Suffolk University is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. With 7,560 students on all campuses, it is the tenth-largest university in metropolitan Boston. It was founded as a law school in 1906 and named after its location in Suffolk County, Massachusetts.[6] The university is also host to its namesake public opinion poll, the Suffolk University Political Research Center.[9]

Suffolk University
Former names
Archer's Evening Law School (1906–1907)
Suffolk School of Law (1907–1937)
Suffolk College of Arts and Sciences (1934–1937)
College of Business Administration (1937)
Motto
Honestas et Diligentia
Motto in English
Honesty and Diligence
TypePrivate university
Established1906 (118 years ago) (1906)
FounderGleason L. Archer [1]
AccreditationNEASC
Endowment$246.2 million (2020)[2]
Budget$300 million (FY 2017)[3]
PresidentMarisa Kelly[4]
Students6,734 (fall 2022)[5]
Undergraduates5,290
Postgraduates1,165[6]
Location, ,
United States

42°21′28″N 71°03′40″W / 42.3579°N 71.0610°W / 42.3579; -71.0610
CampusUrban, 350 acres (140 ha)
ColorsNavy Blue and Gold[7]
   
NicknameRams
Sporting affiliations
NCAA Division III
Commonwealth Coast Conference
Eastern College Athletic Conference
MascotHiram (Rammy) the Ram[8]
WebsiteOfficial Website

The university, located at the downtown edge of the historic Beacon Hill neighborhood, comprises the Suffolk College of Arts and Sciences, Sawyer Business School, and Suffolk University Law School. The university's sports teams, the Suffolk Rams, compete in 19 varsity sports in NCAA Division III as members of the Commonwealth Coast Conference.[10]

History

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Suffolk University founder Gleason Archer Sr., c. 1915

Suffolk University was initially founded as a law school in 1906 by Boston lawyer Gleason Archer Sr., who named it Archer's Evening Law School, intending it for law students who worked during the day. The school was renamed Suffolk School of Law in 1907, after Archer moved it from his Roxbury, Massachusetts home into his law offices in downtown Boston.

A year later the first of Archer's students had passed the bar, leading to a boost in registration.[11] The school's original goal was to "serve ambitious young men who are obliged to work for a living while studying law."[11]

By 1930, Archer developed Suffolk into one of the largest law schools in the country, and decided to create "a great evening university" that working people could afford.[11]

 
Calvin Coolidge, then Governor of Massachusetts and eventual 30th President of the United States, laying cornerstone for the law building, in 1920.

The school became a university in the 1930s when the Suffolk College of Arts and Sciences was founded in 1934 and the Sawyer Business School—then known as the College of Business Administration—in 1937. That same year, the three academic units were incorporated as Suffolk University.[11]

During the 1990s Suffolk constructed its first residence halls, began satellite programs with other colleges in Massachusetts, and opened its international campuses.[11] From 1990 to 2005, its endowment increased over 400%, to approximately $72 million, and enrollment climbed.[12]

Presidents (1906–present)

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Campus

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Sargent Hall

The main campus in downtown Boston is situated on well-known Beacon Hill, adjacent to the Massachusetts State House and the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. Up until 1995, Suffolk was a commuter-only school. Today, there are five coed residence halls, housing over 65% of freshman, and a total of 24% of the entire undergraduate population:

 
A Suffolk University Law Library reading room

The residence hall at 150 Tremont Street, renamed Smith Hall in 2018, was the first built by the university and currently houses students in singles, doubles, quads, and suites, with communal bathrooms.

Nathan R. Miller Residence Hall (located at 10 Somerset St.) was opened in 2005 and houses 15 floors of freshman, and 2 floors of sophomores in singles, doubles and quads, with bathrooms shared between every two rooms or one bathroom per quad.

The 10 West Residence Hall, opened in 2008, has housing for freshman and sophomores in singles and doubles. Suites accommodate 3-5 students and a variety of apartment-style suites (that include full kitchens) house 2 to 8 students.

