50th in the nation with a larger population than the last-ranked state of Wyoming, at an estimated 550,521 residents, a decrease of 3.8% since 2000. Between 1990 and 2000, the District's population declined from 606,900 to 572,059, a decrease of 5.7%. The population is projected to decrease to 506,323 by 2015 and 455,108 by 2025.

In 2004, the median age was 35.8. Persons under 18 years old accounted for 19.8% of the population while 12.1% was age 65 or older.

In 1990, the District of Columbia outranked three states in population, with a census total of 606,900, a decline of almost 5% from 1980. As a city, the District ranked 27th in the United States in 2004. The population density in 2004 was 9,057.00 persons per sq mi.

Even as the capital's population has declined, the number of Washington, DC, metropolitan area residents has been increasing, from 3,040,000 in 1970 to 3,251,000 in 1980, to 3,924,000 in 1990, and to an estimated 5,139,549 in 2004. The District's population is 100% urban and extremely mobile.

ETHNIC GROUPS

Black Americans have long been the largest ethnic or racial group in the District of Columbia, accounting for 60% of the population in 2000 (when they numbered 343,312), among the highest percentages of any major US city. In 2004, that percentage had dropped to 57.7% of the population.

Between 1970 and 1980, the population of groups other than white and black almost quadrupled within the Washington metropolitan area, reaching 134,209 in 1980. Southeast Asians made up a significant proportion of the immigrants, as did Mexicans and Central and South Americans. The District's racial and ethnic minorities in 2000 included 44,953 Hispanics and Latinos (up from 33,000 in 1990) and 15,189 Asians (including 3,734 Chinese and 2,845 Asian Indians). There also were 1,713 American Indians living in the District. In 2004, 3% of the population was Asian, 0.3% was American Indian or Alaska native, 0.1% was Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, and 8.5% of the total population was or Hispanic or Latino origin. In 2004, 1.5% of the population reported origin of two or more races.

There were 73,561 foreign-born residents, accounting for 12.9% of the District's total population, in 2000. In addition, the many foreign-born residents attached to foreign embassies and missions contribute to Washington's ethnic diversity.

LANGUAGES

Dialectically, the Washington, DC, area is extremely heterogeneous. In 2000, 83.2% of all District of Columbia residents five years of age or older spoke only English at home, down from 87% in 1990.

The following table gives selected statistics from the 2000 Census for language spoken at home by persons five years old and over. The category "African languages" includes Amharic, Ibo, Twi, Yoruba, Bantu, Swahili, and Somali.

RELIGIONS

As of 2000, the largest number of religious adherents in Washington, DC, were Roman Catholic, with about 160,048 adherents in 42 congregations. Mainline Protestants were next in numbers with the American Baptist Churches in the USA claiming 51,836 adherents in 62 congregations and the Episcopal Church claiming 19,698 adherents in 34 congregations. The Southern Baptist Convention had 38,852 adherents in about 49 congregations; the church reported 1,160 newly baptized members in the district in 2002. The Jewish population was estimated at 25,500 in 2000. About 26.8% of the population did not report affiliation with any religious organization.

The Washington National Cathedral was established by Congress through an 1893 charter with the Protestant Episcopal Cathedral Foundation. The charter was signed by President Benjamin Harrison. The building was completed in 1912.

The international headquarters of B'nai B'rith International is located in Washington, DC, as is the headquarters for Hillel, an organization of Jewish college students groups. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops is also based in the District.

TRANSPORTATION

Union Station, located north of the Capitol, is the District's one rail terminal, from which Amtrak provides passenger service to the northeast corridor and southern points. As of 2006 Amtrak provided daily north south and east-west service from Union Station. In all, four railroads operated 45 rail mi (72 km) of track within the District. The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, or Metro, operates bus and subway transportation within the city and its Maryland and Virginia suburbs. About 40% of working District residents commute by public transportation. In 1994–95, the US Transit Authority awarded grants of $199 million for the Metro.

Within the District, as of 2004, were 1,500 mi (2,415 km) of public streets and roads. In that same year, some 228,000 motor vehicles were registered, and there were 349,122 driver's licenses in force. In 2005, a total of three major airports handled the District's commercial air traffic: Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, just south of the city in Virginia; Dulles International Airport in Virginia; and Baltimore-Washington International Airport in Maryland. Enplanements for the three airports in 2004 totaled 7,661,532 for Reagan Washington National; 10,961,614 for Dulles; and 10,103,563 for Baltimore-Washington. The three airports were the 30th-, the 21st-, and the 23rd-busiest airports, respectively, in the United States that same year. The District also had 14 heliports in 2005.

Although Washington, DC, is not generally thought of as a traditional port, in 2004 the District did have 7 mi (11 km) of navigable inland waterways, and in 2003, it had waterborne shipments totaling 770,000 tons.

HISTORY

Algonkian-speakers were living in what is now the District of Columbia when Englishmen founded the Jamestown, Virginia, settlement in 1607. The first white person known to have set foot in the Washington area was the English fur trader Henry Fleete, who in 1622 was captured by the Indians and held there for several years. Originally part of Maryland Colony, the region had been carved up into plantations by the latter half of the 17th century.

After the US Constitution (1787) provided that a tract of land be reserved for the seat of the federal government, both Maryland and Virginia offered parcels for that purpose; on 16 July 1790, Congress authorized George Washington to choose a site not more than 10 mi (16 km) square along the Potomac River. President Washington made his selection in January 1791. He then appointed Andrew Ellicott to survey the area and employed Pierre Charles L'Enfant, a French military engineer who had served in the Continental Army, to draw up plans for the federal city. L'Enfant's masterful design called for a wide roadway (now called Pennsylvania Avenue) to connect the Capitol with the President's House (Executive Mansion, now commonly called the White House) a mile away, and for other widely separated public buildings with spacious vistas. However, L'Enfant was late in completing the engraved plan of his design, and he also had difficulty in working with the three commissioners who had been appointed to direct a territorial survey; for these and other reasons, L'Enfant was dismissed and Ellicott carried out the plans. Construction was delayed by lack of adequate financing. Only one wing of the Capitol was completed, and the President's House was still under construction when President John Adams and some 125 government officials moved into the District in 1800. Congress met there for the first time on 17 November, and the District officially became the nation's capital on 1 December. On 3 May 1802, the city of Washington was incorporated (the District also included other local entities), with an elected council and a mayor appointed by the president.

Construction proceeded slowly, while the city's population grew to about 24,000 by 1810. In August 1814, during the War of 1812, British forces invaded and burned the Capitol, the President's House, and other public buildings. These were rebuilt within five years, but for a long time, Washington remained a rude, rough city. In 1842, English author Charles Dickens described it as a "monument raised to a deceased project," consisting of "spacious avenues that begin in nothing and lead nowhere." At the request of its residents, the Virginia portion was retroceded in 1846, thus confining the federal district to the eastern shore of the Potomac. The Civil War brought a large influx of Union soldiers, workers, and escaped slaves, and the District's population rose sharply from 75,080 in 1860 to 131,700 by the end of the decade, spurring the development of modern Washington.

In 1871, Congress created a territorial form of government; this territorial government was abolished three years later because of alleged local extravagances, and in 1878, a new form of government was established, headed by three commissioners appointed by the president. During the same decade, Congress barred District residents from voting in national elections or even for their own local officials. In the 1890s, Rock Creek Park and Potomac Park were established, and during the early 1900s, city planners began to rebuild the monumental core of Washington in harmony with L'Enfant's original design. The New Deal period brought a rise in public employment, substantial growth of federal facilities, and the beginnings of large-scale public housing construction and slum clearance. After World War II, redevelopment efforts concentrated on demolishing slums in the city's southwest section. The White House was completely renovated in the late 1940s, and a huge building program coincided with the expansion of the federal bureaucracy during the 1960s.

Because it is the residence of the president, Washington, DC, has always been noted for its public events, in particular the Presidential Inauguration and Inaugural Ball. The District has also been the site of many historic demonstrations: the appearance in 1894 of Coxey's Army (some 300 unemployed workers); the demonstrations in 1932 of the Bonus Marchers (17,000 Army veterans demanding that the government cash their bonus certificates); the massive March on Washington by civil rights demonstrators in 1963; the march on the Pentagon in 1967 by antiwar activists and later Vietnam-era protests; and, in 1995, the Million Man March organized by the controversial Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan.

The District's form of government has undergone significant changes. The 23rd Amendment to the US Constitution, ratified on 3 April 1961, permits residents to vote in presidential elections, and beginning in 1971, the District was allowed to send a nonvoting delegate to the US House of Representatives. Local self-rule began in 1975, when an elected mayor and council took office. The District both prospered and suffered in the 1980s and 1990s. In spite of an expanding economy, the city was wracked by poverty, drug-bred crime, and even gang warfare. In 1989, the federal government mandated $80 million for a program to combat drug abuse in the nation's capital. Crime in Washington has included corruption in high places. In the mid-1980s, the federal government launched an investigation into allegations of bribery, fraud, and racketeering in the award of millions of dollars in municipal and federal contracts. The investigation produced the conviction of 11 city officials. In 1990, the District's mayor of twelve years, Marion Barry, was videotaped smoking crack and was convicted of possessing cocaine. Barry was succeeded that year by Sharon Pratt Dixon, a black lawyer and former power company executive, but reelected in 1994. In 1998, he announced he would not run for reelection, completing four terms of office.

Since the 1970s, many of Washington's residents have supported statehood for the District of Columbia. A proposal for statehood won the majority of votes in a 1980 election, and the name "New Columbia" was approved by voters two years later. In 1992, the US House of Representatives passed a measure approving statehood for the capital, but the Senate refused to consider it.

Mayor Anthony A. Williams was reelected to a second term in November 2002. He pledged to target education, expand opportunities for all district residents, and to keep neighborhoods safe.

In 2004, the National World War II Memorial was completed and opened to the public. The Memorial lies between the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial.

STATE GOVERNMENT

The District of Columbia is the seat of the federal government and is home to the principal organs of the legislative, executive, and judicial branches. Both the US Senate and House have subcommittees (of the Appropriations Committees) to oversee federal spending within the District. The District's residents have only limited representation in the House, where an elected delegate may participate in discussions and votes on bills within the District of Columbia subcommittees but may not vote on measures on the floor of the House. The District has no representation in the Senate. In 1978, Congress approved an amendment to the US Constitution granting the District two US senators and at least one representative; however, the amendment failed to become law when it was not ratified by the necessary 38 state legislatures by August 1985 (by that time only 16 states had approved the amendment).

In 1982, elected delegates to a District of Columbia statehood convention drafted a constitution for the proposed State of New Columbia. The petition for statehood was approved by voters within the District and sent to Congress. But in 1993 Congress voted on and rejected District statehood by 63 votes (277 against, 153 for, and 4 not voting). The bill, which polls have shown has wide public support within the District, can be reintroduced.

The Council of the District of Columbia, the unicameral legislative body for the district, is comprised of 13 representatives who serve four-year terms. Council members must be at least 18 years old, district residents and qualified voters. Prior to 1973, the mayor and council members were appointed by the US president; since 1973, they have been elected by the District's voters. The body was given full legislative powers in 1974. The council meets every year, beginning in January. In 2004, the legislative salary was $92,500 per year.

Voters must be US citizens, at least 18 years old, residents of Washington, DC for at least 30 days prior to election day, and not able to claim the right to vote elsewhere. Restrictions apply to convicted felons and those declared mentally incompetent by the court.

POLITICAL PARTIES

Washington, DC, is the headquarters of the Democratic and Republican parties, the nation's major political organizations. The District itself is overwhelmingly Democratic: in 1992 and again in 1996, Democratic presidential candidate Bill Clinton garnered an impressive 85% of the District's voters. Democrat Al Gore repeated this performance in 2000, capturing 85% of the vote to Republican candidate George W. Bush's 9% and Green Party candidate Ralph Nader's 5%. In fact, since 1964, when they were first permitted to vote for president, DC voters have unfailingly cast their ballots for the Democratic nominee. In 2002, there were 363,211 registered voters. As of 2003, the district had three electoral votes.

The first mayor, Walter Washington, was defeated for reelection in 1978 by Marion S. Barry Jr., who was reelected in 1982 and

again in 1986. Sharon Pratt Dixon was elected mayor in 1990. In 1994, Marion S. Barry Jr., returning to political life after serving a six-month jail term for a 1990 drug conviction, defeated Republican Carol Schwartz in the mayoral contest. Schwartz previously lost to Barry in the mayoral election of 1986. Anthony Williams was elected mayor in 1998 and reelected in 2002.

Eleanor Holmes Norton serves as the District's delegate to the House of Representatives.

LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Local government in the District of Columbia operates under authority delegated by Congress. In 1973, for the first time in more than a century, Congress provided the District with a home-rule charter, allowing Washington, DC, residents to elect their own mayor and city council. Residents of the District approved the charter on 7 May 1974, and a new elected government took office on 1 January 1975.

The mayor has traditionally been the District's chief executive, and the council is the legislative branch; however, under constitutional authority, Congress can enact laws on any subject affecting the District, and all legislation enacted by the District is subject to congressional veto. In response to both a managerial and budgetary crisis, Congress passed the District of Columbia Financial Responsibility and Management Assistance Act of 1995. This law established a Control Board that has broad powers to review all actions of the DC government and must approve the financial plans and budget for the city before submission to Congress. Home rule was further eroded when in 1997 Congress took responsibility for most major agencies away from the mayor and gave them to the Control Board.

The council consists of 13 members: the council chairman and 4 members elected at large, and 8 elected by wards. The 12-member Board of Education consists of eight officials elected by ward and four elected at-large, including one at-large member elected by students. They serve for four years. As of 2005, there were two public school systems in the District. The charter also provides for 36 neighborhood advisory commissions, whose seats are filled through nonpartisan elections.

In 2005, local government accounted for about 45,951 full-time (or equivalent) employment positions.

STATE SERVICES

To address the continuing threat of terrorism and to work with the federal Department of Homeland Security, homeland security in the District of Columbia operates under executive authority; the deputy mayor for public safety is designated as the state homeland security advisor for the District.

Public education in the District is the responsibility of a chief executive officer and board of trustees appointed by the Control Board and the University of the District of Columbia Board of Trustees. The elected Board of Education is left with very little authority. Transportation services are provided through the Department of Transportation and the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, while health and welfare services fall within the jurisdiction of the Department of Human Services. The Office of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs, Department of Corrections, District of Columbia National Guard, and Metropolitan Police Department provide public protection services, and the Department of Housing and Community Development is the main housing agency. Employment and job-training programs are offered through the Department of Employment Services.

JUDICIAL SYSTEM

All judges in Washington, DC, are nominated by the president of the United States from a list of persons recommended by the District of Columbia Nomination Commission, and appointed upon the advice and consent of the Senate. The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia functions in a manner similar to that of a state supreme court; it also has original jurisdiction over federal crimes. The court consists of a chief judge and eight associate judges, all serving 15-year terms. The Superior Court of the District of Columbia, the trial court, consisted in 1999 of five divisions and 16 judges, also serving for 15 years. Washington, DC, is the site of the US Supreme Court and the US Department of Justice. The District of Columbia is the only US jurisdiction where the US Attorney's Office, an arm of the Justice Department, and not the local government, prosecutes criminal offenders for non-federal crimes.

Prisoners sentenced to more than one year come under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Prisons.

According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the District of Columbia in 2004 had a violent crime rate (murder/nonnegligent manslaughter; forcible rape; robbery; aggravated assault) of 1,371.2 reported incidents per 100,000 population, or a total of 7,590 reported incidents. Crimes against property (burglary; larceny/theft; and motor vehicle theft) in that same year totaled 26,896 reported incidents, or 4,859.1 reported incidents per 100,000 people. The District of Columbia has no death penalty. The last execution took place in 1957. District residents voted 2-1 against the death penalty in 1992. There is a provision for life without parole.

In 2003, Washington, DC, spent $1,891,475,962 on homeland security, an average of $2,364 per district resident.

ARMED FORCES

In 2004, there were 24,328 active-duty military personnel stationed in the District of Columbia, with the vast majority, 10,109, at the Pentagon as the Washington Headquarters Services (WHS). The WHS maintains and operates the Pentagon Reservation, the headquarters of the US Department of Defense, which covers 34 acres (14 hectares) of Arlington, Virginia, across the Potomac. In addition there were 21,549 civilian employees, of which 6,427 were at the Pentagon. An Air Force installation (Bolling Air Force Base) and the Army's Fort McNair are within the District. In 2005, the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Commission recommended that Walter Reed Medical Center be realigned with the National Naval Medical Center to create a Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland. Firms in the District received $3.5 billion in federal defense contract awards in 2004, and defense payroll, including retired military pay, amounted to $1.9 billion.

There were 37,377 veterans of US military service in the District as of 2003, of whom 5,807 served in World War II; 4,384 in the Korean conflict; 10,474 during the Vietnam era; and 5,410 in the Gulf War. The federal government expenditures for veterans in Washington totaled $1.2 billion during 2004.

Because Washington is often the scene of political demonstrations and because high federal officials and the District's foreign embassy personnel pose special police-protection problems, the ratio of police personnel to residents is higher than in any state. In 2003, 3,963 police employees were employed in the District.

MIGRATION

The principal migratory movements have been an influx of southern blacks after the Civil War and, more recently, the rapid growth of the Washington, DC, metropolitan area, coupled with shrinkage in the population of the District itself. Between 1950 and 1970, the District suffered a net loss from migration of as much as 260,000, much of it to Maryland and Virginia; there was, however, an estimated net inflow of 87,000 blacks in this period. Net emigration totaled between 150,000 and 190,000 during the 1970s, and roughly 23,000 more during 1981–83.

From 1985 to 1990, the District had a net loss from migration of over 30,000. Between 1990 and 1998, there was a net loss of 139,000 in domestic migration and a net gain of 28,000 in international migration. In 1998, 2,377 foreign immigrants arrived in Washington, DC. The District's overall population decreased 13.8% between 1990 and 1998. In the period 2000–05, net international migration was 20,618 and net internal migration was −53,550, for a net loss of 32,932 people.

INTERGOVERNMENTAL COOPERATION

The District of Columbia, a member of the Council of State Governments and its allied organizations, also participates in such interstate regional bodies as the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority Commission, and Potomac Valley Commission. Counties and incorporated cities in the Washington area are represented on the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments, established in 1957. The District relies heavily on federal grants, which came to over $4 billion in fiscal year 2001. Following a national trend, by fiscal year 2005, that amount had dropped significantly, to $1.91 billion. In fiscal year 2006, federal grants amounted to an estimated $1.787 billion, and for fiscal year 2007 were estimated at $1.934 billion.

ECONOMY

During the 1990s, the number of jobs in the service sector grew by about 50%. Other sectors, however, declined in that decade. Not surprisingly, the public sector has a greater weight in DC's economy than is found in any of the 50 states, where the average contribution from the public sector in 2001 was 12% compared to 35.2% in DC. Also distinct from most of the states, the District's economy was not adversely affected by the national recession of 2001, as the strong annual growth rates at the end of the 20th century—6.2% in 1999 and 8.2% in 2000—continued into the 21st, averaging 7.5% for 2001. In 2002, the military build-up for the war in Iraq was one of the major growth points in an otherwise slowed national economy reeling from a precipitous drops in both domestic and foreign private investment. The recession and slowed economy also meant more work for government agencies.

In 2004, District's gross state product (GSP) totaled $76.685 billion, of which professional and technical services accounted for the largest portion, at $15.264 billion or nearly 20%, with real estate coming in a distant second at $6.068 billion or nearly 8%. In that same year, there were a total of 59,775 small businesses in DC. Of that total, 27,424 firms had employees, of which an estimated 25,600 or 93.4% were small businesses. An estimated 4,393 new businesses were established in DC in 2004, up 8.4% from the previous year. Business terminations that same year came to 3,440. Business bankruptcies totaled 41 in 2004, down 25.5% from 2003. In 2005, the personal bankruptcy (Chapter 7 and Chapter 13) filing rate was 395 filings per 100,000 people, ranking the District of Columbia 38th in the nation.

INCOME

In 2005 District of Columbia had a gross state product (GSP) of $83 billion which accounted for 0.7% of the nation's gross domestic product and placed the state at number 35 in highest GSP among the 50 states and the District of Columbia.

According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, in 2004 District of Columbia had a per capita personal income (PCPI) of $51,155. This ranked first in the United States and was 155% of the national average of $33,050. The 1994–2004 average annual growth rate of PCPI was 5.2%. District of Columbia had a total personal income (TPI) of $28,352,299,000, which ranked 45th in the United States and reflected an increase of 6.5% from 2003. The 1994–2004 average annual growth rate of TPI was 4.6%. Earnings of persons employed in District of Columbia increased from $57,332,497,000 in 2003 to $61,911,331,000 in 2004, an increase of 8.0%. The 2003–04 national change was 6.3%.

The US Census Bureau reports that the three-year average median household income for 2002–04 in 2004 dollars was $43,003, compared to a national average of $44,473. During the same period an estimated 16.8% of the population was below the poverty line, as compared to 12.4% nationwide.

LABOR

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), in April 2006, the seasonally adjusted civilian labor force in the District of Columbia numbered 288,500, with approximately 16,000 workers unemployed, yielding an unemployment rate of 5.5%, compared to the national average of 4.7% for the same period. Preliminary data for the same period placed nonfarm employment at 690,500. Since the beginning of the BLS data series in 1976, the highest unemployment rate recorded in the District of Columbia was 11.4%, in March 1983. The historical low was 4.8% in December 1988. Preliminary nonfarm employment data by occupation for April 2006 showed that approximately 1.8% of the labor force was employed in construction; 21.8% in professional and business services; 8% in leisure and hospitality services; and 33.4% in government.

