Manhattanville College

Manhattanville College
Motto	In Exultatione Metens
Established	1841
Type	Selective Private coeducational
Endowment	$30 million [1]
Faculty	368
Undergraduates	1,700
Postgraduates	1,200
Location	Purchase, NY, USA
Campus	Suburban; 100 acres (0.40 km2)
Athletics	21 NCAA Division III sports teams
Mascot	Valiant
Website	www.manhattanville.edu

The architectural and administrative centerpiece of the Manhattanville campus, Reid Hall (1864), is named after Whitelaw Reid, owner of the New York Tribune.

Manhattanville College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college offering undergraduate and graduate degrees, located in Purchase, New York, USA. Founded in 1841 it was known in initially as Manhattanville College of the Sacred Heart. Manhattanville's mission is to "educate students to become ethically and socially responsible leaders for the global community."[2]

Approximately 1700 undergraduate and 1,200 graduate students attend Manhattanville. Renowned for its commitment to diversity, Manhattanville students come from 76 countries and 48 states.^[2] In accordance with the college's Portfolio System, which is the nation's oldest such system, undergraduate candidates must present a freshman year assessment essay; a study plan outlining all course work counted toward the degree; a program evaluation essay, which gives a rationale for the student's choice of courses, as well as a personal evaluation of the course; and specific examples of work in writing and research.^[3]

Under the 14 year tenure of Richard Berman ^[4] Manhattanville underwent a renaissance that has gained the college much acclaim.^[5]

History

In 1841 the Academy of the Sacred Heart, a Catholic boarding school for girls, was founded in a three-story house on Houston Street on Manhattan's Lower East Side. The Academy relocated in 1847 to an area in the northwestern part of Manhattan Island on a hill overlooking the village of Manhattanville.Destroyed by a fire in 1888, the Academy was rebuilt on the same foundation and continued to grow, both in curriculum and physical environment.

An aerial photo of the former campus of the Manhattanville College of the Sacred Heart in the Manhattanville section of New York City, taken from the south looking northeast.

In March 1917, 76 years after its founding as an academy, Manhattanville was chartered as a college by the New York State Board of Regents, empowering it to grant both undergraduate and graduate degrees. In 1952, the college moved to Purchase to the former estate of Whitelaw Reid, "Ophir Hall". Long heralded as the most prestigious Catholic woman's college, after becoming co-educational and nondenominational Manhattanville began to experience difficult financial problems. Since the mid 1990's however, the college has been successfully increasing its capital funding, which has enabled it to build new facilities and increase its endowment.^[6] Today, Manhattanville's "Castle" looks out over the green of the quadrangle to the renovated residence halls, academic buildings and the housing complex for faculty and staff from around the globe.

Statue of Jesus Christ in the campus graveyard

Co-educational since 1969 and non-denominational in its governance since 1971, Manhattanville's original vision lives on in the tradition of service begun by the Society of the Sacred Heart, extending from the students to the global community. During the Depression and World War II, President Grace Cowardin Dammann, RSCJ, instilled in Manhattanville's students a keen awareness of social problems by encouraging them to spend one day a week working with children at the Barat Settlement in the Bowery and at Casita Maria in East Harlem. Mother Dammann's widely published speech, "Principles vs. Prejudice," inspired other colleges to break down racial barriers.

Campus

Manhattanville is located on a 100-acre (0.40 km²) wooded campus in Purchase, New York, on the former estate of Ben Holladay, and later, Whitelaw Reid. The college originally purchased a much larger tract of land, but when the school began having financial problems much of it was sold or leased to the Keio Academy and Mastercard in order to raise funds. The centerpiece of the campus is a quadrangle designed in part by Frederick Law Olmsted, who was hired by Reid to landscape his estate. The quad is flanked on its north end by Reid Hall which occupies the footprint of Ben Holladay's Ophir Hall, but the original structure burned down and was rebuilt by Whitelaw Reid as a massive granite crenellated mansion, built in 1895 to designs by McKim, Mead & White and now fondly known simply as "the castle." Many believe that the ghost of Reid's son, who died tragically, still haunts the castle and the old stone chapel. Reid Hall, which was at one time a potential site for the United Nations, and its grounds were listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1974. On the northwest end of the quad is the Manhattanville library, a 24 hour facility with a full time cafe. There is also a graveyard on campus which contains the remains of nearly 50 nuns, a relic of the days of when it was a Catholic school known as Manhattanville College of the Sacred Heart. Additionally, the Lady Chapel and biology classroom in the Ohnell Environmental Park were designed by Maya Lin, who designed the Vietnam War Memorial.

