 The university began its work in 1945 in a small house located in downtown Cali, with faculties of Agronomy, Business, and Nursing. In 1946 the Faculty of Chemistry was established, followed by the Faculty of Architecture in 1947, and in 1948 the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, which changed its name in 1949 to the Faculty of Electromechanical Engineering. At this early stage, the university faced its first financial crisis, a situation that was preceded by the destitution of the rector Ramírez in 1949 by political reasons, and caused by the diminishing support of the local government. The crisis, which almost ended in the university closure in 1950, would represent one of many chapters of the financial difficulties faced by the university in its history.
