St. Bonaventure University is a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...

Franciscan , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...

university in St. Bonaventure, New York. It has 2,381 undergraduate and graduate students. The Franciscan Brothers established the university in 1858. In athletics, the St. Bonaventure Bonnies play

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges ...

Division I sports in the

Atlantic 10 Conference The Atlantic 10 Conference (A-10) is a collegiate athletic conference whose schools compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) Division I. The A-10's member schools are located in states mostly on the United States Easter ...

. Students and alumni often refer to the university as ''Bona's'', derived from the school's name.

History

The college was founded by

Utica, New York Utica () is a city in the Mohawk Valley and the county seat of Oneida County, New York, United States. The tenth-most-populous city in New York State, its population was 65,283 in the 2020 U.S. Census. Located on the Mohawk River at the fo ...

, financier Nicholas Devereux, Kernan, Thomas. "Nicholas Devereux." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 16 (Index). New York: The Encyclopedia Press, 1914. 24 July 2019 one of the first to gain land grants in newly surveyed Cattaraugus County from the

Holland Land Company The Holland Land Company was an unincorporated syndicate of thirteen Dutch investors from Amsterdam who in 1792 and 1793 purchased the western two-thirds of the Phelps and Gorham Purchase, an area that afterward was known as the Holland Purchas ...

.Demetreu, Danielle. "Nicholas Devereux", St. Bonaventure University Archives
/ref> Devereux founded the town of Allegany on the grant, hoping to build a new city. Devereux approached

John Timon John Timon, C.M. (February 12, 1797 – April 16, 1867) was a prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the bishop of the new Diocese of Buffalo in Western New York and founder of the brothers of the Holy Infancy religious order. B ...

, the bishop of Buffalo, for assistance. The two invited the

Franciscan order The Franciscans are a group of related Mendicant orders, mendicant Christianity, Christian Catholic religious order, religious orders within the Catholic Church. Founded in 1209 by Italian Catholic friar Francis of Assisi, these orders include t ...

to Western New York, and a small group under

Pamfilo da Magliano Pamfilo of Magliano, O.S.F. (now O.F.M.), was an Italian Franciscan friar, who went to the United States in 1855 to help establish the Order there. He was responsible for the establishment of major institutions of the Order in the Northeastern Un ...

arrived in 1855. The school graduated its first class in 1858. St. Bonaventure's College was granted university status by New York State in 1950. The largest residence hall on campus, Devereux Hall, is named for the founder.

The Franciscan connection

The university is named after

Bonaventure Bonaventure ( ; it, Bonaventura ; la, Bonaventura de Balneoregio; 1221 – 15 July 1274), born Giovanni di Fidanza, was an Italian Catholic Franciscan, bishop, cardinal, scholastic theologian and philosopher. The seventh Minister G ...

(1221–1274), born John of Fidenza, who became a cardinal and Doctor of the Church. A theologian and contemporary of

Thomas Aquinas Thomas Aquinas, Dominican Order, OP (; it, Tommaso d'Aquino, lit=Thomas of Aquino, Italy, Aquino; 1225 – 7 March 1274) was an Italian Dominican Order, Dominican friar and Catholic priest, priest who was an influential List of Catholic philo ...

at the University of Paris, he became head of the Franciscan order. Bonaventure was canonized in 1482 by

Sixtus IV Pope Sixtus IV ( it, Sisto IV: 21 July 1414 – 12 August 1484), born Francesco della Rovere, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 9 August 1471 to his death in August 1484. His accomplishments as pope include ...

. The Franciscan friars at the St. Bonaventure Friary belong to the Holy Name Province and are members of the

Order of Friars Minor The Order of Friars Minor (also called the Franciscans, the Franciscan Order, or the Seraphic Order; postnominal abbreviation OFM) is a mendicant Catholic religious order, founded in 1209 by Francis of Assisi. The order adheres to the teachi ...

, one of the orders of Franciscans. The university is also home to the Franciscan Institute. Founded in 1939 by Thomas Plassmann, then president of St. Bonaventure's College, and led by its first Director, Philotheus Boehner.

Campus

The campus sits on in the town of Allegany, just over the line from the city of Olean (total pop.: 15,000), at Exit 24 of Interstate 86. The university has its own US Post Office and is listed as a separate

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counterparts of incorporated places, suc ...

by the Census Bureau. The university's postal address is Saint Bonaventure, NY 14778. St. Bonaventure also has a second graduate studies center in

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; nds, label=Hamburg German, Low Saxon, Hamborg ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg (german: Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg; nds, label=Low Saxon, Friee un Hansestadt Hamborg),. is the List of cities in Germany by popul ...

