Anna Maria College

View of Socquet Hall, the location of the Office of the President, in 2016 Anna Maria College was founded in 1946 as a women's college by the Sisters of Saint Anne , after receiving formal approval from Richard Cushing , the Archbishop of Boston . The original campus was in Marlborough, Massachusetts . In 1951, the college moved to its present location in Paxton. [ 4 ] Four years later, accreditation by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges was issued. In 1973, Anna Maria College became coeducational and began graduate degree programs a year later. [ 5 ] On April 3, 1980, the Sisters of Saint Anne ceased involvement in running the school, and a Board of Trustees was established. In 2004, the college established the Molly Bish Center for the Protection of Children and the Elderly. [ 6 ]

Anna Maria College has an average annual enrollment of around 1,500 students, mostly undergraduate and graduate students, and some continuing education learners. [ 7 ] Rooted in the traditions of Catholic education, the college combines liberal arts and sciences education with career preparation. The college is divided into four academic schools: the School of Business, School of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences, School of Nursing and Health Sciences, and the School of Professional Studies. [ 8 ]

Main article: Anna Maria Amcats Anna Maria College has thirteen Division III athletic teams, known as the AMCATS (Anna Maria College Athletic Team Sports), in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), including men's baseball, basketball, football, ice hockey, lacrosse, and soccer; and women's basketball, ice hockey, field hockey, lacrosse, soccer, softball, and volleyball. The school is the first private college to be invited for core member status in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC). [ 9 ]

View of the Madonna Hall residences in 2016. Craig Blais (English) Mark Eshbaugh (art) Thomas Lewis (art) Brian Mitchell (history)