Western New England College
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| Western New England College | |
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 Seal of Western New England College |
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| Motto | Latin: Scientia Integritas Servitium |
| Established | 1919* |
| Type | Private |
| President | Anthony S. Caprio |
| Students | 3,657 |
| Undergraduates | 2,775 |
| Postgraduates | 882 |
| Location | Springfield, Massachusetts, USA |
| Campus | Suburban |
| Former names | Northeastern College, Springfield Division (1919-1922), Northeastern University of the Boston YMCA, Springfield Division (1922-1935), Northeastern University, Springfield Division (1935-1951) |
| Sports | Baseball, basketball, cross country running, field hockey, football, golf, ice hockey, lacrosse, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, volleyball, wrestling |
| Mascot | Golden Bear |
| Athletics | NCAA Division III |
| Website | www.wnec.edu |
| *Then still part of Northeastern University. Separated 1951. | |
Western New England College (WNEC) is a private college in Springfield, Massachusetts. It began as an off-site evening division of Northeastern College and became independent in 1951.
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[edit] History
The Springfield Division of Northeastern College was established in 1919. Evening classes were held in the YMCA building in Springfield for students studying part-time. The college would later change its name to Northeastern University of the Boston YMCA and then to Northeastern University. The Springfield Division was colloquially known as "Northeastern, Springfield". In 1951, the Springfield Division of Northeastern became Western New England College. The alma mater is called "Theme Song for Western New England College". It was written by Eugene Weaver, a 1954 alumnus, shortly after the founding of the college in 1951. In 1956, 34 acres (140,000 m2) of the former Ingalls Farm was purchased and the first day program was started. The charter was expanded in 1959, the school of arts and sciences was established in 1967, and the college received accreditation as a general-purpose institution in 1972. In the early 1970s, the board of trustees set up a committee to investigate the viability of a full time day program for the law school. This program opened in 1973. Since no facility was available on the college campus, the law school was housed at the former Our Lady of Lourdes School in Springfield. Students referred to this building as "Our Lady of the Law School." The new law school building on campus opened in 1978 and is named after S. Prestley Blake, who made a gift of $250,000 to the project.
[edit] Campus
Western New England College's 215-acre (0.9 km2) main campus in Springfield consists of 27 buildings. The college's small, non-residential satellite sites are located in Devens, Bedford, Braintree, Malden, New Bedford, and Norwood, Massachusetts.
[edit] Academics
Undergraduate and graduate programs are offered in the Schools of Arts and Sciences, Business, Engineering, and Law. There are 34 undergraduate majors and graduate studies range from certificates to master's degrees. The Western New England College School of Law offers J.D. programs and a part-time LL.M. program.
[edit] Affiliations
Western New England College is accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges. Business programs are accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, engineering programs are accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, and social work programs are accredited by the Council on Social Work Education. The law school is accredited by the American Bar Association and is a member of the Association of American Law Schools. Teacher education programs have been approved by the Massachusetts Board of Education and are part of the Interstate Certification Compact. Western New England College is also a member of the Association of American Colleges, the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities, and the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Massachusetts.
[edit] Student Life
There were 3,657 students at the college in 2007, 2,775 of whom were undergraduates; approximately 60 percent were men and 40 percent were women.[1] There are various clubs and organizations available on campus, including honors societies, professional and departmental cubs, media and publications organizations, special interest groups, the Student Senate, residence hall associations, and campus ministry groups. Honors societies at the college include: Alpha Kappa Delta, Alpha Lambda Delta, Alpha Phi Sigma, Beta Alpha Psi, Beta Gamma Sigma, Lambda Pi Eta, Mortar Board, Omicron Delta Kappa, Phi Alpha Theta, Pi Sigma Alpha, Psi Chi, Tau Beta Pi. The Cupola is the yearbook, The Review of Art & Literature is a literary magazine, GB-TV "Golden Bear Television" is a TV station, The Westerner is the newspaper, and WNEK-FM 105.1 FM is the radio station.
[edit] Athletics
Western New England College is a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division III. Sports include: baseball, basketball, cross country running, field hockey, football, golf, ice hockey, lacrosse, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, volleyball, and wrestling. Most sports are part of the Commonwealth Coast Conference, while football is part of the New England Football Conference, ice hockey is part of the Eastern College Athletic Conference, and wrestling is part of the New England College Conference Wrestling Association. Non-NCAA varsity sports include martial arts and bowling.[2] Prior to 2008, the college competed in the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) for baseball, men's and women's basketball, men's and women's cross country, men's and women's soccer, softball, women's swimming, men's and women's tennis, and women's volleyball; in the North Atlantic Conference (NAC) for field hockey; and the New England Women's Lacrosse Alliance (NEWLA) for women's lacrosse. The mascot is the Golden Bear. Athletics facilities the college include the Alumni Healthful Living Center, the Golden Bear Stadium, the George E. Trelease Memorial Baseball Park, the Suprenant Field, and the tennis courts.
[edit] Residence life
The college has nine residence halls on campus: Berkshire Hall, Commonwealth Hall, Evergreen Village, Franklin Hall, Gateway Village, Hampden Hall, LaRiviere Residential Living and Learning Center, Plymouth Complex, Windham Hall, and Southwood Hall.
[edit] Notable persons
Several WNEC alumni have gone on to become politicians Massachusetts and Connecticut, and federal government employees. Members of the Massachusetts Senate and WNEC include Stephen Buoniconti and Gale D. Candaras, also of the Massachusetts House of Representatives with Cheryl A. Coakley-Rivera and Angelo Puppolo, also former city council member in Springfield, Massachusetts. Members of the Connecticut House of Representatives include Lawrence F. Cafero and Michael A. Christ, with John Kissel in the Connecticut State Senate. Tim Murray has been lieutenant governor of Massachusetts, as well as former mayor of Worcester, Massachusetts. One alumnus has been a member of the U.S. House of Representatives: John E. Sweeney of New York State. Michael Mori is known in Australia as the lawyer of a Guantanamo Bay detainee. Larry O'Brien, is a former U.S. Postmaster General, as well as a former National Basketball Association Commissioner.
[edit] Notes and references
[edit] External links
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