Keystone College

Keystone College is a private college in Northeastern Pennsylvania. Although the college's official mailing address is La Plume, Pennsylvania in Lackawanna County, much of the campus is in Factoryville in Wyoming County. It was founded in 1868. Enrolling approximately 1,300 students, Keystone offers around 40 undergraduate and graduate degree programs.

History

Keystone Academy was founded in 1868 by Dr. John Howard Harris. The academy was originally chartered by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in 1868, with instruction beginning the following year in the local Baptist church in Factoryville. At the time it was chartered, Keystone Academy was the only high school between Binghamton, New York and Scranton, Pennsylvania. In 1934, Keystone Academy was rechartered as Scranton-Keystone Junior College.

In 1944, the name was shortened to Keystone Junior College. The current name Keystone College was adopted in 1995.

In 1998, the school received formal approval from the Pennsylvania Department of Education to offer baccalaureate degree programs. A monumental step in Keystone's history and a signal of the college's continued progress, Keystone received approval to offer master's degrees in 2014.

Since its founding in 1868, the school has had several bands and orchestras. New musical opportunities were made available to the campus and surrounding communities in 2014, through the newly formed Department of Performance Music. In a return to its athletic roots, Keystone reintroduced wrestling in 2016 and announced plans in 2018 to field a football team in 2019.

In 2019, the college announced several changes to better position students for success. As part of a long-term and comprehensive approach for the present and the future, the traditional Visual Arts program will transition to a program focused on digital media and the Geology program will become part of the current bachelor's degree in Environmental Science.

Campus

Keystone's scenic 276-acre (1.1 km²) campus, located at the gateway to the Endless Mountains of Northeastern Pennsylvania, features hiking trails and a freshwater stream. The campus is 15 miles northwest of Scranton on U.S. Routes 6 and 11, and is located in both Lackawanna and Wyoming counties.

Woodlands Campus

Keystone's 170-acre Woodlands Campus features approximately seven miles of hiking trails that are open to students and the public seven days a week from dawn until dusk. In partnership with the Countryside Conservancy, the college opened a 1.7-mile segment of the Trolley Trail during a ribbon cutting ceremony in 2017. The Trail, which serves as a community benefit for all of Northeastern Pennsylvania, is a critical piece of Countryside Conservancy's envisioned 14-mile public hiking and biking trail that follows the abandoned Northern Electric Railroad Line which will ultimately run from Clarks Summit to Lake Winola

Buildings

Academic buildings

*Harris Hall: named after John Howard Harris, founder and benefactor of Keystone Academy.
*Capwell Science Hall
*Brooks Hall
*Miller Library
*Kemmerer Hall
*Art Center

Administration and non-academic buildings

*Alumni Hall
*Hedgewood
*Hibbard Campus Center
*Patrick Hall
*Sabiston Hall
*Sickler Hall
*Sisson Hall
*Ward Hall

Athletic facilities

*Athletic Field and Track Complex
*Gambal Athletic Center: Ace Spalding Arena, Fornicola Wellness Center, Weight Training Room
*Ned Boehm Field
*Edmunds Field
*Christy Mathewson Field

Residence halls

*Moffat Residence Hall: A first-year experience community, Moffat is co-ed by suite with a capacity of approximately 140 students.
*Frear/Reynolds Residence Hall: Features include double occupancy rooms for the sophomore experience community. Co-ed by floor with a capacity of approximately 145 students.
*The Dr. Edward G. Boehm and Mrs. Regina E. Boehm Residence Hall: An upperclassmen residence hall, Boehm Hall is co-ed by suite with a capacity of approximately sixty students. An independent living community, each of its eight suites features four double occupancy rooms, three bathrooms, a common living room and a full kitchen. Two living-learning communities (leadership, music/fine arts) are also available in Boehm Hall.
*Hollinshead Residence Hall: A first-year experience community, Hollinshead is co-ed by floor with approximately 50 students.
*Tewksbury Residence Hall: A first-year experience community, Tewksbury is co-ed by floor with approximately 50 students.
*Davis Hall: An independent living community, Davis features six bedrooms, three bathrooms, a common living room and a full kitchen. Davis is home to approximately 10 upperclassmen.
*39 College Avenue: An independent living community, the house features four bedrooms, two bathrooms, a common living room, and a full kitchen and houses approximately nine students.
*Townhouses

Academics

Keystone College offers more than 50 degree options at the undergraduate and graduate levels in several academic programs within two schools. The college is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education.

*Turock School of Arts and Sciences
** Communication, Art, and Humanities
** Biological and Physical Sciences and Mathematics
** Social and Behavioral Sciences

*School of Professional Studies
** Business, Management, and Technology
** Education

Athletics

Keystone's 16 teams compete in the Colonial States Athletic Conference as a Division III school under the NCAA. Teams are known as the Giants in honor of the baseball team that alumnus Christy Mathewson played for.

Men's teams

* Baseball
* Basketball
* Cross Country
* Football
* Lacrosse
* Soccer
* Track and Field
* Wrestling

Women's teams

* Basketball
* Cross Country
* Field Hockey
* Lacrosse
* Soccer
* Softball
* Track and Field
* Volleyball

Publications

''The Key'' is the student newspaper.
''The Keystonian'' is the college magazine for alumni and friends.

Notable alumni

* Thomas LoBasso (class of 1985), Daytona State College president
* Sandra Major (class of 1974), former Pennsylvania State Representative
* Christy Mathewson (class of 1898), former professional baseball player and inaugural member of the Baseball Hall of Fame (1936)
* Kate Micucci (class of 2001), actress and musician
* Shay Neary (class of 2012), fashion model
* Thomas See (class of 1991), Live Nation Entertainment executive
* Suzanne Fisher Staples (class of 1965), author and journalist
* Art Wall Jr. (class of 1944), former professional golfer and former Masters champion
* Red Wallace, former basketball player and coach

References

External links

*

Keystone College official athletics website

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Educational institutions established in 1868
Universities and colleges in Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania
Universities and colleges in Wyoming County, Pennsylvania
1868 establishments in Pennsylvania
Private universities and colleges in Pennsylvania