Siena College

Beginnings of Siena College

As the 1930s were winding to a close, Fr. Thomas Plassmann, OFM, President of St. Bonaventure College in Western New York, sent seven Franciscan friars to New York's Capital Region to found another college.

Development of Campus

New rugby pitch: Fall 2016

New Bookstore and Lounge: Fall 2014 (Formerly the Pepsi Cafe, O'Leary's Pub, Pandini's, the Sub Connection, and the old bookstore) (In the Sarazen Student Union)

Siena College Grotto: October 2014

Schools of College

Siena College students attend three schools within the college:

School of Business

School of Liberal Arts

School of Science

School of Business

AASCB International Accredited

Departments

Accounting and Business Law

Economics

Finance

M.S. in Accounting

Management

Marketing

Quantitative Business Analysis

Departments

Biology

Chemistry and Biochemistry

Computer Science

Environmental Studies and Sciences

Mathematics

Nursing

Physics and Astronomy

Campus

The college is a suburban campus taking up 174 acres (70 ha) at the northern edge of Loudonville. The campus includes:

Siena Hall

The main college building, housing classrooms and administrator and faculty offices. The cupola at the top is used as the symbol of the college, appearing on the college logo and most printed and web material.

J. Spencer and Patricia Standish Library

Built in 1999, it has space for 400,000 volumes, seating for 700 readers, networking for 500 computer connections, 100 computer work stations, an audio-visual center, an archive and special collections suite, 11 group study rooms, 16 faculty carrels, and training laboratory and demonstration classrooms.

Roger Bacon Hall

Houses the School of Science offices and classrooms as well as the Computer Science, Psychology, Mathematics, and Physics Departments.

Morrell Science Center

Attached to Roger Bacon Hall and built in 2001, it houses the chemistry, biochemistry and biology departments.

Kiernan Hall

Classrooms and faculty offices. Notable for the design: the first floor consist of two sections separated by an outdoor walkway, with the second floor bridging the two sections.

Foy Hall (former athletic center)

Home to the creative arts department, campus theatre and studio of Siena College Television.

Marcelle Athletic Complex

Athletic offices and facilities.

Sarazen Student Union

Houses the post office, campus radio station, Student Affairs office, student government offices, and campus hangout Casey's

There are eight residential living areas on campus: Cushing Village (4 or 6 person townhouses), Hennepin Hall (6 story traditional dorm building), Hines Hall (5 story traditional dorm building), MacClosky Square (6 or 8 person townhouses), Padua Hall (traditional dorm building, second newest hall on campus), Plassmann Hall, Ryan Hall (exclusively for Freshmen), and Snyder Hall (recently renamed), which was just built in 2010. The residence halls tend to be concentrated in the middle of campus and at the southern end while the townhouse residences are concentrated along the northern edge of campus off Fiddlers Lane and were at first controversial with the Newtonville community. When the first townhouses were proposed the Newtonville Homeowners Association unsuccessfully sued to block construction. Subsequent construction has not been controversial thanks to the town board including the Newtonville Homeowners Association in the decision making process.

A Friary provides housing for the Franciscan friars that are involved with the campus.

Student organizations

Students are involved in a number of wide, specific, academic related, recreational, leadership building, and diverse organizations and clubs or campus. There are currently 85 organizations on campus, each with their own campus, local, or national impact. Each organization has Executive Board positions which allows students to lead, develop, and set a plan of direction for their impact.

The Student Senate

The Siena College Student Senate serves as a liaison between faculty, administration, and students. It works to present and to interpret students’ attitudes, opinions, and rights to the teaching faculty and administration. The Senate is charged with the oversight of clubs and the distribution of the student activities fees. While Senate does not directly control college academic or social policies, it continues to work with a group of cooperative administrators to shape them in ways that will benefit the community.

Both the Senate and the administration keep what is best for the students as their top priority. The Student Senate has an Executive Board including President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer. The rest of the Senate is Representatives, Hall and Town House Representatives, and Commuter Representatives. Student Senate is the governing body for all clubs and organizations on campus.

Student Events Board (SEB)

SEB sponsors traditional types of entertainment in the form of bands, comedians, and speakers, but also presents other non-traditional events designed for Siena such as coffeehouse acts, open mic nights, Winter Weekend, Siblings Weekend, Charity Week, big concerts, as well as SienaFest. SEB also oversees and regulates the sale and distribution of goods and services of campus clubs and organizations. The Board encourages the development of new areas of entertainment based upon student interest.