, a suburb of Buffalo, on the campus of

Hilbert College Hilbert College is a private Franciscan college in Hamburg, New York. The college is named after Mother Colette Hilbert of the Franciscan Sisters of Saint Joseph, who founded the school in 1957 to train teachers. Hilbert College enrolls approxim ...

Academics

The university has more than 50 academic programs, including programs in the Jandoli School of Communication, schools of Arts & Sciences, Business, Education and Health Professions, and combined-degree health care programs preparing students for careers in medicine, dentistry, physical therapy or pharmacy.

Research

St. Bonaventure also has the Center for the Study of Attention, Learning & Memory, a joint initiative between the School of Education and the School of Arts and Sciences, promotes interdisciplinary research and increases awareness of the importance of attention and learning in education.

Rankings

On the ''U.S. News & World Report''s 2022 list of best regional universities, St. Bonaventure University was ranked No. 9 for value and No. 20 in the North.

Student life

Media

The campus newspaper, ''

The Bona Venture ''The Bona Venture'' is the student newspaper of St. Bonaventure University. The Bona Venture serves St. Bonaventure University and the city of Olean. It is free, and published weekly during the St. Bonaventure University academic year. The p ...

'', has been published continuously since 1926. Known on campus as The BV, the newspaper has earned The Pacemaker Award numerous times from the

Associated Collegiate Press The Associated Collegiate Press (ACP) is the largest and oldest national membership organization for college student media in the United States. The ACP is a division of the National Scholastic Press Association. It awards the newspaper, mag ...

, the last time in 1994. The school's student radio station is known as WSBU 88.3 The Buzz. In 2019, the Jandoli School of Communication's student-produced newscast, "SBU-TV", became available to television viewers across Western New York.

Popular folklore

Thomas Merton Thomas Merton (January 31, 1915 – December 10, 1968) was an American Trappist monk, writer, theologian, mystic, poet, social activist and scholar of comparative religion. On May 26, 1949, he was ordained to the Catholic priesthood and g ...

, the religious writer, taught English at St. Bonaventure for a year just at the start of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, living on campus on the second floor of Devereux Hall. It was at this school that Merton finally gave into his vocation and decided to join the

Trappists The Trappists, officially known as the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance ( la, Ordo Cisterciensis Strictioris Observantiae, abbreviated as OCSO) and originally named the Order of Reformed Cistercians of Our Lady of La Trappe, are a ...

. He entered the

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer whic ...

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia ...

in 1941. A heart-shaped clearing on a mountain in view of campus is linked to Merton in campus myth. Some students call it "Merton's Heart" and claim that Merton visited the place often and that the trees fell when he died. In reality, the hillside had been cleared for oil drilling in the 1920s and trees have since regrown, leaving the bald patch.

Athletics

St. Bonaventure is an

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major collegiate athleti ...

member of the

and offers 19 varsity athletic programs. The school's programs are known as the Bonnies. The men's team has reached the NCAA men's basketball tournament a total of 8 times, most recently in the 2020–2021 season.

Notable alumni

* Erin Lynch *

Jaylen Adams Jaylen Tairique Adams (born May 4, 1996) is an American professional basketball player for the Qingdao Eagles of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). He played college basketball for the St. Bonaventure Bonnies, earning co- Atlantic 10 Con ...

, basketball player *

Miles Aiken Miles Aiken (born December 27, 1941) is an American former professional basketball player, coach of the British Olympic basketball team, and sportscaster of basketball and American football. He was a center in college for St. Bonaventure Univers ...

, basketball player *

Anthony Bannon Anthony Bannon (born December 6, 1943) is an arts administrator in Western New York. He served as the director of the George Eastman Museum from 1996 to 2012 as well as the executive director of the Burchfield Penney Art Center at Buffalo State ...

, former director of

George Eastman House The George Eastman Museum, also referred to as ''George Eastman House, International Museum of Photography and Film'', the world's oldest museum dedicated to photography and one of the world's oldest film archives, opened to the public in 1949 in ...

, director of

Burchfield-Penney Art Center The Burchfield Penney Art Center, or just the Burchfield Penney, is an arts and educational institution part of Buffalo State College, located adjacent to the main campus in Buffalo, New York, United States. Dedicated to the art and vision of ...

* Jim Baron, basketball coach * Ed Bastian, CEO,

Delta Air Lines Delta Air Lines, Inc., typically referred to as Delta, is one of the major airlines of the United States and a legacy carrier. One of the world's oldest airlines in operation, Delta is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline, along ...

