Salem State College

:"This article is for the state college in Salem, Massachusetts. For other uses see SSC"

Infobox University
name = Salem State College


campus = Urban, 108 acres
established = 1854
type = Public
city = Salem
state = Mass.
country = USA
undergrad = 6,687
first-time degree seeking freshman = 1,226
postgrad = 2,567
faculty = 533
colors = Blue and Orange
website = [http://www.salemstate.edu www.salemstate.edu]

Salem State College is a four-year public institution of higher learning located in the city of Salem, Massachusetts. As of 2006, SSC had 7,296 undergraduate and 2,567 graduate/continuing education students, for a total student body enrollment of 9863. The College offers Bachelors, Masters, MBAs and Post Masters Certificates in more than 40 academic disciplines. Salem State College is the largest state college and fourth-largest public institution of higher education in Massachusetts.

Situated on five campuses totaling 108 acres, the College has 33 buildings and continues to grow. Nearly 1,500 students live in its four residence facilities. Central Campus is also the home of an academic building that contains the Bertolon School of Business, the Music Department, and a recital hall. The College also has multiple theater venues, a hockey rink, tennis courts, two gymnasiums, a pool, a recently renovated athletic field and an aquaculture facility located at nearby Cat Cove.

College History

The College was founded as the fourth Normal School in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in 1854 by the state legislature, thanks largely to the efforts of Horace Mann. Initially a two-year, post-secondary educational school for women, the Normal School welcomed its first class of young ladies on September 13, 1854. Among the second graduating class in July 1856 was Charlotte Forten Grimké, the College's first black graduate.

In 1921, Salem Normal School began offering a four-year course of study and awarding bachelor's degrees. In 1932, the name was changed to Salem Teachers College. In 1955, the College began to offer postgraduate studies and awarding master's degrees. The school's name was changed to the current Salem State College in the fall of 1960, reflecting the diversification of its program offerings. Residence halls were opened in 1966.

As of 2006 the college had more than 48,000 living alumni with 73 percent living in Massachusetts. In 2006, the National Association of College and University Residence Halls (NACURH) named Salem State College "National School of the Year" for the work done by the Residence Hall Association (RHA).

The new President, Dr. Patricia Maguire Meservey, has announced plans to gradually transition the College into a University. In the foreseeable future the school will be offering doctoral programs in nursing and psychology as well as expanding the school's physical plant.

Tuition and fees

As of Fall 2006:
In-State Undergraduate Day $6,544
Out-State Undergraduate Day $12,684

In-State Undergraduate Evening $180 per credit
Out-State Undergraduate Evening $215 per credit
In-State Graduate $250 per credit (Fall 2007)

Sports

Sports are housed at the Richard B. O'Keefe Center. From September 1994 to February 1997, the Marblehead/Swampscott YMCA housed their gymnastics in the multi-purpose room there. The Richard H. Rockett Arena is a public skating rink in the winter, and in the summer it is converted to an indoor tennis facility.

The Salem State College Vikings compete in the Massachusetts State College Athletic Conference in NCAA Division III. Salem State offers 17 varsity sports including lacrosse, baseball, basketball, cross-country, field hockey, golf, ice hockey, softball, soccer, swimming, diving, tennis, volleyball, as well as track and field.

The O'Keefe center also includes its own workout facility, the Wellness Center, which is open to all students.

Theatre and the Arts

SSC hosts many art shows, theatrical productions, and dance shows in its several art galleries, its full-scale theatre department, and its dance studios.

SSC's theatre department has two theatres, the recently-updated 730 seat Mainstage Theatre and the more intimate (and also recently-updated) Callan Studio Theatre in the basement of the Sullivan Building.

The theatre department produces up to six shows an academic year. They are also members of the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival (KCACTF) and compete regularly. Other groups that perform regularly are:

The Student Theatre Ensemble (STE) who produce one show each semester and a summer musical.

Repertory Dance Theatre (RDT) also have two dance shows a year.

The Students' Work Theatre Project (SWTP) a student run organization that allows anyone interested in theatre to join in a no-pressure environment to grow, learn, and have fun. The production is made up of entirely student produced, directed, and written 10-minute plays. SWTP performs in the fall of every school year, allowing incoming freshman and any non-theatre students to get involved.

Human Action Theatre (HAT) an educational theatre group that performs during Freshman Orientation.

Salem State College is also home to the improv/sketch comedy troupe, [http://www.grandmas3rdleg.com Grandma's 3rd Leg] (G3L), which performs twice a semester and at venues around Massachusetts. And the last major group that produces is Summer Theatre at Salem, a professional theatre set up that produces 3 shows every summer.

Two million dollars were recently given to the college to help build a new multimillion-dollar arts complex on Central Campus.

The campus newspaper is The Log, the alumni magazine is called Salem Statement, the student e-zine is [http://www.salemstate.edu/redskies Red Skies] , andthe campus radio station is 130-watt WMWM, 91.7 FM.

Library

The SSC Library owns over 300 thousand volumes, 29 thousand microform units, 9 thousand maps and subscribes to 692 periodicals. Memberships with other local libraries enable access to over 3.1 million holdings in the north-of-Boston area.

Library Closing

At the recommendation of the state Division of Capital Asset management (DCAM), the SSC library was closed on October 15, 2007 to address concerns raised by an engineering consultant report over the structural safety of the building.

As of late October, the library will be closed indefinitely. This has caused much controversy among the students of the college. Many feel the alternatives are unacceptable. Others feel that part of the tuition paid go toward the access of resources which are now closed to students.

Speaker Series

The college hosts 3 speakers per year. Past speakers include 42nd United State President Bill Clinton, George Bush Sr., Gloria Steinem, Robert Redford and Jesse Jackson. In 2007 the speakers were baseball legend Cal Ripken Jr., 41st United State President George H.W. Bush, and novelist Tom Wolfe.

Leadership

Dr. Patricia Maguire Meservey has been chosen as the 13th President of Salem State College. Dr. Meservey was elected by a unanimous vote of the college's Board of Trustees on Thursday, May 10, 2007 at a special meeting. The selection will be immediately submitted to the Massachusetts Board of Higher Education for formal approval. Subject to that final ratification, Dr. Meservey assumed the position as of August 2007.

Dr. Meservey was the Provost and Academic Vice President at Suffolk University in Boston, where she has provided academic leadership across the University. Particular areas of emphasis for her work are in the advancement of teaching excellence, promotion of faculty scholarship, and academic and administrative strategic planning.

From May 1990 until June 2007, Nancy D. Harrington, served as the President of the college.

Notable

Alumni

* Demetrius J. Atsalis, (Social Studies Certificate), member of the Mass. House of Representatives ("served" 1998 - "present")
* Arthur J. Broadhurst, (B.A. 1988), member of the Mass. House of Representatives ("served" 1998 - 2007)
* Michael A. Costello, (B.S. 1989), member of the Mass. House of Representatives ("served" 2002 - "present")
* Robert F. Fennell, (B.S. 1978), member of the Mass. House of Representatives ("served" 1994 - "present")
* John F. Tierney, member of the United States House of Representative ("served" 1997 - "present")
* Jacyn Tremblay, (Presidential Art Scholar) (B.A. 2002), member of Universal Motown recording artists Jada
* Tom Thibodeau, (B.S.), Assistant coach of the Boston Celtics (2007 - "present")
* Keith Knight, (B.A.), Cartoonist

External links

* [http://www.salemstate.edu/ SSC Homepage]