Framingham State University

History

As the first secretary of the newly created Board of Education in Massachusetts, Horace Mann instituted school reforms that included the creation of an experimental normal school, the first one in the United States, in Lexington, in July 1839. Cyrus Peirce was its first principal or president. A second normal school was opened in September 1839 in West Barre (the school later moved to Westfield) followed by Bridgewater State College the next year. Growth forced the first normal school's relocation to West Newton in 1843, followed in 1853 by a move to the present site on Bare Hill in Framingham.

In 1922, the Framingham Normal School granted its first Bachelor of Science in Education degrees in conjunction with a four-year study program. Ten years later, with degreed teachers becoming the norm, the normal schools were renamed State Teachers Colleges. The name was changed in 1960 to the State College at Framingham when Bachelor of Arts degrees were added. At present, Masters' of Education, Arts, and Science degrees are granted as well. In 2007, the college began offering the Master's of Business Administration (MBA) degree. In October 2010, seven of the state colleges become state universities, unaffiliated with the University of Massachusetts system. The measure was signed into law by Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick on July 28, 2010.

Timeline of name changes

The school has had several names in the past:

Campus

The 73-acre campus is located in Framingham, Massachusetts. Seven residence halls house over 1,500 students. The Henry Whittemore Library has over 200,000 volumes, wifi, and access to over 70,000 electronic journals.

Sustainability

In 2007, the school signed the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment. That year, Massachusetts issued Executive Order No. 484, which mandated reductions in greenhouse gas emissions and energy consumption for all state agencies and institutions. Greenhouse gases must be reduced 80% by 2050. In 2010, the school adopted a plan to convert its heating plant to natural gas and to convert its central chilled water plant to electric chillers.

Framingham State University was named a "Green College" by the Princeton Review in 2010 and 2011. FSU was one of 22 schools in Massachusetts to receive the distinction, and one of 311 nationwide. It was named to the list again in 2013.

Organization

FSU is led by an eleven-member Board of Trustees. The governor appoints nine trustees to five-year terms, renewable once. The FSU Alumni Association elects one for a single five-year term. Finally, the student body elects one student trustee for a one-year term. In addition to five full board meetings each year, which are open to the public, the board also meets in standing committees.

The University’s annual budget is $105 million, and the school has 775 full and part-time employees.

Academics

FSU has offered online courses since 1998.

Graduate programs

Post baccalaureate programs

Undergraduate

Post baccalaureate

Graduate

Student life

FSU has an Office of Student Involvement and Leadership Development.

Clubs

Through work with the Office of Student Involvement and Leadership Development and the Student Government Association, students have formed many clubs and organizations, both recreational and academic in nature. Clubs on campus include the Gaming Club, the Anime Club, the Wildlife Club, the Black Student Union, the Catholic Newman Association, Random Jam Music Club, 91.3 FM WDJM Framingham State University Radio, History Club and many others.

Clubs can be created by groups of students with interest in an area that has not yet been explored by another club. For example, the Gaming Club was created due to a lack of social structure for gamers. Since the founding, it has grown to be a very popular and successful club, rivaling some of the older recreational groups on campus.

The campus is fairly small with a very small population of students and therefore many existing clubs have branched to include many different topics and fields of study.

Athletics

All Framingham State University teams compete at the NCAA Division III level. All teams compete in the Massachusetts State College Athletic Conference (MASCAC). Men's programs include baseball, cross country, football, basketball, ice hockey, and soccer. Women's programs include cross country, lacrosse, softball, basketball, field hockey, soccer, and volleyball. All teams compete on campus, except for the baseball and softball teams who play on fields off-campus, as well as the ice hockey team who skates at the Loring Arena in Framingham. FSU also offers a wide variety of intramural programs that include everything from badminton, to golf, to dodgeball. There is also a state-of-the-art athletic and recreation center that includes basketball courts, a volleyball court, and a weight room.

In 2007, the women's soccer team was awarded the NCAA Sportsmanship Award.

The Framingham State football program has seen several successful seasons in recent years. The Rams have won the MASCAC regular season championship four straight years (2010, 2011, 2012, 2013). In 2011, 2012, and 2013 the team also took the title as NEFC Bogan Division Champions, and outright NEFC Champions in 2012. In 2010, the program won its first ECAC Northeast Bowl. The Rams participated in the 2013 NCAA Division III Football Championships, losing to SUNY Cortland in the first-round.

Notable alumni