The US Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that in 2005, a total of 29,000 of the District of Columbia's 259,000 employed wage and salary workers were formal members of a union. This represented 11.3% of those so employed, down from 12.7% in 2004, and below the national average of 12%. Overall in 2005, a total of 33,000 workers (12.8%) in the District were covered by a union or employee association contract, which included those workers who reported no union affiliation. The District of Columbia does not have a right-to-work law.

As of 1 March 2006, the District had a locally mandated minimum wage rate of $7.00 per hour. In 2004, women in the District accounted for 50.1% of the employed civilian labor force. The District of Columbia also serves as the headquarters of many labor organizations.

AGRICULTURE

There is no commercial farming in the District of Columbia.

ANIMAL HUSBANDRY

The District of Columbia has no livestock industry.

FISHING

There is no commercial fishing in the District of Columbia. Recreational fishing is accessible via a boat-launching facility on the Anacostia River. The Mammoth Spring National Fish Hatchery in Arkansas distributed 1,200 channel catfish within the district in 1995/96.

FORESTRY

There is no forestland or forest products industry in the District of Columbia.

MINING

There is no mining in the District of Columbia, although a few mining firms have offices there.

ENERGY AND POWER

As of 2003, the District of Columbia had five electrical power service providers, of which three were energy-only providers, one was a delivery-only provider and one was investor owned. As of that same year there were 225,500 retail customers. Of that total, 198,926 received their power from the sole investor-owned service provider. The energy-only provider had 26,574 customers. There was no data on the delivery-only power supplier.

Total net summer generating capability by the state's electrical generating plants in 2003 stood at 806,000 kW, with total production that same year at 74.144 million kWh. Of the total amount generated, 100% came from independent producers and com-bined heat and power service providers. Petroleum fired plants accounted for all the power produced.

The District of Columbia has no proven reserves or production of crude oil or natural gas. Nor is there any refining capacity. The states of Maryland and Virginia provide the District with its fossil fuel needs.

INDUSTRY

Although the District of Columbia is best known as the nation's capital and a center of political administration, the District does have a small manufacturing sector. According to the US Census Bureau's Annual Survey of Manufactures (ASM) for 2004, the District's shipment value of all manufactured products totaled $271.285 million.

In 2004, a total of 1,876 people in the District earned their livelihood in the manufacturing sector, of which 1,155 were actual production workers. ASM data for 2004 showed that the District's manufacturing sector paid $70.970 million in wages.

Within the District is the Government Printing Office (established by Congress in 1860), which operates one of the largest printing plants in the United States. Also in the District is the Washington Post Co., publisher of the newspaper of that name and of Newsweek magazine; the company also owns television stations.

COMMERCE

According to the 2002 Census of Wholesale Trade, the District of Columbia's wholesale trade sector had sales that year totaling $2.9 billion from 381 establishments. Wholesalers of durable goods accounted for 176 establishments, while the number of nondurable goods wholesalers stood at 186, with electronic markets, agents, and brokers accounting for 19 establishments. Sales data for durable goods wholesalers, nondurable goods wholesalers and those for electronic markets, agents, and brokers in the wholesale trade industry in 2002 was not available.

In the 2002 Census of Retail Trade, the District of Columbia was listed as having 1,877 retail establishments with sales of $3.06 billion. The leading types of retail businesses by number of establishments were: food and beverage stores (506); clothing and clothing accessories stores (355); miscellaneous store retailers (258); and health and personal care stores (185). In terms of sales, food and beverage stores accounted for the largest share of retail sales at $952.5 million, followed by health and personal care stores at $460.4 million; and clothing and clothing accessories stores at $416.2 million. A total of 18,513 people were employed by the retail sector in the District of Columbia that year.

Washington, DC, exported $825 million in merchandise in 2005.

CONSUMER PROTECTION

The Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs has primary responsibility for consumer protection in the District. The Department regulates businesses; land and building use; occupational and professional standards; rental housing and condominiums; health and social service care facilities; and the natural environment.

When dealing with consumer protection issues, the District's Attorney General's Office can initiate civil but not criminal proceedings. It can also: represent the District before regulatory agencies; administer consumer protection and education programs; handle formal consumer complaints; and exercise broad subpoena powers. In antitrust actions, the Attorney General's Office can act on behalf of those consumers who are incapable of acting on their own; initiate damage actions on behalf of the District in court; initiate criminal proceedings; and represent other governmental entities in recovering civil damages under District or federal law.

BANKING

Banking in the District of Columbia began with the chartering of the Bank of Alexandria in 1792 and the Bank of Columbia in 1793; both banks terminated in the early 19th century. The oldest surviving bank in the District is the National Bank of Washington, founded as the Bank of Washington in 1809.

As of June 2005, there were 7 banks/savings and loans/savings banks plus 65 credit unions (CUs) within the District of Columbia. As of that same date, CUs accounted for the vast majority of the assets held by financial institutions in the District, accounting for 85.4% of all assets held or $5.560 billion. Banks/savings and loans/savings banks accounted for the remaining 14.6% or $950 million in assets held. In addition, CUs had 470,150 members or 84.9% of the District's population. Financial institutions are regulated by the DC Department of Banking and Financial Institutions.

INSURANCE

In 2004, District of Columbia policyholders held 363,000 individual life insurance policies worth over $26.6 billion; total value for all categories of life insurance (individual, group, and credit) was over $104.5 billion. The average coverage amount is $73,400 per policy holder. Death benefits paid that year totaled $148.5 million.

As of 2003, there were 10 property and casualty and 1 life and health insurance company incorporated or organized in the District of Columbia. In 2004, direct premiums for property and casualty insurance totaled over $1.4 billion. That year, there were 1,115 flood insurance policies in force in the District of Columbia, with a total value of over $118 million.

In 2004, 51% of residents held employment-based health insurance policies, 5% held individual policies, and 29% were covered under Medicare and Medicaid; 14% of residents were uninsured. In 2003, employee contributions for employment-based health coverage averaged at 19% for single coverage and 23% for family coverage. The District does not offer an expansion program in connection with the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA, 1986), a health insurance program for those who lose employment-based coverage due to termination or reduction of work hours.

In 2003, there were 210,515 auto insurance policies in effect for private passenger cars. Required minimum coverage includes bodily injury liability of up to $25,000 per individual and $50,000 for all persons injured in an accident, as well as property damage liability of $10,000. Uninsured motorist coverage is also required. In 2003, the average expenditure per vehicle for insurance coverage was $1,129.31, which ranked as the third-highest average in the nation (after New Jersey and New York).

SECURITIES

There are no securities exchanges in the District of Columbia. In 2005, there were 740 personal financial advisers employed in the District and 890 securities, commodities, and financial services sales agents. In 2004, there were over 34 publicly traded companies within the District, with 11 NASDAQ companies, 11 NYSE listings, and 2 AMEX listings. In 2006, the District had two Fortune 500 companies; Pepco Holdings (Potomac Electric Power Company) ranked first in the District and 283rd in the nation, with revenues of over $8 billion, followed by Danaher. Washington Post, Harman International Industries, and WGL Holdings made the Fortune 1,000 listing. All five companies are traded on the NYSE.

The headquarters of the US Securities and Exchange Commission is located in Washington, DC.

PUBLIC FINANCE

The budget for the District of Columbia is prepared in conjunction with the mayor's office and reviewed by the city council, but is subject to review and approval by the Congress. The fiscal year (FY) runs from 1 October through 30 September.

The local tax base is limited by a shortage of taxable real estate, much of the District being occupied by government buildings and federal reservations. Moreover, Congress has not allowed the District to tax the incomes of people who work in Washington but live in the suburbs, an objective the District government has urgently sought.

In fiscal year 2004, federal government grants to the District of Columbia were nearly $4.2 billion.

In the fiscal year 2007 federal budget, the District of Columbia was slated to receive: $214 million for the DC Court Services and Offender Supervision Agency, a $15 million increase over 2006; $35 million for the DC Resident Tuition Assistance program, an increase of $2 million over 2006. This program allows DC residents to attend public colleges nationwide at in-state tuition rates; $30 million to construct a new central library and renovate neighborhood branches for the District; $26 million to improve school facilities in the District; $20 million to expand the Navy Yard Metro station; $15 million for DC School Choice, a program that provides parents more options for obtaining a quality education for their children who are trapped in low-performing schools.

TAXATION

As of 1 January 2006, the District of Columbia had three individual income tax brackets ranging from 4.5% to 9.0%. The District of Columbia taxes corporations at a flat rate of 9.975%.

In 2004, the District collected $1,027,976,000 in property taxes, or $1,856 per capita. Only New Jersey, Connecticut, and New Hampshire have higher per capita property taxes.

The District of Columbia taxes retail sales at a rate of 5.75%. Food purchased for consumption off-premises is tax exempt. The tax on cigarettes is 100 cents per pack, which ranks 19th among the 50 states and the District of Columbia. The District of Columbia taxes gasoline at 22.5 cents per gallon. This is in addition to the 18.4 cents per gallon federal tax on gasoline.

According to the Tax Foundation, for every federal tax dollar sent to the federal government in 2004, DC citizens received $6.64 in federal spending, which ranks the District highest nationally by a wide margin.

ECONOMIC POLICY

The Business Resource Center offers information on doing business in the District. There is an Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development. Community Development Corporations (CDCs) and other community-based organizations work to revitalize distressed neighborhoods throughout the District. The Department for Housing and Community Development (DHCD) facilitates the production and preservation of housing, community, and economic development opportunities. DHCD fosters partnerships with for-profit and nonprofit organizations to create and maintain stable neighborhoods; retain and expand the city's tax base; promote economic opportunities through community empowerment; and retain and create job and business opportunities for the benefit of DC residents. Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) are commercial areas of the District that collect a "self tax" from property owners to provide services and programs to the entire BID. These programs address cleanliness, maintenance, safety, promotion, economic development, among other issues. The Department of Small and Local Business Development (DSLBD) works with the Office of Contracting and Procurement (OCP) to match small, disadvantaged businesses with contracting opportunities with the DC government and elsewhere. DSLBD also fosters economic development of DC's small business community through technical assistance, business seminars, conferences, exhibits, and outreach forums, among other programs.

HEALTH

Health conditions in the nation's capital are no source of national pride. The infant mortality rate in October 2005 was estimated at 10.6 per 1,000 live births, the highest in the nation. The birth rate in 2003 was 13.5 per 1,000 population. In 2000, the District had the highest abortion rate in the country at 68.1 per 1,000 women (the national average was 21.3 per 1,000 that year); however, this figure represented a fairly substantial decrease from the 1992 rate of 133.1 per 1,000. In 2003, about 76.1% of pregnant woman received prenatal care beginning in the first trimester. In 2004, approximately 83% of children received routine immunizations before the age of three.

The crude death rate in 2003 was 9.8 deaths per 1,000 population. As of 2002, the death rates for major causes of death (per 100,000 resident population) were: heart disease, 291.8; cancer, 227.4; cerebrovascular diseases, 48.9; chronic lower respiratory diseases, 23.3; and diabetes, 33.5. The mortality rate from HIV infection in 2002 was the highest in the nation at 40.8 per 100,000 population. In 2004, the reported AIDS case rate was at about 179.2 per 100,000 population, the highest in the nation and well above the national average of 15 per 100,000. In 2002, the District had the lowest rate of suicides in the nation, at about 5.4 per 100,000, but also had the distinction of having the highest rate of homicides at 40.1 per 100,000; the national average rate of homicides that year was 6.1 per 100,000. In 2002, about 50.2% of the population was considered overweight or obese, one of the lowest rates in the nation. As of 2004, about 20.8% of state residents were smokers.

In 2003, the District had 10 community hospitals with about 3,400 beds. There were about 135,000 patient admissions that year and 1.6 million outpatient visits. The average daily inpatient census was about 2,500 patients. The average cost per day for hospital care was $1,824. Also in 2003, there were about 21 certified nursing facilities in the state with 3,114 beds and an overall occupancy rate of about 91.9%. In 2004, it was estimated that about 72,2% of all state residents had received some type of dental care within the year. The District had 752 physicians per 100,000 resident population in 2004 and 1,515 nurses per 100,000 in 2001; these represents the highest health care worker-population rates in the nation. In 2004, there was a total of 575 dentists in the District.

About 28% of District residents were enrolled in Medicaid programs in 2003, with this percentage, the District was tied with California and Tennessee as having the second-highest percentage of Medicaid recipients in the country (after Maine). Approximately 14% were uninsured in 2004.

SOCIAL WELFARE

In 2004, about 17,000 people received unemployment benefits, with the average weekly unemployment benefit at $257. In fiscal year 2005, the estimated average monthly participation in the food stamp program included about 88,799 persons (44,362 households); the average monthly benefit was about $96.94 per person. That year, the total of benefits paid through the state for the food stamp program was about $103.2 million.

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), the system of federal welfare assistance that officially replaced Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) in 1997, was reauthorized through the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005. TANF is funded through federal block grants that are divided among the states based on an equation involving the number of recipients in each state. In 2004, the District program had 44,000 recipients; District and federal expenditures on this TANF program totaled $68 million in fiscal year 2003.

In December 2004, Social Security benefits were paid to 71,670 District of Columbia residents. This number included 46,910 retired workers, 6,770 widows and widowers, 9,270 disabled workers, 2,460 spouses, and 6,260 children. Social Security beneficiaries represented 13% of the District's total population and 77.3% of the District's population age 65 and older. Retired workers received an average monthly payment of $782; widows and widowers, $755; disabled workers, $824; and spouses, $415. Payments for children of retired workers averaged $431 per month; children of deceased workers, $488; and children of disabled workers, $268. Federal Supplemental Security Income payments in December 2004 went to 20,856 District of Columbia residents, averaging $430 a month.

HOUSING

In 2004, the District of Columbia had an estimated 276,600 housing units, of which 248,563 were occupied. Only 43.6% were owner occupied, ranking the District as having the least number of homeowners in the nation. About 38% of all units dated from 1939 or earlier. Only about 13% of all units were single-family, detached homes; the lowest percentage in the country. About 30% of all housing units were in buildings of 20 units or more; which is the highest percentage in the country for this category of housing. It was estimated that about 9.625 units were without telephone service, 985 lacked complete plumbing facilities, and 961 lacked complete kitchen facilities. Most households relied on gas and electricity for heating. The average household had 2.08 members. In 2004, 1,900 new privately owned housing units were authorized for construction. The median home value was $334,702, placing the District as third in the nation for highest home values. The median monthly cost for mortgage owners was $1,612 while renters paid a median of $799 per month. In 2006, the district was awarded over $19.2 million in community development block grants from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

EDUCATION

The District of Columbia's first public schools were opened in 1805. Until 1954, public schools for whites and blacks were operated separately. Although legally integrated, the public school system remains virtually segregated. Most white and many black students attend private schools. In 2004, 86.4% of all residents 25 years of age or older were high school graduates. Some 45.7%, compared to the national average of 26%, obtained a bachelor's degree or higher.

The total enrollment for fall 2002 in the District of Columbia's public schools stood at 76,000. Of these, 59,000 attended schools from kindergarten through grade eight, and 17,000 attended high school. In 2001/02, approximately 86.6% of students enrolled in public elementary and secondary schools were minorities. Total enrollment was estimated at 75,000 in fall 2003 and was expected to be 74,000 by fall 2014, a decrease of 2.8% during the period 2002 to 2014. There were 16,376 students enrolled in 82 private schools in fall 2003. Expenditures for public education in 2003/04 were estimated at $1,077,584 or $12,801 per student, the third-highest among the 50 states. Since 1969, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) has tested public school students nationwide. The resulting report, The Nation's Report Card, stated that in 2005 eighth graders in the District of Columbia scored 245 out of 500 in mathematics compared with the national average of 278.

As of fall 2002, there were 91,014 students enrolled in college or graduate school; minority students comprised 42.5% of total postsecondary enrollment. As of 2005, the District of Columbia had 16 degree-granting institutions, 14 private and 2 public. Some of the best-known private universities are American, Georgetown, George Washington, and Howard. The University of the District of Columbia, created in 1976 from the merger of three institutions, has an open admissions policy for District freshman undergraduate students. It has five academic colleges. The US Department of Agriculture Graduate School also operates within the District.

ARTS

The District of Columbia Commission on the Arts and Humanities was founded in 1968 and is a partner with the Mid-Atlantic Arts Foundation. In 2005, District arts organizations received 57 grants totaling $3,028,225 from the National Endowment for the Arts. The Humanities Council of Washington, DC, was established in 1980 and as of 2004, awarded approximately $125,000 annually to support local programming. In 2005, the National En-dowment for the Humanities contributed $5,003,912 for 43 programs within the District.

The National Endowment for the Humanities contributed $400,000 to the Historical Society of Washington, DC, for community educational programs and exhibits, humanities fellowships of $149,565 to the American Councils for International Education in 2002, and $378,000 to the Folger Shakespeare Library in 2003.

The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, officially opened on 8 September 1971, is the District's principal performing arts center. Its five main halls—the Opera House, Concert Hall, Eisenhower Theater, Terrace Theatre, and American Film Institute Theater—display gifts from at least 30 foreign governments, ranging from stage curtains and tapestries to sculptures and crystal chandeliers. Major theatrical productions are also presented at the Arena Stage-Kreeger Theater, National Theatre, Folger Theatre, and Ford's Theatre. Rep, Inc., is one of the few professional black theaters in the United States; the New Playwrights' Theatre of Washington is a nonprofit group presenting new plays by American dramatists.

The District's leading symphony is the National Symphony Orchestra, which performs from October through April at the Concert Hall of the Kennedy Center. On a smaller scale, the Phillips Collection, National Gallery of Art, and Library of Congress offer concerts and recitals. The Washington Opera performs at the Kennedy Center's Opera House.

During the summer months, the Carter Barron Amphitheater presents popular music and jazz. Concerts featuring the US Army, US Navy, and US Marine Corps bands, and the Air Force Symphony Orchestra are held throughout the District.

LIBRARIES AND MUSEUMS

Although Washington, DC, is best known as the site of the world's largest library, the Library of Congress, the District, or the city proper, had its own public library system, which for the fiscal year ending in September 2001, consisted of a central or main library and 26 branch libraries. In that same year the system had 2,472,000 volumes of books and serial publications, with a circulation of 1,191,000. The system also had 298,000 audio and 17,000 video items, and one bookmobile. Operating income for fiscal year 2001 totaled $27,223,000, of which $550,000 came from federal sources and $26,412,000 came from local sources. In that same year, operating expenditures totaled $27,223,000, of which 72.4% was spent on the staff and 9.6% on the collection.

The Library of Congress, as of 1998, had a collection of more than 80 million items, including 26 million books and pamphlets. The Library, which is also the cataloging and bibliographic center for libraries throughout the United States, has on permanent display a 1455 Gutenberg Bible, Thomas Jefferson's first draft of the Declaration of Independence, and Abraham Lincoln's first two drafts of the Gettysburg Address. Also in its permanent collection are the oldest known existing film (Thomas Edison's The Sneeze, lasting all of three seconds), maps believed to date from the Lewis and Clark expedition, original musical scores by Charles Ives, and huge libraries of Russian and Chinese texts. The Folger Shakespeare Library contains not only rare Renaissance manuscripts but also a full-size re-creation of an Elizabethan theater. The District's own public library system has a main library and 26 branches—including the Martin Luther King Memorial Library—with 2,863,296 volumes in 1998.

The District of Columbia was home to at least 93 museums in 2000. The Smithsonian Institution—endowed in 1826 by an Englishman, James Smithson, who had never visited the United States—operates a vast museum and research complex that includes the National Air and Space Museum, National Museum of Natural History, National Museum of History and Technology, many of the District's art museums, and the National Zoological Park. Among the art museums operated by the Smithsonian are the National Gallery of Art, housing one of the world's outstanding collections of Western art from the 13th century to the present; the Freer Gallery of Art, housing a renowned collection of Near and Far Eastern treasures, along with one of the largest collections of the works of James McNeill Whistler, whose Peacock Room is one of the museum's highlights; the National Collection of Fine Arts; the National Portrait Gallery; and the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. Among the capital's other distinguished art collections are the Phillips Collection, the oldest museum of modern art in the United States; the Museum of African Art, located in the Frederick Douglass Memorial Home; and the Corcoran Gallery of Art, devoted primarily to American paintings, sculpture, and drawings of the last 300 years. Washington is also the site of such historic house-museums as Octagon House, Decatur House, Dumbarton Oaks, and the Woodrow Wilson House. Many national associations maintain exhibitions relevant to their areas of interest. The US National Arboretum, US Botanic Garden, and National Aquarium are in the city. In 1999, lawmakers debated plans to build a memorial for Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. between the Jefferson and Lincoln memorials.

COMMUNICATIONS

Washington, DC, is the headquarters of the US Postal Service. As of 2004, about 91.9% of households had telephones. In addition, by June of that same year there were 555,958 mobile wireless telephone subscribers. In 2003, 64.3% of the District households had a computer and 56.8% had Internet access. By June 2005, there were 126,609 high-speed lines in the District, 94,320 residential and 32,289 for business.

In 2005, the District had 4 AM and 13 FM radio stations and 7 television stations. The District had 1,999,870 television households, 70% of which ordered cable in 1999. A total of 47,433 Internet domain names were registered in the District in 2000.

