Marymount Manhattan College is a

private college 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 ...

on the

Upper East Side The Upper East Side, sometimes abbreviated UES, is a neighborhood in the boroughs of New York City, borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded approximately by 96th Street (Manhattan), 96th Street to the north, the East River to the e ...

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

. As of 2020, enrollment consisted of 1,571 undergraduate students with women making up 80.1% and men 19.9% of student enrollment. Columbia University Masters Degree Columbia University Julianne Michelle Di Palma 2017

History

Marymount Manhattan College was founded in 1936 by the

Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary The Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary (known in the United States as the RSHM and in other parts of the world as RSCM) are a global Roman Catholic community of about 900 apostolic religious women. The institute was founded in 1849 in Bézie ...

as a two-year women's college and a New York City extension of Marymount College in

Tarrytown, New York Tarrytown is a administrative divisions of New York#Village, village in the administrative divisions of New York#Town, town of Greenburgh, New York, Greenburgh in Westchester County, New York, Westchester County, New York (state), New York, Unit ...

. In 1948, the college moved to its present location on East 71st Street and became a four-year bachelor's degree-granting college; the first class graduated from MMC in 1950. In 1961, MMC was granted an absolute charter as an independent four-year college by the Regents of the

University of the State of New York The University of the State of New York (USNY, ) is the state governmental umbrella organization that oversees all educational institutions, including schools, libraries, and museums in New York State. It is governed by the Board of Regents. D ...

. Since 1961, Marymount Manhattan has been an independent, private college open to all creeds, while noting its foundation by the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary. While the college no longer described itself as

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

, the Catholic Church continued to list it in the Catholic Directory until 2005. Unaware that the college did not claim to be a Catholic school, the

Cardinal Newman Society The Cardinal Newman Society is an American 501(c)(3) tax-exempt, nonprofit organization founded in 1993 whose stated purpose is to promote and defend faithful Catholic education. The organization is guided by Cardinal John Henry Newman's ''The Id ...

protested the college's announcement of its decision to invite then-Senator

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...

to deliver a

commencement address In the United States, a commencement speech or commencement address is a speech given to graduating students, generally at a university, although the term is also used for secondary education institutions and in similar institutions around the ...

and to confer an honorary doctoral degree upon her, due to Clinton's longtime public support for

abortion rights Abortion-rights movements, also self-styled as pro-choice movements, are movements that advocate for legal access to induced abortion services, including elective abortion. They seek to represent and support women who wish to terminate their p ...

.College Honoring Clinton Declared 'No Longer Catholic', Catholic News Agency May 2, 2005
retrieved 12-29-08 In response to the protests and without objection by the college, it was de-listed from ''The Official Catholic Directory'', which identifies Catholic institutions. In 1976,

Finch College Finch College was an undergraduate women's college in Manhattan, New York City. The Finch School opened as a private secondary school for girls in 1900 and became a liberal arts college in 1952. It closed in 1976. Founding Finch was founded in ...

, a women's college best known as a "

finishing school A finishing school focuses on teaching young women social graces and upper-class cultural rites as a preparation for entry into society. The name reflects the fact that it follows ordinary school and is intended to complete a young woman's ...

" for affluent young women, closed and passed its records over to the school. The school was most famous for educating

Tricia Nixon Cox Patricia Nixon Cox (born February 21, 1946) is the elder daughter of the 37th United States president Richard Nixon and First Lady Pat Nixon, and the sister of Julie Nixon Eisenhower. She is married to Edward F. Cox and is the mother of Christ ...

, daughter of former US President

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until Resignation of Richard Nixon, his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...

. In 1990,

Regina Peruggi Regina S. Peruggi (born )Karen Arenson ''The New York Times'', May 25, 2004. Retrieved April 6, 2008. Age at time of article was 57. is an American educator, who was the President of Kingsborough Community College from 2005 to 2014, the first wom ...

became the first lay president. In 2003, the college's mezzanine was renamed in her honor. In 2001, the college opened the 55th Street Residence Hall, one of the tallest dorms in the United States, with 32 floors of student housing in a 46-story building. In 2015, Marymount Manhattan opened a second residence hall for upperclassmen located in Cooper Square, a 12-story building to house 270 students In 2017, just under 2,000 students were enrolled representing 48 U.S. states and 36 countries. In conjunction with its core liberal arts curriculum, Marymount Manhattan offers 30 major programs of study and over 40 minors along with pre-professional programs. It is accredited by the

Middle States Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools The Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, also referred to as the Middle States Association or MSA, is an accreditor in the United States. Historically, it has accredited schools in the Mid-Atlantic states region of the northeas ...

