History of ACUI

We have a long, rich history behind us. This solid foundation makes us uniquely able to provide for the needs of professionals in community building. We endeavor to continue to facilitate the growth of college unions by nurturing the core of all community building — the individual — by leveraging technological and cultural opportunities for growth, education, and connection.

ACUI was born in 1914 as the National Association of Student Unions. It was founded by student and staff representatives from Case School of Applied Sciences at Cleveland (now Case Western Reserve University), University of Illinois, Indiana University, University of Michigan, Ohio State University, Purdue University, and University of Wisconsin. The Association evolved under the names American Association of Student Unions, Association of College and University Unions, Association of College Unions, Association of College Unions-International, and now the Association of College Unions International.

The Association gained an international flavor in 1922 when McGill University and the University of Toronto were named charter members under the new constitution. Also that year, Warden J.B. Bickersteth of Toronto was named the Association’s first president, and a second “annual” conference convened at Toronto’s Hart House.

Throughout its early decades, the Association provided the only source of information for improving college union operations. Following World War II, the Association provided resources to union professionals dealing with the unprecedented numbers of students enrolling in colleges and universities. A college union building boom had begun, and the Association was there to help. In 1964 at the 50th anniversary conference, the Association became ACU-I by adding “International” to its name. (The hyphen was dropped in 1996.) In 1967, the Association selected its first full-time executive director, Chester A. Berry of Stanford University.

ACUI now has a full-time staff of 12, and along with hundreds of volunteers, it continues to evolve. The Association recently underwent a reinvention process that made it a knowledge-based association, rather than a constituency-based association. Through the reinvention, four Education Councils were formed to address the Association’s four competency areas. Those areas are: Administration, Finance, and Management; Campus Life and Programming Management; Auxiliary Services; and Facilities and Operations.