Montclair State University

Plans for the State Normal school were initiated in 1903, [ 9 ] and required a year for the State of New Jersey to grant permission to build the school. [ 9 ] It was then established as "New Jersey State Normal School at Montclair", a normal school , in 1908 [ 9 ] approximately 5 years after the initial planning of the school. [ 9 ] At the time, Governor John Franklin Fort attended the dedication of the school in 1908, [ 9 ] and the school was to have its first principal Charles Sumner Chapin that same year. The first building constructed was College Hall (now known as Cole Hall), and it still stands today. At the time, the campus was around 25 acres (100,000 m 2 ) , had 8 faculty members and 187 students. [ 9 ] The first graduating class, which numbered at 45 students, [ 9 ] contained William O. Trapp, who would then go on to win the Pulitzer Prize for journalism in 1929. The first dormitory was then built five years later, in 1915, and is known as Russ Hall. [ 9 ] In 1927, Harry Sprague was the first president of Montclair, [ 9 ] and shortly afterwards the school began being more inclusive of extracurricular activities such as athletics. In 1927, however, after studies had emerged concerning the number of high school teachers in the state of New Jersey (only 10% of all high school teachers received their degrees from New Jersey), the institution became "Montclair State Teachers College" and developed a four-year (Bachelor of Arts) program in pedagogy , becoming the first US institute to do so. In 1937 it became the first teachers college accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools . [ 9 ] In 1943, during World War II , several students, with permission from the president, Harry Sprague, joined the US Navy as volunteers to train for the war. It was also a time when students and faculty sold war bonds to support US American troops.

[ 9 ] In 1958 the school merged with the "Panzer College of Physical Education and Hygiene" to become "Montclair State College". [ 9 ] The school became a comprehensive multi-purpose institution in 1966. [ 9 ] The Board of Higher Education designated the school a teaching university on April 27, 1994, and in the same year the school became "Montclair State University". [ 9 ] It has offered Master of Arts programs since 1932, Master of Business Administration since 1981, Master of Education since 1985, Master of Science since 1992, Master of Fine Arts since 1998, Doctor of Education since 1999, and Doctor of Environmental Management in 2003 (now the PhD in Environmental Science and Management). PhD degrees were added in Teacher Education and Teacher Development in 2008, Counselor Education, Family Studies, Mathematics Education, Communications Sciences and Disorders by 2014, and most recently Clinical as well as Industrial/Organizational Psychology (2021). In 2018, Montclair State University graduated more than 30 doctoral students. In 2004, NJ Transit opened the Montclair State University station , [ 10 ] which links the university to New York City . [ 10 ] The building of the MSU Station cost $26 million [ 10 ] to complete, including a 1,500-space parking deck. [ 10 ] In 2015, the university established the School of Communication and Media and added two new buildings to its campus; the Feliciano School of Business and the Center for Environmental and Life Sciences (CELS). Partridge Hall was fully renovated and in 2016, became the new School of Nursing, which welcomed its inaugural class of students that fall. In 2016, Montclair State University was designated by the U.S. Department of Education as a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI). [ 11 ] In 2017, Montclair State was designated a public research university by the New Jersey Legislature .

[ 6 ] The new state-of-the-art home for the School of Communication and Media opened in fall 2017, followed in 2018 by the opening of the Center for Computing and Information Science in the former Mallory Hall, which underwent a complete renovation and expansion. In 2016, the university's classification was changed from a Masters to a Doctoral Research University, [ 12 ] and in 2019, was changed to R2: Doctoral University – High Research Activity. [ 13 ] Presidents More information Number, President ... Number President [ 14 ] [ 15 ] Years in Office Notes – Charles S. Chapin 1908–1924 Principal of New Jersey State Normal School at Montclair. Chapin Hall is named for him. 1 Harry A. Sprague 1924–1951 Principal, then first president of the College. Harry A. Sprague Library and Sprague field named for him. 2 E. DeAlton Partridge 1951–1964 Partridge Hall is dedicated to him. 3 Thomas H. Richardson 1964–1973 Acting President from 1964 to 1966. Namesake of Richardson Hall. 4 David W.D. Dickson 1973–1984 First African American president of the College. Dickson Hall is dedicated to him. 5 Donald E. Walters 1984–1987 Initiated an honors program, an international studies program and seminars on ethics and values. [ 16 ] 6 Richard A. Lynde 1987–1989 Acting President 7 Irvin D. Reid 1989–1998 "...Spearheaded a successful effort to upgrade Montclair State from a college to a university... " [ 17 ] Irvin D. Reid Hall is dedicated to him. 8 Gregory L. Waters 1997–1998 Acting President 9 Susan A. Cole 1998–2021 First female and Jewish president of the university. Susan A. Cole Hall is dedicated to her. 10 Jonathan G.S. Koppell 2021–present Current president of the university Close

Montclair State University comprises seven colleges and six schools, each led by a dean or director. The colleges and schools organize and conduct academic programs within their units (Bachelor's, Master's, Doctoral, and Certificate Programs) and work cooperatively to offer interdisciplinary programs. [ 18 ] [ 19 ] College of the Arts John J. Cali School of Music The John J. Cali School of Music is part of the College of the Arts. [ 20 ] The Cali School of Music provides a wide range of study and performance opportunities for its undergraduate and graduate students, as well as a professional certification program in Music Education and the Artist's Diploma and Performer's Certificate degrees in classical and jazz performance. [ 21 ] The noted string quartet, the Shanghai Quartet , was in residence at MSU from 2002 to 2020. [ 22 ] As part of their new residency programs, the Cali School welcomed the Harlem Quartet as its new quartet-in-residence and introduced Jessie Montgomery as its composer-in-residence. [ 23 ] In 2021, the Cali School implemented the Cali Pathways Project, a scholarship program designed to create dynamic and comprehensive pathways to higher education and careers in music for talented student musicians from underrepresented backgrounds. [ 24 ]