The University of Minnesota, Crookston (UMC) is a four-year university located in Crookston, Minnesota. With approximately 1,450 undergraduate students , it is one of five campuses in the University of Minnesota system. Currently, students from 29 countries and 40 states are enrolled (Fall 2010). Located on the northern edge of Crookston, Minnesota, off U.S. Highway 2, the 108-acre (0.44 km) campus (237-acre (0.96 km) including research plots of the Nortwest Research and Outreach Center) is situated in the Red River Valley, one of the richest and most diversified agricultural regions in the United States. The region is the transition point from the forested areas of the east to the great plains of the Dakotas. The University of Minnesota, Crookston uses the marketing slogan "Small Campus. Big Degree." The statement is meant to highlight the attraction and benefits of studying in a small, friendly, close-knit campus environment while earning a degree from the University of Minnesota system, a highly regarded brand name in education. In 1895, the Minnesota legislature appropriated $30,000 to construct experimental research farms at Morris and Crookston.