City University of New York

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City University of New York
Image:Cunylogo.jpg
Established: 1961[1]
Type: Public
Chancellor: Matthew Goldstein
Students: 220,727
Postgraduates: 29,659
Location: Flag of the United States New York, NY
Website: cuny.edu

The City University of New York (CUNY; acronym pronounced /ˈkjuːni/), is the public university system of New York City. It is the largest urban university in the United States, consisting of 11 senior colleges, six community colleges, a doctorate-granting graduate school, a journalism school, a law school and the Sophie Davis School of Biomedical Education. More than 450,000 degree-credit, adult, continuing and professional education students are enrolled at campuses located in all five New York City boroughs.

CUNY is the third-largest university system, in terms of enrollment, in the United States, behind the State University of New York (SUNY) and California State University systems. CUNY and SUNY are separate and independent university systems, although both are public institutions which receive funding from New York State. CUNY, however, is additionally funded by the City of New York.

Contents

[edit] History

CUNY's history dates back to the formation of the Free Academy in 1847 by Townsend Harris. The school was fashioned as "a Free Academy for the purpose of extending the benefits of education gratuitously to persons who have been pupils in the common schools of the …city and county of New York." The Free Academy later became The City College, the first CUNY college. From this grew a system of seven senior colleges, four hybrid schools, six community colleges, as well as graduate schools and professional programs. CUNY was established in 1961 as the umbrella institution of the municipal colleges of New York City.

CUNY has historically served a diverse student body, especially those excluded from or unable to afford private universities. CUNY offered a high quality, tuition-free education to the poor, the working class and the immigrants of New York City until 1975, when the City's fiscal crisis forced the imposition of tuition. Many Jewish academics and intellectuals studied and taught at CUNY in the post-World War I era when Ivy League universities, such as Yale University, discriminated against Jews.[2] The City College of New York has had a reputation of being "the Harvard of the proletariat."[3]

Over its history, CUNY and its colleges, especially CCNY, have been involved in various political movements. It was known as a hotbed of socialistic support in the earlier 20th century.[4] CUNY also lent some support to various conferences, such as the Socialist Scholars Conference.[5]

CUNY's tradition of diversity continues today, with much of its student body new immigrants to New York City, representing 172 countries.[6]

[edit] Open admissions and remedial education

Demand in the United States for higher education rapidly grew each decade after World War II into the 1970s. The increased demand for limited college slots had the effect in New York City of increasing the competitiveness of the city's system of higher education. By the end of the 1960s, admission to CUNY's flagship City College had become highly competitive.[citation needed] Toward the end of the 1960s CUNY’s Board of Trustees, influenced by the civil rights movement, implemented a ground-breaking new admissions policy. The doors to CUNY were opened wide to all those demanding entrance, assuring all high school graduates, despite possible inadequacies of preparation, entrance to the University. This policy was known as "open admissions." Remedial education, to supplement the training of under-prepared students, became a significant part of CUNY's offerings.

The effect was instantaneous and dramatic. Whereas 20,000 freshmen had matriculated in one CUNY institution or another in 1969, more than 35,000 showed up for registration in the fall of 1970. Forty percent of these newcomers to the senior colleges were open-admissions students. The proportion of black and Hispanic students in the entering class nearly tripled.[citation needed]

Facing a fiscal crisis in 1975, the City imposed tuition on CUNY in that year. Middle-class students who had flocked to CUNY because it offered a cost-free alternative to the state university or a private college no longer had a reason to prefer it. Their enrollment at CUNY dropped precipitously and CUNY faced declines in enrollment through the 1980s and into the 1990s.

[edit] The end of open admissions

CUNY's prestige also declined in the 1970s and 1980s. Under a new chancellor, Matthew Goldstein, and facing pressure from Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, CUNY ended its open admissions policy to the University's four-year colleges in 1999. Critics had cautioned that the policy change could lead to a drop in enrollment of minority students at CUNY's four-year institutions.

CUNY officials reported that enrollment at its senior colleges increased 10.5% from 1999 to 2002, however. Mean SAT scores of admitted freshmen also rose. CUNY reported that the number of African-American students at its senior colleges had increased in the same time period, while changes in the proportions of other ethnic groups were "minimal." The University reported that two-thirds of its entering class were minority students.[citation needed]

CUNY students who are not directly admitted to the senior colleges because they do not meet academic admissions standards can choose to enroll in an associate degree program at one of CUNY’s community colleges, take part in "immersion" programs offered in the summer and winter months, find public or private tutoring, or participate in the one-semester "Prelude to Success" program taught by community college faculty at senior colleges. The graduates of the community college programs then earn admission to the senior colleges.