PRESS

Because the District of Columbia is the center of US government activity, hundreds of US and foreign newspapers maintain permanent news bureaus there. The District's major newspaper is the Washington Post. In 2005, the Post, a morning paper, had an average daily circulation of 707,690 and a Sunday circulation of 1,007,487. In 2004, the Washington Post had the sixth-largest daily circulation and the third-largest Sunday circulation in the country. The Washington Times, also published on weekday mornings, had a circulation of 100,603 (43,660 on Sunday).

Press clubs active within the District include the National Press Club, Gridiron Club, American Newspaper Women's Club, Washington Press Club, and White House Correspondents Association.

There are more than 30 major Washington-based periodicals. Among the best known are the National Geographic, U.S. News & World Report, Smithsonian, and New Republic. Important periodicals covering the workings of the federal government are the Congressional Quarterly and its companion, CQ Weekly Report.

ORGANIZATIONS

In 2006, there were over 4,000 nonprofit organizations registered within the District, of which about 2,849 were registered as charitable, educational, or religious organizations. Service and patriotic organizations with headquarters in the District include the Air Force Association, Daughters of the American Revolution, and the 4-H Program. Among the cultural, scientific, and educational groups are the American Film Institute, American Theatre Association, Federation of American Scientists, American Association for the Advancement of Science, National Academy of Sciences, National Geographic Society, Association of American Colleges, American Council on Education, National Education Association, American Association of University Professors, American Association of University Women, and US Student Association. District cultural and educational organizations include the Cultural Alliance of Greater Washington, the United States Capitol Historical Society, and the Historical Society of Washington, DC.

Among the environmental and animal protection organizations in the District are the Animal Welfare Institute and the Humane Society of the United States. Medical, health, and charitable organizations include the American Red Cross. Groups dealing with the elderly include the National Association of Retired Federal Employees and the American Association of Retired Persons. Among ethnic and religious bodies with headquarters in the District are the National Association of Arab Americans, B'nai B'rith International, and the US Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Trade, professional, and commercial organizations include the American Advertising Federation, American Federation of Police, Air Line Pilots Association, American Bankers Association, National Cable Television Association, Chamber of Commerce of the United States, American Chemical Society, and National Press Club.

Virtually every major public interest group maintains an office in Washington, DC. Notable examples are the Consumer Federation of America, National Consumers League, National Abortion Rights Action League, National League of Cities, Common Cause, US Conference of Mayors, National Organization for Women, and the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO). Among the important world organizations with headquarters in the District are the Organization of American States, International Monetary Fund, and International Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

TOURISM, TRAVEL, AND RECREATION

As the nation's capital, the District of Columbia is one of the world's leading tourist centers. Tourism in Washington, DC, generates over $10 billion in direct spending each year and sustains some 260,000 full and part-time jobs. In 2004, there were over 17.7 million domestic visitors and over 1 million international visitors. In 2003, the District of Columbia employed 56, 200 people directly in the tourism industry.

The most popular sites are The National Air and Space Museum, the National Museum of Natural History, National Gallery of Art, Museum of American History, the National Zoo (featuring pandas), the US Holocaust Memorial Museum, Smithsonian Castle, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Lincoln Memorial, Library of Congress, White House, and US Capitol tours. Besides the many museums, there are federal buildings and landmarks, parks and gardens, cemeteries, and war memorials.

Across the Potomac, in Virginia, are Arlington National Cemetery, site of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and the grave of John F. Kennedy, and George Washington's home at Mt. Vernon.

SPORTS

There are six major professional sports teams in Washington, DC: the Redskins of the National Football League, the Nationals (formerly the Montreal Expos) of Major League Baseball, the Wizards (formerly the Bullets), of the National Basketball Association, the Mystics of the Women's National Basketball Association, the Capitals of the National Hockey League, and DC United of Major League Soccer. Hockey and basketball are played in downtown Washington at the MCI Arena, which was opened for the 1997–98 season. In 2005, the Nationals opened their first season in Washington, DC, at the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium. The Redskins began the 1997 season in the new Jack Kent Cooke Stadium in Landover, Maryland. The Redskins have reached football's Super Bowl five times, winning in 1983, 1988, and 1992. The Bullets won the National Basketball Association (NBA) championship in 1978.

In collegiate sports the Georgetown University Hoyas were a dominant force in basketball during the 1980s, reaching the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) championship game in 1982, 1984, and 1985, and winning the title in 1984.

FAMOUS WASHINGTONIANS

Although no US president has been born in the District of Columbia, all but George Washington (b.Virginia, 1732–99) lived there while serving as chief executive. Seven presidents died in Washington, DC, including three during their term of office: William Henry Harrison (b.Virginia, 1773–1841), Zachary Taylor (b.Virginia, 1784–1850), and Abraham Lincoln (b.Kentucky, 1809–65). In addition, John Quincy Adams (b.Massachusetts, 1767–1848), who served as a congressman for 17 years after he left the White House, died at his desk in the House of Representatives; and William Howard Taft (b.Ohio, 1857–1930) passed away while serving as US chief justice. Retired presidents Woodrow Wilson (b.Virginia, 1856–1924) and Dwight D. Eisenhower (b.Texas, 1890–1969) also died in the capital. Federal officials born in Washington, DC, include John Foster Dulles (1888–1959), secretary of state; J(ohn) Edgar Hoover (1895–1972), director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); and Robert C. Weaver (1907–97), who as secretary of housing and urban development during the administration of President Lyndon B. Johnson was the first black American to hold cabinet rank. Walter E. Fauntroy (b.1933) was the District's first delegate to Congress in the 20th century, appointed when that office was reestablished in 1971.

Among the outstanding scientists and other professionals associated with the District were Cleveland Abbe (b.New York, 1838–1916), a meteorologist who helped develop the US Weather Service; inventor Alexander Graham Bell (b.Scotland, 1842–1922), president of the National Geographic Society (NGS) in his later years; Henry Gannett (b.Maryland, 1846–1914), chief geographer with the US Geological Survey, president of the NGS and a pioneer in American cartography; Charles D. Walcott (b.New York, 1850–1927), director of the Geological Survey and secretary of the Smithsonian Institution; Emile Berliner (b.Germany, 1851–1929), a pioneer in the development of the phonograph; Gilbert H. Grosvenor (b.Turkey, 1875–1966), editor in chief of National Geographic magazine; and Charles R. Drew (1904–50), developer of the blood bank concept. Leading business executives who have lived or worked in the District include William W. Corcoran (1798–1888), banker and philanthropist, and Katharine Graham (b.New York, 1917–2001), publisher of the Washington Post and chairman of its parent company; the two Post reporters who received much of the credit for uncovering the Watergate scandal are Carl Bernstein (b.1944), a native Washingtonian, and Robert "Bob" Woodward (b.Illinois, 1943). Mary Elizabeth "Tipper" Gore (b.1948), wife of Vice President Al Gore, was born in Washington, DC. Washingtonians who achieved military fame include Benjamin O. Davis (1877–1970), the first black to become an Army general, and his son, Benjamin O. Davis Jr. (1912–2002), who was the first black to become a general in the Air Force. John Shalikashvili (b.Poland, 1936) was the first foreign-born commander in chief of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

The designer of the nation's capital was Pierre Charles L'Enfant (b.France, 1754–1825), whose grave is in Arlington National Cemetery; also involved in laying out the capital were surveyor Andrew Ellicott (b.Pennsylvania, 1754–1820) and mathematician-astronomer Benjamin Banneker (b.Maryland, 1731–1806), a black who was an early champion of equal rights. Among Washingtonians to achieve distinction in the creative arts were John Philip Sousa (1854–1932), bandmaster and composer; Herblock (Herbert L. Block, b. Illinois, 1909), political cartoonist; and playwright Edward Albee (b.1928), winner of the Pulitzer Prize for drama in 1967 and 1975. Famous performers born in the District of Columbia include composer-pianist-bandleader Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (1899–1974) and actress Helen Hayes (Helen Hayes Brown, 1900–92). Alice Roosevelt Longworth (b.New York, 1884–1980) dominated the Washington social scene for much of this century.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Aikman, Lonnelle. The Living White House. 11th ed. Washington, D.C.: White House Historical Association, 2003.

Allen, Thomas B. The Washington Monument: It Stands for All. New York: Discovery Books, 2000.

Caroli, Betty Boyd. Inside the White House: America's Most Famous Home. Pleasantville, N.Y.: Reader's Digest Association, 1999.

Cary, Francine Curro (ed.). Urban Odyssey: A Multicultural History of Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution, 1996.

Council of State Governments. The Book of the States, 2006 Edition. Lexington, Ky.: Council of State Governments, 2006.

Detzer, David. Dissonance: The Turbulent Days between Fort Sumter and Bull Run. Orlando: Harcourt, 2006.

Furgurson, Ernest B. Freedom Rising: Washington in the Civil War. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2004.

Luria, Sarah. Capital Speculations: Writing and Building Washington, D.C. Durham: University of New Hampshire Press, 2006.

Lüsted, Marcia Amidon. The National Mall. Detroit: Lucent Books, 2006.

Moore, John L. Speaking of Washington: Facts, Firsts, and Folklore. Washington, D.C.: Congressional Quarterly, 1993.

Washington, D.C.

Introduction
Getting There
Getting Around
People
Neighborhoods
History
Government
Public Safety
Economy
Environment
Shoppping
Education
Health Care
Media
Sports
Parks and Recreation
Performing Arts
Libraries and Museums
Tourism
Holidays and Festivals
Famous Citizens
For Further Study

Washington, District of Columbia, United States of America, North America

Founded: 1790; Incorporated: 1790
Location: Potomac and Anacostia Rivers, United States, North America
Motto: Justitia omnibus ("Justice for all")
Flower: American Beauty rose
Time Zone: 7 am Eastern Standard Time (EST) = noon Greenwich Mean Time (GMT)
Ethnic Composition: White, 32.2%; Black, 65.8%; Asian/Pacific Islander, 1.8%
Elevation: 7–128 m (25–420 ft) above sea level
Latitude and Longitude: 38°89'N, 77°03'W
Climate: Mild winters; hot, muggy summers with high humidity; pleasant fall and spring weather
Annual Mean Temperature: 12.2°C (54.0°F); January 2.0°C (35.6°F); July 25.9°C (78.7°F)
Seasonal Average Snowfall: 5 cm (2 in)
Average Annual Precipitation (total rainfall and melted snow): 99 cm (39 in)
Government: Mayor-council
Weights and Measures: Standard U.S.
Monetary Units: Standard U.S.
Telephone Area Codes: 202
Postal Codes: 20001–99; 20101–04; 20201–99; 20301–34; 20336; 20501–99

1. Introduction

Washington, D.C., the nation's capital, is located on the bank of the Potomac River, between the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Chesapeake Bay. Although it has been the seat of the United States government since 1800, it took over a century until the dream of the city's late-eighteenth-century planners—a sophisticated capital with gracious avenues and classic architecture—was realized. In the twentieth century, Washington became a major nexus of national power and influence. At the dawn of the twenty-first century, it is also a cosmopolitan cultural center that draws millions of visitors annually to such sites as the Smithsonian museums, the Library of Congress, and the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, as well as to its historic monuments and government buildings.

2. Getting There

Washington, D.C., is situated along the Potomac River, on the Atlantic coastal plain between the Chesapeake Bay and the Blue Ridge Mountains. It is bordered by Maryland on three sides and by Virginia on the fourth.

Highways

Major interstate routes that access Washington, D.C., include Routes 540 and 50/301 from the east; Routes 7, 50, I-66, and 29/211 from the west; I-270 and I-295 from the north; and Routes 301 and 1 from the south. All other highways reach the city through the Beltway (I-459 and I-95). This heavily traveled and often congested 106-kilometer (66-mile) highway encircling Washington has led to the popular practice of describing events or trends in the capital as "inside the Beltway."

Bus and Railroad Service

With its terminal at First Street N.E. and L Street, Greyhound offers bus service to Washington from almost any point in the nation. Amtrak trains arrive in Washington daily from New York, Boston, Chicago, and Los Angeles (via Chicago). The capital's train depot, the historic and stately Union Station on Massachusetts Avenue, underwent an elaborate restoration in the 1980s and is the site of a three-level mall featuring a variety of shops and restaurants.

Airports

Three airports serve the Washington area—Washington Dulles International Airport, Washington National Airport, and Baltimore-Washington International Airport. Washington National and Baltimore-Washington have recently been renovated, and Dulles airport is in the midst of a major long-term expansion project that will add an underground "people mover" system to transport passengers to and from terminals. All of the major domestic carriers and international carriers, including Air Canada, Air France, British Airways, KLM, Lufthanse, Swissair, and Virgin Atlantic, serve the Washington, D.C., airports. Both Delta Airlines and US Airways operate shuttle flights between Washington and New York City. Frequent weekday service is also available to Boston and Chicago.

Washington D.C. Population Profile

City Proper

Population: 567,000
Area: 159 sq km (61.4 sq mi)
Ethnic composition: 32.2% white; 65.8% black; 1.8% Asian/Pacific Islander
Nicknames: The Capital; The Beltway; The City of Trees

Metropolitan Area

Population: 3,927,000
Description: The District of Columbia and surrounding communities
Area: 16,861 sq km (6,510 sq mi)
World population rank ¹: 61
Percentage of national population ²: 1.4%
Average yearly growth rate: 1.3%
Ethnic composition: 68.1% white; 25.4% black; 6.2% Asian/Pacific Islander

1. The Washington D.C. metropolitan area's rank among the world's urban areas.
2. The percent of the United States' total population living in the Washington D.C. metropolitan area.

Shipping

All three of Washington's airports handle air freight, and the city has a shipping port on the Anacostia and Potomac rivers. Most of its shipping is done, however, through ports in the neighboring states of Maryland and Virginia, in the cities of Baltimore, Norfolk, and Alexandria.

3. Getting Around

Laid out by engineer Pierre L'Enfant (1754–1825), Washington, D.C., was planned as a network of east-west and north-south streets intersected diagonally by wide avenues named for the states. The east-west streets are designated by letters of the alphabet; north-south streets by numbers. The Capitol Building is the central point from which the city is divided into quadrants (Northeast, Northwest, Southeast, and Southwest). The 1.6-kilometer-(one-mile-) long National Mall runs westward from the Capitol, bounded by Constitution Avenue on the north and Independence Avenue on the south. Traffic circles, graced by monuments, fountains, and statues, are located at various intersections, with streets radiating outward diagonally from each one.

Bus and Commuter Rail Service

Regional rail and bus service in the Washington area is operated by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA), created in 1967. Ridership in 1998–99 averaged 383,000 rail, 214,000 bus, and 156,000 combined rail-bus trips. The Metrorail commuter rail service operates on 149 kilometers (92.4) miles of rail line and has 78 stations. The bus system operates a fleet 1,314 buses, with 12,000 bus stops and 1,000 bus shelters.

Sightseeing

Organized sightseeing tours of Washington are available on every conceivable mode of transportation—including bus, trolley, helicopter, boat, and even "duck" tours on amphibious vehicles—and including a variety of specific theme tours, such as historic houses and even a popular "Scandal Tour." Some tours include sights somewhat further afield, such as Mount Vernon, Alexandria, and Arlington National Cemetery. A number of boat companies offer cruises of the Potomac River that include narrated tours of the famous sights visible on shore. In addition, many of the capital's historic sights can be toured on foot.

4. People

In 1990, the population of Washington, D.C., was 697,000, with the following racial composition: 65.8 percent black, 32.2 percent white, and 1.8 percent Asian/Pacific Islander, with other groups accounting for percentages of less than one percent. Hispanics (an ethnic rather than a racial designation) accounted for 5.4 percent of the population. The 1994 population estimate was 567,000. The population of the Washington, D.C., Primary Metropolitan Statistical Area was estimated at 4,603,030 as of 1997. The region's racial composition was listed by the U.S. Census Bureau in 1996 as 68.1 percent white, 25.4 percent black, and 6.2 percent Asian/Pacific Islander. Hispanics accounted for 6.8 percent of the metropolitan area population.

5. Neighborhoods

The Adams-Morgan neighborhood, clustered around Eighteenth Street and Columbia Road N.W., is a colorful multi-ethnic community, one of the first in the country to integrate its public schools. With its distinctly Latin atmosphere, it is known for its ethnic grocery stores, street vendors, galleries, shops, and boutiques, and its restaurants feature a wide variety of ethnic cuisine.

Capitol Hill, or "the Hill," includes not just the Capitol itself but also the Library of Congress, the Senate and House Office Buildings, the Folger Shakespeare Library, Union Station, and the Supreme Court Building. Surrounding these buildings is a quiet residential neighborhood of Federal and Civil Warperiod homes, as well as many art galleries, shops, cafes, and restaurants, as well as a farmer's market. Washington's "downtown" is its business district. In addition to the White House and Lafayette Park, it includes government office buildings, shops, restaurants, theaters, hotels, and Washington's Chinatown.

DuPont Circle, located at the intersection of Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New Hampshire avenues, is a popular cultural hot spot that is home to museums, galleries, bookstores (including some open 24 hours a day), and movie theaters, in an atmosphere of aristocratic rowhouses. Historic Georgetown—settled c. 1665, during the Colonial era, before the city of Washington itself—has long been one of the Capital's most upscale neighborhoods and the residence of many leading government figures and other prominent Washingtonians.

The Foggy Bottom area, between the White House and Georgetown, gets its name from the marshlands that were formerly located there. Today it is the site of the State Department, the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and George Washington University.

The historic Brookland and Shaw communities have been home to many prominent African Americans, including jazz musician Edward "Duke" Ellington (1899–1974), singer Pearl Bailey (1918–1990), and Nobel Peace Prize winner Ralph Bunche (1904–1971).

Embassy Row, on Massachusetts Avenue, is home to most of the capital's 150 foreign embassies, many housed in palatial mansions that are former homes of the Washington social elite.

6. History

In the early years of the Republic, Congress met in more than half a dozen cities before arrangements were made for a permanent capital. The nation's lawmakers eventually proposed the construction of an entirely new city, to be built expressly for the purpose of serving as capital of the fledgling country. The choice of a location necessitated compromises between the different regions of the new country. The Potomac River was settled on as the general region, and George Washington was appointed to select the exact site, to be no larger than 26 square kilometers (ten square miles) in area.

French military engineer Pierre Charles L'Enfant was hired to design the city, and in 1791 he laid out the capital's pattern of broad avenues radiating outward from central circles and squares graced by monuments and fountains. Unfortunately, L'Enfant proved difficult to work with; the Frenchman was fired after one year, and his plans were completed by surveyor Andrew Ellicott, with the aid of Benjamin Banneker, an African-American mathematician and astronomer. By 1800 one wing of the Capitol building had been completed. Abandoning the previous capital site in Philadelphia, the Congress moved into its new quarters, and President John Adams moved into the Executive Mansion.

The city was incorporated in 1802, and a local government—whose structure and operations were to change many times over the years—was formed. However, it took many years until the muddy swampland on the shores of the Potomac conformed to the dreams of the city's founders. The city received a major setback soon after its founding when many of its buildings—including the Capitol building and the executive mansion—were burned down by the British in the War of 1812. Citizens were determined to rebuild, however, and the charred walls of the executive residence were painted white, giving the building its present name, the White House.

Development of the region remained slow in the first half of the nineteenth century, and foreign diplomats and other visitors regularly chided the Americans for the provincial nature of their capital city. During the Civil War (1861–65), the capital became an important supply center for the Union army, as well as a medical base and a refuge for former slaves. Wartime traffic doubled the city's population, from 60,000 to 120,000. At the war's end, Washington was also the scene of one of our great national tragedies, as President Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865; president 1860–65) was assassinated while attending a performance at Ford's Theatre in April 1865.

Washington underwent significant improvement in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, thanks largely to the efforts of two men. Alexander "Boss" Shepherd, an influential political figure during the presidency of Ulysses S. Grant (1822–1885; president 1868–77), and governor of the District of Columbia from 1873, was the driving force behind major infrastructure improvements, including street paving and lighting, sewer construction, and the creation of city parks. In the early 1900s, Michigan Senator James McMillan was instrumental in establishing a commission charged with completing the great monuments and public spaces envisioned a century earlier by the city's original planners. The McMillan Commission (which included noted landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted [1822–1903] and architect Charles McKim [1847–1909], among others—was responsible for numerous improvements. The city's park system was expanded; the Lincoln Memorial and other buildings were designed; the Mall was improved; and Union Station was designed and built. In 1910 President William Howard Taft (1857–1930; president 1909–13) appointed a Commission of Fine Arts to design the monuments and fountains called for in the initial plans drawn up by L'Enfant. The construction of public buildings in the capital received a further boost from the creation of the Works Progress Administration during the 1930s.

World War II (1939–45) brought further expansion to the capital, and as the postwar decades unfolded, Washington, now a major urban center, began to experience some of the same problems as its counterparts—crime, budget problems, and flight to the surrounding suburbs. The capital also became a focal point for major public controversies. Thousands marched on Washington to protest racial inequality in 1963 when the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. (1929–68) delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech at the Lincoln Memorial; race riots erupted after the assassination of King in 1968; and the city became the scene of massive public demonstrations against the Vietnam War (1954–1975).