Both Miller Hall and 150 Tremont have cafeterias. Students living at 10 West/Modern Theater can eat at 150 Tremont. Suffolk University occasionally leases additional properties (such as the Hyatt & Holiday Inn Beacon Hill). If leased, those locations house freshman students.

The Modern Theatre Residence Hall opened in the fall of 2010 and is considered an extension to the 10 West Resident Hall. The two residence halls share one entrance at 10 West Street. The Modern Theater Residence Hall is built over the restored Modern Theatre (Boston).

In the fall of 2020, the university added a new residence hall, the Ames Building at One Court Street, which it purchased in the fall of 2019.[15]

On June 26, 2024, Suffolk University announced plans for a sixth residence hall after the purchase of a new property. President Marisa Kelly said that 101 Tremont Street across from Granary Burial Ground will be converted to an 11-story residence hall following their pending permit and review process of the city of Boston. [16]

Academics

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Suffolk employs over 900 full-time and adjunct faculty members, who instruct approximately 10,000 undergraduate and graduate students on its Boston Campus.[17]

The Sawyer Business School (previously the Sawyer School of Management) focuses on global business education.[18] It offers undergraduate and graduate degrees. Joint degrees are also offered. About 3,000 students are currently enrolled in all programs. The Saturday-only Executive MBA Program incorporates four off-site one-week seminars and week-long global trips to Madrid and China. The Global MBA is a specialized MBA in international business with an intensive concentration in either finance or marketing. The full-time program includes a 3-month internship outside the student's home country. Summer 2010 Global MBA internships are in 10 countries. Part-time Global MBAs complete either a global experiential research project at their place of business or a 3-month consulting project that includes an intensive 2 week residency outside the US.[19]

The Suffolk College of Arts and Sciences has seventeen academic departments which offer more than seventy undergraduate and graduate programs. Among the departments is the New England School of Art and Design (NESAD)[20][21]

Suffolk University Law School, founded in 1906, offers a standard Juris Doctor program and advanced L.L.M. program. 43% of applicants were admitted to the J.D. program in 2005.[22]

The university is also home to various research centers and institutes, including the Centers for Crime & Justice Policy Research, Restorative Justice, and Women's Health and Human Right, the Moakley Archives, the Poetry Center, Political Research Centers, and the Sagan Energy Research Laboratory.[23] The Suffolk University Political Research Center (SUPRC) conducts various scientific polls of national and regional political issues.[24]

The university also has an undergraduate honors program[25] in the College of Arts & Sciences and Sawyer Business School. Freshman and transfer students are considered for the Honors program upon applying to Suffolk. Students in their second year are considered candidates for join the program by remaining one year at the institution with a 3.5 GPA. The student from Suffolk University upon graduating from the honor program graduate with a Latin Honor: Summa Cum Laude, Magna Cum Laude: You must have a cumulative GPA of 3.7, or Cum Laude.[26]

Reputation and rankings

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In 2018 U.S. News ranked Suffolk #177 (tie) in National Universities.[27]

Athletics

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Suffolk University teams participate as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division III. The Rams are a member of the Conference of New England and the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC). They were a member of the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) from 1995 to 2020. Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, indoor and outdoor track and field, golf, ice hockey, soccer and tennis; while women's sports include basketball, cross country, indoor and outdoor track and field, ice hockey, soccer, softball, golf, tennis and volleyball.[28][29]

Notable persons

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Notable alumni

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William L. Uanna, class of 1942, officer at the Central Intelligence Agency, Counter Intelligence Corps (CIC) as Director of Operations of the I Service Command, security expert on The Manhattan Project
 
Martin Meehan, class of 1981, U.S. Representative from Massachusetts 1993–2007, former chairman United States House Armed Services Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, current president of the University of Massachusetts