Residence Hall Association (RHA)

The mission of the Residence Hall Association (RHA) is to act as a governing student body; to serve as the official liaison between the residential students at Siena College with Siena College staff and administration; to strive to make Siena’s residence halls and townhouses a desirable community; to be the official voice of Siena’s residential students; and to serve as a programming organization within residential communities.

Athletics

Siena offers 21 NCAA Division I sports, all of which participate in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC).

The college generally only competed against local schools in athletics until being elevated to the Division I level in 1976. At this time, Siena became a member of the ECAC, and later the North Atlantic Conference, a forerunner to the present day America East Conference. In 1990, the college moved to the MAAC where it has remained since. Siena has not always been known by its present moniker. Athletic teams were first known as the Golden Hurricanes and later as the Indians. In March 1989, the school adopted its current nickname, the Saints.

Many of Siena's athletic teams have experienced success at the Division I level. The college's most well known squad is the men's basketball team. The Saints have appeared in six NCAA Tournaments, advancing to the Round of 32 in 1989, 2008 and 2009. Siena has also played in the postseason NIT five times, capturing third place in 1994. In 2014, Siena competed in their first College Basketball Invitational tournament and won the championship defeating Stony Brook, Penn State, Illinois State and Fresno State two games to one in the best-of-three championship series. The women's basketball teams has also had a recent run of success, including a trip to the NCAA Tournament in 2001, and appearances in the 1999, 2002 and 2003 WNIT. They finished second in the 2015 WBI.

Another team with recent high achievement is men's baseball. The Saints advanced to the 1999 NCAA Division I Baseball Tournament and in 2005 saw pitcher John Lannan drafted by the Washington Nationals. Lannan has since become a regular starter in Washington's rotation. They also participated in the 2014 NCAA Division I Baseball Tournament.

Finally, the men's lacrosse team has also improved significantly in recent years. The Saints qualified for their first MAAC tournament in 2007 and their first NCAA tournament in 2009. That season, the Saints secured an automatic berth in the tournament after winning their first MAAC championship during a ten-game winning streak.

Siena Research Institute

Siena Research Institute, an affiliate of Siena College, conducts expert and public opinion polls, focusing on New York State and the United States, on issues of public policy interest.

Notable alumni

Siena College has approximately 28,000 living alumni worldwide, including former college president Fr. Kevin J. Mullen.

In the fields of journalism and literature, notable Siena graduates include: William J. Kennedy, 1984 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction winner; Erich Hartmann, international award-winning photojournalist and former president of Magnum Photos; David Hepp, award-winning journalist and creator of Inside Albany and Ed Henry, senior White House correspondent for FoxNews.

In the fields of law and government, notable Siena graduates include: Francis Bergan, former presiding justice of the New York Court of Appeals; Michael Botticelli, Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy; Constantine George Cholakis, former judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York; George Deukmejian, 35th governor of California; United States Representative Christopher P. "Chris" Gibson ; former United States Representatives from New York Jack Quinn and Gerald B. H. Solomon; and Henry F. Zwack, justice of the New York Supreme Court, Third Judicial District. Mae D'Agostino is a United States District Judge for the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York. Wayne LaPierre, Jr majored in Political Science and graduated from Siena College in 1972. Davis Etkin was the founder and president of Off Track Betting, he graduated in 1952.

Notable honorary degree recipients

2016: Douglas T. Hickey, Ambassador - Commissioner General of the USA Pavilion at Expo Milano 2015

2015: Jeffrey R. Immelt, CEO and Chairman of Board of General Electric

2012: Derek Jeter, Former NY Yankees Shortstop and Founder of the Turn 2 Foundation.

2011: Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, Head of National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases

2010: Ambassador Andrew Young, Former United Nations Ambassador, Atlanta mayor, and Member of the United States House of Representatives

In the media

May 10, 2015: General Electric CEO and Chairman of the Board Jeffrey R. Immelt gave the commencement to the graduating Class of 2015. United States Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer also delivered a speech.

Future development plans

Over $50 million campaign to raise funds for the development of the college