Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Simmons College Announces University Designation

  • 05/24/18

BOSTON – Simmons College has announced that it will become Simmons University effective September 1, 2018, and will introduce a new academic structure, including four new colleges led by four recently appointed deans. The announcement is the culmination of a strategic planning and visioning process begun in 2011.

“The hard work we've been doing on our academic redesign; on real estate use and opportunities; on improving student services and retention; and on strengthening our academic programs has positioned Simmons very well,” says Helen G. Drinan, president of Simmons College. “Given the size and scope of our programs, including online graduate programs with national and international reach, ‘university’ is a more accurate description of who we are and where we are going. We’re looking forward to a very exciting future.”

Founded as a women’s college in 1899, Simmons has evolved to become a complex urban university dedicated to innovative teaching and engaged learning in the liberal arts and the professions. In the new structure, Simmons University will continue to offer an undergraduate program for women and numerous graduate programs open to all. Simmons University will consist of the Gwen Ifill College of Media, Arts, and Humanities; the College of Social Sciences, Policy, and Practice; the College of Organizational, Computational, and Information Sciences; and the College of Natural, Behavioral, and Health Sciences. Several of Simmons’ well-known professional schools—including the School of Nursing, the School of Social Work, the School of Library and Information Science, and the School of Business—will retain their identities and live within the colleges alongside other existing departments and programs.

“The new Colleges each underscore Simmons’ signature strengths, combining distinct disciplinary preparation with interdisciplinary emphases, inter-professional approaches, and attention to rapidly evolving fields of study and practice,” says Katie Conboy, Ph.D., provost and senior vice president. “Together, the four new Colleges reflect the university’s commitment to a culture of inclusive leadership, social justice, global perspective, and civic engagement.”

In the last several years, Simmons has experienced growing enrollments in its undergraduate program; doubled its graduate enrollments; and launched an international version of its successful women’s leadership conference. Simmons also completed the largest fundraising campaign in the college's history.

The new academic structure is the result of an intensive two-year process that involved the entire Simmons community in designing a forward-looking organizational structure that honors Simmons’ ongoing commitment to women’s undergraduate education and serves the entire student population. “All Simmons University graduates will be equipped with the knowledge and collaborative skills needed to engage the complex challenges of an interconnected world,” says President Drinan.

The Class of 2019 will be the first graduates under the Simmons University designation. 

Learn more about Simmons' university designation.

Featured

  • How a Portable Sink Helped an Art Classroom Run More Smoothly

    Classroom design decisions can have outsized effects on instructional time and safety at schools juggling mismatched infrastructure, strict budgets, and crowded schedules — particularly in the arts. Between spilled paint and dirty brushes, art classes run smoother with a sink in the studio. But many schools don’t have a sink in every art classroom.

  • NWEA Report Recommends K–12 Natural Disaster Recovery Strategies

    The Northwest Evaluation Association (NWEA), a K–12 assessment and research organization, recently announced the release of a new playbook for schools and communities recovering from extreme weather events, according to a news release.

  • Chartwells Launches Campus Dining Evaluation Framework

    Contract food-service management provider Chartwells Higher Education recently announced the launch of BLUEPRINT, according to a news release. The evaluation framework was designed to provide a data-driven and customizable roadmap towards optimizing campus dining services and, by extension, the student experience.

  • Illinois State University Breaks Ground on College of Fine Arts Transformation

    Illinois State University in Normal, Ill., recently held a groundbreaking ceremony for the Wonsook Kim College of Fine Arts transformation project, according to university news. The series of new constructions and renovations will upgrade spaces in Centennial East, the Center for the Visual Arts, and the Center for the Performing Arts, as well as replace the existing Centennial West facility with a new Commons Building.