[edit] Structure

The City University is governed by the Board of Trustees composed of 17 members, ten of whom are appointed by the Governor of New York "with the advice and consent of the senate," and five by the Mayor of New York City "with the advice and consent of the senate." The final two trustees are ex-officio members. One is the chair of the university's student senate, and the other is non-voting and is the chair of the university's faculty senate. Both the mayoral and gubernatorial appointments to the CUNY Board are required to include at least one resident of each of New York City's five boroughs. Trustees serve seven-year terms, which are renewable for another seven years. College presidents report directly to the Board. The Chancellor is voted upon by the Board of Trustees, and is the "chief educational and administrative officer" of the City University.

Unlike some state college systems, CUNY in its early years did not operate as a central authority to the colleges. The central administration had limited power over the colleges. This is partly because most of the senior colleges (namely Brooklyn, Hunter, Queens, and City) predate CUNY and were thus established by mandate of the New York State Legislature, which has institutionalized the autonomy of the colleges. Veteran college presidents and faculty had typically viewed CUNY as a loose confederation of individual colleges rather than a unified university system. Nevertheless, in recent years and at the behest of the Governor and the Mayor, the Board of Trustees and the Chancellor have, through the power of the purse, succeeded in weakening the college presidents and faculty and consolidating executive powers to themselves.[citation needed]

[edit] Colleges

CUNY consists of three different types of institutions: senior colleges, which grant bachelor's degrees and occasionally master's and associates degrees; community colleges, which grant associate's degrees; and graduate/professional schools. CUNY's Law School grants Juris Doctor (J.D.) degrees, and Ph.D. degrees are awarded only by the CUNY Graduate Center.

The colleges are listed below, with establishment dates in parentheses.

[edit] Senior colleges

[edit] Community colleges

[edit] Graduate and professional schools

[edit] Programs

Programs hold an institutional level below that of a college within the CUNY system.


[edit] CUNY Baccalaureate for Unique and Interdisciplinary Studies

The CUNY Baccalaureate for Unique and Interdisciplinary Studies, also commonly known as the CUNY Baccalaureate Program or simply CUNY BA was founded in 1971. It is an individualized, University-wide degree where highly motivated, academically superior students work one-on-one with faculty mentors to design their own fields of study. The Program exists to give students an opportunity to pursue a course of study that may not exist within the current framework of CUNY. Part of the eligibility criteria includes demonstrating a desire and plan to pursue an area of concentration (like a major) that transcends the traditional college offerings. Students have created areas of concentration ranging from "20th Century American Literature" and "Adaptive Physical Education for Vulnerable Populations," to "World Politics and Social Change" and "Zoological Photography." Students must enroll in one of the CUNY colleges in order to participate; they then have access to courses and opportunities throughout the University. Additional admissions criteria include having completed at least 15 college credits with a 2.50 GPA or higher. The average GPA for admission is typically about 3.25, which means that a large portion of students enter with GPAs of 3.8 and higher. Given the rigorous admission process it is not surprising that CUNY BA boasts a 70% graduation rate within an average of 2.2 years and that 60% graduate with academic honors.

[edit] The William E. Macaulay Honors College

The brainchild of CUNY chancellor Matthew Goldstein, CUNY Honors College was to be an independent institution within the university. However, support for existing honors programs at CUNY colleges and institutional opposition resulted in it being downgraded to a program. Now known as The Macaulay Honors College University Scholars Program, it graduated its first class in 2005, attracting students with a mean high school GPA of 93.5 and SAT scores of 1365 for the Class of 2009.

In July 2006 Dr. Ann Kirschner was appointed Dean of the Macaulay Honors College after a nationwide search. The standards of the Honors College continued to rise as well, with incoming freshmen having an average of 93.8 and SAT scores of 1381. Graduating high school students with Ivy League caliber academic records have given the Honors College a closer look as a result, and this has had a trickle-down effect in improving the image of CUNY as a whole, which prior to the inception of the HC had been criticized as 'an institution adrift' by the Giuliani administration.

As an incentive to students, University Scholars receive a free tuition, a laptop, a "cultural passport" that offers free or reduced-admission to various cultural institutions and venues in New York City, and a $7500 expense account that may be used for research and/or study abroad. Unlike honors programs at individual CUNY colleges, Macaulay Honors College students must be accepted into and begin the program as freshmen. They currently study at one of the participating senior CUNY colleges (Queens, Hunter, Staten Island, Lehman, Baruch, Brooklyn, and City), as well as taking part in cross-campus activities and programs. Institutional barriers that would allow cross campus enrollment in academic programs have not yet been eliminated.

