Central YMCA College was a college operated by the

YMCA YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams in London, originally ...

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, United States. It was founded prior to or in 1922. and was accredited in 1924.North Central Association quarterly, Volumes 63-64, p1544
/ref> It was closed in 1945 after the university president and a large majority of the faculty and students left to form what became

Roosevelt University Roosevelt University is a private university with campuses in Chicago and Schaumburg, Illinois. Founded in 1945, the university was named in honor of United States President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt. The unive ...

. Central YMCA Community College opened in the fall of 1961 and operated until June 1982. It was sometimes called Central YMCA College for short, but had no formal connection to the earlier institution.

Closing of the school

In 1945, Edward J. Sparling, then president of the College, refused to provide the Central YMCA College board with the demographic data of his student body. He feared it would provide the basis for a quota system to limit the numerous

blacks Black is a racialized classification of people, usually a political and skin color-based category for specific populations with a mid to dark brown complexion. Not all people considered "black" have dark skin; in certain countries, often in ...

Jews Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

immigrants Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and ...

, and

women A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or Adolescence, adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female hum ...

enrolled at the school. When Sparling was fired, most of the faculty and students left with him; they voted to start a new college with a vote of 62 to 1 for faculty and 488 to 2 with the student body. This College was originally called

Thomas Jefferson College Grand Valley State University (GVSU, GV, or Grand Valley) is a public university in Allendale, Michigan. It was established in 1960 as Grand Valley State College. Its main campus is situated on approximately west of Grand Rapids. The universit ...

. After the death of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the college was renamed in his honor. It later achieved university status. In August 1945, Central YMCA college closed down.

Presidents

*Edward J. Sparling (September 1936-April 14, 1945)Oral history - Interviews with Edward J. Sparling
/ref>

1944 racial and religious counts

In November 1944, of the approximately 2500 students at Central YMCA College, ethnic and religious minorities included the following: *625

Negroes In the English language, ''negro'' is a term historically used to denote persons considered to be of Black African heritage. The word ''negro'' means the color black in both Spanish and in Portuguese, where English took it from. The term can be ...

(25.4%) *Approximately 800

*96

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

*Approximately 400

Catholics The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

Student activities

The College did not offer student athletics due to racial discrimination, as there were restrictions on Negro usage of YMCA athletic facilities. The school newspaper was the ''Central YMCA College Central News.''

Central YMCA Community College

Central YMCA Community College, which is sometimes called Central YMCA College, was founded in Fall of 1961. It closed in June 1982.Jack Houston, "MacCormac assuming Y's English classes", ''Chicago Tribune''; May 27, 1982; pg. N2

References

External links

Interviews with Edward J. Sparling, first President of Roosevelt University, 1945-1963Oral History interview of Edmund J. Starling Edward J. Sparling, President Emeritus of Roosevelt University discusses work experiences, and Roosevelt's connection to the Labor Movement.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Central Ymca College Defunct private universities and colleges in Illinois Educational institutions disestablished in 1945 Universities and colleges founded by the YMCA Universities and colleges in Chicago