Wagner College

Wagner College
Latin: Collegium Wagnerianum
Type Private liberal arts college
Established 1883
Religious affiliation
 Evangelical Lutheran Church in America[1]
Academic affiliations
 CUMU
CIC
NAICU[2]
President Richard Guarasci
Provost Lily McNair
Academic staff
 96
Students 2,200
Undergraduates 1,750
Postgraduates 450
Location Staten Island, New York, U.S.
40°36′54″N 74°05′38″W / 40.615°N 74.094°W / 40.615; -74.094Coordinates: 40°36′54″N 74°05′38″W / 40.615°N 74.094°W / 40.615; -74.094
Campus 105
Colors Green and Gold[3]
         
Nickname Seahawks
Sporting affiliations
 NCAA Division I – NEC
Website wagner.edu

Wagner College is a private, national liberal arts college in the New York City borough of Staten Island, New York. Founded in 1883 and with a current enrollment of approximately 2,200 students, Wagner is known for its academic program, the Wagner Plan for the Practical Liberal Arts.[4] The college is regionally accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools.

History

Wagner College was founded in 1883 in Rochester, New York, as the Lutheran Proseminary of Rochester to train Lutheran ministers. Its six-year curriculum was modeled on the German gymnasium. In 1886, it was renamed Wagner Memorial Lutheran College after a building in Rochester was purchased for its use by John G. Wagner in memory of his son.

The college moved to the 38-acre (15 ha) former Cunard estate on Grymes Hill, Staten Island, in 1918. Westwood, the Cunard mansion which dates from 1851, is extant (now Cunard Hall) as is the neighboring former hotel annex that was built in 1905 (initially named North Hall and is now Reynolds House). The college soon expanded to 57 acres (23 ha) after it acquired the neighboring Jacob Vanderbilt estate in 1922. In the 1920s, the curriculum began to move toward an American-style curriculum which was solidified when the state of New York granted the college degree-granting status in 1928. The college admitted women in 1933 and introduced graduate programs in 1951. The college expanded further when it purchased the W.G. Ward estate in 1949 (current site of Wagner College Stadium), and again in 1993, when the college acquired the adjacent property of the former Augustinian Academy, which has largely remained wooded greenspace and athletic fields. The college now occupies 105 acres (42 ha) on the hill and has commanding views of New York harbor, the Verrazano Narrows Bridge, Downtown Brooklyn, and lower Manhattan.

In the early 1960s, the Wagner College Writer's Conference hosted several prominent writers, including Edward Albee, Kay Boyle, and Kenneth Koch.

Campus

Prominent buildings include Main Hall (1930) and Parker Hall (1923) built in the collegiate Gothic style. A group of modern buildings built in the 1960s include the Student Union (1970), Megerle Science Building (1968), and the Spiro Communication Center (1968). The Horrmann Library (1961) contains over 200,000 volumes and holds the collection and personal papers of poet Edwin Markham. 67% of the undergraduates live in one of four residence halls. The Spiro Sports Center (1999) was the most recent major addition, until early 2010 when the college opened Foundation Hall, a residence hall for upperclassmen.

In 2007 it was announced that a new academic building is under development for construction on the site of the former Augustinian High School. It will be a state-of-the-art facility that will house the business, nursing, and education departments. It will also house new and state-of-the-art classrooms. The project is now in the final planning stages.

The Union Art Gallery at Wagner College features works from students, faculty and alumni. Located on the main floor of the college union building, the Union Art Gallery serves as a space for visiting artists to directly engage with the student body in this one room gallery.

Admission and tuition

Undergraduate admissions to Wagner College are classified as "more selective" by US News & World Report and The Princeton Review, making admission into Wagner College competitive. The average incoming high school grade point average is 3.45. About 97% of incoming students graduate in the top half of their classes. The average incoming SAT score for critical reading is: 530–640, math: 530–650, writing: 520–650. The average incoming ACT score is between 25 and 28. Important admissions factors are class rank, rigor of secondary school record, academic GPA, application essay, extracurricular activities, recommendations, and standardized test scores.

Tuition, room and board for full-time undergraduate students (9 units) during the 2015–2016 academic year was $55,030. About 87% of students receive financial aid. Wagner College offers various academic and athletic scholarships.

Athletics

Main article: Wagner Seahawks

Wagner College offers athletic scholarships and competes at the NCAA Division I level in all intercollegiate athletics (football competes at the NCAA Division I FCS (Formerly I-AA) level). Wagner is a full-time member of the Northeast Conference (NEC) along with Bryant University, Central Connecticut State University, Fairleigh Dickinson University, Long Island University, Mount Saint Mary's University, Quinnipiac University, Robert Morris University, Sacred Heart University, Saint Francis College, and Saint Francis University. Wagner is the seventh smallest college in the country that participates in NCAA Division I athletics and the third smallest in the NEC. Men's varsity intercollegiate teams are fielded in baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, lacrosse, tennis, and track & field. Men's water polo starts in fall 2016. Women's varsity intercollegiate teams are fielded in basketball, cross country, golf, lacrosse, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, track & field, and water polo. The men's ice hockey team participates in an active club sport schedule. On March 12, 2009, Wagner announced the discontinuation of the men's wrestling and women's volleyball programs.

The football and men's basketball teams are Wagner's most popular and prestigious athletic programs. Walt Hameline, in 29 years as the Director of Athletics and Head Football Coach at Wagner, won the school's only National Championship with a 19–3 victory over the University of Dayton in the 1987 NCAA Division III Championship game, also known as the 1987 Stagg Bowl. He was named NCAA Division III Coach of the Year in 1987. Hameline's 204–122–2 (.624) career record ranks in the top 10 among all Division I-FCS coaches in the United States.

Notable Wagner coaches of the past include former Brooklyn Nets coach and current ESPN analyst P.J. Carlesimo (Head Basketball Coach 1976–1982), former Marquette University and Wagner Head Coach Mike Deane who is currently an Assistant Men's Basketball Coach at James Madison University, Jim Lee Howell (Head Football Coach 1947–1953), and current Mississippi State University Head Football Coach Dan Mullen (Assistant Football Coach 1994–1995). The football team's home venue is Wagner College Stadium, while the basketball team plays its home games at the Spiro Sports Center.

The Wagner College Athletic Department has been cited by the US News & World Report for having the 15th best graduation rate in intercollegiate athletics amongst more than 300 Division I colleges. Wagner also captured its second straight Northeast Conference Institutional Academic Award (Highest Student-Athlete GPA) for the 2007–08 athletic/academic seasons with an average GPA of 3.186 in 19 sports.

Photos

A panorama of the Wagner Union building.

Notable alumni

Filming location

Wagner's campus has been featured in:

References

  1. ↑ "Wagner College - ELCA Colleges & Universities". whygolutheran.org. Retrieved 24 June 2015.
  2. ↑ NAICU – Member Directory
  3. ↑ Wagner College Style Guide (PDF). Retrieved 2016-09-23.
  4. ↑ Review, Princeton; Franek, Robert (2015-09-01). Colleges That Create Futures: 50 Schools That Launch Careers by Going Beyond the Classroom. Random House USA Incorporated. ISBN 9780804126083.
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