SUNY Niagara (formerly Niagara County Community College, or NCCC) 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 ...

Sanborn, New York Sanborn is a hamlet (and census-designated place, population: 1,645 in 2010 census) in the Towns of Cambria and Lewiston in Niagara County, New York, United States, on the southern side of the intersection of New York State Route 429 and New ...

. Founded in 1962, SUNY Niagara is sponsored by

Niagara County Niagara County is in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 212,666. The county seat is Lockport. The county name is from the Iroquois word ''Onguiaahra''; meaning ''the strait'' or ''thunder of ...

and offers

associate degrees 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. ...

as part of the

State University of New York The State University of New York (SUNY ) is a system of Public education, public colleges and universities in the New York (state), State of New York. It is one of the List of largest universities and university networks by enrollment, larges ...

system. Dual admissions programs facilitate transfer to four-year colleges upon completion of the two-year degree programs. SUNY Niagara operates the Niagara Falls Culinary Institute as a remote campus within the former Rainbow Centre Factory Outlet in downtown

Niagara Falls, New York Niagara Falls is a City (New York), city in Niagara County, New York, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a total population of 48,671. It is adjacent to the Niagara River, across from the city of Niagar ...

History

Niagara County Community College's first campus opened on September 30, 1963 within a former

Nabisco Nabisco (, abbreviated from the earlier name National Biscuit Company) is an American manufacturer of cookies and snacks headquartered in East Hanover, New Jersey. The company is a subsidiary of Illinois-based Mondelēz International. Nabisco' ...

factory at 430 Buffalo Avenue in downtown

. The current campus opened on February 5, 1973 at the corner of

New York State Route 31 New York State Route 31 (NY 31) is a state highway that extends for across western and central New York (state), New York in the United States. The western terminus of the route is at an intersection with New York State Route 104, NY ...

and New York State Route 429 in the suburban community of

. It was built on of semi-wooded land, with eight interconnected buildings: *Ernest Notar Administration (Building A) *Business (Building B) *Science (Building C) *Henrietta G. Lewis Library (Building D) *Humanities & Social Sciences (Building E) *Arts & Media (Building F) *Student Center (Building G) *Athletics (Building H) The school's library was named in honor of

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...

Henrietta Grigg-Lewis on November 15, 2005 after her foundation donated $1 million for modernizing the facility. On August 29, 2008, the college opened its first

student housing A dormitory (originated from the Latin word ''dormitorium'', often abbreviated to dorm), also known as a hall of residence, a residence hall (often abbreviated to halls), or a hostel, is a building primarily providing sleeping and residential qu ...

complex featuring suite style units for 308 students. The school's Niagara Falls Culinary Institute opened on September 28, 2012 within the former Rainbow Centre Factory Outlet in downtown

. In February 2024, the school changed its name from Niagara County Community College to SUNY Niagara.

Presidents

* Ernest Notar, 1963–1975 * Jack C. Watson, 1975–1979 * Donald J. Donato, 1979–1989 * Gerald L. Miller, 1989–1999 * Antonette Cleveland, 1999–2002 * James P. Klyczek, 2002–2017 * William J. Murabito, 2017–2024 * Lloyd A. Holmes, 2024–present

Athletics

SUNY Niagara athletic teams were first known as the Frontiersmen from 1962–1984, and then the Trailblazers from 1984–2010. They became the Thunderwolves in 2010, along with the introduction of mascot Tripp the Thunderwolf. Eric Knuutila has coached

wrestling Wrestling is a martial art, combat sport, and form of entertainment that involves grappling with an opponent and striving to obtain a position of advantage through different throws or techniques, within a given ruleset. Wrestling involves di ...

at the college since 1973, producing four national champions including

Rashad Evans Rashad Evans (born September 25, 1979) is an American retired mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist who competed in the Light Heavyweight (MMA), Light Heavyweight division. Evans started his professional MMA career in 2003, and was the Heavyw ...

. The 1977–78

men's basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

team fell one game shy of a

perfect season A perfect season is a sports season, including any requisite playoff portion, in which a team remains and finishes undefeated and untied. The feat is extremely rare at the professional level of any team sport, but has occurred more commonly at th ...

after losing the 1978 NJCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship.

Notable people

Alumni

* Mark Bridges, costume designer * Donel Cathcart, basketball player *

, former mixed martial artist * Eric Gansworth, novelist and poet *

Rick Hockenos Richard Hockenos is an American former basketball player and coach. After being drafted by the Chicago Bulls in the 1974 NBA draft he went on to play professionally in Europe. Early life Hockenos attended Bishop Duffy High School in Niagara Fall ...

, former basketball player and coach * Richard Jacob, basketball coach * Sean Jamieson, former baseball player * Nancy J. King, member of the

Maryland State Senate The Maryland Senate, sometimes referred to as the Maryland State Senate, is the upper house of the General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Maryland. Composed of 47 senators elected from an equal number of constituent single ...

* George Maziarz, former member of the

New York State Senate The New York State Senate is the upper house of the New York State Legislature, while the New York State Assembly is its lower house. Established in 1777 by the Constitution of New York, its members are elected to two-year terms with no term l ...

* Joe Micon, former member of the

Indiana House of Representatives The Indiana House of Representatives is the lower house of the Indiana General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Indiana. The House is composed of 100 members representing an equal number of constituent districts. House mem ...

Faculty

* Ray Hall, basketball coach * Rich Kilgour, lacrosse coach * Yu Liu, professor *

Don Luce Donald Harold Luce (born October 2, 1948) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre, executive and scout. Luce played 13 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the New York Rangers, Detroit Red Wings, Buffalo Sabres, Los Angel ...

, professor

Gallery

File:Niagara County Community College, Cambria, New York - 20220813.jpg, Campus File:Image-Ncccsign.JPG, Entrance sign File:NCCC-Glibrary-cropped.JPG, Henrietta G. Lewis Library Image:Notar Building.JPG, Ernest Nolar Administration Building

References

External links

* {{Authority control Education in Niagara County, New York NJCAA schools Universities and colleges established in 1962 Community colleges in New York (state) 1962 establishments in New York (state)