Washington's local government has been attended by scandal and controversy with the mayoral terms of Marion Barry, Jr., who was returned to office in 1994 after serving time in prison for drug possession. The city's financial woes, which have brought it to the brink of bankruptcy, have resulted in federal control of its finances since 1995. However, in spite of its problems, Washington remains a vital and much-visited city. It added the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum and the Korean War Veterans Memorial to its roster of major public commemorative sites in the 1990s.

7. Government

The District of Columbia is unique in that it is governed as a city, county, and state all at the same time. Since 1790 the government of the district has alternated between federal and local control. Under the terms of a 1973 charter, the capital is currently governed by a mayor and a 13-member council, both popularly elected. Eight council members are elected from specific wards and the rest at large. However, Congress must still approve all laws passed by the local government, as well as its budget. Residents of Washington, D.C., won the right to vote in presidential elections in 1961 and the right to a single non-voting Congressional delegate in 1970.

8. Public Safety

In 1995, violent crimes reported to police (per 100,000 population) totaled 2,662 and included 65 murders, 53 rapes, 1,239 robberies, and 1,305 aggravated assaults. Property crimes totaled 9,505 and included 1,838 burglaries, 5,827 cases of larceny/theft, and 1,840 motor vehicle thefts.

The District of Columbia Fire Department is composed of 32 engine companies, 16 truck companies, and three heavy-duty rescue squads. The department also operates a hazardous materials unit, an air unit, and two fireboats. Its six battalions protect an area of 179 square kilometers (69 square miles) and a daytime population of more than one million.

9. Economy

In recent decades the private sector has played a growing role in Washington's economy. In the 1990s less than 20 percent of the capital's work force was employed by the federal government. Important contributors to the District's economy include the service sector (which employs one out of every three workers), high-technology companies (for whom the federal government provides the world's largest market), financial institutions, printing and publishing, and telecommunications. The largest non-government employers are George Washington University, the Potomac Electric Power Company, Georgetown University, Howard University, The Washington Post, Bell Atlantic Washington, and the Federal National Mortgage Association. In addition, a substantial segment of the capital's business is conducted by the 1,000-plus special-interest groups and national associations who maintain headquarters there.

10. Environment

The Chesapeake Bay, which dominates the ecology of the Washington, D.C., area, is an estuary (a meeting place for freshwater and saltwater). It occupies a delta composed of some 48 navigable rivers and numerous streams known collectively as the Tidewater. Pollution of the bay has long posed a threat to the regional environment. Historically, the major contaminant was raw sewage; today agricultural runoff and industrial pollutants are causes for concern. Since the 1970s environmental groups, notably Save the Bay and the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, have led the fight to preserve the quality of the Bay's water and the ecological balance of the region.

11. Shopping

The Washington area has a wide variety of stores. The city's major shopping venue is the refurbished Union Station, whose three-level arcade abounds in stores of all kinds, as well as numerous restaurants. During the week, Connecticut Avenue N.W. is also a bustling retail center featuring many major chain stores, from Brooks Brothers and Talbot's to Filene's Basement. Other areas popular with shoppers are Adams-Morgan, with its multicultural atmosphere, fashionable Georgetown, and the shopping district on Upper Wisconsin Avenue N.W., in the residential district known as Friendship Heights (and Chevy Chase on the Maryland side), which features upscale stores including Saks Fifth Avenue, Lord & Taylor, Neiman-Marcus, Tiffany's, and Gianni Versace.

12. Education

Washington, D.C., has a well-educated population—more than 25 percent of the population 25-years-old and over have at least an undergraduate college education. In the fall of 1996 the District of Columbia Public School System enrolled 78,648 students in grades K through 12; 3.9 percent were white, and 96.1 percent belonged to minorities. The school system operated 184 schools with 5,288 teachers; pupil-teacher ratio stood at 14.9 to one, and staff totaled 9,318.

Washington, D.C., is home to a number of well-known colleges and universities, including Georgetown University, the country's oldest Roman Catholic university, renowned for its school of international affairs and other departments; Howard University, which has a distinguished tradition as an educational institution for African Americans; Gallaudet, the world's only liberal arts college for the deaf and hearing impaired; and Johns Hopkins University, known for academic excellence in medicine and other fields.

Other well-known colleges and universities in the Washington, D.C., area include American University, George Washington University, Catholic University, Mount Vernon and Trinity colleges, and the University of the District of Columbia. The capital is also home to a number of licensed technical and trade schools. Nearby Maryland is home to the U.S. Naval Academy and the unique St. John's College, the "Great Books School," which offers a rigorous and unorthodox curriculum of Greek and Latin classics studied in their original languages, as well as great works from later eras.

13. Health Care

The major health-care institution in the Washington, D.C., area is Georgetown University Medical Center, which encompasses a hospital, a physician practice, research facilities, a nursing school, a cancer center, and an institute for neuroscience research. In its centenary year, the university hospital, founded in 1898, had 335 staffed beds and recorded 14,603 admissions and 175,322 outpatient visits. More than 2,000 persons were employed at the facility. Altogether, the healthcare system affiliated with the university offers services by 1,500 providers at 18 facilities in the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia.

Children's National Medical Center, an integrated health-care system dedicated solely to treating children, is recognized internationally as a leader in pediatric care. Its medical staff of more than 200 consists of faculty members at the George Washington University School of Medicine.

Washington, D.C., is also home to the Walter Reed Army Medical Center, the U.S. army's largest health-care facility.

In 1995, the Washington, D.C., metropolitan statistical area was served by 9,627 office-based physicians and 42 community hospitals, with a total of 9,836 beds.

14. Media

The capital's major newspaper is the nationally influential Pulitzer Prizewinning Washington Post, which combines local articles with coverage of federal government activities and national issues. In 1998 it had a circulation of 709,578 daily and 1,080,082 on Sunday. Also published daily is the smaller and more conservative Washington Times. The national daily newspaper USA Today is published in nearby Arlington, Virginia. Hundreds of specialized periodicals are published in the Washington, D.C., area. The major regional-interest monthly publication is Washingtonian Magazine.

The capital has six television stations and more than a dozen AM and FM stations. Washington is also the site of National Public Radio's headquarters, from which major news programs, such as Morning Edition and All Things Considered, are broadcast.

15. Sports

The popular Washington Redskins of the National Football League played at Robert F. Kennedy Stadium until 1997 when they moved to the newly completed 78,600-seat Jack Kent Cooke Stadium in suburban Maryland. Washington, D.C., has not had its own major league baseball team since the Senators left for Texas two decades ago, so the area's baseball fans have transferred their allegiance to the Baltimore Orioles of the American League, who play at the historic Camden Yards ball park. In basketball, the Washington Wizards (formerly the Washington Bullets) play at the modern MCI Center in downtown Washington, which is also home to the Washington Capitals hockey team of the NHL.

Georgetown University's basketball team, the Hoyas, has a loyal following among Washingtonians. Washington also has a major league soccer team, DC United, which won the first U.S. national soccer championship in 1996.

16. Parks and Recreation

The Washington, D.C., area has thousands of acres of parkland. East and West Potomac Parks, located on either side of the Tidal Basin, are famous for their cherry trees, which bloom in early spring every year. Altogether, the two parks have more than 3,000 of these trees. The parks also offer facilities for hiking, bicycling, tennis, golf, swimming, and picnicking. Located in West Potomac Park are the Lincoln, Jefferson, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Korean, and Vietnam memorials, a reflecting pool, and a small island inhabited by ducks.

The 708-hectare (1,750-acre) Rock Creek Park, also located within the District of Columbia, stretches from the Potomac River to the Maryland border. The park offers hiking trails, a variety of sports facilities, playgrounds, an amphitheater, and a nature center. Another outdoor venue popular with Washington's residents and visitors is Theodore Roosevelt Island, a wilderness preserve covering 36 hectares (88 acres). The C&O Canal features a 296-kilometer (184-mile) towpath and is used by walkers, joggers, cyclists, picnickers, and boaters.

In addition to its parks, Washington's scenic attractions include several exceptional gardens that are open to the public. The Enid A. Haupt Garden has two underground museums and features elaborate plantings of trees and flowers. The historic United States Botanic Garden, planned by George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and James Madison and opened in 1820, offers greenhouses, a conservatory, and other buildings. The 180-hectare (444-acre) United States National Arboretum, geared primarily toward education and research, includes the National Bonsai and Penjing Museum featuring miniature trees from Japan; the nation's largest planting of azaleas; a Japanese garden; and an herbarium and herb garden.

17. Performing Arts

The Washington Symphony Orchestra, declared the official symphony orchestra of Washington, D.C., in 1993, has a history dating back to 1934, when the ensemble was formed under the name Washington Civic Symphony. In the past decade, under music director Martin Piecuch, the orchestra has attracted increasing audiences and performed with a number of internationally known soloists, including Robert Merrill and Victor Borge. The group has also continued to evolve its mission of community outreach, with both philanthropic and audience support. The orchestra performs in the concert hall of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. The Kennedy Center's opera house is the home of the Washington Opera, which stages its smaller-scale productions in the center's Eisenhower Theater.

The capital has a lively and varied theater scene, which includes previews of many Broadway productions, as well as performances by local repertory companies. The Arena State, the area's oldest theater ensemble, gives eight subscription performances a year on two stages. In addition to performing classic dramas, the troupe is committed to the advancement of multicultural and contemporary theater. The Shakespeare Theatre, which formerly performed at the Folger Shakespeare Library, performs Shakespeare and modern theater classics and offers free summer productions at the Carter Barron Amphitheatre in Rock Creek Park. The Source Theatre Company performs both standard and new plays, with a special focus on new plays. Two more groups that specialize in contemporary theater are the Studio Theatre and the Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company.

After being closed for more than a century, Ford's Theatre—where President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated in 1865—was reopened in 1868, refurbished in a style intended to duplicate its original nineteenth-century furnishings, down to the presidential box in which the president was shot. Original productions are presented most of the year, and there is a performance of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens at Christmas time.

18. Libraries and Museums

Founded in 1896, the District of Columbia Public Library System serves 543,000 people, with an annual circulation of 1,476,935. Its book holdings total approximately 2,863,296 volumes. The library system also operates 25 neighborhood branches. The areas in which it holds special collections include Illustrators of Early English and American Children's Books, Local History and Local Authors, and the Washington Star Newspaper Collection.

The Library of Congress, which celebrated the bicentennial of its founding in 2000, is the world's largest library, with approximately 17 million books, 12 million photographs, two million recordings, and a multitude of other items housed on some 853 kilometers (530 miles) of shelves. Early in its history, the museum purchased the contents of Thomas Jefferson's personal library; much of this great treasure was lost, however, in 1851, when two-thirds of the collection was destroyed by fire (the museum's second major fire; most of its original holdings had been incinerated in an 1814 conflagration). Today the library owns books and periodicals published in some 460 different languages. Included within its collections are the world's largest law library; the largest rare book collection in North America; the papers of 23 presidents; the largest comic book collection in existence; the world's largest collection of American music; and the world's most extensive collection of films and television broadcasts produced both in the United States and abroad.

The Folger Shakespeare Library, a privately funded institution established in 1932, is home to the world's largest collection of the printed works of English playwright-poet William Shakespeare (1564–1616). Its 280,000 books and manuscripts also include thousands of other Renaissance books and manuscripts, and the library functions as a major academic research center for scholars and graduate students throughout the world. Every year the museum is opened to the public in April when Shakespeare's birthday is commemorated. The Folger also serves as a performing arts venue, with concerts and plays presented in its Great Hall and Elizabethan Theatre.

The Smithsonian Institution, established by the federal government in 1846, operates 14 museums in the nation's capital, nine of them located on the Mall, including the National Air and Space Museum; the Joseph H. Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, which is dedicated to modern and contemporary art; the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, a museum of Asian art; and the National Museum of African Art. Among the museums located off the Mall are the National Portrait Gallery, which features portraits of persons who have made significant contributions to the country; the Renwick Gallery, which displays American crafts; the Anacostia Neighborhood Museum; and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, a memorial to the millions of Jews and non-Jews killed by the Nazis during World War II, and an international center for study and documentation of the Holocaust.

The privately operated Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington's oldest art museum, features American paintings but also includes European artworks dating as far back as the Middle Ages. Other private museums in the capital include the National Museum of Women in the Arts, the National Building Museum, and the Textile Museum.

19. Tourism

Washington, D.C., is one of the nation's most popular tourist destinations, attracting nearly 20 million visitors annually. The busiest tourist season runs from April (when the cherry blossoms bloom) to September, and April is the single most popular month to visit the capital.

In 1995 approximately 1,589,000 foreign travelers visited the city, ranking it eighth nationally in this category.

20. Holidays and Festivals

January
Martin Luther King, Jr., birthday observance

February
Chinese New Year Parade

February-March
Washington Boat Show
Washington International Flower & Garden Show

March
D.C. Spring Antiques Fair
Harambee Carnival
Patuxent Wildlife Art Show & Sale
Smithsonian Kite Festival
St. Patrick's Day Parade
Washington Flower & Garden Show

March-April
National Cherry Blossom Festival
Spring Flower Show

April
Dulles International Antiques Show & Sale
National Cherry Blossom Parade
Smithsonian's Craft Show
White House Easter Egg Roll
White House Spring Garden Tours

April-May
Washington International Filmfest

May
Candlelight Vigil
Goodwill Embassy Tour
International Gem & Jewelry Show
Memorial Day Ceremonies at Arlington National Cemetery
Washington National Cathedral Flower Mart

June-July
Festival of American Folklife

June-August
Jazz Art Festival

July
Founder's Day Water Lily Festival
Independence Day Parade

July-August
Washington Theatre Festival

September
Adams-Morgan Day

October
Marine Corps Marathon
Taste of D.C.

December
D.C. Winter Antiques Fair
National Christmas Tree Lighting/Pageant of Peace
Washington Craft Show
White House Christmas Tours

December-January
Capital Area Auto Show
Christmas on "S" Street
Victorian Holiday Festival in Historic Georgetown

21. Famous Citizens

Humor columnist Art Buchwald (b. 1925).

Escaped slave and abolitionist Frederick Douglass (1818–1895).

Jazz legend Edward "Duke" Ellington (1899–1974).

Newspaper publisher Katharine Graham (b. 1917).

Actress Helen Hayes (1900–93).

French-born architect Pierre Charles L'Enfant (1754–1825), who de signed the plan for the nation's capital.

First Lady Dolley Madison (1769–1849).

Socialite Perle Mesta (1891–1975).

Englishman James Smithson (1765–1829), who donated the funds for the founding of the Smithsonian Institution.

Composer John Philip Sousa (1854–1932).

Poet Walt Whitman (1819–1892).

22. For Further Study

Websites

District of Columbia. [Online] Available http://www.dc.thelinks.com/ (accessed October 14, 1999).

Washington DC City Pages. [Online] Available http://www.dcpages.com/ (accessed October 14, 1999).

Washington DC Home Page. [Online] Available http://www.ci.washington.dc.us (accessed October 14, 1999).

Washington Web. [Online] Available http://wwwwashweb.net/(accessed October 14, 1999).

Government Offices

Mayor's Office
441 4th St. NW
Washington, D.C. 20001
(202) 727-2980

Washington City Council
441 4th St. NW
Washington, D.C. 20001
(202) 724-8000

Washington Economic Development Dept.
441 4th St. NW, Rm. 1140 N
Washington, D.C. 20001
(202) 727-6365

Tourist and Convention Bureaus

Washington Convention Center
900 9th St. NW
Washington, D.C. 20001
(202) 789-1600

Washington D.C. Convention &
Visitors Association
1212 New York Ave. NW, Suite 600
Washington, D.C. 20005
(202) 789-7000

Publications

Washington Post
1150 15th St. NW
Washington, D.C. 20071

Washington Times
3600 New York Ave. NE
Washington, D.C. 20002

Books

Abbott, Carl. Political Terrain: Washington, D.C., from Tidewater Town to Global Metropolis. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1999.

Alsop, Stewart. The Center: People and Power in Political Washington. New York: Harper & Row, 1968.

Bernstein, Carl, and Bob Woodward. All the President's Men. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1974.

Brinkley, David. Washington Goes to War. New York: A.A. Knopf, 1988.

Butler, J. George. Simpler Times: Stories of Early Twentieth Century City Life. Arlington, VA: Vandamere Press, 1997.

Caroli, Betty Boyd. Inside the White House: America's Most Famous Home. Pleasantville, NY: Reader's Digest Association, Inc., 1999.

Cary, Francine Curro, ed . Urban Odyssey: A Multi-cultural History of Washington, DC. Washington: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1996.

Cutler, David. Literary Washington: A Complete Guide to the Literary Life in the Nation's Capital. Lanham, MD: Madison Books, 1992.

Evelyn, Douglas E., and Paul A. Dickson. On This Spot:Pinpointing the Past in Washington, D.C. Washington, DC: Farragut Pub. Co, 1992.

Fitzpatrick, Sandra, and Maria R. Goodwin. The Guide to Black Washington: Places and Events of Historical and Cultural Significance in the Nation's Capital. New York: Hippocrene Books, 1999.

Graham, Katharine. Personal History. New York: Knopf, 1997.

Lewis, Roger K. Shaping the City. Washington, DC: AIA Press, 1987.

Seidenberg, Robert. Discover the Sidewalks of Washington, D.C. Photography by Kevin Vandiver and Joe Viesti. New York: Gallery Books, 1989.

Styron, William. The Confessions of Nat Turner. New York: Random House, 1967.

District of Columbia

1 Location and Size

2 Topography

3 Climate

4 Plants and Animals

5 Environmental Protection

6 Population

7 Ethnic Groups

8 Languages

9 Religions

10 Transportation

11 History

12 State Government

13 Political Parties

14 Local Government

15 Judicial System

16 Migration

17 Economy

18 Income

19 Industry

20 Labor

21 Agriculture

22 Domesticated Animals

23 Fishing

24 Forestry

25 Mining

26 Energy and Power

27 Commerce

28 Public Finance

29 Taxation

30 Health

31 Housing

32 Education

33 Arts

34 Libraries and Museums

35 Communications

36 Press

37 Tourism, Travel & Recreation

38 Sports

39 Famous Washingtonians

40 Bibliography

District of Columbia

ORIGIN OF STATE NAME: From “Columbia,” a name commonly applied to the United States in the late 18th century, ultimately derived from Christopher Columbus.

BECAME US CAPITAL: 1 December 1800, when Congress first assembled in the city.

OFFICIAL SEAL: In the background, the Potomac River separates the District of Columbia from the Virginia shore, over which the sun is rising. In the foreground, Justice, holding a wreath and a tablet with the word “Constitution,” stands beside a statue of George Washington. At the left of Justice is the Capitol; to her right, an eagle and various agricultural products. Below is the District motto and the date 1871; above are the words “District of Columbia.”

FLAG: The flag, based on George Washington’s coat of arms, consists of three red stars above two horizontal red stripes on a white field.

MOTTO: Justitia omnibus (Justice for all).

FLOWER: American beauty rose.

TREE: Scarlet oak.

BIRD: Wood thrush.

LEGAL HOLIDAYS: New Year’s Day, 1 January; Birthday of Martin Luther King Jr., 3rd Monday in January; Washington’s Birthday, 3rd Monday in February; Memorial Day, last Monday in May; Independence Day, 4 July; Labor Day, 1st Monday in September; Columbus Day, 2nd Monday in October; Veterans’ Day, 11 November; Thanksgiving Day, 4th Thursday in November; Christmas Day, 25 December.

TIME: 7 AM EST = noon GMT.

1 Location and Size

Located in the South Atlantic region of the United States, the District of Columbia has a total area of 69 square miles (179 square kilometers), of which land takes up 63 square miles (163 square kilometers) and inland water 6 square miles (16 square kilometers). Its total boundary length is 37 miles (60 kilometers).

2 Topography

The District of Columbia, an enclave of western Maryland, lies wholly within the Atlantic Coastal Plain. The major physical features are the Potomac River and its nearby marshlands; the Anacostia River; Rock Creek; and the gentle hills of the north. The District’s average elevation is about 150 feet (46 meters). The highest point, at 410 feet (125 meters), is in the northwest, at Tenleytown. The lowest point is the Potomac, only 1 foot (30 centimeters) above sea level.

3 Climate

The climate of the nation’s capital is characterized by chilly, damp winters and hot, humid summers. The normal daily mean temperature is 58°f (14°c), ranging from 36°f (2°c) in January to 79°f (27°c) in July. The record low, -15°f (-26°c), was set on 11 February 1899. The record high, 106°f (41°c), was set on 20 July 1930. Annual precipitation is an average of 39.4 inches (100 centimeters) annually during 1971–2000. Annual snowfall averages 17 inches (43 centimeters). The average humidity is 75% at 7 a.m. and 53% at 1 p.m.

4 Plants and Animals

Most of the original plant life of the District was destroyed by urbanization. However, the District has long been known for its beautiful parks, which have about 1,800 varieties of flowering plants and 250 varieties shrubs and trees. Boulevards are shaded by stately sycamores, pine and red oaks, American lindens, and black walnut trees. Famous among the introduced species are the flowering Japanese cherry trees around the Tidal Basin. Magnolia, dogwood, and gingko are also characteristic. The District’s animal life includes squirrels, cottontails, English sparrows, and starlings. In April 2006, the US Fish and Wildlife Service listed two species (Hay’s Spring amphipod and the puma) as endangered and one species (the bald eagle) as threatened.

