Austin Peay, O stuhn PEE, State University is a publicly assisted institution of higher learning in Clarksville, Tennessee. The school was founded in 1927 as the Austin Peay Normal School, a two-year junior college and teacher-training institution. It began offering bachelor's degrees in 1939. The Tennessee State Board of Regents changed the school's name to Austin Peay State College in 1943. It was renamed Austin Peay State University in 1967. It is named after Tennessee Governor Austin Peay, who held office at the time of the school's founding.