History

The College yearbook, the Avelan, makes its debut in May (Corviae, student newspaper, May 29, 1944)

Mother Rita Rowley, RSHM, Ph.D., begins serving as Marymount Manhattan’s first educational leader under the title “Dean,” and continues to do so until 1953.

The College moves to its present location on 71st Street, the former headquarters of the Junior League, and becomes a four-year-degree-granting institution. Bedrooms like this one were repurposed as classrooms when MMC moved to 71st Street.

Professor Margaret Sheehan organizes the first Sing, an entertainment competition between classes.

The swimming pool, formerly located on the 8th floor of the Main building, officially opens for beginning, intermediate and advanced swimming classes (Corviae, March 1949).

The first four-year class graduates from Marymount College.

Mother Raymunde McKay, RSHM, M.A., is named Dean. In 1961, Mother Raymunde obtains a separate charter for the College and becomes its first president. She served the college from 1953 to 1964, and again from 1988 to 1990. She received the President’s Medal in 1990.

Janet Collins, the first African-American prima ballerina to perform at the New York Metropolitan Opera, begins teaching dance at MMC, and continues until 1971.

The College purchases eight brownstones on 72nd Street and acquires the building adjacent to 221, now known as the Main entrance

Marymount College is granted an absolute charter as an independent college by the Regents of the University of the State of New York on February 24, 1961, and changes its name to Marymount Manhattan College. The present main entrance goes up.

The College offers students on-campus living arrangements in a small residence hall conveniently located near the Main building.

Anne-Marie Keyes, Ph.D., begins teaching philosophy at MMC, and continues to do so until 2003. 

MMC holds its first recorded Honors Day.

Sister Judith Savard, RSHM, joins the MMC faculty, and teaches art history, studio art and graphic design until her death in 2004. She created an integrated, multifaceted art major that continues to thrive at the College today.

During her short tenure as President, Sister Elizabeth-Marie Keeler, RSHM, Ph.D., positions the College for greater growth with federal grant funding, and establishes cooperative programs with IBM and the Kennedy Child Development Center.

?Priscilla and John Costello, wifeand-husband English professors who received Teaching Excellence Awards, begin teaching at MMC. They devoted two professional lifetimes, a combined total of 78 years, to Marymount Manhattan and its students. Priscilla established the Critical Thinking Program and served as its director for over ten years, and became the Assistant Vice President for Academic Affairs in the late 1980s. John taught more than 70 different literature courses. He also created courses with colleagues in other departments, including art history, history, music, philosophy, psychology, sociology and theatre.

To provide opportunities for educationally disadvantaged students, the Community Leadership Program is established and later the MalcolmKing: Harlem College Extension provides special college training for adults.

McGeorge Bundy, the former U.S. National Security Advisor for President John F. Kennedy and President Lyndon B. Johnson, heads the commission that pushes for the passage of legislation making direct government financial aid available to private institutions of higher education. However, the New York State Constitution included the “Blaine Amendment,” prohibiting direct government aid to educational institutions that have any religious affiliation. Because of this, New York State initially denies Marymount Manhattan any share of “Bundy Money” under the terms of the Blaine Amendment. Later on October 29, 1971, the College amends its charter to delete the words “for women, lay and religious.” (Marymount Manhattan College: The First Fifth Years, 1936-1986, 1986)

The mathematics department receives a grant from the federal government to teach computer programming, taught by Professor John Driscoll, a mathematics professor at MMC from 1963 to 2002 (Corviae, May 1967), in cooperation with the Service Bureau Corporation—a division of IBM (Marymount Manhattan College Alumnae Newsletter, Spring 1968).

Sister Colette Mahoney, RSHM, Ph.D., begins her 21-year presidency of the College, shepherding it through a time of political and social upheaval when student unrest is prevalent throughout the nation. She received the President’s Medal in 1988.

Marymount Manhattan begins offering, in collaboration with the Cornell University-New York Hospital School of Nursing, the first two years of a five-year professional program in nursing.

