Utica University Timeline

UC History... A Timeline

[1940s] [1950s] [1960s] [1970s] [1980s] [1990s] [2000s] [2010s]

2008

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October 17

UC announces its transition to full independence.

2007

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September 29

Dedication of F. Eugene Romano Hall, Phase I of UC's Science and Technology Complex

UC launches the public phase of its Achieve: A New Dream, A New Era Comprehensive Campaign with a gala celebration on campus. For more information, visit www.utica.edu/achieve.

August 31

UC breaks ground on Phase II of its Science and Technology Complex, the state-of-the-art facility that will house the College's renowned Economic Crime and Justice Studies programs.

2004

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September

A groundbreaking ceremony was held for the new residence hall, Bell Hall. The five-story building is named after its antique bronze bell feature and contains 113 living spaces for students mostly in single-occupancy, cluster-style rooms. Bell Hall is scheduled to open in August 2005.

August

Judith Kirkpatrick, former dean of Texas Wesleyan University School of Arts and Sciences, succeeded Mary Lee Seibert as vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty at Utica College. Kirkpatrick brings with her nearly 25 years of administrative and teaching experience in higher education.

Larry Platt '86, editor-in-chief of Philadelphia Magazine, delivered convocation address starting the 58th academic year at Utica College. Convocation ceremony took place in the Harold T. Clark Jr. Athletic Center. Additional remarks were made from Vice President for Student Affairs and the Dean of Students.

U.S. News and World Report ranked Utica College No. 12 overall and No. 8 in Best Value among undergraduate comprehensive colleges in the North in its annual guide of America's Best Colleges. UC improved its position in both categories from last year's guide, which placed Utica No. 15 in Top Schools and No. 9 in Best Value.

May 16

UC held its 55 th Commencement on Sunday, May 16, in the Utica Memorial Auditorium. Congressman Sherwood Boehlert '61 delivered the Commencement address and received an honorary doctor of laws degree. Charles Gaetano also received an honorary doctor of laws degree while Joseph Furgal was awarded an honorary doctor of human letters posthumously. Joan Kay, associate professor and director of therapeutic recreation, received the Dr. Virgil Crisafulli Distinguished Teaching Award. Kimberly Bramley of Clarks Mills, N.Y., Diane Moran of Whitesboro, N.Y., were named valedictorian and salutatorian respectively.

Sharon Kanfoush, assistant professor of geology at Utica College, received a $43,787 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) in support of her research of ice-rafted debris in the Southeast Atlantic and Indian Oceans. The grant award will support the research of Kanfoush and two undergraduate UC students with whom she will work with.

April

The Business Programs Speaker Series at Utica College sponsored "A Conversation with New York State Attorney General Eliot Spitzer." Spitzer, 1981 graduate of Princeton University and a 1984 graduate of Harvard Law School, discussed issues and answered questions concerning New York State in the Library concourse. Spitzer became the New York's 63rd Attorney General in January 1999.

March

Utica College was invited by the Albanian government to conduct an international archaeological field school at Butrint National Park in southwestern Albania. Utica College was the only American institution invited to develop educational and cultural programs.

Utica College and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) launched a graduate certificate in Homeland Security Risk Assessment. The program combined classes taught at the Office of National Risk Assessment, located in the Washington D. C. area, with a distance-learning component.

Dr. James B. Garvin, lead scientist for NASA's Mars and Lunar Exploration Programs since 1984, and astronaut Kenneth Cockrell, joined U.S. Rep. Sherwood Boehlert as participants in the 26 th annual Utica College Regional Science Fair.

The Utica College Board of Trustees approved a $20,980 tuition rate, a 5 percent increase, for the 2004-05 academic year. The tuition increase will enable the institution to expand its services to student education and help implement several initiatives President Todd S. Hutton says.

February

Plans were announced to offer a new Master of Business Administration in Economic Crime and Fraud Management starting Fall 2004. This program offers students an opportunity to learn specific concepts, methodologies, and tools that will assist them in managing complex technology projects and programs while identifying and preventing economic crimes.

