Assumption College is a private, Roman Catholic, liberal arts college located on 185 acres (708,000 m²) in Worcester, Massachusetts, United States. Assumption has an enrollment of about 2,117 undergraduates. The college confers Bachelor of Arts degrees in its undergraduate program, Master of Arts and Masters of Business Administration degrees in its graduate program, and associate's degrees through its Continuing Education program. Though majors in the sciences are offered, only Bachelor of Arts degrees are conferred.
History
Undergraduate day college
Assumption was founded in 1904 by the Augustinians of the Assumption, a Catholic order under the Augustinian Rule dedicated to service through teaching and the hastening of the Kingdom of God, as reflected in their motto "Thy Kingdom Come." The original campus was in the Greendale section of Worcester, on a tract of hillside land. In these early years, enrollment was exclusively male, primarily of French-Canadian heritage. Most courses were taught in French, with only a small number taught in English.
In June 1953, a tornado cut a path of destruction through several western and central Massachusetts communities, including the city of Worcester. Several campus buildings were destroyed or severely damaged. Although the previously co-located Assumption Preparatory School stayed on the rebuilt campus until 1970, the college relocated to a new campus off Salisbury Street, on the west side of the city, officially opening in 1956. The old Assumption campus complex was sold to the state after the prep school closed and is today the home of Quinsigamond Community College.
In 1969, Assumption became a coeducational institution, allowing both laymen and -women into the faculty, and female students into its programs of study.
Centennial festivities began in January 2004, celebrating the college's 100th year.
On February 15, 2007, the Assumption College Board of Trustees announced that Dr. Francesco Cesareo, an author and historian, would succeed President Thomas R. Plough on July 1, 2007. As the 15th president of the institution, Plough oversaw an aggressive eight-year Centennial Campaign that raised over $33 million for campus renovations and construction.
Continuing education
Assumption's first effort at continuing education began in 1954 with the founding of the Evening College, later known as the St. Augustine Institute. Non-credit courses were offered two years later with the founding of the Adult Education Center. These facilities were coeducational and open to the public. Assumption phased out both facilities in the late 1960s.
In 1979, Assumption launched a second effort at continuing adult education with the Center for Continuing and Professional Education, renamed in 2007 the Center for Continuing and Career Education. This new facility combined the credited courses of the old Evening College and the non-credit work of the Adult Education Center into one office. The Center celebrated its 25th anniversary in the same year as the undergraduate college's centennial.
College institutes
The French Institute (Institut Français), founded in 1979, serves as a specialized research center for students studying French history, culture, and language.
The Institute was founded by Father Wilfrid J. Dufault, A.A., the late chancellor emeritus of the College, and Dr. Claire Quintal, founding director emerita, to preserve the French heritage of Assumption College and of the New England region. The Institute is both an academic research facility and a center for French cultural activities. Although its main goals are to foster the preservation and study of the records of the history and cultural traditions of French ethnicity on this continent, the name "French Institute" (Institut français) was chosen to encompass the entire Francophone world. The Institute is the leading place to study material relating to the more than 1.5 million French Canadians who immigrated to New England in the 19th and 20th centuries.
As a research center, the French Institute acquires books, documents, and artifacts pertinent to its primary focus: the French presence in North America, with particular emphasis on New England. All aspects of this presence are of interest to the Institute: social, political, cultural, religious, literary, etc. The personal collection of Dr. Quintal formed the early nucleus of the holdings. The donation of their fine library by the Fall River Dominicans greatly enhanced the Institute's book collection, which had begun to grow with gifts of duplicate books by ACA Assurance (formerly the Association Canado-Américaine) and later the Union St. Jean-Baptiste. From 2003 to 2005, book donations by Dr. Armand Chartier, Arthur L. Eno, Dr. Gerard Brault, and others expanded the library significantly. Documents and artifacts include rich private archives donated by the Jobin-Thibodeau family and by former advisory board president, the late Wilfrid J. Michaud, Jr. In 2004, the Institute's collection was complemented by the arrival on campus of the Mallet Library of the Union St. Jean-Baptiste, a notable collection of Franco-Americana compiled by a successful Franco-American immigrant, Major Edmond Mallet, in the late 19th century.
An active community of scholars engaged in ethnic studies, social history, and linguistic analysis uses the French Institute collection. Undergraduate students, doctoral candidates, and professional scholars are among these users. Scholarship emerging from study of the Institute collection is of interest and relevance to both specialists and a broader public.
The French Institute further seeks to promote knowledge and increase awareness of Francophone North Americans and Francophone questions generally by organizing colloquia and lectures, publishing books, and becoming involved in a variety of cultural projects. The Institute has published conference proceedings on such topics as French-Canadian immigrants to the United States; the Little Canadas of New England; and Franco-American journalism, folklore, education, literature, religion, and women. It has provided English translations of key texts to make them readily available to non-French speakers. Recent translations include The Beginnings of the Franco-American Colony in Woonsocket, Rhode Island, by Marie Louise Bonier, The Franco-Americans of New England: A History, by Armand Chartier, and the collection Steeples and Smokestacks: The Franco-American Experience in New England, edited by Claire Quintal, now in its second edition.
The Aaron T. Beck Institute for Cognitive Studies, a 1996 addition to the College, serves as the research center for students in the BA and Master's counseling psychology programs.
The Worcester Institute for Senior Education (WISE) was started in 1993 when Assumption College began sponsoring a specialized continuing education program for seniors. This program offers non-credit courses in most major academic disciplines to older learners in the community. WISE enrolls 300 elder students in 75 courses offered each five-week session.