Choreographer Rudy Perez joins the MMC dance faculty as the Resident Artist in Dance until 1978.

Professor J. William Bordeau joins the faculty and helps build the B.F.A. programs in acting and dance. As the first Director of Recruitment for the Theatre Arts Department, Professor Bordeau took particular care in mentoring students through the admissions process, bringing the most talented students to MMC. Upon his retirement in 1999, the Board of Trustees named him Professor Emeritus of Theatre Arts.

In an editorial, Currents, the student newspaper, launches discussion about supporting co-education at Marymount Manhattan (Currents, October 1969). In 1973, the first male students (Kenneth Brewster, Bhoj Dindiyal and Charles White) graduate from MMC. A greater influx of male students occurs in the 1980s, and the College’s theatre arts and dance productions include more roles for males.

Tibor Farkas begins teaching political science and still teaches as a professor emeritus.

Two nationally prominent widows, civil rights activist Coretta Scott King and Ethel Kennedy, receive MMC’s first honorary degrees. The assassination of their husbands, Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy, the previous year had left the nation reeling.

The College mourns the death of MMC’s professor Dr. Nicholas S. Timasheff, a Russianborn pioneer in the sociology of law and author of Sociology Theory, Its Growth and Development, which became the national standard textbook in sociological theory. Dr. Timasheff was born in St. Petersburg and taught sociology and jurisprudence at the university there until his expulsion from the country in 1921. He taught at the University of Prague and at the Sorbonne’s Institute of Slavic Studies until 1936, when he came to the United States as a visiting lecturer at Harvard. Dr. Timasheff taught at MMC from 1943 to 1963.

The first recorded Alumni Association Medal is awarded to Barbara Lynch Loughlin ’70, “the student who has been voted by the graduating class to have exercised the greatest influence for good upon her companions” (Today, June 1970).

Mother Butler Gold Cross is awarded to Valerie Merone Guadagnino ’70, “the student showing the greatest loyalty to the ideals of the College.” This award was established by the College in memory of Mother Joseph Butler, who was responsible for establishing a network of colleges called Marymount throughout the United States.

A group of MMC students mobilizes the MMC community for the observance of a day of mourning for the students slain on May 4 at Kent State University. Four unarmed students were killed by the Ohio National Guard while protesting against the American invasion of Cambodia. The MMC Faculty Council condemned “the de-humanizing, de-personalizing, brutalizing recent actions, national and international, of public officials and private individuals: in particular, the tragedy at Kent State University and the apparently unconstitutional de facto invasion of Cambodia” and offered students a proposal for alternative class arrangements. The College officially closed for the day on May 8, turning the campus into a public information center on the local and nationwide student strike; mounting a daylong program of speakers, dialogues, dramatic performances and memorial services; and enacting the joint faculty, student and administrative resolutions defining the school’s future participation in the nationwide student strike. (Corviae, May 1970; Today, alumni magazine, June 1970).

Marymount Manhattan phases out its Home Economics program, and its principal professor, Mrs. Frances Telsey, retires. Although Mrs. Telsey was well known for teaching a course with the pre-feminist-sounding title of “Hostess Problems,” she also prepared students for careers in home economics: in nutrition, in teaching and in consumer education.

Barbara Hackman Franklin, staff assistant to President Richard M. Nixon for increasing women’s opportunities in the workplace, delivers the commencement address, leading some students to object, believing the invitation represented approval of the Nixon Administration and its policies, especially in Southeast Asia. Hackman focused her remarks on the graduates before her, urging them to “Go and do your thing. Do it your way and do it well.”

Colette A. Wagner ’73 receives the Rowley Medal, which was established in memory of Mother Rita Rowley, foundress of Marymount Manhattan College, and given to the student whose educational achievements represent extraordinary determination and effort.

MMC expands by constructing a seven-story building on 72nd street, replacing eight brownstones located immediately behind the original college structure. The Nugent building officially opens and is named in honor of former Trustee Joseph C. Nugent, Sr., who was a member of the Board of Trustees from 1967 to 1980.