The national organization America's Promise: The Alliance for Youth designated Utica College Young Scholars Liberty Partnerships Program (LPP) as a Priority Community of Promise. The program has been recognized for fulfilling the organization's "Five Promises" to children and youth.

Plans were announced to offer a new Master of Business Administration in Professional Accountancy beginning in Fall 2004. Students will have a broad exposure to varied business disciplines including management, organizational behavior, economics, statistics, and finance.

January

Hamilton College and Utica College have been jointly awarded a $46,000 three-year grant through the Center for Intergenerational Learning at Temple University to help older immigrants and refugees in the Mohawk Valley become more actively engaged in their community and pursue U.S. citizenship. The funding supports the combined efforts of the two colleges to replicate Project SHINE (Students Helping in the Naturalization of Elders) in the Utica area.

Utica College's History Project was selected to participate in the Council's Effective Practice Exchange by the Council of Independent Colleges and Universities (CIC) and its grant-making unit the Consortium for the Advancement of Private Higher Education (CAPHE). The Project culminates into a publication of a journal featuring the original research of students and a public conference on local history.

2003

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November

Utica College President Todd S. Hutton was one of 10 college and university presidents who participated in a Symposium on the Liberal Arts and Business at Elmhurst College in Elmhurst, Ill. The Symposium designed to bring together leaders from the corporate community and independent higher education institutions to work together to support college leadership, advance institutional excellence, and enhance private higher education?s contributions to society.

Utica College Professor Theodore Orlin provided training to human rights advocates at National Human Rights Education Workshop in Mumbai. The five-day workshop addressed the human rights issues and problems facing India and provided expert training for human rights advocates from India, Bangladesh and Thailand.

The College will offer a new Master of Science degree in Special Education for the year 2004. The degree is designed to enhance the teaching skills necessary for effective instruction for children and youth with mental and/or physical disabilities.

U.S. Congressman Sherwood L. Boehlert and Utica College President Todd S. Hutton announced details of the $1.25 million in federal funding that Rep. Boehlert has secured for the College's science and technology center for the year of 2004. The $18 million project will provide more than 100,000 square-feet of new and renovated classroom and laboratory space.

October 2

UC sponsored its 15th annual Unity March: A Celebration of Diversity on Thursday, Oct. 2. Hundreds of students, faculty, staff and other members of the local community join together to celebrate the cultural diversity on campuses and in communities throughout the region.

Identity fraud termed "national crisis with global implications" Researchers at the Economic Crime Institute of Utica College and LexisNexis called for a new national strategy in the fight against identity fraud. Details of the plan were discussed in remarks delivered at the 14th annual Economic Crime Institute Conference being held outside Washington, D.C.

Utica College announced today that in Spring 2004, the College will offer a new Master of Science degree in Liberal Studies.

August

U.S. News and World Report rates Utica College No. 15 overall and No. 9 in Best Value among undergraduate comprehensive colleges in the Northeast

July

In a tribute to the legendary "Drums Along the Mohawk" author and Mohawk Valley native, Utica College officially dedicated the Walter D. Edmonds Room marked the centennial of the late author's birth.

Congressman Sherwood Boehlert (R-New Hartford) announced that he has secured $1.3 million for Utica College in Economic Development Initiative funds for a planned new science center on campus. This brings to $3.1 million the two-year total Boehlert has directed to the project.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) has awarded a $449,697 grant to Utica College's Institute of Gerontology to infuse cross-cultural aging education into allied health curriculum.

The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) has awarded a $1 million grant to Utica College, Faxton-St. Luke's Healthcare, and ENTrust Energy Services LLC that will support the development of a distributed generation and combined heat and power project.

June

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Administration (HRSA) awarded the UC Department of Nursing $61,451 grant for Scholarships for Disadvantaged Students for the 2003-04 academic year. This is the second consecutive year that Utica College has received this award, and this year's HRSA funding represents a $3,993 increase from 2002-03.

May

The faculty and administration of Utica College selected Radu Olievschi as valedictorian and Kimberly Alberico as salutatorian for the Class of 2003. George W. Haley, former U.S. ambassador to the Republic of the Gambia and a pioneer in human rights advocacy, delivered the honorary 2003 Commencement address. Haley was presented the honorary degree doctor of humane letters.