Marion Beiter Sister Marion Beiter (August 23, 1907 – October 11, 1982), born Dorothy Katharine Beiter, was an American mathematician and educator. Her research focused on the area of cyclotomic polynomials. Beiter was born in Buffalo to Kathryn () and E ...

, mathematician * Janet Bodnar, financial expert and editor * John Boland, Buffalo labor priest * J. R. Bremer, basketball player *

John R. Broderick John R. Broderick is an American academic administrator who served as the eighth president of Old Dominion University from 2008 to 2021. As president, he guided the University's six colleges, more than 10 economic development and research centers ...

, university president * Jack Butler, NFL Hall of Fame *

JG Faherty James Gregory "JG" Faherty (born January 27, 1961) is an American author who writes in the horror, science fiction, and dark fantasy genres. Faherty was born in Olean, New York. He moved to Stony Point, New York at the age of four, and resid ...

(James Gregory Faherty), author *

Neil Cavuto Neil Patrick Cavuto (born September 22, 1958) is an American television news anchor, executive, commentator, and business journalist for Fox News. He hosts three television programs: '' Your World with Neil Cavuto'' and ''Cavuto Live,'' both on F ...

, news anchor for Fox News and Fox Business * Freddie Crawford, former NBA player *

Chuck Daly Charles Jerome Daly (July 20, 1930 – May 9, 2009) was an American basketball head coach. He led the Detroit Pistons to two consecutive National Basketball Association (NBA) championships in 1989 and 1990—during the team's "Bad Boys" era—a ...

, basketball coach * Charles J. Dougherty, President of Duquesne University *

Brett Dobson Brett Dobson (Born April 3rd, 2000) is a Canadian lacrosse goalie for the Archers Lacrosse Club of the Premier Lacrosse League, and as well for the Georgia Swarm of the National Lacrosse League. He is also a member of the Canada men's national lac ...

, Professional Lacrosse Player * Ed Don George, professional wrestler * Edward Goljan, Professor of Pathology at Oklahoma State University College of Osteopathic Medicine * George Hays, football player * Deb Henretta, Former Group President, Procter & Gamble * Dan Herbeck, journalist *

Daniel Horan Daniel Patrick Horan (born 1983) is an American Franciscan friar, Catholic priest, theologian, and author. He is currently the Director of the Center for Spirituality and Professor of Philosophy, Religious Studies, and Theology at Saint Mary's Col ...

, Theologian and Author * Louis Iasiello, former chief of naval chaplains *

Hughie Jennings Hugh Ambrose Jennings (April 2, 1869 – February 1, 1928) was an American professional baseball player, coach and manager from 1891 to 1925. Jennings was a leader, both as a batter and as a shortstop, with the Baltimore Orioles teams that won N ...

, baseball player and manager * Father Mychal Judge, chaplain, first official victim of the

September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commer ...

* George Kenneally, football player * Patricia Kennealy-Morrison, author, journalist, editor *

Bob Lanier Robert Jerry Lanier Jr. (September 10, 1948 – May 10, 2022) was an American professional basketball player who was a center for the Detroit Pistons and the Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Lanier was inducted in ...

, Basketball Hall of Fame * Michael Lynch, population geneticist and academic at

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universi ...

* Ted Marchibroda, football coach * Whitey Martin, former NBA player *

John McGraw John Joseph McGraw (April 7, 1873 – February 25, 1934) was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) player and manager who was for almost thirty years manager of the New York Giants. He was also the third baseman of the pennant-winning 189 ...

, Major League baseball manager (NY Giants, Baltimore Orioles) * Andrew Nicholson, basketball player * Paul Owens, general manager with the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

* Carl Paladino, 2010 New York State Republican gubernatorial candidate * James Post, Professor * Danica Roem, journalist and the among the first openly transgender politicians elected to serve in a state legislature, in Virginia. * Thomas P. Ryan Jr., Mayor of Rochester, New York (1974–94) *

Irena Scott Irena McCammon Scott (born 1942) is an American author and physiologist. She received a BS from Ohio State University, an MS from the University of Nevada, and a PhD from the University of Missouri in the Department of Veterinary Medicine. Her pos ...

, author and physiologist * Sam Stith, former NBA player * Tom Stith, former NBA player * Mike Vaccaro, sports journalist * Denise Doring VanBuren, 45th President of the

Daughters of the American Revolution The Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) is a lineage-based membership service organization for women who are directly descended from a person involved in the United States' efforts towards independence. A non-profit group, they promote ...

* Adrian Wojnarowski, sports journalist *

Catharine Young Catharine M. Young (born November 22, 1960) is an American politician. From May 2005 to March 2019, Young represented New York State's 57th district in the New York State Senate. The district includes all of Chautauqua County, Cattaraugus Co ...