District of Columbia Population Profile

Population by Age Group

5 Environmental Protection

The Environmental Regulation Administration (ERA) administers district and federal laws, regulations,

and mayoral initiatives governing the environment and natural resources of the District of Columbia, and the surrounding metropolitan area. Its main duty is the protection of human health and the environment as they relate to pesticides, hazardous waste, underground storage tanks, water, air, soils, and fisheries programs. In 1996, the District had about 250 acres of wetlands, all palustrine (marsh) or riverine. In 2003, the Environmental Protection Agency’s database listed 29 hazardous waste sites in the District, only one of which was on the National Priorities Listas of 2006.

6 Population

In 2006, the District of Columbia outranked the state of Wyoming in population in with an estimated total of 581,530 residents. The population is 100% urban. The population density in 2004 was 9,378 persons per square mile (3,601.5 persons per square kilometer). Considered as a city, the District ranked 27th in the nation in 2005. In 2004, the median age was 35.8 years old. In 2005, of all residents, 12% were 65 years old or older, while 22% were under 18. The population was forecast to decline to 455,108 by 2025.

7 Ethnic Groups

In the 2000 census, black Americans were the largest ethnic or racial group in the District of Columbia, accounting for 60% of the population with 343,312 people. In 2006, black Americans accounted for 56.8% of the population. Southeast Asians have made up a significant proportion of immigrants, as have Mexicans and Central and South Americans. The District’s racial and ethnic minorities in 2000 included 44,953 Hispanics and Latinos and 15,189 Asians, including 3,734 Chinese and 2,845 Asian Indians. There were also 1,713 Native Americans living in the District. According to the census, there were 73,561 foreign-born residents in the District in 2000, accounting for 12.9% of the total population. In addition, the many foreign-born residents attached to foreign embassies and missions contribute to the District’s ethnic diversity.

8 Languages

Many different dialects of English are spoken in the Washington, DC, area. In 2000, 83.2% of all District of Columbia residents five years of age or older spoke only English at home. Other languages spoken at home included Spanish, Chinese, French, Italian, German, Arabic, Italian, and Vietnamese.

9 Religions

As of 2000, the largest number of religious adherents in Washington, DC, were Roman Catholic, with about 160,048 adherents. Mainline Protestants were next in numbers with the American Baptist Churches in the USA claiming 51,836 adherents and the Episcopal Church claiming 19,698 adherents. The Southern Baptist Convention had 38,852 adherents. The Jewish population was estimated at 25,500. About 26.8% of the population were not counted as members of any religious organization.

The Washington National Cathedral was established by Congress through an 1893 charter with the Protestant Episcopal Cathedral Foundation. The charter was signed by President

District of Columbia Population by Race

Census 2000 was the first national census in which the instructions to respondents said, “Mark one or more races.” This table shows the number of people who are of one, two, or three or more races. For those claiming two races, the number of people belonging to the various categories is listed. The U.S. government conducts a census of the population every ten years.

Benjamin Harrison, and the building was completed in 1912.

10 Transportation

Union Station, located north of the Capitol, is the District’s one rail terminal, from which Amtrak provides passenger service to the northeast corridor and southern points. As of 2006, Amtrak operated north-south and east-west service from Union Station. In all, four railroads operated 45 rail miles (72 kilometers) of track. The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, or Metro, operates bus and subway transportation within the city and its suburbs in Maryland and Virginia. About 40% of District residents commute to work by public transportation.

As of 2004, the District had 1,500 miles (2,415 kilometers) of public streets and roads. In that same year, there were some 228,000 motor vehicles registered, and 349,122 licensed drivers in the District.

Three major airports handle the District’s commercial air traffic: Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, just south of the city in Virginia; Dulles International Airport in Virginia; and Baltimore–Washington International Airport in Maryland. In 2004, passenger boardings for the three airports were: 7,661,532 for Reagan Washington National; 10,961,614 for Dulles; and 10,103,563 for Baltimore–Washington. There were 14 heliports serving the District in 2005.

11 History

The English founded the Jamestown, Virginia, settlement in 1607. Originally part of the Maryland Colony, the region of the present-day capital had been carved up into plantations by the latter half of the 17th century. After the US Constitution (1787) provided that a tract of land be reserved for the seat of the federal government, Congress authorized George Washington to choose a site along the Potomac River in 1791. Washington made his selection and appointed Andrew Ellicott to survey the area. He then employed Pierre Charles L’Enfant, a French military engineer, to draw up plans for the federal city.

L’Enfant’s design called for a wide roadway (now called Pennsylvania Avenue) to connect the Capitol with the President’s House (the White House), a mile away. L’Enfant was dismissed before completion of the work, and Ellicott carried out the plans. Although construction was delayed by lack of adequate financing, President John Adams and some 125 government officials moved into the District in 1800.

On 3 May 1802, the city of Washington was incorporated, with an elected council and a mayor appointed by the president. In August 1814, during the War of 1812, British forces invaded and burned the Capitol, the President’s House, and other public buildings. These were rebuilt within five years. At the request of its residents, Virginia took back its portion of the District in 1846, confining the District to the eastern shore of the Potomac. The Civil War brought a large influx of Union soldiers, workers, and freed slaves. The District’s population rose sharply, spurring the development of modern Washington.

In 1874, a new form of government was established, headed by three commissioners appointed by the president. The 1930s brought a rise in public employment, growth of federal facilities, and the beginnings of large scale public housing construction. The White House was completely renovated in the late 1940s, and a huge building program coincided with the expansion of the federal bureaucracy during the 1960s.

Post-War Era In more recent years, the District’s form of government has undergone significant changes. The 23rd Amendment to the US Constitution, ratified on 3 April 1961, permitted residents to vote in presidential elections. In 1964, residents of the District voted for a president for the first time since 1800. Beginning in 1971, the District was allowed to send a nonvoting delegate to the US House of Representatives, and a local school board was also elected. Local self-rule began in 1975, when an elected mayor and council took office. There was a movement for statehood which won local approval, but was defeated by the US Senate in 1992, when they refused to consider the bill.

The District has both prospered and suffered in the last two decades. An expanding economy increased the city’s office space by 25%, but at the same time, the city has been wracked by drug-related crime and by corruption in high places. In 1990, the District’s mayor of twelve years, Democrat Marion Barry, was convicted of possessing cocaine. Barry was succeeded that year by African American lawyer Sharon Pratt Dixon, who promised to clean house “with a shovel, not a broom.”

In 1994, Marion Barry, returning to political life after serving a six-month jail term for his drug conviction, defeated Republican Carol Schwartz in the mayoral contest. In the election of 1998, Anthony A. Williams was elected mayor. In 2002, Mayor Williams was reelected. He pledged to keep neighborhoods safe, to expand opportunities for District residents, and to target education improvement. Eleanor Holmes Norton serves as the District’s delegate to the House of Representatives.

12 State Government

The District of Columbia is the seat of the federal government and houses the principal parts of the legislative, executive, and judicial branches. The District of Columbia committees of the US Senate and House of Representatives oversee affairs within Washington, DC. The District elects a delegate to the US House who participates in discussions and votes on bills within the District of Columbia Committee, but who may not vote on measures on the actual floor of the House. The District has no representation in the Senate. Within the District, there is wide public support for statehood, but in 1992 Congress rejected District statehood by 63 votes. The bill for statehood, however, can be reintroduced.

The Council of the District of Columbia, the legislative body for the District, has 13 representatives who serve four-year terms. The mayor and council members are elected by District voters. In 2004, the legislative salary was $92,500 per year.

D.C. Presidential Vote by Major Political Parties, 1948–2004

13 Political Parties

Both the Democratic and Republican parties, the nation’s major political organizations, have headquarters in the District. Voters in the District itself are overwhelmingly Democratic, unfailingly casting their votes for the Democratic nominee in every election since 1964. In 2002 there were 363,211 registered voters. As of 2006, the District had three electoral votes. Eleanor Holmes Norton has been the District’s nonvoting member of the House of Representatives since 1991.

14 Local Government

In 1973, Congress provided the District with a home-rule charter, allowing residents to elect their own mayor and a city council of 13 members, all serving four-year terms. The mayor is the District’s chief executive, and the council is the legislative branch. Under constitutional authority, however, Congress can enact laws on any subject affecting the District, and all legislation enacted by the District is subject to congressional veto. As of 2005, there were two public school systems in the District.

15 Judicial System

The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia functions in a manner similar to that of a state supreme court. It also has original jurisdiction over federal crimes. The Superior Court of the District of Columbia serves as a trial court. The District of Columbia is the only US jurisdiction where the US Attorney’s Office, and not the local government, prosecutes criminal offenders for nonfederal crimes. According to the FBI Crime Index, the violent crime (murder/nonnegligent homicide, forcible rape, robbery, aggravated assault) rate in the District was 1,371.2 incidents per 100,000 population in 2004. Prisoners sentenced to serve more than one year fall under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Prisons. The last execution took place in 1957. District residents voted 2–1 against the death penalty in 1992.

16 Migration

The principal migrations have been an influx of Southern blacks after the Civil War and, more recently, the rapid growth of the Washington, DC, metropolitan area. In the period 2000–05, net international migration totaled 20,618 people, while net domestic migration totaled -53,550, for a net loss of 32,932 people.

17 Economy

During the 1990s, the number of jobs in the service sector grew by about 50%, although other sectors saw declines in that same decade. The federal government is the District’s largest employer (the public sector contributed 35.2% of the DC economy in 2001, compared with a 12% average in the rest of the states). The District’s economy was not as negatively affected by the national recession of 2001. The slowed national economy meant more work for government agencies.

In 2004, the District’s gross state product (GSP) totaled $76.685 billion, of which professional and technical services accounted for the largest portion at $15.264 billion or nearly 20% of GSP, followed by real estate at $6.o68 billion or almost 8%. Of the 27,424 firms that had employees, an estimated 93.4% were small companies.

18 Income

In 2004, the District of Columbia ranked first in the United States with a per capita (per person) income of $51,155, compared to the national average of $33,050. For the period 2002–04, the median annual household income was $43,003, compared to the national average of $44,473. During the same period, 16.8% of the District’s residents lived below the federal poverty level, compared to 12.4% nationwide.

19 Industry

Although not known as a manufacturing center, the District does have a small manufacturing sector. The Government Printing Office operates one of the largest printing plants in the United States. Also in the District is the Washington Post Company, publisher of the newspaper of that name and of Newsweek magazine. The company also owns television stations.

In 2004, the shipment value of all manufactured products in the District totaled $271,285 million. In that same year, 1,876 people in the District worked in the manufacturing sector.

20 Labor

In 2006, the civilian labor force in the District of Columbia numbered 288,500, with approximately 16,000 workers unemployed, yielding an unemployment rate of 5.5%, compared to the national average of 4.7%. About 1.8% of the labor force was employed in construction; 21.8% in professional and business services; 8% in leisure and hospitality services; and 33.4% in government.

The District of Columbia serves as the headquarters of many labor organizations. In 2005, a total of 29,000 of the District’s 259,000 employed wage and salary workers were members of a union, representing 11.3% of those so employed, compared to the national average of 12%.

21 Agriculture

There is no commercial farming in the District of Columbia.

22 Domesticated Animals

The District of Columbia has no livestock industry.

23 Fishing

There is no commercial fishing in the District of Columbia. Recreational fishing is accessible via a boat-launching facility on the Anacostia River. The Mammoth Spring National Fish Hatchery in Arkansas distributed 1,200 channel catfish within the District from 1995 to 1996.

24 Forestry

There is no forestland or forest products industry in the District of Columbia.

25 Mining

There is no mining in the District of Columbia, although a few mining firms have offices there.

26 Energy and Power

In 2003, the District of Columbia’s total net generating capability was 806,000 kilowatts, with total electrical output at 74.144 million kilowatt hours. Petroleum fired plants accounted for all the power produced. The District has no proven reserves of crude petroleum and natural gas, nor does it have any refining capacity. All fossil fuel needs are supplied by the states of Maryland and Virginia.

27 Commerce

As of 2002, the District of Columbia’s wholesale trade sector had sales totaling $2.9 billion, while the retail trade sector had sales that same year of $3.06 billion. Food and beverage stores accounted for the largest portion of retail sales at $952.5 million, followed by health and personal care stores at $460.4 million, and clothing and clothing accessories stores at $416.2 million. Exports totaled $825 million in merchandise in 2005.

28 Public Finance

The budget for the District of Columbia is prepared in conjunction with the mayor’s office and reviewed by the city council, but is subject to

review and approval by Congress. The fiscal year runs from 1 October through 30 September. The District of Columbia Financial Responsibility and Management Assistance Authority was created in 1995 in order to deal with the District’s massive debt, and is in charge of its budget and financial planning. In 2004, federal government grants to the District totaled nearly $4.2 billion.

The local tax base is marked by a shortage of taxable real estate, since much of the District is occupied by federal reservations and government buildings. Also, the District cannot tax the incomes of those who work inside the district, but live in the suburbs.

29 Taxation

As of 1 January 2006, the District of Columbia had three individual income tax brackets, ranging from 4.5% to 9%. However, those who work in the District but live in the suburbs are not taxed. The corporate income tax rate was a flat 9.975%. The District levies a 5.75% general sales and use tax, although food purchased for consumption off premises (such as at home) is exempt. The District has a property tax that in 2004 averaged $1,856 per capita (per person). There are also excise taxes on gasoline and cigarettes.

30 Health

Health conditions in the nation’s capital are no source of national pride. In October 2005, the infant mortality rate was estimated at 10.6 per 1,000 live births, the highest in the United States. The crude death rate in 2003 was 9.8 per 1,000 population. As of 2002, the death rate (per 100,000 people) from heart disease was 291.8; for cancer, 227.4; for cerebrovascular diseases, 48.9; chronic lower respiratory disease, 23.3; and diabetes, 33.5. Of all residents, about 20.8% in 2004 were smokers. The HIV-related death rate in 2002 was 40.8 per 100,000 population, the highest in the United States. In 2004, the reported AIDS case rate was 179.2 per 100,000.

The District of Columbia’s 10 community hospitals had about 3,400 beds in 2003. In 2004, there were 752 physicians per 100,000 people, and 575 dentists. There were a total of 1,515 nurses in 2001. The daily average expense for hospital care was $1,824. Approximately 14% of all District residents did not have medical insurance in 2004.

31 Housing

In 2004, the District of Columbia had an estimated 276,600 housing units, of which 248,563 were occupied. Only 43.9% were owner-occupied, ranking the District as having the least number of homeowners in the nation. About 38% of all units dated from 1939 or earlier. Only 13% of all units were single-family, detached homes. About 30% were in buildings of 20 units or more. It was estimated that about 9,625 units were without telephone service, 985 lacked complete plumbing facilities, and 961 lacked complete kitchen facilities. Most households relied on gas and electricity for heating.

In 2004, a total of 1,900 new privately owned housing units were authorized for construction. The median home value was $334,702, placing the District as third in the nation for highest home values. The median monthly cost for mortgage owners was $1,612 while renters paid a median of $799 per month.

32 Education

The District of Columbia’s first public schools were opened in 1805. In 2004, of all residents 25 years of age or older, 86.4% were high school graduates and some 45.7% were college graduates.

Total enrollment in public schools was estimated at 75,000 in fall 2003, but was expected to drop to 74,000 by fall 2014. Enrollment in private schools in fall 2003 was 16,376.

As of fall 2002, there were 91,014 students enrolled in college or graduate school. As of 2005, the District of Columbia had 16 degree-granting institutions, 14 private and 2 public. Some of the best-known private universities are American University, Georgetown University, George Washington University, and Howard University. The University of the District of Columbia, created in 1976 from the merger of three institutions, has an open admissions policy for District freshman undergraduate students. It has five academic colleges. The US Department of Agriculture Graduate School also operates within the District.

33 Arts

The District of Columbia Commission on the Arts and Humanities was founded in 1968 and is a partner with the Mid-Atlantic Arts Foundation. The Humanities Council of Washington, DC, was established in 1980, and acts in support of local programs.

The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, opened in 1971, and is the District’s principal performing arts center. Its five main halls, including the Opera House, Concert Hall, Eisenhower Theater, Terrace Theatre, and American Film Institute Theater, display gifts from at least 30 foreign governments, ranging from stage curtains and tapestries, to sculptures and crystal chandeliers. Major theatrical productions are also presented at the Arena Stage–Kreeger Theater, National Theatre, Folger Theatre, and Ford’s Theatre. Rep, Inc. is one of the few professional African American theaters in the United States. The New Playwrights’ Theatre of Washington is a nonprofit group presenting new plays by American dramatists.

The District’s leading symphony is the National Symphony Orchestra, which performs at the Concert Hall of the Kennedy Center. The Washington Opera performs at the Kennedy Center’s Opera House.

During the summer months, the Carter Barron Amphitheater presents popular music and jazz. Concerts featuring the US Army, US Navy, and US Marine Corps bands and the Air Force Symphony Orchestra are held throughout the District.

34 Libraries and Museums

Washington, DC, is the site of the world’s largest library, the Library of Congress, with a 1998 collection of more than 80 million items, including 26 million books and pamphlets. The Library, which is also the cataloging and bibliographic center for libraries throughout the United States, has permanent displays of the 1455 Gutenberg Bible, Thomas Jefferson’s first draft of the Declaration of Independence, and Abraham Lincoln’s first two drafts of the Gettysburg Address. The Folger Shakespeare Library contains rare Renaissance manuscripts and a full-size recreation of an Elizabethan theater. The District’s own public library system has a main library and 26 branches, with 2,472,000 volumes as of September 2001.

The District of Columbia was home to at least 93 museums in 2000. The Smithsonian Institution—endowed in 1826 by an Englishman, James Smithson, who had never visited the United States—operates a vast museum and research complex that includes the National Air and Space Museum, National Museum of Natural History, National Museum of History and Technology, many of the District’s art museums, and the National Zoological Park. The Smithsonian National Gallery of Art houses one of the world’s outstanding collections of Western art from the 13th century to the present. Among the capital’s other distinguished art collections are the Phillips Collection, the oldest museum of modern art in the United States; the Museum of African Art, located in the Frederick Douglass Memorial Home; and the Corcoran Gallery of Art, devoted primarily to American paintings, sculpture, and drawings of the last 300 years. The US National Arboretum, US Botanic Garden, and National Aquarium are in the city.

35 Communications

Washington, DC, is the home of the US Postal Service. As of 2004, about 91.9% of the District’s households had telephones. In June of that same year, there were 555,958 mobile wireless telephone subscribers In 2003, computers were in 64.3% of District households, and 56.8% had Internet access. In 2005, the District had 4 AM and 13 FM radio stations, and 7 television stations. The District had 1,999,870 television households, 70% of which ordered cable. A total of 47,433 Internet domain names were registered in the District in 2000.

36 Press

Because the District of Columbia is the center of US government activity, hundreds of domestic and foreign newspapers maintain permanent news bureaus there. The District has one major newspaper, the Washington Post. In 2005, the Post, a morning paper, had an average daily circulation of 707,690 and a Sunday circulation of 1,007,487. In 2004, the Post had the sixth-largest daily circulation and the third-largest Sunday circulation in the country. The Washington Times, also published on weekday mornings, had a circulation of 100,603 (43,660 on Sunday).

Press clubs active within the District include the National Press Club, Gridiron Club, American Newspaper Women’s Club, Washington Press Club, and White House Correspondents Association.

There are more than 30 major Washington-based periodicals. Among the best known are National Geographic, U.S. News & World Report, Smithsonian, and New Republic. Important periodicals covering the workings of the federal government are the Congressional Quarterly and its companion, CQ Weekly Report.

37 Tourism, Travel & Recreation

As the nation’s capital, the District of Columbia is one of the world’s leading tourist centers. Tourism in the District generates more than $10 billion in direct spending each year and sustains about 260,000 jobs. In 2004, there were over 17.7 million domestic and over 1 million international visitors. The most popular sites include the Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial, Jefferson Memorial, Vietnam Veterans Memorial, White House, Capitol Hill, the Smithsonian Institution, Library of Congress, the National Zoo, the US Holocaust Memorial Museum, and many more. Across the Potomac in Virginia, are Arlington National Cemetery, site of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and the grave of John F. Kennedy, and George Washington’s home at Mount Vernon.

38 Sports

There are five six professional major league professional sports teams in Washington, DC: the Redskins of the National Football League, the Nationals (formerly the Montreal Expos) of Major League Baseball, the Wizards (formerly the Bullets) of the National Basketball Association, the Mystics of the Women’s National Basketball Association, the Capitals of the National Hockey League, and DC United of Major League Soccer.

Hockey and basketball are played in downtown Washington at the MCI Arena, which was opened for the 1997–98 season. The Redskins began the 1997 season in the new Jack Kent Cooke Stadium in Landover, Maryland. The Redskins have reached football’s Super Bowl five times, winning three times. The Bullets won the NBA championship in 1978. The Nationals opened their first season in the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium in 2005

In college sports, the Georgetown Hoyas were a dominant force in basketball during the 1980s, reaching the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) championship game three times and winning the title in 1984.

39 Famous Washingtonians

Although no US president has been born in the District of Columbia, all but George Washington (b.Virginia, 1732–99) lived there while serving as chief executive.

