Marymount Manhattan College is a

private college Private universities and private colleges are institutions of higher education, not operated, owned, or institutionally funded by governments. They may (and often do) receive from governments tax breaks, public student loans, and grants. D ...

on the

Upper East Side The Upper East Side, sometimes abbreviated UES, is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, bounded by 96th Street to the north, the East River to the east, 59th Street to the south, and Central Park/Fifth Avenue to the wes ...

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 ...

. As of 2020, enrollment consists of 1,571 undergraduates with women making up 80.1% and men 19.9% of student enrollment. The college was founded in 1936.

History

Marymount Manhattan College was founded in 1936 by the

Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary The Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary (known in the United States as the RSHM and in other parts of the world as RSCM) are a global Roman Catholic community of about 900 apostolic religious women. Today the diversity of ministries include educ ...

as a two-year women's college and a New York City extension of Marymount College, Tarrytown in

Tarrytown, New York Tarrytown is a village in the town of Greenburgh in Westchester County, New York. It is located on the eastern bank of the Hudson River, approximately north of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, and is served by a stop on the Metro-North ...

. In 1948, the college moved to its present location on East 71st Street and became a four-year bachelor's degree-granting college; the first class graduated from MMC in 1950. In 1961, MMC was granted an absolute charter as an independent four-year college by the Regents of the

University of the State of New York The University of the State of New York (USNY, ) is the state of New York's governmental umbrella organization for both public and private institutions in New York State. The "university" is not an educational institution: it is, in fact, a lic ...

. Since 1961, Marymount Manhattan has been an independent, private college open to all creeds, while noting its foundation by the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary. While the college no longer described itself as Catholic, the Catholic Church continued to list it in the Catholic Directory until 2005. Unaware that the college did not claim to be a Catholic school, the Cardinal Newman Society protested the college's announcement of its decision to invite then-Senator

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...

to deliver a

commencement address A commencement speech or commencement address is a speech given to graduating students, generally at a university, although the term is also used for secondary education institutions and in similar institutions around the world. The commencement ...

and to confer an honorary doctoral degree upon her,College Honoring Clinton Declared 'No Longer Catholic', Catholic News Agency May 2, 2005
retrieved 12-29-08 due to Senator Clinton's longtime public support for

abortion rights Abortion-rights movements, also referred to as pro-choice movements, advocate for the right to have legal access to induced abortion services including elective abortion. They seek to represent and support women who wish to terminate their pre ...

. In response to the protests and without objection by the college, it was de-listed from "The Official Catholic Directory," which identifies Catholic institutions. In 1976,

Finch College Finch College was an undergraduate women's college in Manhattan, New York City. The Finch School opened as a private secondary school for girls in 1900 and became a liberal arts college in 1952. It closed in 1976. Founding Finch was founded in ...

, a women's college best known as a " finishing school" for affluent young women, closed and passed its

records A record, recording or records may refer to: An item or collection of data Computing * Record (computer science), a data structure ** Record, or row (database), a set of fields in a database related to one entity ** Boot sector or boot record, ...

over to the school. The school was most famous for educating

Tricia Nixon Cox Patricia Nixon Cox ( Nixon; born February 21, 1946) is the elder daughter of the 37th United States president Richard Nixon and First Lady Pat Nixon, and sister to Julie Nixon Eisenhower. She is married to Edward F. Cox and is the mother of Chr ...

, daughter of former US President

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

. In 1990, Regina Peruggi became the first lay president. In 2003, the college's mezzanine was renamed in her honor. Peruggi was married to Rudy Giuliani from 1968 to 1982. Their marriage ended due to the revelation that they were cousins. In 2001, the college opened the 55th Street Residence Hall, one of the tallest dorms in the United States, with 32 floors of student housing in a 46-story building. In 2015, Marymount Manhattan opened a second residence hall for upperclassmen located in Cooper Square, a 12-story building to house 270 students In 2017, just under 2,000 students were enrolled representing 48 U.S. states and 36 countries. In conjunction with its core liberal arts curriculum, Marymount Manhattan offers 30 major programs of study and over 40 minors along with pre-professional programs. It is accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools. The college offers a degree program for incarcerated women at the Bedford Hills Correctional Facility, granting an Associates of Arts degree in social science and Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology. In 2013, the school was featured in the noted industry publication '' Backstage'' as one of the top colleges in which

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

and

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual cer ...

-nominated actors have trained, alongside

Carnegie Mellon University Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. One of its predecessors was established in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie as the Carnegie Technical Schools; it became the Carnegie Institute of Technology ...

Oberlin Conservatory The Oberlin Conservatory of Music is a private music conservatory in Oberlin College in Oberlin, Ohio. It was founded in 1865 and is the second oldest conservatory and oldest continually operating conservatory in the United States. It is one of ...