Japan Pavilion stones on campus.

At the end of the 1964 World's Fair, the Japan Pavilion was given as a gift from the Japanese government to the college. The original intent was to construct a new building to house a growing language program, including courses in Japanese which began in 1965. However, some of the stones were damaged during demolition and the building proved impossible to reconstruct in its original form. In addition to this, the school was already experiencing funding problems and construction of a new building would have required large amounts of money that they did not have at the time. Presently, stones from the Japan Pavilion's sculpture garden are scattered around the campus, including a number in front of the President's Cottage. The remaining volcanic stones from the walls designed by Masayuki Nagare are currently located at the back of campus, near Anderson Hill Road.

Academics

Manhattanville is a highly ranked^[7] liberal arts institution, offering both a four-year Bachelor of Arts degree to undergraduate students and M.A. and EdD. for graduate students. There are 36 academic programs, although students are free to design special majors or engage in dual majors. In 2008, the most popular majors were business, management, psychology, communications and History Manhattanville College History Department.

In order to graduate, a student must complete 120 total credits, eight to twelve of which are typically part of a chosen major program although dance and theater majors and education majors have special guidelines they must follow. Other requirements for graduation include the completion of a "Portfolio Program" which requires four of five distribution specifications in a variety of academic fields enabling the students to achieve a well rounded liberal arts education, and the completion of a writing class or first-year seminar in writing. Many departments offer honors programs requiring students seeking that distinction to engage in "independent, sustained work," culminating in the production of a thesis.

Graduate Programs

In addition to its more than 50 areas of undergraduate study, the College offers graduate degrees in 10 areas of study. Graduate degrees include Master of Arts in Liberal Studies, Master of Science in Organizational Management and Human Resource Development, Master of Science in Leadership and Strategic Management, Master of Science in Integrated Marketing Communications, Master of Science in International Management, Master of Science in Sport Business Management, Master of Science in Finance, Master of Arts in Teaching, Master of Professional Studies, and Master of Arts in Writing. The college also offers accelerated degrees, including a BA/MA in Creative Writing.

Master of Arts in Writing

Manhattanville offers a 32-credit Master of Arts in Writing (MAW) degree program for writers and aspiring writers. It publishes the award-winning literary magazine Inkwell. Inkwell offers students the opportunity to acquire real publishing skills through a number of graduate assistantships. The MAW Program also hosts a lively series of workshops and literary events featuring notable authors and poets and is home to a thriving writing community. Its annual Summer Writers’ Week at the end of June began in 1983 and featured keynote speaker Toni Morrison. Summer Writers’ Week brings participants together with some of the country’s finest writers and teachers of writing for an intensive week of deepening the study of their craft.

Manhattanville Library Rare Book and Manuscripts Room

The Rare Book and Manuscripts Room preserves both manuscripts and printed materials from the Manhattanville College Library. The book collection consists of approximately 2,400 titles that span the history of the book in the United States and Europe. Subject fields represented include history, religion, literature, biography, and philosophy. The collection also includes other formats such as periodicals, Jewish pamphlets, government documents, maps, and manuscripts. Particularly noteworthy are five incunabula, and several bound manuscript volumes. The latter include individual collections of psalms and prayers intended as an aid to private devotion, known as Books of Hours. The most notable of these is the Horae Beatae Mariae Virginis, Cum Calendario – also known as the Manhattanville Book of Hours.[3]

Study Abroad

Putting the Ville Back in Manhattan In addition to the courses offered on campus, Manhattanville offers a New York City study program whereby students live and study with Manhattanville professors in New York City and pursue internships for credit.

Oxford University Programs include two special relationships with Oxford University, whereby students may spend a year studying at the CMRS program through St. Peter's College, Oxford. There is an additional program through St. Clare's, Oxford whereby students may study through the Black Friars in Oxford.