Inventor Alexander Graham Bell (b.Scotland, 1842–1922) was president of the National Geographic Society in his later years. Federal officials born in Washington, DC, include John Foster Dulles (1888–1959), secretary of state; J(John) Edgar Hoover (1895–1972), director of the FBI; and Robert C. Weaver (1907–1997), who as secretary of housing and urban development during the administration of President Lyndon

B. Johnson was the first African American to hold cabinet rank.

The designer of the nation’s capital was Pierre Charles L’Enfant (b.France, 1754–1825), whose grave is in Arlington National Cemetery. Also involved in laying out the capital were surveyor Andrew Ellicott (b.Pennsylvania, 1754–1820) and mathematician-astronomer Benjamin Banneker (b.Maryland, 1731–1806), an African American who was an early champion of equal rights. Washingtonians who achieved military fame include Benjamin O. Davis (1877–1970), the first African American to become an Army general, and his son, Benjamin O. Davis Jr. (1912–2002), who was the first African American to become a general in the Air Force.

Among Washingtonians to achieve distinction in the creative arts were John Philip Sousa (1854–1932), bandmaster and composer; and composer-pianist-bandleader Edward Kennedy “Duke” Ellington (1899–1974).

40 Bibliography

BOOKS

Elish, Dan. Washington, D.C. 2nd ed. New York: Marshall Cavendish Benchmark, 2007.

Feeney, Kathy. Washington, D.C. Facts and Symbols. Mankato, MN: Bridgestone Books, 2000.

Goldish, Meish. Our Capital. New York: Newbridge Educational, 2001.

Heinrichs, Ann. Washington, D.C. Chanhassen, MN: Child’s World, 2006.

Hicks, Terry Allan. The Capitol. New York: Marshall Cavendish Benchmark, 2006.

Levy, Debbie. Kidding Around Washington, D.C.: What to Do, Where to Go, and How to Have Fun in Washington D.C. Emeryville, CA: John Muir Publications, 2000.

Mitchell, Alexander D. Washington Then & Now. San Diego, CA: Thunder Bay Press, 2000.

Sanders, Mark C. Washington, D.C. Austin, TX: Steadwell Books, 2000.

Stein, R. Conrad. Washington, D.C. New York: Children’s Press, 2000.

WEB SITES

District of Columbia Government. Welcome to Washington, District of Columbia. www.dc.gov/index.asp (accessed March 1, 2007).

Washington, DC Convention and Tourism Corporation. Washington, DC: The American Experience. www.washington.org/index.cfm?blnNavView=True&idContentType=36&idCurrentPage=7 (accessed March 1, 2007).

District of Columbia

■ AMERICAN UNIVERSITY F-8

4400 Massachusetts Ave., NW
Washington, DC 20016-8001
Tel: (202)885-1000
Admissions: (202)885-6000
Fax: (202)885-6014
E-mail: afa@american.edu
Web Site: http://www.american.edu/

Description:

Independent Methodist, university, coed. Awards associate, bachelor's, master's, doctoral, and first professional degrees. Founded 1893. Setting: 84-acre suburban campus. Endowment: $318 million. Research spending for 2004 fiscal year: $11.4 million. Educational spending for 2005 fiscal year: $33,569 per student. Total enrollment: 11,279. Faculty: 941 (513 full-time, 428 part-time). Student-undergrad faculty ratio is 15:1. 13,583 applied, 51% were admitted. 47% from top 10% of their high school class, 82% from top quarter, 98% from top half. 14 National Merit Scholars, 26 valedictorians. Full-time: 5,624 students, 62% women, 38% men. Part-time: 297 students, 55% women, 45% men. Students come from 54 states and territories, 117 other countries, 99% from out-of-district, 0.4% Native American, 5% Hispanic, 6% black, 5% Asian American or Pacific Islander, 6% international, 2% 25 or older, 68% live on campus, 7% transferred in. Retention: 89% of full-time freshmen returned the following year. Academic areas with the most degrees conferred: social sciences; business/marketing; communication technologies. Core. Calendar: semesters. Services for LD students, advanced placement, accelerated degree program, self-designed majors, honors program, independent study, double major, summer session for credit, part-time degree program, adult/continuing education programs, co-op programs and internships, graduate courses open to undergrads. Off campus study at Consortium of Universities of the Washington Metropolitan Area. Study abroad program. ROTC: Army (c), Air Force (c).

Entrance Requirements:

Options: Peterson's Universal Application, Common Application, electronic application, early decision, deferred admission, international baccalaureate accepted. Required: essay, high school transcript, minimum 2.0 high school GPA, 2 recommendations, SAT or ACT. Recommended: minimum 3.0 high school GPA, interview, SAT Subject Tests. Entrance: very difficult. Application deadlines: 1/15, 11/15 for early decision. Notification: 4/1, 12/31 for early decision.

Costs Per Year:

Application fee: $45. Comprehensive fee: $41,043 includes full-time tuition ($29,205), mandatory fees ($496), and college room and board ($11,342). College room only: $7197. Part-time tuition: $973 per semester hour. Part-time mandatory fees: $159 per year.

Collegiate Environment:

Orientation program. Drama-theater group, choral group, student-run newspaper, radio station. Social organizations: 128 open to all; national fraternities, national sororities; 14% of eligible men and 16% of eligible women are members. Most popular organizations: Kennedy Political Union, Student Confederation, Freshman Service Experience, Student Union Board, DC Reads. Major annual events: Homecoming, Family Weekend, Eagle Nights. Student services: health clinic, personal-psychological counseling. Campus security: 24-hour emergency response devices and patrols, late night transport-escort service, controlled dormitory access. 3,847 college housing spaces available; 3,500 were occupied in 2003-04. Freshmen guaranteed college housing. Option: coed housing available. American University Bender Library plus 1 other with 796,000 books,1.1 million microform titles, 4,466 serials, 46,000 audiovisual materials, an OPAC, and a Web page. Operations spending for 2004 fiscal year: $11.1 million. 760 computers available on campus for general student use. Computer purchase/lease plans available. A campuswide network can be accessed from student residence rooms and from off campus. Staffed computer lab on campus.

Community Environment:

Washington, D.C., is located on the Potomac River between Maryland and Virginia. It is a beautiful and historic city of impressive buildings and residential neighborhoods, with a vibrant, diverse international character. All major forms of transportation are available: the Metro bus and subway system, historic Union Railroad Station, and three major airports serve Washington. The National Zoo, Rock Creek Park, and the C&O Canal are some of the city's finest recreation areas. Shopping facilities are excellent. Points of interest for students include government sites such as the U.S. Capitol, Senate and House office buildings, U.S. Treasury, Supreme Court, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the White House; cultural institutions such as the Folger Shakespeare Library, Library of Congress, Smithsonian Institute, U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, Frederick Douglass Museum, National Gallery of Art, National Archives, Islamic Center, Washington Cathedral, and John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts; scientific institutions such as the National Bureau of Standards, Naval Observatory, and the nearby National Institutes of Health; and international organizations such as the World Bank, Pan American Union, and the embassies and legations of many nations.

■ THE CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF AMERICA F-8

Cardinal Station
Washington, DC 20064
Tel: (202)319-5000
Free: 800-673-2772
Admissions: (202)319-5305
Fax: (202)319-6533
E-mail: cua-admissions@cua.edu
Web Site: http://www.cua.edu/

Description:

Independent, university, coed, affiliated with Roman Catholic Church. Awards bachelor's, master's, doctoral, and first professional degrees and post-master's certificates. Founded 1887. Setting: 144-acre urban campus. Endowment: $169.8 million. Research spending for 2004 fiscal year: $20 million. Total enrollment: 6,130. Faculty: 714 (344 full-time, 370 part-time). Student-undergrad faculty ratio is 9:1. 3,152 applied, 81% were admitted. 23% from top 10% of their high school class, 54% from top quarter, 84% from top half. Full-time: 2,802 students, 55% women, 45% men. Part-time: 251 students, 67% women, 33% men. Students come from 52 states and territories, 36 other countries, 93% from out-of-district, 0.1% Native American, 5% Hispanic, 7% black, 3% Asian American or Pacific Islander, 2% international, 11% 25 or older, 66% live on campus, 3% transferred in. Retention: 82% of full-time freshmen returned the following year. Academic areas with the most degrees conferred: architecture; mechanic and repair technologies; visual and performing arts. Core. Calendar: semesters. ESL program, services for LD students, advanced placement, accelerated degree program, freshman honors college, honors program, independent study, double major, summer session for credit, part-time degree program, adult/continuing education programs, internships, graduate courses open to undergrads. Off campus study at members of the Consortium of Universities of the Washington Metropolitan Area. Study abroad program. ROTC: Army(c), Naval (c), Air Force (c).

Entrance Requirements:

Options: Peterson's Universal Application, Common Application, electronic application, early admission, early decision, deferred admission, international baccalaureate accepted. Required: essay, high school transcript, 1 recommendation, SAT or ACT. Recommended: minimum 3 high school GPA, interview, SAT Subject Tests. Entrance: moderately difficult. Application deadlines: 2/1, 11/15 for early action. Notification: continuous until 3/1, 11/15 for early action.

Costs Per Year:

Application fee: $55. One-time mandatory fee: $365. Comprehensive fee: $35,838 includes full-time tuition ($24,800), mandatory fees ($1200), and college room and board ($9838). College room only: $5646. Full-time tuition and fees vary according to program. Room and board charges vary according to board plan and housing facility. Part-time tuition: $940 per credit. Part-time mandatory fees: $605 per year. Part-time tuition and fees vary according to course load.

Collegiate Environment:

Orientation program. Drama-theater group, choral group, student-run newspaper, radio station. Social organizations: 100 open to all; national fraternities, national sororities; 1% of eligible men and 1% of eligible women are members. Most popular organizations: Knights of Columbus, Students for Life, College Republicans, Habitat for Humanity, College Democrats. Major annual events: homecoming, Family Weekend, Movies on the Mall. Student services: legal services, health clinic, personal-psychological counseling, women's center. Campus security: 24-hour emergency response devices and patrols, late night transport-escort service, controlled dormitory access, controlled access of academic buildings. 2,101 college housing spaces available; 1,961 were occupied in 2003-04. Freshmen guaranteed college housing. On-campus residence required through sophomore year. Options: coed, men-only, women-only housing available. Mullen Library plus 7 others with 1.6 million books, 1.1 million microform titles, 5,907 serials, 39,136 audiovisual materials, an OPAC, and a Web page. Operations spending for 2004 fiscal year: $7.5 million. 450 computers available on campus for general student use. Computer purchase/lease plans available. A campuswide network can be accessed from student residence rooms and from off campus. Staffed computer lab on campus.

Community Environment:

See American University.

■ CORCORAN COLLEGE OF ART AND DESIGN F-8

500 17th St. NW
Washington, DC 20006-4804
Tel: (202)639-1800; 888-CORCORAN
Admissions: (202)639-1814
E-mail: admissions@corcoran.org
Web Site: http://www.corcoran.edu/

Description:

Independent, comprehensive, coed. Awards associate, bachelor's, and master's degrees. Founded 1890. Setting: 7-acre urban campus. Endowment: $27.7 million. Educational spending for 2005 fiscal year: $6919 per student. Total enrollment: 590. Faculty: 221 (34 full-time, 187 part-time). Student-undergrad faculty ratio is 4:1. 233 applied, 61% were admitted. 20% from top 10% of their high school class, 35% from top quarter, 75% from top half. Full-time: 348 students, 65% women, 35% men. Part-time: 172 students, 72% women, 28% men. Students come from 25 states and territories, 38 other countries, 73% from out-of-district, 0% Native American, 8% Hispanic, 8% black, 10% Asian American or Pacific Islander, 29% 25 or older, 17% live on campus, 13% transferred in. Retention: 69% of full-time freshmen returned the following year. Academic area with the most degrees conferred: visual and performing arts. Core. Calendar: semesters. Academic remediation for entering students, ESL program, advanced placement, independent study, summer session for credit, adult/continuing education programs, internships, graduate courses open to undergrads. Off campus study at Alliance of Independent Colleges of Art and Design.

Entrance Requirements:

Options: early admission, deferred admission, international baccalaureate accepted. Required: high school transcript, minimum 2.5 high school GPA, portfolio, SAT or ACT. Recommended: essay, minimum 3.0 high school GPA, 2 recommendations, interview. Required for some: essay, 2 recommendations, interview. Entrance: moderately difficult. Application deadline: Rolling. Notification: continuous.

Costs Per Year:

Application fee: $40. Comprehensive fee: $32,850 includes full-time tuition ($22,700), mandatory fees ($100), and college room and board ($10,050). College room only: $8150. Full-time tuition and fees vary according to degree level. Part-time tuition: $630 per credit. Part-time mandatory fees: $100. Part-time tuition and fees vary according to degree level.

Collegiate Environment:

Orientation program. Social organizations: 1 open to all. Most popular organization: Student Government Association. Major annual events: Bizarre, Off the Wall Art Sale. Student services: personal-psychological counseling. Campus security: 24-hour patrols, ID check at all entrances. 108 college housing spaces available; all were occupied in 2003-04. Freshmen given priority for college housing. Option: coed housing available. Corcoran School of Art Library plus 1 other with 29,413 books, 167 serials, 46,013 audiovisual materials, and an OPAC. Operations spending for 2004 fiscal year: $258,269. 117 computers available on campus for general student use. Staffed computer lab on campus.

■ GALLAUDET UNIVERSITY F-8

800 Florida Ave., NE
Washington, DC 20002-3625
Tel: (202)651-5000
Free: 800-995-0550
Admissions: (202)651-5750
Fax: (202)651-5774
E-mail: admissions@gallua.gallaudet.edu
Web Site: http://www.gallaudet.edu/

Description:

Independent, university, coed. Awards bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees (undergraduate programs are open primarily to the hearing-impaired). Founded 1864. Setting: 99-acre urban campus. Endowment: $144.3 million. Research spending for 2004 fiscal year: $5.1 million. Educational spending for 2005 fiscal year: $25,623 per student. Total enrollment: 1,834. 423 applied, 75% were admitted. Full-time: 1,098 students, 53% women, 47% men. Part-time: 109 students, 51% women, 49% men. Students come from 49 states and territories, 28 other countries, 96% from out-of-district, 4% Native American, 7% Hispanic, 12% black, 5% Asian American or Pacific Islander, 11% international, 31% 25 or older, 70% live on campus, 6% transferred in. Retention: 65% of full-time freshmen returned the following year. Core. Calendar: semesters. Academic remediation for entering students, ESL program, services for LD students, advanced placement, accelerated degree program, self-designed majors, honors program, independent study, distance learning, double major, summer session for credit, part-time degree program, adult/continuing education programs, co-op programs and internships, graduate courses open to undergrads. Off campus study at Oberlin College, McDaniel College, members of the Consortium of Universities of the Washington Metropolitan Area. Study abroad program.

Entrance Requirements:

Options: electronic application, early admission, deferred admission. Required: essay, high school transcript, 2 recommendations, audiogram, SAT or ACT. Required for some: interview. Entrance: moderately difficult. Notification: continuous.

Costs Per Year:

Application fee: $50. Comprehensive fee: $18,750 includes full-time tuition ($9920), mandatory fees ($330), and college room and board ($8500). College room only: $4850. Room and board charges vary according to board plan. Part-time tuition: $481.50 per credit.

Collegiate Environment:

Orientation program. Drama-theater group, student-run newspaper. Social organizations: 30 open to all; national fraternities, national sororities, local fraternities, local sororities; 39% of eligible men and 34% of eligible women are members. Most popular organizations: Student Body Government, Delta Epsilon, Rainbow Society, Black Deaf Student Union. Major annual events: homecoming, RIT/Gallaudet Weekend. Student services: health clinic, personal-psychological counseling. Campus security: 24-hour emergency response devices and patrols, late night transport-escort service, controlled dormitory access. 1,220 college housing spaces available; 797 were occupied in 2003-04. Option: coed housing available. Merrill Learning Center with 242,543 books, 651,909 microform titles, 1,667 serials, 7,174 audiovisual materials, an OPAC, and a Web page. Operations spending for 2004 fiscal year: $2.3 million. 240 computers available on campus for general student use. A campuswide network can be accessed from student residence rooms and from off campus. Staffed computer lab on campus.

Community Environment:

See American University.

■ THE GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY F-8

2121 Eye St., NW
Washington, DC 20052
Tel: (202)994-1000
Free: 800-447-3765
Admissions: (202)994-6040
E-mail: gwadm@gwis2.circ.gwu.edu
Web Site: http://www.gwu.edu/

Description:

Independent, university, coed. Awards associate, bachelor's, master's, doctoral, and first professional degrees and post-master's certificates. Founded 1821. Setting: 36-acre urban campus. Endowment: $621.1 million. Educational spending for 2005 fiscal year: $14,320 per student. Total enrollment: 24,099. Faculty: 2,036 (826 full-time, 1,210 part-time). Student-undergrad faculty ratio is 14:1. 19,406 applied, 37% were admitted. 63% from top 10% of their high school class, 88% from top quarter, 99% from top half. 36 National Merit Scholars. Full-time: 9,741 students, 57% women, 43% men. Part-time: 1,020 students, 51% women, 49% men. Students come from 55 states and territories, 101 other countries, 98% from out-of-district, 0.3% Native American, 5% Hispanic, 6% black, 9% Asian American or Pacific Islander, 4% international, 3% 25 or older, 62% live on campus, 4% transferred in. Retention: 92% of full-time freshmen returned the following year. Academic areas with the most degrees conferred: social sciences; business/marketing; psychology. Core. Calendar: semesters. ESL program, services for LD students, advanced placement, accelerated degree program, self-designed majors, honors program, independent study, distance learning, double major, summer session for credit, part-time degree program, adult/continuing education programs, co-op programs and internships, graduate courses open to undergrads. Off campus study at members of the Consortium of Universities of the Washington Metropolitan Area. Study abroad program. ROTC: Army (c), Naval, Air Force (c).

Entrance Requirements:

Options: Peterson's Universal Application, Common Application, electronic application, early admission, early decision, deferred admission. Required: essay, high school transcript, 2 recommendations, SAT or ACT. Recommended: interview. Entrance: very difficult. Application deadlines: 1/15, 12/1 for early decision plan 1, 1/15 for early decision plan 2. Notification: continuous until 3/15, 12/15 for early decision plan 1, 2/1 for early decision plan 2.

Costs Per Year:

Application fee: $70. Comprehensive fee: $48,820 includes full-time tuition ($37,790), mandatory fees ($30), and college room and board ($11,000). College room only: $8000. Part-time tuition: $1050 per credit hour.

Collegiate Environment:

Orientation program. Drama-theater group, choral group, marching band, student-run newspaper, radio station. Social organizations: 208 open to all; national fraternities, national sororities; 16% of eligible men and 13% of eligible women are members. Most popular organizations: Program Board, Student Association, Residence Hall Association, College Democrats, College Republicans. Major annual events: homecoming, Welcome Week, Colonial Inauguration. Student services: legal services, health clinic, personal-psychological counseling. Campus security: 24-hour emergency response devices and patrols, late night transport-escort service, controlled dormitory access. 6,200 college housing spaces available; 6,172 were occupied in 2003-04. Freshmen guaranteed college housing. Options: coed, women-only housing available. Gelman Library plus 2 others with 2 million books, 2.6 million microform titles, 15,365 serials, 171,397 audiovisual materials, an OPAC, and a Web page. 550 computers available on campus for general student use. A campuswide network can be accessed from student residence rooms and from off campus. Staffed computer lab on campus.

Community Environment:

See American University.

■ GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY F-8

37th and O Sts., NW
Washington, DC 20057
Tel: (202)687-5055
Admissions: (202)687-3600
Fax: (202)687-6660
Web Site: http://www.georgetown.edu/

Description:

Independent Roman Catholic (Jesuit), university, coed. Awards bachelor's, master's, doctoral, and first professional degrees. Founded 1789. Setting: 110-acre urban campus. Endowment: $755.2 million. Research spending for 2004 fiscal year: $125.4 million. Educational spending for 2005 fiscal year: $18,015 per student. Total enrollment: 13,652. Faculty: 1,258 (752 full-time, 506 part-time). Student-undergrad faculty ratio is 11:1. 15,285 applied, 21% were admitted. 86% from top 10% of their high school class, 97% from top quarter, 100% from top half. 43 National Merit Scholars, 47 class presidents, 199 valedictorians, 202 student government officers. Full-time: 6,504 students, 54% women, 46% men. Part-time: 215 students, 57% women, 43% men. Students come from 52 states and territories, 82 other countries, 98% from out-of-district, 0.1% Native American, 6% Hispanic, 7% black, 9% Asian American or Pacific Islander, 4% international, 2% 25 or older, 78% live on campus, 3% transferred in. Retention: 98% of full-time freshmen returned the following year. Academic areas with the most degrees conferred: social sciences; business/marketing; liberal arts/general studies. Core. Calendar: semesters. Academic remediation for entering students, ESL program, services for LD students, advanced placement, self-designed majors, honors program, independent study, double major, summer session for credit, adult/continuing education programs, internships, graduate courses open to undergrads. Off campus study at members of the Consortium of Universities of the Washington Metropolitan Area. Study abroad program. ROTC: Army, Naval (c), Air Force (c).

Entrance Requirements:

Options: electronic application, early action, deferred admission, international baccalaureate accepted. Required: essay, high school transcript, 2 recommendations, interview, SAT or ACT. Recommended: SAT Subject Tests. Entrance: most difficult. Application deadlines: 1/10, 11/1 for early action. Notification: 4/1, 12/15 for early action.

Costs Per Year:

Application fee: $60. Comprehensive fee: $43,183 includes full-time tuition ($31,656), mandatory fees ($368), and college room and board ($11,159). College room only: $7410. Room and board charges vary according to board plan and housing facility. Part-time tuition: $1319 per credit hour. Part-time tuition varies according to course level.