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

Ithaca College Ithaca College is a private college in Ithaca, New York. It was founded by William Egbert in 1892 as a conservatory of music and is set against the backdrop of the city of Ithaca (which is separate from the town), Cayuga Lake, waterfalls, and go ...

NYU New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, the ...

Tisch School of the Arts The New York University Tisch School of the Arts (commonly referred to as Tisch) is the performing, cinematic and media arts school of New York University. Founded on August 17, 1965, Tisch is a training ground for artists, scholars of the a ...

, and the

University of North Carolina School of the Arts The University of North Carolina School of the Arts (UNCSA) is an arts school in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. It grants high school, undergraduate, and graduate degrees. Founded in 1963 as the North Carolina School of the Arts by then-Governo ...

. In July 2015, Kerry Walk was unanimously selected by the Trustees of Marymount Manhattan College as the school's eighth president.

Notable alumni

Alumni include prominent actors, musicians, attorneys, writers, journalists, royalty, the first female nominee for

Vice President of the United States The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest officer in the executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks first in the presidential line of succession. The vice ...

from a major party, and recipients of the

Olympic Gold Medal Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece b ...

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

, and

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

. *

Emin Agalarov Emin Aras oghlu Agalarov ( az, Emin Araz oğlu Ağalarov, russian: Эмин Аразович Агаларов; born December 12, 1979), also known as Emin Arazovich Agalarov, is an Azerbaijani-Russian singer and businessman. He writes and perfo ...

, Azerbaijani-

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

pop star, businessman, and son of

Aras Agalarov Aras Iskanderovich Agalarov ( az, Araz İsgəndəroviç Ağalarov; russian: link=no, Ара́з Исканде́рович Агала́ров; born 8 November 1955) is an Azerbaijani-Russian billionaire real estate developer. Several sources ha ...

* Annaleigh Ashford,"Annaleigh Ashford: Bubble-Bound"
broadwayworld.com, October 7, 2007 actress, singer, and dancer *

Candace Bailey Candace Kaye Bailey (born May 20, 1982) is an American actress and television personality best known as a co-host of the former television programs ''U-Pick Live'' on Nickelodeon and ''Attack of the Show!'' on G4. Early life Bailey was born i ...

, actress and presenter *

Maddie Baillio Maddie Baillio (born February 15, 1996) is an American actress and singer who appeared in the television special ''Hairspray Live'' and the film ''Dumplin. She is a graduate of Marymount Manhattan College Marymount Manhattan College is a pr ...

, actress and singer *

Melissa Benoist Melissa Marie Benoist ( ; born October 4, 1988) is an American actress, singer and producer. Her first major role was Marley Rose on the Fox musical comedy drama ''Glee'' (2012–2014), where she was a series regular during the fifth season. S ...

, actress and singer *

Lana Cantrell Lana Eleanor Cantrell AM (born 7 August 1943) is an Australian-American singer and entertainment lawyer. She was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best New Artist in the Grammy Awards of 1968. Music career Cantrell recorded six albums for ...

, singer and entertainment lawyer * Marie Corridon, competition swimmer and Olympic champion *

Laverne Cox Laverne Cox (born May 29, 1972) is an American actress and LGBT advocate. She rose to prominence with her role as Sophia Burset on the Netflix series ''Orange Is the New Black'', becoming the first transgender person to be nominated for a Pr ...

, actress *

Alexandra Daddario Alexandra Anna Daddario (born March 16, 1986) is an American actress who had her breakthrough portraying Annabeth Chase in the ''Percy Jackson'' film series (2010–2013). In 2021, she starred in the first season of the HBO series ''The White ...

, actress * Desmond Devenish, filmmaker and actor *

Geraldine Ferraro Geraldine Anne Ferraro (August 26, 1935 March 26, 2011) was an American politician, diplomat, and attorney. She served in the United States House of Representatives from 1979 to 1985, and was the Democratic Party's vice presidential nominee ...

, United States vice-presidential candidate (1984) *

Joan Fitz-Gerald Joan Fitz-Gerald is an American politician and attorney who served as a member of the Colorado Senate, representing the 16th district from 2001 until 2007. She also served as President of the Senate, the first woman to hold that office. Fitz ...

, former president of the Colorado Senate *

Travis Flores Travis Michael Flores (born April 7, 1991) is an American writer, activist, philanthropist, and motivational speaker. He is a published children's book author and has written for several magazines and publications, including ''OUT'', ''UpWorthy' ...

, American activist, philanthropist, motivational speaker, actor and children's book author *

Ita Ford Sister Ita Ford, M.M. (April 23, 1940 – December 2, 1980) was an American Catholic Maryknoll Sister who served as a missionary in Bolivia, Chile and El Salvador. She worked with the poor and war refugees. On December 2, 1980, she was beaten, r ...

