Eastern Connecticut State University (Eastern, Eastern Connecticut, Eastern Connecticut State, or ECSU) is a

public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociological concept of the ''Öffentlichkei ...

liberal arts university A liberal arts college or liberal arts institution of higher education is a college with an emphasis on undergraduate study in liberal arts and sciences. Such colleges aim to impart a broad general knowledge and develop general intellectual capac ...

Willimantic, Connecticut Willimantic is a city located in the town of Windham, Connecticut, Windham in Windham County, Connecticut, United States. It is a former Census-designated place and Borough (Connecticut), borough, and is currently organized as one of two Local gov ...

. Founded in 1889, it is the second-oldest campus in the

Connecticut State University System The Connecticut State Universities (CSU) are part of the Connecticut State Colleges & Universities, the largest public higher education system in Connecticut, and the second largest in New England. The four comprehensive state universities enrol ...

and third-oldest public university in the state. Eastern is located on Windham Street in Willimantic,

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

, on 30 minutes from

Hartford Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since the ...

, lying midway between

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

and

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

. Although the majority of courses are held on the main campus, select classes take place at Manchester Community College,

Capital Community College Capital Community College is a public community college in Hartford, Connecticut. The only public undergraduate institution in the City of Hartford, Capital's roots date to 1967 with the founding of Greater Hartford Community College. In 1992 Ca ...

, and a satellite center in Groton. Eastern Connecticut State University is a member of the

Connecticut State Colleges & Universities The Board of Regents for Higher Education (BOR) is a government body in the U.S. state of Connecticut that oversees the Connecticut State Colleges & Universities (CSCU). CSCU and the BOR were created on July 1, 2011, consolidating the governance of ...

History

The

Connecticut General Assembly The Connecticut General Assembly (CGA) is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is a bicameral body composed of the 151-member House of Representatives and the 36-member Senate. It meets in the state capital, Hartford. Th ...

established the Willimantic State Normal School in 1889. As a

normal school A normal school or normal college is an institution created to Teacher education, train teachers by educating them in the norms of pedagogy and curriculum. In the 19th century in the United States, instruction in normal schools was at the high s ...

, the institution trained schoolteachers. The first class was of thirteen female students, who attended classes on the third floor of the Willimantic Savings Institute.Dick Curland
Historically Speaking: Eastern began as 'normal school' to prepare teachers
''Norwich Bulletin'' (November 26, 2017). The first male student entered in 1893. In 1890, the Town of Windham

deed In common law, a deed is any legal instrument in writing which passes, affirms or confirms an interest, right, or property and that is signed, attested, delivered, and in some jurisdictions, sealed. It is commonly associated with transferring ...

ed to the

State of Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the ...

for construction of a new campus for the school. The larger campus was completed in 1895. The first dormitory, Burr Hall, opened in September 1921. The institution was renamed Willimantic State Teachers College in 1937, after it began granting

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

s. The original Normal School building was destroyed in a fire and replaced by Shafer Hall, which was dedicated in 1946. The State College created its first graduate program (in education) in 1953. After expanding its programs and campus, it became Eastern Connecticut State College in 1967, and Eastern Connecticut State University in 1983.

Academics

Academically, the university is organized into three schools, the School of Arts and Sciences, the School of Education and Professional Studies, and the School of Continuing Education. Graduate study programs offered through the School of Education and Professional Studies and include Education, Teacher Certification, and Organizational Management.

Institute for Sustainable Energy

The Institute for Sustainable Energy was opened in 2001 and focuses on

sustainable energy Energy is sustainable if it "meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs". Most definitions of sustainable energy include considerations of environmental aspects such as greenh ...

education, serving as a source for sustainable energy information, assistance in sustainable energy

policy Policy is a deliberate system of guidelines to guide decisions and achieve rational outcomes. A policy is a statement of intent and is implemented as a procedure or protocol. Policies are generally adopted by a governance body within an organ ...

making, and assistance in implementing sustainable energy solutions. The institute is located at 182 High Street. The current director is William Leahy. In 2012 Eastern had a stationary

phosphoric acid fuel cell Phosphoric acid fuel cells (PAFC) are a type of fuel cell that uses liquid phosphoric acid as an electrolyte. They were the first fuel cells to be commercialized. Developed in the mid-1960s and field-tested since the 1970s, they have improved sign ...

, known as the

PureCell System The PureCell System is a stationary phosphoric acid fuel cell designed, manufactured and marketed by Doosan Fuel Cell America (formerly ClearEdge Power/UTC Power) of South Windsor, Connecticut. Intended for distributed generation and micro combin ...

Model 400, installed on the west side of its Science Building. Eastern will use 100 percent of the energy produced by the fuel cell system to provide a majority of the power required for the Science Building, while maximizing the use of the heat output available. Under a 10-year Energy Services Agreement (ESA) with

ClearEdge Power ClearEdge Power, Inc. was a fuel cell manufacturer focusing on the stationary fuel cell. It was headquartered in South Windsor, Connecticut, U.S. The company employed 225 people as of August 2011. It closed its operations in Connecticut in April ...

, the installation was made possible by a federal

American Recovery and Reinvestment Act American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

(ARRA) grant through CEFIA.

Housing

87 percent of first-year students, and 60 percent of all full-time undergraduates live in college

housing Housing, or more generally, living spaces, refers to the construction and assigned usage of houses or buildings individually or collectively, for the purpose of shelter. Housing ensures that members of society have a place to live, whether it ...

. The campus is separated into first-year halls and upperclassman halls. All students with sophomore status and higher are eligible to live in upperclassman halls. There are six first-year halls, five upperclassman halls and two sets of apartments.