The New York State Education Department's Liberty Partnerships Program presented Utica College President Todd S. Hutton the Empire Promise Award for his support of the Young Scholars Liberty Partnerships Program.

April

Senior biology students Julia van Kessel and Tarah Scanlon presented research at the Council on Undergraduate Research's Poster on the Hill event in Washington, D.C. Kessel and Scanlon were two of only 60 undergraduate student researchers selected nationwide.

UC hosted a symposium recognizing the professional work of Scott MacDonald, professor emeritus of English and film.

Mary Katharine Maroney, director and professor of nursing, was selected to receive the 2003 Distinguished Career in Nursing Award from Columbia University.

March

The Community Foundation of Herkimer and Oneida Counties awarded Utica College a $14,630 grant in support of the Young Scholars Liberty Partnerships Program. The grant was made possible by the Credit Bureau of Utica Fund.

The 25th annual Utica College-Homogeneous Metals Regional Science Fair was held and featured special guests US Congressman Sherwood Boehlert '61 (R-New Hartford), NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe, NASA Astronaut Leland Melvin, and NASA Associate Administrator for Education Dr. Adena Williams Loston.

January

Utica College received a $10,000 New York State Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services (OASAS) grant allowing the College to partner with local agencies to address the problems associated with collegiate substance abuse on and off campus.

2002

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November

UC's new mascot is named Trax the Pioneer Moose following an eight-week "Name the Moose Contest." The winning entry was submitted by Ric Hollins of Whitesboro, NY.

October 9

UC officially opened its newest residential facility, Tower Hall. President Todd S. Hutton and College trustees joined student representatives in a ceremonial ribbon-cutting in front of the building's main entrance.

September

Utica College formally dedicated Charles A. Gaetano Stadium with a ceremonial ribbon-cutting event.

UC received the largest single monetary gift in its 56-year history when longtime friend and benefactor Ruby "Bunny" diIorio had bequeathed $628,000 in her estate to the institution.

Utica College has received a $335,435 federal grant from the U.S. Department of Education to improve the quality of and access to higher education for students with disabilities.

July

Rep. Sherwood Boehlert '61 (R-New Hartford), Chairman of the House Science Committee, and National Science Foundation (NSF) Deputy Director Joe Bordogna, joined Utica College President Todd S. Hutton in announcing the award of a $199,209 NSF Cyber Service grant to Utica College.

June

Utica College received two federal grants totaling $946,853 to support the institution?s efforts of providing educational opportunities to underrepresented minority nursing students.

Congressional legislators, military personnel, White House undersecretaries, academic faculty and administrators, and top executives from private industries gathered Monday, June 24 for a Congressional Field Hearing on Homeland and Cybersecurity at Utica College. This was the third in a series of hearings held examining security issues and the vulnerability of our nation's computer infrastructure. The first two hearings were held in Washington, D.C.

Dr. Kenneth Kelly was named vice president for student affairs and dean of students at Utica College.

May

UC heed a ground-breaking ceremony for the campus's new Faculty Center. The academic facility will feature modern classrooms equipped with high technology, faculty offices, and other academic resources.

April

The faculty and administration at Utica College selected Laura Richter as valedictorian and Jamie Martineau as salutatorian for the Class of 2002. Writer, poet Judith Viorst addressed Utica College's 53rd graduating class.

Tarah Scanlon, Erica McGovern and Julia Van Kessel attended the 102nd Annual Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology.

The American Scholastic Press Association selected Utica College's student-run weekly newspaper, the Tangerine, as "Best Overall" in its annual newspaper competition. First place honors were also awarded to Photo Editor Geoff Coalter '03 for his entry in the national organization's individual photography competition.

March

The Commission on Independent Colleges and Universities (CICU) inducted Sherwood L. Boehlert, US Congressman (R-New Hartford) and a 1961 graduate of Utica College, into the Independent Sector Alumni Hall of Distinction.

January

The American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) elected Paula D. Carey, director and associate professor of occupational therapy at Utica College, secretary of the Professional Program Directors Education Council.