. The college offers a degree program for incarcerated women at the Bedford Hills Correctional Facility, granting an Associates of Arts degree in social science and Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology. In 2013, the school was featured in the industry publication ''

Backstage Backstage may refer to: * Backstage (theatre), the areas of a theatre that are not part of the house or stage Film and television * ''Back Stage'' (1917 film), a silent film starring Oliver Hardy * ''Back Stage'' (1919 film), a silent film starri ...

'' as one of the top colleges in which

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

and

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...

-nominated actors have trained, alongside

Carnegie Mellon University Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The institution was established in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie as the Carnegie Technical Schools. In 1912, it became the Carnegie Institu ...

Oberlin Conservatory The Oberlin Conservatory of Music is a private music conservatory of Oberlin College, a private liberal arts college in Oberlin, Ohio. It was founded in 1865 and is the second oldest conservatory and oldest continually operating conservatory in ...

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

Ithaca College Ithaca College is a private college in Ithaca (town), New York, Ithaca, New York. It was founded by William Egbert in 1892 as a Music school, conservatory of music. Ithaca College is known for its media-related programs and entertainment program ...

NYU New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a non-denominational all-male institutio ...

Tisch School of the Arts The New York University Tisch School of the Arts (commonly referred to as Tisch) is the performing, cinematic, and media arts school of New York University. Founded on August 17, 1965, as the School of the Arts at New York University, Tisch ...

, and the

University of North Carolina School of the Arts The University of North Carolina School of the Arts (UNCSA) is a public art school in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. It grants a high school diploma, in addition to both undergraduate and graduate degrees. Founded in 1963 as the North Carolina Sc ...

. In July 2015,

Kerry Walk Kerry Walk is an American academic administrator, teacher, and college president. She served as the fifth president of University of the Arts in Philadelphia from 2023 to 2024, and resigned three days before its closure. She was the president of ...

was unanimously selected by the Trustees of Marymount Manhattan College as the school's eighth president. On May 29, 2024, media sources announced that Marymount Manhattan College would be merging with

Northeastern University Northeastern University (NU or NEU) is a private university, private research university with its main campus in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It was founded by the Boston Young Men's Christian Association in 1898 as an all-male instit ...

as part of its Global University System. Marymount Manhattan College will be renamed Northeastern University-New York City. The merger will not be finalized until it receives regulatory approval, which could take up to two years.

Notable alumni

Alumni include prominent actors, musicians, attorneys, writers, journalists, royalty, the first female nominee for

Vice President of the United States The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest ranking office in the Executive branch of the United States government, executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks f ...

from a major party, and recipients of the

Olympic Gold Medal Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece bet ...

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...

, and

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

. *

Emin Agalarov Emin Aras oghlu Agalarov (, ), also known as Emin Arazovich Agalarov, is a developer and President of Agalarov Development as well as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Azerbaijan-Russia Business Council. Along with business projects, ...

, Azerbaijani-

Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...

pop star, businessman, and son of

Aras Agalarov Aras Iskanderovich Agalarov (; ; born 8 November 1955) is an Azerbaijani Russian billionaire real estate developer. Listed in Forbes as the 51st richest Russian in 2015, several sources have described him as a Russian oligarch. Early life Born ...

Annaleigh Ashford Annaleigh Ashford (née Swanson; born June 25, 1985) is an American actress, singer, and dancer. Her early roles on Broadway include in the musicals '' Wicked'' (2007), '' Legally Blonde'' (2007), and ''Hair'' (2010). She received the Tony Award ...

,"Annaleigh Ashford: Bubble-Bound"
broadwayworld.com, October 7, 2007 actress, singer, and dancer *

Candace Bailey Candace Bailey is an American actress and television personality best known as a co-host of the former television programs '' U-Pick Live'' on Nickelodeon and ''Attack of the Show!'' on G4. Early life Bailey was born in Birmingham, Alabama an ...

, actress and presenter *

Maddie Baillio Maddie Baillio (born February 15, 1996) is an American actress and singer who appeared in the television special '' Hairspray Live'' and the film '' Dumplin. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Baillio focused on her health. She became a vegan and ...

, actress and singer *

Melissa Benoist Melissa Marie Benoist ( ; born October 4, 1988) is an American actress and singer. Her first major role was Marley Rose on the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox musical comedy drama ''Glee (TV series), Glee'' (2012–2014), in which she was a serie ...