In September 2006, The City University of New York received a $30,000,000 gift from philanthropist and City College alumnus, William E. Macaulay, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of First Reserve Corporation. It is the largest single donation in the history of CUNY and has been used to buy a landmark building on the Upper West Side of Manhattan that is to become the permanent home of the Honors College, and will add support to its endowment. [7]

[edit] City University Television (CUNY TV)

CUNY also has a cable TV service, CUNY TV (channel 75 on Time Warner) which airs telecourses which show tapes of freshman level survey courses in psychology, physics, statistics, and geography, among others. CUNY TV also has an extensive schedule of foreign language shows in Spanish, German and French. It also shows many old films and foreign films, especially from Poland in Prof. Jerry Carlson's and City College film studies program's City Cinematheque. In addition, CUNY's flagship magazine-style series Study With the Best highlights University's students, faculty and alumni. They also cablecast public affairs shows like the Baruch College's forums as well as Prof. Doug Muzzio's City Talk and former councilwoman Ronnie Eldridge's show Eldridge & Co.. Also Brian Lehrer Live by Brian Lehrer is shown live on Wednesdays at 7:30 PM. Michael Stoler's the Stoler Report also airs a lively panel discussion on the state of the Tri-State Real Estate Market. Stoler also does the show Building NY.

[edit] Accomplishments

  • Between 1983 and 1992, CUNY baccalaureate graduates earned more doctorates than graduates of Columbia University, New York University, the University of Chicago, and SUNY at Albany combined, though this accolade should be tempered by the huge student enrollment of CUNY.
  • CUNY has been rated by Standard and Poors first in the nation in producing bachelor degree alumni who rise to top positions in business.
  • CUNY’s Graduate School and University Center has a number of Ph.D. programs ranking among the top in the United States in their respective disciplines.[citation needed]
  • Baruch's Zicklin School of Business's part-time MBA program ranked 17th—placing it second among all MBA programs in New York City per "America's Best Graduate Schools: 2007".
  • Brooklyn College’s Freshman Year Program received the Hesburgh Award in 1998.
  • Hunter College is named as one of America's "Best Value" Colleges by Princeton Review.
  • Queens College is named as #8 of America's "Best Value" Colleges by Princeton Review in 2006.
  • John Jay College of Criminal Justice graduate program has been ranked number one among 3,500 such programs by U. S. News and World Report; CUNY Law School is ranked second in the country for its clinical training program; Hunter School of Social Work is among the top 15 Schools of Social Work in the nation.
  • Baruch ranks first for ethnic diversity among U.S. institutions of higher education, "America's Best Colleges: 2005".
  • A third of college graduates in New York City are CUNY graduates, with the institution enrolling about half of all college students in New York City.
  • The Economist wrote positively about Chancellor Goldstein's reforms in an article, Rebuilding the American dream machine, dated January 19, 2006.
  • In a 2007 New York Times article, it was reported that CUNY was raising its academic admission standards once again.[8]
  • Queens College is ranked as one of the "25 Hottest Universities" in the Newsweek/Kaplan 2008 College Guide. [1]

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ Year of consolidation of constituent schools.
  2. ^ See, e.g., Joining the Club: A History of Jews at Yale by Dan A. Oren (Yale University Press 1985)
  3. ^ Leveling the Playing Field: Justice, Politics, and College Admissions by Robert K. Fullinwider, Judith Lichtenberg (Rowman & Littlefield 2004); City on a Hill: Testing the American Dream at City College by James Traub (Perseus 1995)
  4. ^ When the Old Left Was Young: Student Radicals and America's First Mass Student Movement, 1929-1941 (book review), The Nation, May 1994
  5. ^ Cf. notes from CUNY Chancellor Murphy to leaders of the Socialist Scholars Conference. 1986 Memo from Bogdan Denitch to Joseph S. Murphy, Chancellor City University of New York in 1980s. "This memo was the opening channel for several hundred thousand dollars to be used in the Socialist Scholars Conference account. Murphy supported the SSC [Socialist Scholars Conference] until his tragic death in an automobile collision in Ethiopia on January 17, 1998."
  6. ^ About CUNY
  7. ^ "William E. Macaulay, City College Graduate And Chairman and CEO of First Reserve, Donates Record $30 Million To CUNY Honors College", The CUNY Newswire, Wednesday, September 13, 2006
  8. ^ Arenson, Karen W., "CUNY Plans to Raise Its Admissions Standards", New York Times, July 28, 2007

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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