Stevenson University is a private, independent, coeducational university that is located in the Greenspring Valley area of Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. The University has three campuses, one in Stevenson and two in Owings Mills, with approximately 4,200 undergraduate and graduate students. Formerly known as Villa Julie College, the name was changed to Stevenson University in 2008.
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History
Founding
Stevenson University was founded in Maryland as "Villa Julie College" in 1947 by the Roman Catholic women's religious order, Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur as a one-year school training women to become medical secretaries. The College was named for Saint Julie Billiart, foundress of the Sisters of Notre Dame.
Stevenson's Greenspring Valley campus in suburban Baltimore County is located on the 80-acre (320,000 m2) former estate of the George Carroll Jenkins family. The estate's name was "Seven Oaks," a reference to huge old oak trees planted on the property. They were thought to mark a traditional Lenni Lenape burial ground. One of these seven oaks still survived on campus as late as August 2007, when it was deemed potentially hazardous and cut down. The Greenspring and Worthington Valleys, west of the Baltimore-Harrisburg Expressway, (Interstate 83) are part of the "horse country" of northern Maryland and its steeplechase horses with the "Maryland Hunt Cup".
Accreditation and expansion (1950s - 1990s)
Villa Julie was approved as a two-year college by the Maryland State Department of Education in 1954, and received its first Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools accreditation in 1962. In 1967, the College established a Board of Trustees and became independent of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur and the Roman Catholic Church. Villa Julie became coeducational in 1972, admitting its first male student that year.
Bachelor's degree programs were added in 1984, starting with degrees in Computer Information Systems and Paralegal Studies.
Traditionally a commuter college for local residents, by the early 1990s the College started attracting students interested in college housing. Without the proper zoning for such an addition to the Stevenson campus, the College leased off-campus apartments in Pikesville and later in the county seat of Towson, where resident students began living in 1993. Villa Julie was granted admission to the National Collegiate Athletic Association and its NCAA Division III in 1994.
It started offering master's degrees in 1995. A major 1997 campus expansion more than doubled the amount of instructional space on campus, including expanded athletic facilities.
Growth in a new century (2000s)
On October 28, 2000, Villa Julie College inaugurated its fourth president Kevin J. Manning Ph.D., who succeeded Carolyn Manuszak. Manning brought new momentum to the development and expansion of the College and its facilities.
As enrollment continued to increase and the demand for college-owned student housing intensified, the College made plans to open a second campus in Owings Mills. The College broke ground on a new campus in August 2003, and the Owings Mills campus opened in August 2004. The Owings Mills campus included several major residence complexes. In 2006 Rockland Center, a new student union and dining hall, was completed. The Caves Sports and Wellness Center also opened that same year.
Stevenson University (2007-present)
In late 2007, the school's leaders decided to make changes needed to attain university status. Many meetings were held to help determine whether the name should be changed to Villa Julie University, or something different, given its broader reach. Other names considered were Great Oaks University, Tufton University, Greenspring University, Rockland University, Sagamore University, and Billiart University. On June 11, 2008, the university's Board of Trustees voted to name the school Stevenson University: it referred to the original location of Villa Julie College and Robert Stevenson, a prominent Baltimore grain merchant who married Deborah Owings, the granddaughter of the founder of Owings Mills.
The Howard S. Brown School of Business and Leadership opened for the fall 2008 semester and houses the school's Accounting, Business Administration, Business Information Systems, Computer Information Systems, Digital Marketing, Fashion Merchandising and Paralegal Studies programs. The school expanded in 2010 with the opening of a school gymnasium on the Owings Mills Campus.
The New School of Design opened in 2013. Formerly housed on the Greenspring Campus, the School of Design moved to facilities on a property purchased from Shire Pharmaceuticals; it has been developed as the Owings Mills North Campus. During the summer of 2016, the largest academic building will be revealed after extensive renovations. The new "Academic Center" is a 200,000 sq ft. building, which will house the School of Science, the newly announced School of Health Professions, and additional courses for the School of Design.
Future expansion of Stevenson University may include acquisition of the Rosewood Center, a former state hospital property adjacent to the university's Owings Mills campus. Environmental and surveyor issues are still in progress to determine whether the university can purchase the property to expand the Owings Mills campus to the east. If approved, Stevenson's plans for the site include expansion for the School of Education and additional athletic fields.
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Academics
Undergraduate programs
Degree programs have a core curriculum in the liberal arts and a unique career emphasis. The College runs a program called "Career Architecture", which is interwoven throughout the curriculum. It teaches students to plan strategically for their futures by developing resumes, practicing interviewing techniques, meeting with potential employers on-campus, and participating in internships and co-ops. Over the past five years, on average, 97% of graduates have been employed or have started graduate school within six months of graduation.
Adult bachelor's programs
Through its School of Graduate and Professional Studies, Stevenson offers accelerated onsite and online bachelor's degree programs for working adults.
Graduate programs
Stevenson offers master's degrees in eight subjects. Students interested in one of these programs who start at the university as freshmen are able to apply to the graduate programs as juniors, enabling them to complete both a bachelor's and a master's degree in five years.
Student life
Enrollment
Stevenson University enrolls approximately 4,200 students in more than 40 bachelor's and master's degree programs. Current enrollment makes the school the third-largest private university in the state of Maryland. Stevenson's total enrollment has more than doubled since 2001.
Residence life and activities
The freshman enrollment and housing enrollments rose dramatically between 2009-2010 and 2010-2011. In the fall semester 2010, there were over 900 freshman students, around 700 of whom were residents. Over 2,000 students live in 10 residence halls on the Owings Mills campus.
Some of the university's long-running annual events include: MustangFest, Mr./Ms. SU Pageant, and the Alumni Bull and Oyster Roast with Auction.
Athletics
The University's athletic facilities include the Caves Sports and Wellness Center, the former training facility of the Baltimore Ravens.
Stevenson teams participate as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division III. The Mustangs are a member of the Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC). Stevenson used to compete in the Capital Athletic Conference from 2007-08 to 2011-12. Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, ice hockey (2016-2017), lacrosse, soccer, tennis, track & field, volleyball and swimming. Women's sports include basketball, cross country, field hockey, golf, ice hockey, lacrosse, soccer, softball, tennis, track & field, volleyball (indoor and sand), and swimming.
In 2013, the Stevenson Mustangs Men's Lacrosse team took home the 2013 Division III national championship, the first National Championship of any kind for the school. They advanced to the finals after defeating their rival Salisbury University.
Music program
With the induction of the football team in 2011, the university added a marching band. The Stevenson University Marching 100 is a modern-style marching band that plays popular music. The band includes a front ensemble with an electronics section, woodwinds and brass, a drum line, colorguard, and dance line. The band plays at every football game, fall open houses, and exhibition events. It is directed by Mark Lortz.
Noted people
Notable alumni
- Martha Scanlan Klima, former member of Maryland House of Delegates
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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