Campus life
Residence halls
First-year student housing: Desautels and Alumni halls are the double-style residence halls located in the heart of campus. Many first-year students desire to live in these halls because of their proximity to classes and Taylor Dining Hall. Worcester and Salisbury halls house first-year students and sophomores. Worcester and Salisbury are made up of triples and quads, with some singles. Hanrahan, often referred to by students as "B-dorm," is the new Honors Housing option for first-year students, starting in the fall of 2006. Since becoming Honors Housing it is rarely referred to as "B". Nault is a substance-free residence hall, housing students of all four class years. Nault Hall offers singles, doubles, and triples.
Upperclass housing: All upperclassmen can live in the above residence halls, as well as other residence halls on campus. Young Hall, or "C-dorm," is on "the Hill" with Hanrahan, Nault, and the Aubuchon and Bissonette townhouses. Young Hall houses mostly sophomores and some juniors in singles, doubles, and triples. The Aubuchon townhouses are six-person apartments, and the Bissonette townhouses are four-person apartments. Aubuchon and Bissonette have living rooms, kitchens, bathrooms, and double bedrooms. The apartments are collectively called "The Ts," and students typically refer to them by number: T-1, T-2 etc.
Wachusett Hall and Moquin Hall are five-person apartments. Wachusett is made up of mostly juniors and features living rooms, kitchens, private bathrooms, and two bedrooms (one double and one triple). Moquin is in an area of campus known as the "Valley," which is a primarily senior area. Moquin offers living rooms, kitchens, private bathrooms, and three bedrooms (two doubles and one single). Moquin is typically referred to as "5-men." Also in the Valley is Dion Hall, which has the same set-up as the Bissonette townhouses ("4-men"). Authier and Dufault halls round out the Valley housing options. They are six-person apartments (hence Authier & Dufault are often referred to as SixMen) that were revamped and updated in the summer of 2006. Authier and Dufault offer living rooms, kitchens, private bathrooms, and three double bedrooms.
Built in 2001, Plough Hall (formerly known as North Hall) and South Hall are six-person apartments in the upper part of campus. Plough and South Halls feature four bedrooms (two doubles and two singles), kitchens, two private bathrooms, and living rooms. Finally, West Hall is made up of four-person suites (sometimes five-person suites) with two bedrooms and a bathroom but no kitchens.
Living/Learning Center: Built in 1998, The Living/Learning Center (or L/LC) is an exception to the other residence halls because students must apply to live in this building. Every other residence hall must be selected during room selection in the spring. A panel of judges evaluate L/LC applications and select the residents based on certain criteria. The residence hall itself is for four people, split up into two double bedrooms. It features a kitchen, living room, and a private bathroom. Before fall 2006, students needed to perform individual projects all centered on a topic the group decided on in the selection period. Starting in the 2006-2007 year, each student who lives in the L/LC must attend interest circles with various professors on a large amount of diverse topics. These topics include music, politics, psychology, the environment, etc. The students change their interest circles each semester.
Student publications
- Le Provocateur (student newspaper): This student-edited publication is published bimonthly and distributed to all members of the college community. Le Provocateur also called "The Provoc," has a staff of student editors and contributing writers, a faculty advisor from the English Department, and an advisor from the Office of Student Activities.
- Heights (yearbook)
- Thoreau's Rooster (creative nonfiction journal)
Athletics
Assumption College teams participate as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division II. The Greyhounds are a member of the Northeast-10 Conference (NE-10). Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, ice hockey, lacrosse, soccer, tennis and track & field; women's sports include basketball, cross country, field hockey, lacrosse, rowing, soccer, softball, swimming & diving, tennis, track & field and volleyball.
Athletic facilities
Multi-sport stadium: With more than $21 million raised toward the $30 million goal for the Centennial Campaign (celebrating Assumption's 100-year history), Assumption College announced plans to construct a $3.2 million multi-sport stadium, which opened in September 2005. The stadium is the key capital project of the second phase of the Centennial Campaign.
The stadium was constructed on the previous site of Assumption's football/lacrosse field. The new facility supports six athletic teams (football, men's and women’s lacrosse, men's and women's soccer, and field hockey) and an outdoor intramural sports program on an infilled, synthetic turf field. It includes lights, elevated grandstand seating for approximately 1,200 spectators, a press box and a president’s box. The stadium includes a dedicated practice area north of the competition field.
Notable alumni
(Taken from Assumption College alumni profiles. Note that Assumption Preparatory School graduates are included in Assumption College alumni activities.)
- Major General Robert Catalanotti, (US Army), '80: former commander of the largest military base in Iraq, and current Senior Military Advisor, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
- Chris Colabello: professional baseball player for the Toronto Blue Jays
- Rev. Ernest Fortin, A.A. '46: scholar, political philosopher and theologian; professor of theology and philosophy, Assumption College, 1955-1971; professor of theology and political theory at Boston College, 1971-2002
- Hon. Jay Garcia-Gregory, '66: Federal Judge, U.S. District Court of Puerto Rico
- Mike Gravel, AP '49: U.S. Senator from Alaska, 1969â€"81 and 2008 presidential candidate
- Andy Hallett, '97: singer and actor best known for playing the part of "Lorne" on the television series Angel
- Jake Jones, ′71: professional basketball player for the Philadelphia 76ers
- Brian Kelly, '83: head football coach at the University of Notre Dame
- Joe O'Brien, '57: former Assumption College basketball coach and President and CEO of the Basketball Hall of Fame
- Mary Anastasia O'Grady, '79: member of The Wall Street Journal's editorial board
- Michael Ritchie, '79: Artistic director of the Center Theatre Group in Los Angeles, California
- Rev. Richard Ryscavage, S.J.: Director of Center for Faith and Public Life and Professor of Sociology and International Studies at Fairfield University, nationally known expert on immigration and refugees
- Scott Simonson: professional football player for the Carolina Panthers
References
External links
- Official website
- Official athletics website