The Thomas J. Shanahan Library opens on the second and third floors of the Nugent building. The library was formerly located in what is now known as the Office of the President.

The Weekend College at Marymount Manhattan opens, offering courses to returning women students on Saturdays and Sundays.

Marymount Manhattan Theatre opens and establishes a five-year residency of the Phoenix Theatre Company at the College, featuring actors, such as Glenn Close, Sigourney Weaver, Kevin Bacon, Jeff Goldblum, Ellen Barkin and Christine Baranski. The theatre is renamed The Theresa Lang Theatre in 2001.

Acclaimed film director Sidney Lumet receives honorary degree from MMC in the same year his film, Network, causes the phrase “I’m as mad as hell, and I’m not going to take this anymore!” to enter permanently into American consciousness.

MMC celebrates springtime on 71st Street during its first Strawberry Festival (Sunrise, April 1976). The event replaced the annual “Spring-In” that began in 1967.

The College established a cooperative agreement with the New York Botanical Garden, which offered 13 courses in botany.

MMC holds a memorial for Sister Ita Ford ’61, who was killed with three other female missionaries. Sr. Ita’s classmates honored her with the plaque that still hangs in the Thomas J. Shanahan Library. Sr. Ita was honored posthumously with the Raymunde McKay Award in 2006, during what would have been her 45th class reunion.

Marvelle Colby joins the faculty and serves 15 years as Chair of the Division of Accounting and Business Management until her retirement in 2001, the year she also received the Teaching Excellence Award.

Rosa Parks receives MMC’s honorary degree as a tribute to civil rights activism and her act of courage that sparked the Montgomery Bus Boycott in 1955.

Professor Gurcharan Singh, who became a fulltime faculty member in 1980, establishes the international studies major at MMC. For 27 years, he inspired MMC students and fellow faculty members with his commitment to global peace, conflict resolution and international studies. He received the Teaching Excellence Award in 1996.

College continues to expand weekend programs for returning women students. Targeting women between 22 and 34, the College offers Women in Management, an honors program that began in 1974 and enlists successful women executives to serve as mentors and role models for students.

Geraldine Ferraro ’56 becomes the first woman to be nominated as a candidate for Vice President of the United States by a major party. In 1990, Ferraro established a scholarship in memory of her mother, Antonetta Ferraro, who urged Geraldine to attend college despite her own hardships as a widow. In 2007, the College presented Geraldine with the President’s Medal. 

Senator Edward M. Kennedy receives honorary degree.

Betty Friedan, author of The Feminine Mystique, speaks at Marymount Manhattan about how to carry the women’s movement to a second stage with a new generation of young women, 20 years after her women’s liberation manifesto was first published.

In honor of the 50th anniversary of the first four-year graduating class, the College awards the Jubilee Medal to Theresa Dalton, RSHM; Brendan McQuillan, RSHM; Raymunde McKay, RSHM; Jogues Egan, RSHM; ElizabethMarie Keeler, RSHM; Dr. Mattie Cook; Mr. Joseph C. Nugent; Dr. Ewald B. Nyquist; Marian Sheehan Campbell ’54; Mary Grace Walsh Erbacher ’55; Jane McCormick Griffin ’65; Elizabeth M. Heffernan ’51; Joanne Bronski Henrick ’75; Fran Burke Hynes ’55; Joan Parlapiano Macellaro ’59; Mary Roberts McCormack ’61; Mary Hehir O’Donnell ’61; and Laura Frances Maguire ’83.

Choreographer Twyla Tharp receives honorary degree.

Regina Peruggi, Ed.D., becomes the first lay president of Marymount Manhattan College. She helped strengthen the financial position of the College during her term, which ended in 2001.