Collegiate Environment:

Orientation program. Drama-theater group, choral group, student-run newspaper, radio station. Social organizations: 129 open to all. Most popular organizations: University Choir, Mask and Bauble, The Hoya (student newspaper), International Relations Club, The Voice (weekly news magazine). Major annual events: Homecoming Block Party, GU Day, Student Activities Fair. Student services: health clinic, personal-psychological counseling, women's center. Campus security: 24-hour emergency response devices and patrols, late night transport-escort service, controlled dormitory access, student guards at residence halls and academic facilities. 5,053 college housing spaces available; 4,818 were occupied in 2003-04. Freshmen guaranteed college housing. On-campus residence required through sophomore year. Option: coed housing available. Lauinger Library plus 6 others with 2.4 million books, 3.8 million microform titles, 23,241 serials, 16,415 audiovisual materials, an OPAC, and a Web page. Operations spending for 2004 fiscal year: $23.3 million. 400 computers available on campus for general student use. Computer purchase/lease plans available. A campuswide network can be accessed from student residence rooms and from off campus. Staffed computer lab on campus.

Community Environment:

See American University.

■ HOWARD UNIVERSITY F-8

2400 Sixth St., NW
Washington, DC 20059-0002
Tel: (202)806-6100
Free: 800-HOWARD-U
Web Site: http://www.howard.edu/

Description:

Independent, university, coed. Awards bachelor's, master's, doctoral, and first professional degrees and post-master's and first professional certificates. Founded 1867. Setting: 256-acre urban campus. Endowment: $371.2 million. Research spending for 2004 fiscal year: $37 million. Total enrollment: 10,623. 8,860 applied, 47% were admitted. 23% from top 10% of their high school class, 49% from top quarter, 81% from top half. 9 class presidents, 8 valedictorians, 30 student government officers. Full-time: 6,730 students, 67% women, 33% men. Part-time: 382 students, 63% women, 37% men. Students come from 50 states and territories, 61 other countries, 90% from out-of-district, 0.1% Native American, 0.3% Hispanic, 84% black, 0.5% Asian American or Pacific Islander, 7% international, 17% 25 or older, 57% live on campus, 5% transferred in. Retention: 89% of full-time freshmen returned the following year. Core. Calendar: semesters. Academic remediation for entering students, services for LD students, advanced placement, accelerated degree program, self-designed majors, freshman honors college, honors program, independent study, distance learning, double major, summer session for credit, part-time degree program, adult/continuing education programs, co-op programs and internships, graduate courses open to undergrads. Off campus study at 9 members of the Consortium of Universities of the Washington Metropolitan Area; over 21 colleges and universities including Duke University; University of California, Berkeley; Smith College; Vassar College; Williams College. Study abroad program. ROTC: Army, Air Force.

Entrance Requirements:

Options: early admission, early action, deferred admission. Required: high school transcript, SAT or ACT. Required for some: 2 recommendations. Entrance: moderately difficult. Application deadlines: 2/15, 11/1 for early action. Notification: continuous, 12/24 for early action.

Costs Per Year:

Application fee: $45. Comprehensive fee: $18,481 includes full-time tuition ($11,490), mandatory fees ($805), and college room and board ($6186). College room only: $3736. Room and board charges vary according to board plan and housing facility. Part-time tuition: $479 per credit hour.

Collegiate Environment:

Orientation program. Drama-theater group, choral group, marching band, student-run newspaper, radio station. Social organizations: 150 open to all; national fraternities, national sororities, local fraternities; 2% of eligible men and 1% of eligible women are members. Most popular organizations: Howard University Student Association, Undergraduate Student Assembly, Campus Pals. Major annual events: homecoming, Spring Black Arts Festival, Residence Hall Week. Student services: health clinic, personal-psychological counseling. Campus security: 24-hour emergency response devices and patrols, student patrols, late night transport-escort service, controlled dormitory access, security lighting. 9,000 college housing spaces available; 3,999 were occupied in 2003-04. Freshmen given priority for college housing. On-campus residence required through sophomore year. Option: coed housing available. Founders Library plus 8 others with 2.5 million books, 3.5 million microform titles, 12,795 serials, 40,872 audiovisual materials, an OPAC, and a Web page. 6,343 computers available on campus for general student use. Computer purchase/lease plans available. A campuswide network can be accessed from student residence rooms and from off campus. Staffed computer lab on campus.

Community Environment:

See American University.

■ POTOMAC COLLEGE F-8

4000 Chesapeake St., NW
Washington, DC 20016
Tel: (202)686-0876; 888-686-0876
Admissions: (202)274-2305
Fax: (202)686-0818
E-mail: cparker@potomac.edu
Web Site: http://www.potomac.edu/

Description:

Proprietary, 4-year, coed. Awards associate and bachelor's degrees. Founded 1991. Setting: urban campus. Total enrollment: 398. Student-undergrad faculty ratio is 15:1. 71 applied, 76% were admitted. Full-time: 87 students, 52% women, 48% men. Part-time: 311 students, 64% women, 36% men. 92% from out-of-district, 0% Native American, 3% Hispanic, 76% black, 1% Asian American or Pacific Islander, 0% international, 98% 25 or older. Retention: 76% of full-time freshmen returned the following year. Core. Calendar: 6-week modules. Academic remediation for entering students, services for LD students, advanced placement, accelerated degree program, independent study, double major, summer session for credit, part-time degree program, external degree program, adult/continuing education programs, internships.

Entrance Requirements:

Open admission for undeclared majors and declared majors with 45 college credits. Option: international baccalaureate accepted. Required: high school transcript, interview. Entrance: noncompetitive. Application deadline: Rolling. Notification: continuous.

Costs Per Year:

Application fee: $15. Tuition: $17,220 full-time. Mandatory fees: $90 full-time. Full-time tuition and fees vary according to course load and program.

Collegiate Environment:

Orientation program. Social organizations: 1 open to all. Most popular organization: Student Government Association. Major annual events: Graduate School Brown Bag Lunches, Moving Up Day, Half-Way Ceremony. Student services: personal-psychological counseling. Campus security: 24-hour emergency response devices. College housing not available. Potomac College Library with 5,565 books, 40 serials, 100 audiovisual materials, and an OPAC. Operations spending for 2004 fiscal year: $16,250. 20 computers available on campus for general student use. A campuswide network can be accessed from off-campus. Staffed computer lab on campus.

■ SOUTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY F-8

501 I St., SW
Washington, DC 20024-2788
Tel: (202)478-8200
Fax: (202)488-8162
Web Site: http://www.seu.edu/

Description:

Independent, comprehensive, coed. Awards associate, bachelor's, and master's degrees. Founded 1879. Setting: 1-acre urban campus. Endowment: $27,450. Educational spending for 2005 fiscal year: $3057 per student. Total enrollment: 935. 611 applied, 66% were admitted. Full-time: 212 students, 64% women, 36% men. Part-time: 453 students, 79% women, 21% men. Students come from 7 states and territories, 40 other countries, 25% from out-of-district, 0% Native American, 1% Hispanic, 83% black, 1% Asian American or Pacific Islander, 9% international, 60% 25 or older, 3% transferred in. Core. Calendar: quadmester (four 12-week semesters). Academic remediation for entering students, ESL program, advanced placement, accelerated degree program, honors program, independent study, double major, summer session for credit, part-time degree program, external degree program, adult/continuing education programs, co-op programs and internships, graduate courses open to undergrads. Study abroad program.

Entrance Requirements:

Open admission. Options: deferred admission, international baccalaureate accepted. Required: high school transcript. Recommended: essay, interview. Entrance: noncompetitive. Application deadline: Rolling.

Collegiate Environment:

Orientation program. Social organizations: national fraternities, national sororities; 2% of eligible men and 2% of eligible women are members. Most popular organization: SGA. Major annual events: International Festival, Ramadan activities, Multicultural Holidays. Student services: personal-psychological counseling. Campus security: late night transport-escort service. College housing not available. The Learning Resources Center plus 1 other with 32,000 books, 2,000 microform titles, 200 serials, and 250 audiovisual materials. Operations spending for 2004 fiscal year: $259,594. 137 computers available on campus for general student use. A campuswide network can be accessed from off-campus. Staffed computer lab on campus.

Community Environment:

See American University.

■ STRAYER UNIVERSITY F-8

1025 15th St., NW
Washington, DC 20005-2603
Tel: (202)408-2400; 888-4-STRAYER
Admissions: (202)419-4190
Fax: (202)289-1831
Web Site: http://www.strayer.edu/

Description:

Proprietary, comprehensive, coed. Part of Strayer Education, Inc.. Awards associate, bachelor's, and master's degrees. Founded 1892. Setting: urban campus. Total enrollment: 20,138. 5% from out-of-district, 78% 25 or older. Core. Academic remediation for entering students, services for LD students, advanced placement, accelerated degree program, distance learning, double major, summer session for credit, part-time degree program, adult/continuing education programs, co-op programs and internships, graduate courses open to undergrads. Off campus study at Servicemembers Opportunity Colleges.

Entrance Requirements:

Open admission. Options: electronic application, early admission, deferred admission. Required: high school transcript. Recommended: essay, 1 recommendation, interview. Required for some: 1 recommendation. Entrance: noncompetitive. Application deadline: Rolling. Notification: continuous.

Collegiate Environment:

Social organizations: 13 open to all. Most popular organizations: honor society, International Club, Association of Information Technology Professionals, Business Administration Club, Human Resource Management Club. Major annual event: International Day. Campus security: patrols by trained personnel during operating hours. College housing not available. Wilkes Library plus 20 others with 34,000 books, 600 serials, 1,687 audiovisual materials, an OPAC, and a Web page. 1,500 computers available on campus for general student use. A campuswide network can be accessed. Staffed computer lab on campus.

Community Environment:

See American University.

■ TRINITY (WASHINGTON) UNIVERSITY F-8

125 Michigan Ave., NE
Washington, DC 20017-1094
Tel: (202)884-9000
Free: 800-IWA-NTTC
Admissions: 800-492-6882
Fax: (202)884-9229
E-mail: admissions@trinitydc.edu
Web Site: http://www.trinitydc.edu/

Description:

Independent Roman Catholic, comprehensive. Awards bachelor's and master's degrees. Founded 1897. Setting: 26-acre urban campus. Endowment: $10 million. Educational spending for 2005 fiscal year: $4400 per student. Total enrollment: 1,672. 441 applied, 86% were admitted. 20 student government officers. Full-time: 549 students, 99% women, 1% men. Part-time: 419 students, 96% women, 4% men. Students come from 17 states and territories, 50% from out-of-district, 1% Native American, 11% Hispanic, 68% black, 2% Asian American or Pacific Islander, 1% international, 46% 25 or older, 30% live on campus, 3% transferred in. Retention: 69% of full-time freshmen returned the following year. Core. Calendar: semesters. Academic remediation for entering students, ESL program, services for LD students, advanced placement, accelerated degree program, self-designed majors, honors program, independent study, double major, summer session for credit, part-time degree program, external degree program, adult/continuing education programs, co-op programs and internships, graduate courses open to undergrads. Off campus study at Georgetown University; George Washington University; American University; Catholic University of America; University of Maryland, College Park; University of the District of Columbia; Marymount University. Study abroad program. ROTC: Army (c).

Entrance Requirements:

Options: Peterson's Universal Application, Common Application, electronic application, early action, deferred admission, international baccalaureate accepted. Required: essay, high school transcript, minimum 2.0 high school GPA, 1 recommendation. Recommended: interview, SAT or ACT. Entrance: moderately difficult. Application deadlines: 3/1, 12/1 for early action. Notification: 1/1 for early action.

Costs Per Year:

Application fee: $35. Comprehensive fee: $24,934 includes full-time tuition ($17,200), mandatory fees ($160), and college room and board ($7574). College room only: $3350. Full-time tuition and fees vary according to class time. Room and board charges vary according to board plan and housing facility. Part-time tuition: $555 per credit hour. Part-time tuition varies according to class time.

Collegiate Environment:

Orientation program. Drama-theater group, choral group, student-run newspaper. Social organizations: 28 open to all. Most popular organizations: Campus Ministry, Athletic Association, International Club, Black Student Alliance, Young Democrats/Republicans. Major annual events: Founders' Day, Cap and Gown Sunday, Holly Hop. Student services: health clinic, personal-psychological counseling. Campus security: 24-hour emergency response devices and patrols, late night transport-escort service, controlled dormitory access. 230 college housing spaces available; 180 were occupied in 2003-04. On-campus residence required through junior year. Option: women-only housing available. Sister Helen Sheehan Library plus 1 other with 207,000 books, 6,754 microform titles, 498 serials, 13,760 audiovisual materials, an OPAC, and a Web page. Operations spending for 2004 fiscal year: $500,000. 80 computers available on campus for general student use. A campuswide network can be accessed from student residence rooms and from off campus. Staffed computer lab on campus.

■ UNIVERSITY OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA F-8

4200 Connecticut Ave., NW
Washington, DC 20008-1175
Tel: (202)274-5000
Admissions: (202)274-6110
Web Site: http://www.udc.edu/

Description:

District-supported, comprehensive, coed. Awards associate, bachelor's, and master's degrees. Founded 1976. Setting: 28-acre urban campus. Endowment: $32.6 million. Research spending for 2004 fiscal year: $2.9 million. Educational spending for 2005 fiscal year: $9507 per student. Total enrollment: 5,364. Faculty: 478 (242 full-time, 236 part-time). Student-undergrad faculty ratio is 13:1. 4,190 applied, 82% were admitted. Full-time: 1,966 students, 60% women, 40% men. Part-time: 3,204 students, 68% women, 32% men. Students come from 54 states and territories, 125 other countries, 27% from out-of-district, 63% 25 or older, 11% transferred in. Retention: 60% of full-time freshmen returned the following year. Academic areas with the most degrees conferred: business/marketing; health professions and related sciences; security and protective services. Core. Calendar: semesters. Academic remediation for entering students, ESL program, services for LD students, accelerated degree program, honors program, summer session for credit, part-time degree program, external degree program, adult/continuing education programs, co-op programs and internships, graduate courses open to undergrads. Off campus study at members of the Consortium of Universities of the Washington Metropolitan Area. ROTC: Army (c), Air Force (c).

Entrance Requirements:

Open admission. Options: Common Application, deferred admission. Required: high school transcript. Recommended: SAT. Required for some: GED. Entrance: noncompetitive. Application deadline: 8/1. Notification: continuous until 8/15. Preference given to district residents.

Costs Per Year:

Application fee: $20. Area resident tuition: $1800 full-time, $75 per credit part-time. Nonresident tuition: $4440 full-time, $185 per credit part-time. Mandatory fees: $270 full-time, $135 per term part-time. Part-time tuition and fees vary according to course load.

Collegiate Environment:

Drama-theater group, choral group, marching band, student-run newspaper. Social organizations: 61 open to all; national fraternities, national sororities; 2% of eligible men and 3% of eligible women are members. Most popular organizations: Caribbean Student Association, Theater Arts Ensemble, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. Major annual events: homecoming, basketball games, Miss UDC Pageant. Student services: health clinic, personal-psychological counseling. Campus security: 24-hour patrols. College housing not available. Learning Resources Division Library plus 1 other with 544,412 books, 607,162 microform titles, 594 serials, 19,635 audiovisual materials, an OPAC, and a Web page. Operations spending for 2004 fiscal year: $2.6 million. 1,500 computers available on campus for general student use. A campuswide network can be accessed. Staffed computer lab on campus.

Community Environment:

See American University.

District of Columbia

AMERICAN UNIVERSITY

Accounting, M

American/United States Studies/Civilization, BO

Anthropology, BMDO

Applied Economics, O

Applied Mathematics, B

Applied Science and Technology, M

Art History, Criticism and Conservation, BM

Art/Art Studies, General, B

Arts Management, MO

Audio Engineering, B

Biochemistry, B

Biological and Biomedical Sciences, M

Biology/Biological Sciences, B

Biopsychology, M

Business Administration and Management, B

Business Administration, Management and Operations, MO

Chemistry, BM

Cinematography and Film/Video Production, B

Clinical Psychology, D

Communication and Media Studies, M

Comparative Literature, BM

Computer Science, BMO

Conflict Resolution and Mediation/Peace Studies, M

Criminology, MDO

Dance, MO

Design and Visual Communications, B

Drama and Dramatics/Theatre Arts, B

Economics, BMDO

Education, MDO

Educational Administration and Supervision, D

Educational Leadership and Administration, M

Educational Media/Instructional Technology, M

Electronic Commerce, M

Elementary Education and Teaching, BMO

English as a Second Language, MO

Entrepreneurship/Entrepreneurial Studies, M

Environmental Policy, M

Environmental Policy and Resource Management, M

Environmental Sciences, M

Environmental Studies, B

Ethics, M

European Studies/Civilization, B

Exercise and Sports Science, M

Experimental Psychology, M

Film, Television, and Video Production, M

Finance and Banking, MO

Fine/Studio Arts, B

Foreign Languages and Literatures, B

French Language and Literature, BO

German Language and Literature, B

Graphic Design, B

History, BMD

Human Resources Management and Services, M

Interdisciplinary Studies, BM

Intermedia/Multimedia, B

International Affairs, MDO

International and Comparative Education, M

International Business/Trade/Commerce, M

International Development, MO

International Relations and Affairs, B

Internet and Interactive Multimedia, M

Jewish/Judaic Studies, B

Journalism, BM

Latin American Studies, BMO

Law and Legal Studies, BMPO

Legal and Justice Studies, MDO

Liberal Arts and Sciences Studies and Humanities, B

Management Information Systems and Services, MO

Marine Biology and Biological Oceanography, B

Marine Science/Merchant Marine Officer, B

Marketing, M

Mass Communication/Media Studies, BM

Mathematics, BM

Media Studies, M

Music, B

Neuroscience, D

Organizational Management, MO

Painting, M

Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution, B

Philosophy, BM

Physics, BM

Political Science and Government, BMDO

Printmaking, M

Psychology, BMD

Public Administration, MDO

Public Affairs, M

Public Health (MPH, DPH), B

Public Health Education and Promotion, B

Public Policy Analysis, M

Public Relations/Image Management, B

Real Estate, M

Russian Language and Literature, BO

Russian Studies, B

Sculpture, M

Secondary Education and Teaching, BMO

Social Psychology, M

Sociology, BMO

Spanish Language and Literature, BMO

Special Education and Teaching, M

Statistics, BMO

Taxation, M

Toxicology, MO

Translation and Interpretation, O

Women's Studies, B

Writing, M

THE CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF AMERICA

Accounting, BM

Acoustics, MD

Anthropology, BMD

Architecture, BM

Art History, Criticism and Conservation, B

Art Teacher Education, B

Art/Art Studies, General, B

Artificial Intelligence and Robotics, MD

Atomic/Molecular Physics, B

Biochemistry, B

Biological and Biomedical Sciences, MDO

Biology Teacher Education, B

Biology/Biological Sciences, B

Biomedical Engineering, MD

Biomedical/Medical Engineering, B

Business Administration and Management, B

Business Administration, Management and Operations, MO

Business/Commerce, B

Cell Biology and Anatomy, MD

Chemistry, BM

Chemistry Teacher Education, B

Civil Engineering, BMD

Classics and Classical Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics, BMDO