Student organizations

Eastern offers more than 80

student organization A student is a person enrolled in a school or other educational institution. In the United Kingdom and most commonwealth countries, a "student" attends a secondary school or higher (e.g., college or university); those in primary or elementary ...

s in which students can participate, including athletic, political, cultural, artistic and communication clubs. The campus newscast is ETV. The

Student Government Association A students' union, also known by many other names, is a student organization present in many colleges, universities, and high schools. In higher education, the students' union is often accorded its own building on the campus, dedicated to social, ...

is the liaison between the student body and university administration and each residence hall has a student council that plans events and trips for hall residents.

Athletics

Eastern's sports teams are known as the "Warriors" and are represented by a logo depicting a shield superior to two crossed swords. The university is a member of the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

Division III, the

Little East Conference The Little East Conference (LEC) is an NCAA Division III intercollegiate athletic conference. The member institutions are located in all six states of New England. History Chronological timeline * 1986 - On April 28, 1986, the Little East Conf ...

and the

Eastern College Athletic Conference The Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) is a college athletic conference comprising schools that compete in 15 sports (13 men's and 13 women's). It has 220 member institutions in NCAA Divisions I, II, and III, ranging in location fro ...

. Men's varsity sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, lacrosse, soccer, and indoor and outdoor track and field. Women's varsity sports include basketball, cross country, field hockey, lacrosse, soccer, softball, swimming, indoor and outdoor track and field, and volleyball. Intramural sports include men's and women's tennis league, co-ed indoor and outdoor soccer, co-ed dodgeball, men's and women's flag football, men's and women's volleyball, co-ed softball, ultimate frisbee league, men's and women's basketball league, co-ed floor hockey, wiffle ball tournament, golf. Club sports include competitive cheerleading, fencing club, football club, ice hockey club and rugby club. The men's

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

team won the

NCAA Division III NCAA Division III (D-III) is a division of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States. D-III consists of athletic programs at colleges and universities that choose not to offer athletic scholarships to their stu ...

national championship five times (1982, '90, '98, '02, '22). The women's

softball Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...

team won national championships five times (1981 ( AIAW Div. III), '82, '85, '86, and '90 − NCAA).

Campus

Eastern's campus, which is spread over , is divided into three areas: South Campus, North Campus, and the University Sports Complex. South Campus is the historic part of the university and includes buildings such as Burr Hall, the school's first dormitory, which dates back to 1921. North Campus, the more modern part of the university, is home to the library, the fine arts instructional center, and the student center.

Notable alumni

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie ( ; born 15 September 1977) is a Nigerian writer whose works include novels, short stories and nonfiction. She was described in ''The Times Literary Supplement'' as "the most prominent" of a "procession of criticall ...

- Nigerian writer *

Pat Boyd Patrick S. Boyd (born January 28, 1981) is an educator and American politician who is a member of the Connecticut House of Representatives, serving since 2017. He represents the Towns of Brooklyn, Eastford, Pomfret, Union and Woodstock composi ...

–

Connecticut State Representative The Connecticut State House of Representatives is the lower house in the Connecticut General Assembly, the state legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The house is composed of 151 members representing an ...

* Christopher D. Coutu - Former

* William A. Cugno -

Adjutant General An adjutant general is a military chief administrative officer. France In Revolutionary France, the was a senior staff officer, effectively an assistant to a general officer. It was a special position for lieutenant-colonels and colonels in staf ...

of the

Connecticut National Guard The Connecticut Military Department is a state agency of the government of Connecticut. Its primary components are the Connecticut Army National Guard, the Connecticut Air National Guard, and four companies of the state militia. The Military Depa ...

Edward Gaffney Edward J. Gaffney (born December 23, 1943 in Hartford, Connecticut) was a Republican Michigan State Representative from Grosse Pointe Farms. He served in the state House between 2003 and 2008, and represented the Michigan's 1st state House dist ...

- Michigan State Representative *

David W. Gay David William Gay was the Adjutant General of the state of Connecticut from 1992 to 1999. He began his military career with the United States Marine Corps and later transferred to the Army. He served for over 39 years in the military.Official Bio ...

of the

Camille Kostek Camille Veronica Kostek (born February 19, 1992) is an American model, television host, and actress. She gained recognition for her appearances in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue, ''Sports Illustrated'' Swimsuit Issue, and achieved further ...

- model who was on the cover of ''Sports Illustrated'' Swimsuit Issue *

Victoria Leigh Soto Victoria Leigh Soto (November 4, 1985 – December 14, 2012) was an American teacher who was killed in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. After the gunman, Adam Lanza entered the school, she hid her students; when the students later ran ...

Sandy Hook Elementary School Sandy may refer to: People and fictional characters *Sandy (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Sandy (surname), a list of people *Sandy (singer), Brazilian singer and actress Sandy Leah Lima (born 1983) * (Sandy) ...

teacher killed in the

massacre A massacre is the killing of a large number of people or animals, especially those who are not involved in any fighting or have no way of defending themselves. A massacre is generally considered to be morally unacceptable, especially when per ...

Susan Wilson Susan Wilson is a New York Times best selling American author. Her first novel, ''Beauty'', was adapted into a television movie. A later book, ''One Good Dog'', was a ''New York Times'' bestseller. Personal life Susan lives on Martha's Vineyard ...

- Author

References

External links

Official website
{{authority control Public universities and colleges in Connecticut Educational institutions established in 1889 Willimantic, Connecticut Universities and colleges in Windham County, Connecticut Liberal arts colleges in Connecticut 1889 establishments in Connecticut Public liberal arts colleges in the United States