MMC students forms the Gay and Lesbian Collective, a club that addresses concerns with the gay community at the College (Corviae, November 1990). In 2011, the Office of Student Affairs organized a Safe Zone training program designed to visibly identify community members who support the LGBTQ population and to provide them with the knowledge needed to be effective allies to LGBTQ students.

The College mourns the passing of Sister Dymphna Leonard, who had taught for 34 years in the communication arts, education and English departments at MMC.

Trustee William E. Murray, Esq., then Chair of the Board of Trustees, receives the Raymunde McKay Award, which is now awarded each year to alumni in recognition of distinguished service and outstanding contributions to the community-at-large.

Brigid Driscoll ’54, RSHM, Ph.D., then President of Marymount in Tarrytown, receives Alumnae Association’s Distinguished Life Achievement Award.

Marymount Manhattan hosts a program of Girls Engaged in Mathematics and Science on its campus during the summer, and continued to do so until 1998. The program recruited young women from area high schools for classes, field trips, and fun activities designed to help the students advance in careers in which women were underrepresented.

Marymount Manhattan commences hosting The Writing Center, and continues to do so until 2010. The Writing Center brought poets, playwrights, and novelist and non-fiction writers to speak at the College, and organized an annual summer Writers’ Conference of workshops and seminars.

College rebrands its returning adult student program to Fast Track and targets male and female applicants.

Mary Twomey Greason ’86 (art history) joins the Board of Trustees and has served since then. Ms. Greason received the President’s Medal in 2010.

After a legislative cut in funding for college education programs in prisons at both the federal and state levels, Marymount Manhattan assumes responsibility as the degree granting institution for the Bedford Hills College Program.

Theresa E. Lang ’97 (English) joins the Board of Trustees and serves the College until 2006. The College awarded Mrs. Lang an Honorary Doctorate of Fine Arts at the 2008 Commencement. The Theresa Lang Theatre, the Theresa Lang Center for Producing and the Theresa Lang Scholarship Fund, which supports students who demonstrate academic merit and are involved with community service, all bear Mrs. Lang’s name, in appreciation of her advocacy and support for education.

Rebecca Sperling, Ph.D., associate professor of social work and sociology, is chosen by her peers to receive Teaching Excellence Award and in 2011, would be elected president of the Faculty Senate.

Marymount Manhattan breaks ground for its Residence Hall at 55th Street.

The Residence Hall opens on 55th Street, as one of the tallest college dorms in America, housing undergraduate students in the first 32 stories of a 46-story skyscraper in Midtown Manhattan. It houses more than 500 students during the school year, with a focus on first-year housing and the first-year experience.

The Board of Trustees selects Judson R. Shaver, Ph.D., as the first male president to serve Marymount Manhattan College. Under President Shaver’s leadership, the College has achieved academic progress and distinction, has made significant capital improvements, has strengthened its financial standing, and has increased the number of full-time faculty.

Marsha A. Hewitt, Esq. ’67 (English) joins the Board of Trustees and serves the College until 2006. In 2004, the College renames the MMC Gallery the Hewitt Gallery of Art to honor Marsha and her husband, Carl, for their long history of supporting the College.

The Mezzanine is renamed the Regina Peruggi Room after the former president of the College.

Judith M. Carson ’03 (art history) joins the Board of Trustees shortly after graduating from MMC. She went on to Chair This is the Day, the most successful fundraising campaign in MMC’s history, which raised $37 million in support of the College. She is an arts educator and founder of Learning to Look. She received the President’s Medal in 2005.

The College opens the 71st Street entrance to its campus.

Anne C. Flannery, Esq. ’73 (urban studies) joins the Board of Trustees, and is the first alumna to serve as the Chair of the Board (from 2006 to 2009). She is a partner of Morgan Lewis & Bockius, LLP. Determined to provide opportunities for students, she founded a scholarship that supports MMC students every year. She was a 2010 President’s Medal honoree.

Kathleen LeBesco, Ph.D., Distinguished Chair and associate dean for Academic Affairs, receives Teaching Excellence Award.