, actress and singer *

Lana Cantrell Lana Eleanor Cantrell AM (born 7 August 1943) is an Australian-American singer and entertainment lawyer. She was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best New Artist in the Grammy Awards of 1968. Music career Cantrell recorded six albums for R ...

, singer and entertainment lawyer * Marie Corridon, competition swimmer and Olympic champion *

Laverne Cox Laverne Cox (born May 29, 1972) is an American actress and LGBTQ advocate. She rose to prominence with her role as Sophia Burset on the Netflix series '' Orange Is the New Black'', becoming the first transgender person to be nominated for a ...

, actress *

Alexandra Daddario Alexandra Anna Daddario (born March 16, 1986) is an American actress. She had her breakthrough portraying Annabeth Chase in the ''Percy Jackson'' film series (2010–2013). She has since starred in '' Hall Pass'' (2011), '' Texas Chainsaw 3D' ...

, actress * Desmond Devenish, filmmaker and actor *

Geraldine Ferraro Geraldine Anne Ferraro (August 26, 1935 March 26, 2011) was an American politician, diplomat, and attorney. She served in the United States House of Representatives from 1979 to 1985, and was the Democratic Party's nominee for vice presiden ...

, United States vice-presidential candidate (1984) * Joan Fitz-Gerald, former president of the

Colorado Senate The Colorado State Senate is the upper house of the Colorado General Assembly, the state legislature of the US state of Colorado. It is composed of 35 members elected from single-member districts, with each district having a population of abou ...

Travis Flores Travis Michael Flores (April 7, 1991 – May 23, 2024) was an American writer, activist, philanthropist, and motivational speaker, best known for being an advocate of cystic fibrosis and queer youth. He was a published children's book author and ...

, American activist, philanthropist, motivational speaker, actor and children's book author *

Ita Ford Ita Ford, M.M. (April 23, 1940 – December 2, 1980) was an American Maryknoll Sister who served as a missionary in Bolivia, Chile and El Salvador. She worked with the poor and war refugees. On December 2, 1980, she was beaten, raped, and murde ...

, Maryknoll Sister martyred in El Salvador in 1980 *

Tali Golergant Tali Golergant (; born 26 November 2000), known mononymously as Tali (stylized in all caps), is an Israeli-born Luxembourgish singer, songwriter, actress and vocal coach. She represented Luxembourg in the Eurovision Song Contest 2024 with the s ...

,"Voices (ISL Stories) – Meet Tali"
islux.lu Luxembourgish singer and grand finalist in the

Eurovision Song Contest The Eurovision Song Contest (), often known simply as Eurovision, is an international Music competition, song competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) among its members since 1956. Each participating broadcaster ...

2024 *

Marianne Githens Marianne Githens (November 10, 1936 – February 27, 2018) was an American political scientist, feminist, and author. She was an Elizabeth Conolly Todd Distinguished Professor and the co-founder of the Women's Study Program at Goucher College. In ...

, political scientist, feminist, and author *

Spencer Grammer Spencer Karen Grammer (born October 9, 1983) is an American actress best known for her roles as the voice of Summer Smith in the Adult Swim animated science-fiction series ''Rick and Morty'' and as Casey Cartwright in the Freeform (TV channel), A ...

, actress * Katharine Sweeney Hayden, U.S. District Judge for the District of New Jersey *

Missy Hyatt Melissa Ann Hiatt (born October 16, 1963), better known by her ring name, Missy Hyatt, is an American retired professional wrestling valet, commentator, model and occasional professional wrestler. She is best known for her appearances with Wo ...

, professional wrestling valet, commentator, model, and professional wrestler * Mimi Imfurst, drag queen, actor, singer *

Moira Kelly Moira Kelly (born March 6, 1968) is an American actress. She is known for portraying Kate Moseley in the 1992 film '' The Cutting Edge'' as well as single mother Karen Roe on the teen drama '' One Tree Hill''. She is also known for playing the ...

, actress * Mina Liccione, performing artist *

Kelly-Anne Lyons Kelly-Anne Lyons (born March 17, 1985) is an American actress, television presenter, writer and model. Lyons' breakthrough role was as the female lead, Kelly-Anne Manhattan, in the BBC comedy '' Dick and Dom's Funny Business''. Before this, Lyon ...

, actress *

Princess Marie of Denmark Princess Marie of Denmark, Countess of Monpezat, (born Marie Agathe Odile Cavallier; 6 February 1976) is a member of the Danish royal family. She is the second wife of Prince Joachim of Denmark, the younger brother of King Frederik X of Denmar ...

