Stella and Charles Guttman Community College is a

public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociology, sociological concept of the ''Öf ...

community college A community college is a type of undergraduate higher education institution, generally leading to an associate degree, certificate, or diploma. The term can have different meanings in different countries: many community colleges have an open enr ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. It is the newest of the

City University of New York The City University of New York (CUNY, pronounced , ) is the Public university, public university system of Education in New York City, New York City. It is the largest urban university system in the United States, comprising 25 campuses: eleven ...

's (CUNY)

s and was founded on September 11, 2011. It opened on August 20, 2012 as New Community College. In April 2013 the college was renamed following a $15 million endowment from the Stella and Charles Guttman Foundation. Guttman offers

associate degree An associate degree or associate's degree is an undergraduate degree awarded after a course of post-secondary study lasting two to three years. It is a level of academic qualification above a high school diploma and below a bachelor's degree ...

programs with

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

s in liberal arts, sciences, business, human services, information technology (IT), and urban studies. Students are accepted with either a

high school diploma A high school diploma (sometimes referred to as a high school degree) is a diploma awarded upon graduation of high school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary s ...

Certificate of High School Equivalency The General Educational Development (GED) tests are a group of four academic subject tests in the United States and its territories certifying academic knowledge equivalent to a high school diploma. This certification is an alternative to the U ...

History

Guttman was the first community college established by the

(CUNY) in over 40 years. The planning was begun in 2008 on the initiative of CUNY's

Chancellor Chancellor () is a title of various official positions in the governments of many countries. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the (lattice work screens) of a basilica (court hall), which separa ...

at the time, Matthew Goldstein. The planning phase was supported by CUNY funds, an initial allocation $8.9 million from the City of New York's annual budget, and donations from the

Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation The Gates Foundation is an American private foundation founded by Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates. Based in Seattle, Washington, it was launched in 2000 and is reported to be List of wealthiest charitable foundations, the third largest char ...

and

Michael Bloomberg Michael Rubens Bloomberg (born February 14, 1942) is an American businessman and politician. He is the majority owner and co-founder of Bloomberg L.P., and was its CEO from 1981 to 2001 and again from 2014 to 2023. He served as the 108th mayo ...

's Center for Economic Opportunity.Santora, Marc (26 January 2009)
"CUNY Plans New Approach to Community College"
''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

''. Retrieved 5 December 2013. Described by ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' as "a multimillion-dollar experiment in how to fix what ails community colleges," Guttman College's academic structure and curriculum were designed from scratch in an effort to improve students' chances of completing their associate degrees and transferring to four-year colleges for further study. In 2010, the first faculty members were appointed, and Scott E. Evenbeck, professor of psychology and dean of University College at

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis Indiana ( ) is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the south and southeast, and the Wabash Riv ...

, was named the founding President, taking up his post in January 2011. The college was officially established on September 11, 2011 and opened with its first intake of students in August 2012. The college had, and continues to have, an open admissions policy, provided students have a high school diploma or a Certificate of High School Equivalency. However, unlike any of the other schools within CUNY, applicants are not considered until they have attended a lengthy information session and one-on-one interviews with counselors. Of its initial 4,000 applicants, 504 went through the information session and interviews. Of those, approximately 300 decided to enroll in the founding class.Pérez-Peña, Richard (20 July 2012)
"The New Community College Try"
''

''. Retrieved 5 December 2013. The college opened under the name "New Community College". In April 2013—after the Stella and Charles Guttman Foundation gifted a $25 million endowment, one of the largest ever donations to a public two-year college—the CUNY Board of Trustees passed a resolution renaming the college "Stella and Charles Guttman Community College".Kaminer, Ariel (29 April 2013)
"$15 Million Gift and New Name for Community College"
''

''. Retrieved 5 December 2013.

References

Notes Further reading *Alexandra Weinbaum, Camille Rodríguez, Nan Bauer-Maglin (February 2013)
'' Rethinking Community College for the 21st Century''
Case study funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation for the New Community College at CUNY.

External links

* {{authority control Colleges of the City University of New York Educational institutions established in 2011 2011 establishments in New York City Universities and colleges in Manhattan Community colleges in New York City Midtown Manhattan