Virginia “Ginger” Lyons de Neufville ’70 (urban studies) joins the Board of Trustees. She is the Executive Director of the Mount Auburn Cambridge Independent Practice Association (MACIPA). She was honored with the President’s Medal in 2010.

The Samuel Freeman Charitable Trust makes a $1 million gift to support the construction of the Lowerre Family Terrace.

The College receives its largest gift ever when Judith M. Carson ’03 and her husband, Russell, make a $5 million unrestricted gift, the catalyst that launched This is the Day, the Campaign for Marymount Manhattan. An anonymous donor matched the Carson’s gift with $5 million.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, former Senator of New York, receives an honorary degree

Hope D. Knight ’85 (business management) joins the Board of Trustees. Ms. Knight is the COO of the nonprofit Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone. She was elected Vice Chair and Chair Designate of MMC’s Board of Trustees in May 2011. Ms. Knight was a 2010 President’s Medal honoree.

Valerie Rowe, a friend and patron of Marymount Manhattan, matches gifts to the Bedford Hills College Program endowment up to $1 million.

Susan Behrens, Ph.D., Distinguished Chair and professor of communication sciences and disorders, receives Teaching Excellence Award.

The Office of Student Development and Activities launches the Emerging Leaders program for first-year students to teach, expand, and strengthen students’ leadership skills. Through hands-on workshops, peer mentorships, service learning and research, the program assists students who seek to develop the skills needed to excel as successful student leaders.

Conservationist and author Richard West Sellars visits MMC as the Woodrow Wilson Fellow.

The Lowerre Family Terrace, the first major facilities investment of This is the Day, the Campaign for Marymount Manhattan, is unveiled in recognition of a generous gift from alumnus Paul Lowerre ’81 and his wife, Ursula. The 5,000-square-foot quad features a water wall, a heated trellis and garden areas, and connects the third floors of the Main and Nugent buildings.

Paul C. Lowerre ’81 (political science) joins the Board of Trustees. He is currently a Senior Vice President of Investments at UBS Financial Services, Inc., in New York City. He received the President’s Medal in 2011.

MMC Celebrates its 60th Commencement on May 22.

MMC’s Black Box Theatre is named in honor of Professor Emeritus J. William Bordeau, who passed away July 25, 2009.

MMC opens The Commons, a 5,000-square foot dining facility and student lounge located at the heart of the 71st Street campus.

Justice Sallie Manzanet-Daniels ’85 (psychology) is appointed to the Appellate Division, First Department, making her the first Latina justice in the history of New York State to serve on this Court.

President’s Medal Gala honors Rabbi Philip Hiat, religious advisor, friend to MMC and Scholar in Residence at Central Synagogue in New York City.

MMC dance department receives its first National Endowment for the Arts grant.

The College names the Dow Zanghi Student Health Center, located on the first floor of the 55th Street Residence Hall, in honor of Trustee Lucille Zanghi and James Dow P’11. Zanghi received the President’s Medal in 2010.

Marymount Manhattan surpasses its $25 million This is the Day goal by approximately $12 million and secures a $1.5 million matching grant from The Kresge Foundation.

The Board of Trustees elects James E. Buckman, Esq. as Vice Chairman and Chairman Designate. The Board also elects Sr. Teresita Fay, Ph.D., as the newest trustee and member of the Executive Committee. 

Twelve new faculty members join the MMC faculty, resulting in the largest cohort of full-time faculty in the College’s history at 105 members.

The College hosts its first Christmas Celebration with the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary, an event honoring the RSHM and their founding mission to educate a socially and economically diverse student body, which remains one of the College’s highest priorities today.

Marymount Manhattan College celebrates 75 years. On December 6, 2011, President Judson R. Shaver, Ph.D., hosted MMC’s most generous and steadfast donors at The Lotos Club in Manhattan for a celebratory dinner marking the College’s 75th anniversary. Michael R. Bloomberg, Mayor of the City of New York, decreed December 6 as “Marymount Manhattan College Day” in a proclamation read by MMC’s Board of Trustees Chairman James E. Buckman. 