There are over 50 programs whereby students may study in Europe, Africa, Australia, Asia and South America.[4]

Student life

The nineteenth-century "Lady Chapel" in the Ohnell Environmental Park converted into a 24 hour student center

• 200 Nights Halloween Party,100 Nights Theme party, 50 Nights Toga Party in honor of remaining nights until graduation.^[8]
• Fall and Spring Formals in the Castle
• "Fall Fest" Music Festival
• United Nations Ambassador Lecture Series[5]
• Quad Jam [6]
• West Point Football Saturday[7]
• International Bazaar [8]
• Annual Holiday Concert (formerly the Christmas Concert)Manhattanville Music Department
• Shakespeare in the Castle [9]
• Homecoming Weekend [10]
• History Department Annual BBQ Manhattanville History Department

Publications

Now in its 62nd year, the Touchstone remains the oldest newspaper serving the Manhattanville community. Two other student-run publications also exist: The Right World View a conservative and liberal publication funded by The Leadership Institute; and The Link, a progressive publication created with the help of the Connie Hogarth Center for Social Action. The national literary magazine Inkwell is also published at Manhattanville.

Athletics

Manhattanville teams compete in the ECAC West, ECAC East, and the Freedom Conference within the Middle Atlantic Corporation. Recently, the college has received much media attention through the success of the men's ice hockey team coached by Keith Levinthal. The team spent most of the 2006-07 season ranked #1 in the nation.^[9]

The Quadrangle at Manhattanville College.

Manhattanville in Popular Culture

Film, television and art productions that feature Manhattanville:

• Law and Order SVU(2006) which used the interior of the President's Cottage
• Thomas Crown Affair(1999) which utilized the interior of Reid Hall and featured a character who is from Manhattanville
• The Funeral(1996) in which a main character says she graduated from Manhattanville.
• Richard Rodgers visited Manhattanville's Pius X School of Liturgical Music (1918-1969) in 1959 to conduct research for The Sound of Music and according to college documents Rodgers was inspired to write the song, The Hills are Alive With the Sound of Music while on campus.

Recent Projects and News

• Manhattanville Creative Arts and Student Center (Opened April 2008)
• The Ohnell Environmental Park, featuring the restored "Lady Chapel" and "Living Classroom" designed by Maya Lin (dedicated Fall 2006).

Manhattanville College People

President Richard Berman (right) and Ted Turner at commncement 2007

List of Manhattanville College Presidents

• 1917-1918 Mary Moran, RSCJ
• 1918-1924 Ruth Burnett, RSCJ
• 1924-1930 Charlotte Lewis, RSCJ
• 1930-1945 Grace Dammann, RSCJ
• 1945-1965 Eleanor O'Byrne, RSCJ
• 1965-1974 Elizabeth McCormack
• 1974-1975 Harold Delaney
• 1975-1985 Barbara Knowles Debs
• 1981-1982 Jane C. Maggin, acting
• 1985-1995 Marcia Savage
• 1995-2009 Richard Berman
• 2009-present Molly Easo Smith

[11]

Notable alumni

The Kennedy family dedicate Kennedy Gym 1957

• Rose Kennedy - mother of John F. Kennedy
• Eunice Kennedy Shriver - Founder and Honorary Chairman of the Special Olympics; Executive President of the Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. Foundation
• Joan Bennett Kennedy
• Olga Nolla - poet, writer, journalist, professor
• Kitty Pilgrim - CNN News anchor
• Sally Bott
• Janice Lachance
• Nancy Salisbury
• Patrick Hughes - Fashion Designer
• Rosario Ferré - Writer, poet, essayist
• Dalmazio Santini - composer
• Meg Bussert - Broadway actress
• Rosemary Murphy - Broadway, film and TV actress
• Daryl A. Mundis - Deputy Attorney at The Hague for the Slobodan Milošević trial
• Ethel Kennedy - founder of Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Center
• Josie Natori - President of Natori Co. International
• Jean Kennedy - US Ambassador to Ireland
• Barbara Farrell Vucanovich - US House of Representatives Nevada 2nd District
• Flora Miller Biddle - President of the Whitney Museum of American Art
• Karen Akers - Singer, actress and Tony Award winner
• Sergio Danguillecourt - Director of the Board, Bacardi
• Anita Florio - New York Supreme Court Justice
• Barbara Boggs Sigmund - Mayor of Princeton, New Jersey
• Sila Calderón - Governor of Puerto Rico
• Michaela Walsh - President and founder of Women's World Banking
• James Badge Dale - Film and Television Actor
• Maria Elena Lagomasino - Chairman and CEO JP Morgan
• Carmen Marc Valvo - American Designer
• Tina Sloan - Actress on Guiding Light

External links

• Manhattanville College
• Manhattanville's Alma Mater

References