Notable faculty and trustees

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References

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  1. ^ "Suffolk History". Suffolk University Boston. Archived from the original on May 25, 2018. Retrieved May 25, 2018.
  2. ^ As of June 30, 2020. U.S. and Canadian Institutions Listed by Fiscal Year 2020 Endowment Market Value and Change in Endowment Market Value from FY19 to FY20 (Report). National Association of College and University Business Officers and TIAA. February 19, 2021. Retrieved February 20, 2021.
  3. ^ "Budget & Financial Planning". Suffolk University Boston. Retrieved May 25, 2018.
  4. ^ "President". Suffolk University Boston. Archived from the original on May 25, 2018. Retrieved May 25, 2018.
  5. ^ "College Navigator - Suffolk University". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved July 22, 2024.
  6. ^ a b "Suffolk At a Glance". Suffolk University Boston. Retrieved May 25, 2017.
  7. ^ "Section 1: Visual Identity Guidelines" (PDF). Suffolk University Boston. Retrieved May 25, 2018.
  8. ^ "Suffolk University's mascot, Hiram the Ram, is unveiled at Class Day, 1950". Suffolk University Boston. Retrieved August 10, 2020.
  9. ^ "Suffolk University Political Research Center (SUPRC) - Suffolk University". www.suffolk.edu. Retrieved March 28, 2022.
  10. ^ "Suffolk University Athletics". Go Suffolk Rams.
  11. ^ a b c d e About Suffolk Law School March 3, 2009.
  12. ^ Suffolk Endowment information (accessed March 5, 2009)
  13. ^ Suffolk University. "President Margaret McKenna". Retrieved March 1, 2016.
  14. ^ "Residence Halls". Suffolk University. Retrieved July 3, 2024.
  15. ^ "Suffolk University aims to turn boutique downtown hotel into a dorm". Boston Globe. August 19, 2019.
  16. ^ "Suffolk announces purchase of sixth residence hall". The Suffolk Journal. Suffolk University. Retrieved July 1, 2024.
  17. ^ The Best 357 Colleges: 2005 Edition, Robert Franek, Princeton Review Publishing Staff, Princeton Review (Firm), Princeton Review, Princeton Review Firm Edition: illustrated, Published by The Princeton Review, 2004 ISBN 978-0-375-76405-9
  18. ^ MBA Programs 2004, Petersons, Peterson's, Edition: 9, Published by Peterson's, 2003, ISBN 0-7689-1160-5, ISBN 978-0-7689-1160-2
  19. ^ Suffolk University (2006). Sawyer School of Management. Retrieved April 2, 2006, from:http://www.business.suffolk.edu/~business/[permanent dead link]
  20. ^ Suffolk University(2006). Schools, Colleges and Campuses. Retrieved April 2, 2006, from:http://www.suffolk.edu/schools.html/~Academics
  21. ^ Suffolk University(2006). College of Arts and Sciences. Retrieved April 2, 2006, from:http://www.cas.suffolk.edu/~Arts/[permanent dead link]
  22. ^ Suffolk University(2006). Suffolk Law School. Retrieved April 2, 2006 from:"Suffolk University Law School 404 : Looking for something?". Archived from the original on December 25, 2007. Retrieved April 2, 2006.
  23. ^ Suffolk University Information Archived August 1, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  24. ^ [1] Archived October 8, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  25. ^ "Honors Program - Suffolk University". www.suffolk.edu. Retrieved July 23, 2020.
  26. ^ "Undergraduate Academic Honors Policies - Suffolk University". www.suffolk.edu. Retrieved July 23, 2020.
  27. ^ "Suffolk University | Best College | US News". Colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com. Retrieved September 15, 2016.
  28. ^ [2] Archived October 13, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  29. ^ "About Athletics". Suffolk Rams. Retrieved September 18, 2022.
  30. ^ "Paul Benedict dies at 70; actor from 'The Jeffersons' and 'Sesame Street'". Los Angeles Times. December 5, 2008. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
  31. ^ Alcorn, Stacey (April 30, 2016). "How to Be the Change - An Interview with Dr. Thomas McGovern". Huffington Post. Retrieved March 23, 2019.
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