Justice Sallie Manzanet-Daniels ’85, the first Latina ever named to the Appellate Court of the State of New York, joins the Board of Trustees. 

MMC is heralded as a College of Distinction for the 2012-2013 school year. The honorees, 294 colleges and universities throughout the United States and Canada, were selected based on recommendations made by high school counselors and quantitative data, including graduation rates and classroom size.

Andreas Hernandez, Professor of International Studies, receives the Innovative Teaching Award at Faculty Council. His project, The Marymount Participatory Budget, stood out among the large number of applications. 

Three MMC students earn Jeannette K. Watson Fellowships, joining the 14 students at Marymount Manhattan who have received this honor over the past 13 years.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream marks the 122nd Theatre Production Workshop production at Marymount Manhattan since its first production of Waiting for Godot in 1975.

Construction begins on the newly acquired faculty center yet to be named, located at 255 East 71st Street.

MMC launches the Barry Commoner Environmental Lecture Series, featuring environmental journalist Andrew C. Revkin, with a gift from Richard S. Berry and his wife, Lucy A. Commoner, the daughter of Barry Commoner.

Peter Baker, who began teaching at MMC in September 1962, is the longest-serving faculty and staff member of Marymount Manhattan College after 50 years of service. A recipient of the Teaching Excellence Award, Peter has been a teacher of philosophy, initiator of the freshman writing program, initial Director of Academic Advising and Assistant Director for 10 years, Chair of the Division of Sciences for 15 years, acting Chief Academic Officer in 1970 and again in 1998 to 1999, chief elected officer of the faculty (the Clerk of the faculty) on numerous occasions between 1969 and 1998, and Vice President for Institutional Research and Planning.

MMC is ranked as a top school for Broadway performers. Backstage, the most trusted publication for budding and established performers to find casting opportunities and gain career advice, lists Marymount Manhattan College as the # 2 school where TONY Award nominees go to get their start for promising futures on the Great White Way.

MMC receives a prestigious $250,000 grant from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.This two-year grant will support the revitalization of the College’s general education curriculum and enrich the school’s exceptional liberal arts education. Marymount Manhattan will use the grant from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to establish new systems that will encourage faculty to develop, revise and implement general education courses over the next two years.

MMC’s fourth president, Sister Colette Mahoney, who served MMC as president for twenty-one years and received the President’s Medal in 1988, died peacefully on the 14th day of June, 2013. Colette Mahoney, RSHM, Ph.D., was the fourth president of Marymount Manhattan College. She served as the College’s President from 1967 — 1988. She was a true leader and served Marymount Manhattan well during her tenure.

An official ribbon cutting ceremony was held on October 26 at three o’clock in the afternoon to open the new Faculty Center during the Marymount Manhattan Family, Friends and Alumni Homecoming Weekend. The Carsons generously supported the most successful capital campaign in the history of our College, This is the Day, with an initial $5 million gift and then a pledged an additional $3 million challenge grant to support the Faculty Center. The Carsons leadership gift ignited the support for the Faculty Center. All contributions to this new campus building will be matched by the Carsons! 

The Marymount Manhattan College Board of Trustees unanimously approved Hope Knight ’85 as its newest chairperson, and John H. Hunt as its newest member. Ms. Knight is the second Alumnae in the College’s history to hold this position on the Board.

MMC President Judson R. Shaver announces that he will retire on June 30, 2015, after 14 years at the College and 35 years in higher education. From the beginning of his tenure in 2001, President Shaver has led dramatic improvements at the College by facilitating college-wide planning efforts that led to the creation and successful implementation of a facilities master plan and three comprehensive strategic plans: A Vision for the Future 2002-2007, Extending Our Reach 2008-2013 and Developing a Sustainable Model 2013-2017.