, wife of

Prince Joachim of Denmark Prince Joachim of Denmark, Count of Monpezat, (; Joachim Holger Waldemar Christian; born 7 June 1969) is a member of the Danish royal family. The younger son of Queen Margrethe II, he is fifth in the line of succession to the Danish throne, ...

, second son of

Margrethe II of Denmark Margrethe II (; Margrethe Alexandrine Þórhildur Ingrid, born 16 April 1940) is a member of the Danish royal family who reigned as Queen of Denmark from 14 January 1972 until Abdication of Margrethe II, her abdication on 14 January 2024. Ha ...

Sallie Manzanet-Daniels Sallie Manzanet-Daniels is an associate justice of the New York Appellate Division of the Supreme Court, First Judicial Department.Appellate Division of the Supreme Court, First Judicial Department The Supreme Court of the State of New York, Appellate Division, First Judicial Department, or simply the First Department, is one of the four geographical components of the New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division, the intermediate appellat ...

Cindy Meehl Cindy Meehl is an American documentary filmmaker. Her first film, ''Buck'', was released on June 17, 2011, after a successful set of showings at U.S. film festivals including the 2011 Sundance Film Festival. Biography Early life Cindy Meehl stu ...

, documentary filmmaker *

Bunny Michael Melisa Rincón (born ) known professionally as Bunny Michael, is an American interdisciplinary visual artist, musician, and rapper. Early life and education Bunny Michael was raised in Dallas, Texas. They are the middle of three children born ...

, visual artist, musician, and rapper *

Julianne Michelle Julianne Michelle (also known as Julianne Michelle Di Palma and Julianne Michelle Reeves; born September 5, 1987) is an American film actor, film and television actress. Retrieved April 5, 2010 Personal life Julianne Michelle, daughter of Joyc ...

, actress *

Erik Palladino Erik Palladino (born May 10, 1968) is an American actor known for his portrayal of Dr. Dave Malucci in the NBC medical drama '' ER'' and Frank in the Amazon series '' The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.'' He is also known for his recurring roles as Lt. ...

, actor *

Manny Pérez Manuel Pérez "Manny" Batista (born May 5, 1969) is a Dominican American actor who has appeared in the television series ''Third Watch'' and in the film ''Washington Heights''. He is the cousin of Pulitzer Prize-winning author Junot Díaz. Li ...

, film and theatre actor *

Andrew Rannells Andrew Scott Rannells (born August 23, 1978) is an American actor. He is best known for originating the role of Elder Kevin Price in the 2011 Broadway musical ''The Book of Mormon (musical), The Book of Mormon'', for which he was nominated for th ...

, actor and singer *

Melissa Rauch Melissa Ivy Rauch (; born June 23, 1980) is an American actress. She is best known for playing Bernadette Rostenkowski-Wolowitz on the CBS sitcom ''The Big Bang Theory'' from 2009 to 2019, for which she was nominated for the Critics Choice ...

, comedian, writer, and actress * Emmy Raver-Lampman, actor * Regina Richards, singer * Rose Ann Scamardella, former television news anchor *

Paige Spara Paige Spara is an American actress best known for her main roles as Audrey Piatigorsky in the ABC Family sitcom '' Kevin from Work'' and Lea Dilallo in the ABC medical drama '' The Good Doctor''. Early life Spara was born in Washington, Penn ...

, actress *

Tika Sumpter Euphemia LatiQue "Tika" Sumpter (born June 20, 1980) is an American actress and producer. Sumpter began her career as the host of '' Best Friend's Date''. From 2005 to 2010, she appeared in the daytime soap opera ''One Life to Live''. In 2010, ...

, actress *

Jenna Ushkowitz Jenna Noelle Ushkowitz (; born April 28, 1986), Korean given name Min Ji (), is an American actress, singer, producer and podcast host. She is known for her performances in Broadway musicals such as ''The King and I'' and ''Waitress'' and in th ...

, actress *

Adrienne Warren Adrienne Warren is an American actress, singer and dancer. She made her Broadway debut in the 2012 musical '' Bring It On'', and in 2016 received a Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical nomination for her performance in '' Shuffle Alo ...

, actress and singer

References

External links

Official website
{{Authority control 1936 establishments in New York City Universities and colleges established in 1936 Former women's universities and colleges in the United States Former Catholic universities and colleges in the United States Universities and colleges in Manhattan Private universities and colleges in New York City