Clinical Laboratory Science/Medical Technology/Technologist, B

Clinical Laboratory Sciences, MD

Clinical Psychology, D

Communication Studies/Speech Communication and Rhetoric, B

Comparative Literature, MD

Composition, MD

Computer Engineering, B

Computer Science, BMD

Construction Engineering and Management, MD

Counselor Education/School Counseling and Guidance Services, M

Curriculum and Instruction, M

Drama and Dance Teacher Education, B

Drama and Dramatics/Theatre Arts, B

Economics, BM

Education, BMD

Educational Administration and Supervision, MD

Educational Leadership and Administration, M

Educational Psychology, BD

Electrical Engineering, MD

Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering, B

Elementary Education and Teaching, B

Engineering, B

Engineering and Applied Sciences, MD

Engineering Design, D

Engineering Management, M

English, MDO

English as a Second Language, M

English Language and Literature, B

English/Language Arts Teacher Education, B

Environmental Engineering Technology/Environmental Technology, MD

Ergonomics and Human Factors, M

Experimental Psychology, MD

Finance, B

Finance and Banking, M

Fine Arts and Art Studies, B

Fine/Studio Arts, B

Foreign Language Teacher Education, B

French Language and Literature, BMD

French Language Teacher Education, B

General Studies, B

Geotechnical Engineering, M

German Language and Literature, B

German Language Teacher Education, B

History, BMDO

History Teacher Education, B

Human Development, D

Human Resources Management and Services, M

Human Resources Management/Personnel Administration, B

Information Science/Studies, MO

Interdisciplinary Studies, B

International Affairs, M

International Economics, B

International Finance, B

International Relations and Affairs, B

Italian Language and Literature, M

Kindergarten/PreSchool Education and Teaching, B

Latin Language and Literature, B

Law and Legal Studies, PO

Legal and Justice Studies, DO

Library Science, MO

Mathematics, B

Mathematics Teacher Education, B

Mechanical Engineering, BMD

Mechanics, MD

Medieval and Renaissance Studies, BMDO

Microbiology, MD

Modern Greek Language and Literature, B

Music, BMD

Music History, Literature, and Theory, B

Music Performance, B

Music Teacher Education, BMD

Music Theory and Composition, B

Musicology and Ethnomusicology, MDO

Near and Middle Eastern Languages, MD

Nursing, MD

Nursing - Advanced Practice, M

Nursing - Registered Nurse Training, B

Painting, B

Performance, MD

Philosophy, BMDO

Physics, BMD

Piano and Organ, B

Political Science and Government, BMDO

Psychology, BMDO

Religion/Religious Studies, BMDO

Religious Education, BMD

Rhetoric, MD

Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics, BMD

Sacred Music, MD

Sculpture, B

Secondary Education and Teaching, B

Social Work, BMDO

Sociology, BMD

Spanish Language and Literature, BMD

Spanish Language Teacher Education, B

Structural Engineering, M

Theater, M

Theology and Religious Vocations, MDPO

Urban and Regional Planning, M

Voice and Opera, B

Western European Studies, M

CORCORAN COLLEGE OF ART AND DESIGN

Art/Art Studies, General, B

Ceramic Arts and Ceramics, B

Digital Communication and Media/Multimedia, AB

Drawing, B

Fine/Studio Arts, AB

Graphic Design, AB

Photography, AB

Photojournalism, B

Printmaking, B

Sculpture, B

GALLAUDET UNIVERSITY

Accounting, B

American Government and Politics (United States), B

Apparel and Textiles, B

Art History, Criticism and Conservation, B

Art Teacher Education, B

Art/Art Studies, General, B

Biology/Biological Sciences, B

Business Administration and Management, B

Chemical Engineering, B

Chemistry, B

Child Development, B

Civil Engineering, B

Clinical Psychology, D

Commercial and Advertising Art, B

Communication Disorders, MD

Communication Studies/Speech Communication and Rhetoric, B

Computer and Information Sciences, B

Computer Engineering, B

Computer Science, B

Counseling Psychology, M

Counselor Education/School Counseling and Guidance Services, M

Criminology, B

Developmental Psychology, M

Drama and Dramatics/Theatre Arts, B

Early Childhood Education and Teaching, MO

Economics, B

Education, BMDO

Education/Teaching of Individuals with Multiple Disabilities, MO

Educational Administration and Supervision, MDO

Educational Leadership and Administration, M

Educational Measurement and Evaluation, O

Educational Media/Instructional Technology, O

Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering, B

Elementary Education and Teaching, BMO

Engineering, B

Engineering Science, B

Engineering Technology, B

English Composition, B

English Language and Literature, B

English/Language Arts Teacher Education, B

Family Systems, B

Fine/Studio Arts, B

Foods, Nutrition, and Wellness Studies, B

French Language and Literature, B

History, B

Information Science/Studies, B

International Relations and Affairs, B

Kindergarten/PreSchool Education and Teaching, B

Leisure Studies, M

Linguistics, M

Mass Communication/Media Studies, B

Mathematics, B

Mechanical Engineering, B

Philosophy, B

Photography, B

Physical Education Teaching and Coaching, B

Physics, B

Psychology, BMDO

Radio and Television, B

School Psychology, MO

Secondary Education and Teaching, BMO

Sign Language Interpretation and Translation, B

Social Work, BM

Sociology, B

Spanish Language and Literature, B

Special Education and Teaching, MDO

Therapeutic Recreation/Recreational Therapy, B

Translation and Interpretation, M

THE GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY

Accounting, BMD

Aerospace, Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering, MDO

Allopathic Medicine, PO

American/United States Studies/Civilization, BMD

Analytical Chemistry, MD

Anthropology, BMD

Applied Mathematics, BM

Archeology, B

Art History, Criticism and Conservation, BMD

Art Therapy/Therapist, MO

Art/Art Studies, General, B

Asian Studies/Civilization, BMO

Audiology/Audiologist and Speech-Language Pathology/Pathologist, B

Biochemistry, MD

Bioinformatics, M

Biological and Biomedical Sciences, MD

Biological Anthropology, MD

Biology/Biological Sciences, B

Biostatistics, MD

Business Administration and Management, B

Business/Managerial Economics, B

Cancer Biology/Oncology, D

Ceramic Arts and Ceramics, M

Chemistry, BMD

Chinese Language and Literature, B

Civil Engineering, BMDO

Classics and Classical Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics, B

Clinical Laboratory Science/Medical Technology/Technologist, B

Clinical Psychology, D

Clinical/Medical Laboratory Technician, A

Cognitive Sciences, D

Communication Disorders, M

Community Health and Preventive Medicine, MO

Computer and Information Sciences, B

Computer Engineering, BMDO

Computer Science, BMDO

Counselor Education/School Counseling and Guidance Services, MDO

Criminal Justice/Law Enforcement Administration, B

Criminology, M

Curriculum and Instruction, MDO

Dance, B

Design and Applied Arts, M

Drama and Dramatics/Theatre Arts, B

Early Childhood Education and Teaching, M

East Asian Studies, BMO

East European and Russian Studies, MO

Economics, BMD

Education, MDO

Educational Administration and Supervision, MDO

Educational Leadership and Administration, MO

Educational Media/Instructional Technology, M

Electrical Engineering, MDO

Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering, B

Elementary Education and Teaching, M

Emergency Medical Services, O

Emergency Medical Technology/Technician (EMT Paramedic), B

Engineering, B

Engineering and Applied Sciences, MDO

Engineering Management, MDO

English, MD

English Language and Literature, B

Environmental and Occupational Health, MD

Environmental Engineering Technology/Environmental Technology, MDO

Environmental Policy and Resource Management, M

Environmental Studies, BMD

Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering, B

Epidemiology, MD

European Studies/Civilization, B

Exercise and Sports Science, M

Finance, B

Finance and Banking, MD

Fine/Studio Arts, B

Folklore, M

Forensic Science and Technology, MO

French Language and Literature, B

Genetics, MD

Genomic Sciences, M

Geography, BM

Geology/Earth Science, BMD

Geosciences, MD

German Language and Literature, B

Health and Medical Laboratory Technologies, B

Health Informatics, M

Health Promotion, M

Health Psychology, D

Health Services Administration, MDO

Higher Education/Higher Education Administration, MDO

Historic Preservation and Conservation, M

History, BMD

Hospitality Administration/Management, M

Human Development, MD

Human Resources Development, MDO

Human Resources Management and Services, M

Human Resources Management/Personnel Administration, B

Human Services, B

Humanities/Humanistic Studies, B

Immunology, D

Industrial and Manufacturing Management, M

Industrial and Organizational Psychology, D

Industrial Radiologic Technology/Technician, A

Infectious Diseases, M

Inorganic Chemistry, MD

Interdisciplinary Studies, B

Interior Design, M

International Affairs, MO

International and Comparative Education, M

International Business/Trade/Commerce, BMDO

International Development, MO

International Public Health/International Health, M

International Relations and Affairs, B

International Trade, MO

Investment Management, M

Jewish/Judaic Studies, B

Journalism, B

Kinesiology and Exercise Science, B

Latin American Studies, BMO

Law and Legal Studies, MDPO

Liberal Arts and Sciences Studies and Humanities, B

Logistics and Materials Management, M

Management, MD

Management Information Systems and Services, M

Management of Technology, M

Management Strategy and Policy, MD

Marketing, MD

Marketing/Marketing Management, B

Mass Communication/Media Studies, BM

Materials Sciences, MD

Maternal and Child Health, M

Mathematics, BMD

Mechanical Engineering, BMDO

Microbiology, M

Military and Defense Studies, MO

Molecular Biology, MD

Museology/Museum Studies, MO

Museum Education, M

Music, B

Near and Middle Eastern Studies, B

Neuroscience, D

Non-Profit/Public/Organizational Management, M

Nuclear Medical Technology/Technologist, A

Nursing - Adult, O

Nursing - Advanced Practice, O

Oral Biology, M

Organic Chemistry, MD

Organizational Behavior Studies, M

Organizational Management, MO

Painting, M

Pharmacology, D

Philosophy, BM

Photography, M

Physical Chemistry, MD

Physical Therapy/Therapist, M

Physician Assistant, BMO

Physics, BMD

Political Science and Government, BMDO

Pre-Dentistry Studies, B

Pre-Law Studies, B

Pre-Medicine/Pre-Medical Studies, B

Printmaking, M

Project Management, M

Psychology, BD

Public Administration, MD

Public Health, MDO

Public Policy Analysis, BMD

Radio and Television, B

Radiologic Technology/Science - Radiographer, B

Real Estate, M

Rehabilitation Counseling, M

Religion/Religious Studies, BM

Russian Language and Literature, B

Russian Studies, B

Sculpture, M

Secondary Education and Teaching, M

Securities Services Administration/Management, MO

Social Psychology, D

Sociology, BM

Spanish Language and Literature, B

Special Education and Teaching, MDO

Speech and Rhetorical Studies, B

Sport and Fitness Administration/Management, M

Statistics, BMD

Systems Engineering, BMDO

Technology and Public Policy, MO

Theater, M

Travel and Tourism, MO

Western European Studies, MO

Women's Studies, MO

GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY

Accounting, B

Allopathic Medicine, PO

American/United States Studies/Civilization, B

Analytical Chemistry, MD

Anthropology, B

Arabic Language and Literature, BMD

Art History, Criticism and Conservation, B

Biochemistry, BMDO

Biological and Biomedical Sciences, MDO

Biology/Biological Sciences, B

Biophysics, MDO

Biostatistics, M

Business Administration and Management, B

Business Administration, Management and Operations, MO

Cell Biology and Anatomy, DO

Chemistry, BMD

Chinese Language and Literature, B

Classics and Classical Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics, B

Communication and Media Studies, M

Comparative Literature, B

Computer Science, B

Demography, M

East European and Russian Studies, MO

Economics, BDO

English, M

English as a Second Language, MO

English Language and Literature, B

Epidemiology, M

Finance, B

Fine/Studio Arts, B

French Language and Literature, B

German Language and Literature, BMDO

Health Physics/Radiological Health, M

Health Promotion, M

History, BMDO

Immunology, MD

Infectious Diseases, M

Inorganic Chemistry, MD

Interdisciplinary Studies, B

International Affairs, MDO

International Business/Trade/Commerce, B

International Economics, B

International Relations and Affairs, B

Internet and Interactive Multimedia, M

Italian Language and Literature, B

Japanese Language and Literature, B

Latin American Studies, MO

Law and Legal Studies, MDPO

Liberal Arts and Sciences Studies and Humanities, B

Liberal Studies, M

Linguistics, BMDO

Marketing/Marketing Management, B

Mathematics, B

Medieval and Renaissance Studies, B

Microbiology, MD

Military and Defense Studies, MO

Molecular Biology, DO

Multi-/Interdisciplinary Studies, B

Multilingual and Multicultural Education, MO

Near and Middle Eastern Studies, MO

Neuroscience, DO

Nursing, M

Nursing - Registered Nurse Training, B

Organic Chemistry, MD

Pathology/Experimental Pathology, MDO

Pharmacology, DO

Philosophy, BMDO

Physical Chemistry, MD

Physics, B

Physiology, MDO

Political Science and Government, BMDO

Portuguese Language and Literature, B

Psychology, BD

Public Health, M

Public Health (MPH, DPH), B

Public Policy Analysis, MO

Radiation Biology/Radiobiology, M

Russian Language and Literature, B

Science, Technology and Society, B

Social Sciences, B

Sociology, B

Spanish Language and Literature, BMDO

Taxation, M

Theology/Theological Studies, B

Theoretical Chemistry, MD

Western European Studies, MO

Women's Studies, B

HOWARD UNIVERSITY

Accounting, BM

African Studies, MD

African-American/Black Studies, B

Allopathic Medicine, DPO

Analytical Chemistry, MD

Anatomy, BMD

Anthropology, B

Applied Art, B

Applied Mathematics, MD

Architecture, B

Art History, Criticism and Conservation, M

Art Therapy/Therapist, B

Art/Art Studies, General, B

Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, MD

Biochemistry, MD

Biological and Biomedical Sciences, MD

Biology/Biological Sciences, B

Biophysics, D

Biopsychology, D

BioTechnology, M

Broadcast Journalism, B

Business Administration and Management, B

Business Administration, Management and Operations, MO

Ceramic Arts and Ceramics, BM

Chemical Engineering, BM

Chemistry, BMD

Civil Engineering, BM

Classics and Classical Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics, B

Clinical Laboratory Science/Medical Technology/Technologist, B

Clinical Psychology, D

Communication and Media Studies, MD

Communication Disorders, MD

Computer Science, M

Corporate and Organizational Communication, MD

Counseling Psychology, MDO

Counselor Education/School Counseling and Guidance Services, BMO

Criminal Justice/Police Science, B

Dental and Oral Surgery, O

Dental Hygiene/Hygienist, B

Dentistry, PO

Design and Applied Arts, M

Developmental Psychology, D

Drama and Dramatics/Theatre Arts, B

Drama Therapy, B

Early Childhood Education and Teaching, MO

Economics, BMD

Education, BMDO

Educational Administration and Supervision, MDO

Educational Psychology, MDO

Electrical Engineering, MD

Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering, B

Elementary Education and Teaching, M

Engineering and Applied Sciences, MD

English, MD

English Language and Literature, B

Environmental Sciences, MD

Exercise and Sports Science, M

Experimental Psychology, D

Family and Consumer Economics and Related Services, B

Fashion/Apparel Design, B

Film, Television, and Video Production, M

Film/Cinema Studies, B

Finance, B

Finance and Banking, M

Fine Arts and Art Studies, M

Foods, Nutrition, and Wellness Studies, B

French Language and Literature, BM

Genetics, MD

German Language and Literature, B

Health Education, M

History, BMD

Hotel/Motel Administration/Management, B

Human Development, M

Human Genetics, MD

Industrial Radiologic Technology/Technician, B

Information Science/Studies, B

Inorganic Chemistry, MD

Insurance, B

Interior Design, B

International Business/Trade/Commerce, BM

International Economics, B

Journalism, B

Kindergarten/PreSchool Education and Teaching, B

Law and Legal Studies, MPO

Leisure Studies, M

Management, M

Management Information Systems and Services, M

Marketing, M

Marketing/Marketing Management, B

Mass Communication/Media Studies, BMD

Mathematics, BMD

Mechanical Engineering, BMD

Media Studies, MD

Microbiology, D

Molecular Biology, MD

Multilingual and Multicultural Education, MD

Music, BM

Music Teacher Education, M

Nursing, MO

Nursing - Advanced Practice, O

Nursing - Registered Nurse Training, B

Nutritional Sciences, MD

Occupational Therapy/Therapist, B

Organic Chemistry, MD

Orthodontics, O

Painting, M

Pedodontics, O

Pharmacology, MDO

Pharmacy, BP

Philosophy, BM

Photography, M

Physical Chemistry, MD

Physical Education Teaching and Coaching, B

Physical Therapy/Therapist, B

Physician Assistant, B

Physics, BMD

Physiology, D

Political Science and Government, BMD

Printmaking, M

Psychology, BMD

Public Administration, M

Public Affairs, M

Radio and Television, B

Reading Teacher Education, MO

Recreation and Park Management, M

Russian Language and Literature, B

School Psychology, MDO

Sculpture, M

Secondary Education and Teaching, MO

Social Psychology, D

Social Work, BMD

Sociology, BMD

Spanish Language and Literature, BM

Special Education and Teaching, MO

Theology and Religious Vocations, MDP

POTOMAC COLLEGE

Accounting, AB

Business Administration and Management, B

International Business/Trade/Commerce, AB

Management Information Systems and Services, A

Purchasing, Procurement/Acquisitions and Contracts Management, B

Security and Loss Prevention Services, A

SOUTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY

Accounting, M

Banking and Financial Support Services, B

Business Administration and Management, AB

Business Administration, Management and Operations, M

Computer Science, ABM

Finance and Banking, M

Health Services Administration, M

Health/Health Care Administration/Management, AB

Information Science/Studies, AB

International Business/Trade/Commerce, M

Law and Legal Studies, AB

Management Information Systems and Services, ABM

Marketing, M

Marketing/Marketing Management, AB

Public Administration, M

STRAYER UNIVERSITY

Accounting, ABM

Business Administration and Management, AB

Business Administration, Management and Operations, M

Computer and Information Sciences and Support Services, AB

Computer Systems Networking and Telecommunications, AB

Economics, AB

Information Science/Studies, ABM

International Business/Trade/Commerce, B

Liberal Arts and Sciences Studies and Humanities, A

Management Information Systems and Services, M

Marketing/Marketing Management, A

Purchasing, Procurement/Acquisitions and Contracts Management, A

Web Page, Digital/Multimedia and Information Resources Design, AB

TRINITY (WASHINGTON) UNIVERSITY

Art History, Criticism and Conservation, B

Biochemistry, B

Biology/Biological Sciences, B

Biomedical/Medical Engineering, B

Business Administration and Management, B

Business Administration, Management and Operations, M

Chemistry, B

Communication and Media Studies, M

Counselor Education/School Counseling and Guidance Services, M

Early Childhood Education and Teaching, M

Economics, B

Education, BM

Educational Administration and Supervision, M

Elementary Education and Teaching, BM

English as a Second Language, M

English Language and Literature, B

Environmental Studies, B

French Language and Literature, B

History, B

Human Development and Family Studies, B

Interdisciplinary Studies, B

International Relations and Affairs, B

Kindergarten/PreSchool Education and Teaching, B

Liberal Arts and Sciences Studies and Humanities, B

Mass Communication/Media Studies, B

Mathematics, B

Organizational Management, M

Political Science and Government, B

Pre-Law Studies, B

Pre-Medicine/Pre-Medical Studies, B

Psychology, B

Reading Teacher Education, M

Secondary Education and Teaching, BM

Spanish Language and Literature, B

Special Education and Teaching, BM

UNIVERSITY OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

Accounting, AB

Administrative Assistant and Secretarial Science, A

Advertising, A

Aeronautics/Aviation/Aerospace Science and Technology, B

Anthropology, B

Apparel and Textiles, B

Architectural Engineering Technology/Technician, A

Architecture, B

Art Teacher Education, B

Art/Art Studies, General, B

Audiology/Audiologist and Speech-Language Pathology/Pathologist, B

Aviation/Airway Management and Operations, A

Avionics Maintenance Technology/Technician, A

Biology Technician/BioTechnology Laboratory Technician, A

Biology/Biological Sciences, B

Building/Construction Finishing, Management, and Inspection, B

Business Administration and Management, B

Business Administration, Management and Operations, M

Business Teacher Education, AB

Ceramic Arts and Ceramics, B

Chemical Engineering, A

Chemistry, B

Child Development, A

City/Urban, Community and Regional Planning, AB

Civil Engineering, B

Civil Engineering Technology/Technician, A

Clinical Laboratory Science/Medical Technology/Technologist, B

Clinical Psychology, M

Clinical/Medical Laboratory Technician, A

Commercial and Advertising Art, A

Communication Disorders, M

Computer Engineering Technology/Technician, A

Computer Science, B

Corrections, A

Counseling Psychology, M

Counselor Education/School Counseling and Guidance Services, M

Criminal Justice/Law Enforcement Administration, AB

Criminal Justice/Police Science, A

Criminology, A

Developmental and Child Psychology, B

Drama and Dramatics/Theatre Arts, B

Early Childhood Education and Teaching, M

Economics, B

Education, M

Electrical, Electronic and Communications Engineering Technology/Technician, A

Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering, B

Electromechanical Technology/Electromechanical Engineering Technology, AB

Elementary Education and Teaching, B

Emergency Medical Technology/Technician (EMT Paramedic), AB

Engineering Technology, AB

English, M

English Language and Literature, AB

Entrepreneurship/Entrepreneurial Studies, A

Environmental Engineering Technology/Environmental Technology, A

Environmental Studies, B

Family and Consumer Sciences/Home Economics Teacher Education, B

Family and Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences, B

Fashion Merchandising, A

Finance, B

Fine/Studio Arts, B

Fire Science/Firefighting, AB

Food Science, B

Food Technology and Processing, A

Forestry, B

French Language and Literature, B

Funeral Service and Mortuary Science, B

Geography, B

Graphic and Printing Equipment Operator Production, AB

Graphic Communications, B

Health Teacher Education, B

History, AB

Hospitality Administration/Management, AB

Human Resources Management and Services, B

Hydrology and Water Resources Science, A

Industrial Radiologic Technology/Technician, A

Information Science/Studies, B

Kindergarten/PreSchool Education and Teaching, B

Law and Legal Studies, P

Legal Administrative Assistant/Secretary, A

Library Science, AB

Licensed Practical/Vocational Nurse Training, A

Marine Science/Merchant Marine Officer, A

Marketing/Marketing Management, AB

Mass Communication/Media Studies, B

Mathematics, BM

Mechanical Engineering, B

Mechanical Engineering/Mechanical Technology/Technician, A

Music, AB

Music Teacher Education, B

Nursing - Registered Nurse Training, AB

Nutritional Sciences, B

Ornamental Horticulture, B

Parks, Recreation, Leisure and Fitness Studies, AB

Philosophy, AB

Physical Education Teaching and Coaching, B

Physical Sciences, A

Physics, B

Political Science and Government, B

Psychology, B

Public Administration, ABM

Purchasing, Procurement/Acquisitions and Contracts Management, B

Respiratory Care Therapy/Therapist, A

Social Work, B

Sociology, B

Spanish Language and Literature, B

Special Education and Teaching, BM

Technology Education/Industrial Arts, B

Trade and Industrial Teacher Education, B

Urban Studies/Affairs, AB

Water Quality and Wastewater Treatment Management and Recycling Technology/Technician, A