, New York State Senator

Pulitzer Prize winners

The school boasts six

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made ...

winners as alumni, and one

Alfred I. duPont–Columbia University Award The Alfred I. duPont–Columbia University Award honors excellence in broadcast and digital journalism in the public service and is considered one of the most prestigious awards in journalism. The awards were established in 1942 and administered ...

winner, the broadcast equivalent of the Pulitzer. * Dan Barry 1980, reporter for ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

''. Won in 1994 for investigative reporting (corruption in Rhode Island court system). * Bill Briggs 1985, former reporter for the

Denver Post ''The Denver Post'' is a daily newspaper and website published in Denver, Colorado. As of June 2022, it has an average print circulation of 57,265. In 2016, its website received roughly six million monthly unique visitors generating more than 1 ...

. Won in 2000 for breaking news reporting (

Columbine High School massacre On April 20, 1999, a school shooting and attempted bombing occurred at Columbine High School in Columbine, Colorado, United States. The perpetrators, 12th grade students Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, murdered 12 students and one teacher. ...

). * Robert A. Dubill 1958, former executive editor of ''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...

''. Won in 1980 for public service (uncovering religious fund-raising scandals). * John Hanchette 1964, former managing editor of Gannett Newspapers, retired professor of journalism at St. Bonaventure. Won in 1980 for public service (uncovering religious fund-raising scandals). * Charles J. Hanley 1968, reporter for the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. new ...

. Won in 2000 for investigative reporting (the massacre at No Gun Ri). * Brian Toolan 1972, vice president of ''

The Hartford Courant The ''Hartford Courant'' is the largest daily newspaper in the U.S. state of Connecticut, and is considered to be the oldest continuously published newspaper in the United States. A morning newspaper serving most of the state north of New Ha ...

''. Won in 1999 for breaking news reporting ( shooting at the Connecticut Lottery).

DuPont Columbia Award winners

* Charlie Specht 2010, chief investigative reporter for

WKBW-TV WKBW-TV (channel 7) is a television station in Buffalo, New York, United States, affiliated with ABC. Owned by the E. W. Scripps Company, the station maintains studios at 7 Broadcast Plaza in downtown Buffalo and a transmitter on Center Stree ...

. Won in 2020 for investigative reporting on clergy sex abuse and coverup by the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...

Members of the United States Congress

John Boccieri John Stephen Anthony Boccieri (born October 5, 1969) is an American politician who was appointed to fill the 59th district seat in the Ohio House of Representatives on September 29, 2015. He left office after an unsuccessful run for Ohio State S ...

1992, US Representative from Ohio (Dem., 2009–2011) *

James J. Howard James John Howard (July 24, 1927 – March 25, 1988) was an American educator and Democratic Party politician who represented in the United States House of Representatives from 1965 until his death from a heart attack in Washington, D.C. in ...

1952, US Rep from New Jersey (1965–1988) *

Rudolph G. Tenerowicz Rudolph Gabriel Tenerowicz (June 14, 1890 – August 31, 1963) was an American physician and politician from the U.S. state of Michigan. He served two terms in the United States House of Representatives from 1939 to 1943. Early life Tenerowicz ...

, US Representative from Michigan (Dem. & Rep., 1939–43, 49–57) *

James T. Walsh James Thomas Walsh (born June 19, 1947)Walsh, James T.
''Biographical Directory of ...

1970, US Representative from New York (Rep., 1989–2009)Walsh, James T.
''Biographical Directory of the United States Congress'', Washington, DC, Retrieved 16 January 2014.
''The Post-Standard'', Syracuse, New York: Syracuse Media Group, Repost 21 January 2008 by Carlic, S., Original 30 October 1988 by Kane, D., & Bramstedt, C., Retrieved 16 January 2014.Biographical profile for James T. Walsh
''Vote NY'', Reston, VA: Vote USA, Undated, Retrieved 17 January 2014. * William F. Walsh 1934, US Representative from New York (Rep., 1973–1979)Walsh, William Francis
''Biographical Directory of the United States Congress'', Washington, DC: US Congress, Undated, Retrieved 21 January 2014.
''The Post-Standard'', Syracuse, New York: Syracuse Media Group, 8 January 2011, Weiner, M., Retrieved 21 January 2014.

Notes

References

External links

*
St. Bonaventure Athletics website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Bonaventure University Franciscan universities and colleges Liberal arts colleges in New York (state) Catholic universities and colleges in New York (state) Education in Cattaraugus County, New York Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities 1858 establishments in New York (state) Educational institutions established in 1858 Tourist attractions in Cattaraugus County, New York