A Message from President Thomas J. Schwarz
At Purchase College we offer an exceptional educational experience in a learning centered environment where the arts and the liberal arts flourish. Our country needs colleges and universities like Purchase that nurture creativity and imagination. We train emerging scholars and artists to one day take their places as leaders in their chosen professions. Whether they choose from our liberal arts and sciences programs or our Conservatory programs in music, theater, dance, film and the visual arts, they receive an excellent education and personalized mentoring from our distinguished faculty.
As we continue to broaden our horizons we explore ways to enrich the learning experience for our students.
The College’s four renowned arts programs now function collaboratively as the Purchase College School of the Arts, allowing greater artistic synergy and greater interaction among the arts disciplines. Today, Purchase student dancers, musicians, writers, actors and artists showcase their work not only in Westchester, but in New York City, Los Angeles and abroad, as well.
In 2009, the College will have a new presence in New York City. Through a special collaboration with the SUNY College of Optometry, we will have ground floor exhibition space in their historic building on 42nd St. for a satellite of the Neuberger Museum of Art.
On campus, new programs are being introduced in all areas of study and more are envisioned. Dr. Robert Thompson heads the new Arts Management program. The School of Natural and Social Sciences has introduced a biochemistry degree program that prepares students for careers in this rapidly changing field. Our Liberal Studies degree program continues to grow as we assist adult students in completing their undergraduate degrees. The School of Humanities brings celebrated writers and poets to campus through the Royal and Shirley Durst Chair Lecture Series.
Improvements continue to our campus buildings and facilities as well. Recent renovations to the Library involved reconfiguring the interior spaces so that we now have additional classroom space and reading rooms, as well as a new Library entrance opposite the Student Services building which has created a new center of campus activity. Preparatory work has begun on a $15 million renovation to the campus plaza, which will also facilitate more social and academic interaction.
The Neuberger Museum of Art, the tenth largest college art museum in the nation, recently completed renovation and reinstallation of the African galleries that more than doubled the exhibition space and the number of objects on view. The second floor Stairway Gallery has undergone the first comprehensive reinstallation in more than a decade. The works of art included in this exhibition are selections from Roy R. Neuberger’s generous gift to Purchase College, which helped to establish the Neuberger Museum of Art. The reorganized space enables the presentation of photographs, drawings and prints never before exhibited in addition to the many iconic paintings and sculptures for which the collection is known.
The Performing Arts Center, with its four stages, presents more than 600 events each season and plays host to some of the world’s most talented performers. In addition to classical artists, the Center is the venue for many American and world premiers and also offers series in dance, jazz, theatre, film, world music, family and children’s performances.
We are proud of our dynamic student body and our alumni, who continue to excel in business, the sciences, and the arts and who have been awarded numerous honors including Oscar, Emmy, Pulitzer Prize, Tony and MacArthur awards. Our accomplished faculty bring their professional experience into the classroom. Science students do research and co-author papers with their professors and music students perform in concerts with faculty members both on and off campus.
We are grateful to our many alumni and community members who generously support the College through scholarships, professorships and distinguished programs that make such an impact on our students.
At Purchase, we strive to enrich our lives and embrace new perspectives.