MMC breaks ground on its new residence hall, Cooper Square. Located in the East Village at 211 East 6^th Street, Cooper Square is in the middle of one of New York City’s most vibrant neighborhoods, and a quick walk to iconic theater and performance spaces, amazing restaurants, and endless things to see and do. In August 2015, the 12-story residence hall will be home to more than 270 sophomore, junior, and senior residents. With amenities including a fitness center, student lounge, study room, bicycle storage room, and beautiful wrap-around terrace, Cooper Square will be the place to be for continuing students at Marymount Manhattan College.  

Elon University, a private liberal arts university North Carolina, introduces its “Elon in New York City” program, wherein students have the opportunity to live, learn and intern in New York City through a partnership with MMC. The program includes several components that offer a distinctive, engaged learning experience.

Kerry Walk, Ph.D., officially begins her term as the 8th president on July 1, 2015. MMC’s trustees, faculty, staff, alumni/ae, parents and friends, and student body warmly welcome her to our college. Dr. Walk is a dynamic leader who comes to MMC with over twenty years’ experience in higher education, most recently serving as Interim President of Otis College of Art and Design, in Los Angeles, where she was appointed Provost in 2011.  A champion of student learning and success, Dr. Walk has held appointments at Harvard University, Princeton University, and Pitzer College that have given her exceptional academic leadership experience.  

An award-winning teacher, Dr. Walk earned her B.A. in English from Wellesley College, where she graduated cum laude, and M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in English Literature from the University of California, Berkeley.  Her scholarly work has focused on best practices in writing pedagogy, student writing development, and educational assessment. 

Marymount Manhattan College Assistant Director of Residence Life, Chris Mosier, has made major sports history as the first known out trans athlete to win a spot on a USA national team that matches their identified gender.

MMC proudly salutes His Excellency Ban Ki-moon, Dr. Louise Mirrer, and Rabbi Philip Hiat. Their honorary degrees will be conferred along with the Class of 2016 in May. Ban Ki-moon is the eighth Secretary-General of the United Nations. Louise Mirrer, Ph.D., is president and CEO of the New-York Historical Society. Rabbi Philip Hiat is Marymount Manhattan College’s Campus Minister.

For their outstanding contributions to society, the Board of Trustees, the president, and the faculty of Marymount Manhattan College are proud to confer on His Excellency Ban Ki-moon, Rabbi Philip Hiat, and Dr. Louise Mirrer the degree of Doctor of Humane Letters, honoris causa.

Booth Ferris Foundation awards MMC major grant for CityEdge.The $250,000 grant, to be used over two years, will provide funding for Marymount Manhattan College’s recently launched college-to-career initiative, CityEdge, a model for integrating the liberal arts and professional preparation.

CityEdge provides MMC’s diverse population of 1,800 students expanded opportunities for career exploration and readiness while deepening their immersion in New York City—the global capital in such industries as the arts, media, commerce, finance, fashion, research, technology, and education. The initiative includes courses that tap into New York’s rich mosaic for experiential learning, mentoring by industry professionals, and abundant “field experiences,” such as internships, research opportunities, and community engagement activities.

In grateful appreciation and with deepest gratitude, President Kerry Walk and the entire Marymount Manhattan College community are pleased to announce the naming of Carson Hall in honor of Judith M. Carson ’03, H’13 and Russell L. Carson. On October 27, 2016, MMC named the main campus building to honor the Carsons’ extraordinary leadership and generosity to Marymount Manhattan.

Judith and Russell Carson are longtime supporters of Marymount Manhattan and their generous gifts to the College have inspired many others to invest in MMC and our students. The Carsons have led the transformation of MMC, and it is a true honor to bestow this well-deserved recognition on them.

 MMC celebrates the 20^th anniversary of the Bedford Hills College Program (BHCP).  The event’s theme – KNOWLEDGE IS POWER – focuses attention on the vital role that education has played in the lives of the women incarcerated at the Bedford Hills Correctional Facility who have earned their associate’s and bachelor’s degrees through MMC’s College Program.