American International College (AIC) is a

private university Private universities and private colleges are higher education institutions not operated, owned, or institutionally funded by governments. However, they often receive tax breaks, public student loans, and government grants. Depending on the count ...

Springfield, Massachusetts Springfield is the most populous city in Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States, and its county seat. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers: the western Westfield River, the ea ...

History

American International College was originally established on July 18, 1885 by Calvin E. Amaron who sought to create an institution of higher learning that would provide the local

French Canadian French Canadians, referred to as Canadiens mainly before the nineteenth century, are an ethnic group descended from French people, French colonists first arriving in Canada (New France), France's colony of Canada in 1608. The vast majority of ...

minority with access to higher education.

Academics

The university offers

undergraduate Undergraduate education is education conducted after secondary education and before postgraduate education, usually in a college or university. It typically includes all postsecondary programs up to the level of a bachelor's degree. For example, ...

and graduate programs, including master's and doctoral degrees and certificates of advanced graduate study (CAGS). There are three schools which focus on their respective academic areas: * School of Business, Arts, and Sciences: Bachelor's and master's degrees * School of Health Sciences: Bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees * School of Education: Master's and doctoral degrees Undergraduate students choose from 37 majors as they earn a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.), Bachelor of Science (B.S.), Bachelor of Science in Nursing (B.S.N.) or Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (B.S.B.A). Certificates and other non-degree programs are also offered.

Athletics

The school competes in NCAA Division II, and is a member of the Northeast-10 Conference for all but four sports. Additionally, the institution's wrestling program, which is the only NCAA DII program in New England, competes as an independent. Among the exceptions is the school's men's ice hockey team, which is a member of the Division I, Atlantic Hockey America. The team participated in its first NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Championship in 2019 and defeated nationally ranked No.1 St. Cloud State in the first round. AIC also has a college rugby program that was founded in 2009 and began play in 2010. The rugby program is part of the school's athletic department, has varsity status, with rugby scholarships available for students. AIC's men's team plays Division 1A in the Liberty Conference, while the women's team is a member of the NIRA.

Notable alumni

Politics

* Paul Babeu, Arizona sheriff * Mark G. Mastroianni, United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts * William D. Mullins, member of the

Massachusetts House of Representatives The Massachusetts House of Representatives is the lower house of the Massachusetts General Court, the State legislature (United States), state legislature of Massachusetts. It is composed of 160 members elected from 14 counties each divided into ...

* Richard Neal, member of the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

* Mike Gravel, former

Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...

* Michael C. Polt, US diplomat and former Ambassador to Estonia, Serbia, and Serbia and Montenegro * Dianne Wilkerson, former member of the Massachusetts Senate * James Worth, state representative

Athletics

* Jim Calhoun, college basketball coach * Asnage Castelly, Olympic wrestler * Mario Elie, professional basketball player and coach * Harrison Fitch, college basketball player * Dave Forbes, professional hockey player * Fran Healy, professional baseball player and sportscaster * Bruce Laird, professional football player * Tom Rychlec, professional football player

References

External links

*
American International College Athletics website
{{authority control Educational institutions established in 1885 1885 establishments in Massachusetts