,Martyrs of Central America
Maryknoll Sister martyred in El Salvador in 1980 * Marianne Githens, political scientist, feminist, and author *

Spencer Grammer Spencer Karen Grammer (born October 9, 1983) is an American actress best known for her roles as the voice of Summer Smith in the Adult Swim animated science-fiction series ''Rick and Morty'' and as Casey Cartwright in the ABC Family college come ...

, actress * Katharine Sweeney Hayden, U.S. District Judge for the District of New Jersey *

Mimi Imfurst Mimi Imfurst (born March 2, 1983), the stage name of Braden S. Chapman (or Braden S. Maurer-Burns), is an American drag performer. She appeared on the third season of ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' and '' RuPaul's Drag Race: All Stars'' and was a found ...

, drag queen, actor, singer *

Moira Kelly Moira Kelly (born on March 6, 1968 in Queens, New York) is an American actress. She is known for portraying Kate Moseley in the 1992 film ''The Cutting Edge'' as well as single mother Karen Roe on the teen drama '' One Tree Hill''. She is also k ...

, actress * Mina Liccione, performing artist * Kelly-Anne Lyons, actress *

Princess Marie of Denmark Princess Marie of Denmark, Countess of Monpezat, (''née'' Marie Agathe Odile Cavallier, born 6 February 1976) is a member of the Danish royal family. She is the second wife of Prince Joachim of Denmark, the younger son of Queen Margrethe I ...

, wife of

Prince Joachim of Denmark , father = Henri de Laborde de Monpezat , mother = Margrethe II of Denmark , house = Glücksburg (official) Monpezat (agnatic) , religion = Church of Denmark , occupation = Military Attaché, Royal Danish Embassy in ...

, second son of

Margrethe II of Denmark Margrethe II (; Margrethe Alexandrine Þórhildur Ingrid, born 16 April 1940) is Queen of Denmark. Having reigned as Denmark's monarch for over 50 years, she is Europe's longest-serving current head of state and the world's only incumbent femal ...

Sallie Manzanet-Daniels Sallie Manzanet-Daniels is an associate justice of the New York Appellate Division of the Supreme Court, First Judicial Department.Appellate Division of the Supreme Court, First Judicial Department The Supreme Court of the State of New York, Appellate Division, First Judicial Department, or simply the First Department, is one of the four geographical components of the New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division, the intermediate appellate c ...

Cindy Meehl Cindy Meehl is an American documentary filmmaker. Her first film, ''Buck (film), Buck'', was released on June 17, 2011, after a successful set of showings at U.S. film festivals including the 2011 Sundance Film Festival. Biography Early life Ci ...

, documentary filmmaker * Bunny Michael, visual artist, musician, and rapper *

Erik Palladino Erik Palladino (born May 10, 1968) is an American actor known for his portrayal of Dr. Dave Malucci in the NBC medical drama '' ER''. He is also known for his recurring roles as Lt. Michael Daghlian in ''Joan of Arcadia'', Vostanik Sabatino in ...

, actor *

Manny Pérez Manuel Pérez "Manny" Batista (born May 5, 1969) is a Dominican American actor who has appeared in the television series ''Third Watch'' and in the film '' Washington Heights''. He is the cousin of Pulitzer Prize-winning author Junot Diaz. L ...

, film and theatre actor * Andrew Rannells, actor and singer *

Melissa Rauch Melissa Ivy Rauch (born June 23, 1980) is an American actress, model and comedian. She is known for playing Bernadette Rostenkowski-Wolowitz on the CBS sitcom ''The Big Bang Theory'', for which she was nominated for the Critics' Choice Televi ...

, comedian, writer, and actress *

Emmy Raver-Lampman Emmy Raver-Lampman (born Emily Christine Raver Lampman, September 5, 1988) is an American actress and singer. She began her career working in musical theater, and has performed in various Broadway and national touring productions such as ''Hair' ...

, actor *

Regina Richards Regina Richards is an American pop singer born in Brooklyn, New York. She is best known for her hit song "Baby Love", which reached Number 10 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in 1986. "Baby Love" was her only song to chart on the Hot 100, maki ...

, singer *

Rose Ann Scamardella Rose Ann Scamardella (born July 20, 1947) is a former anchorwoman of WABC-TV's ''Eyewitness News'' in New York City, and the inspiration for Gilda Radner's character "Roseanne Roseannadanna" on ''Saturday Night Live''. Biography Rose Ann Scamar ...

, former television news anchor *

Paige Spara Paige Spara (born August 9, 1989) is an American actress best known for her main roles as Audrey Piatigorsky in the ABC Family sitcom ''Kevin from Work'' and Lea Dilallo in the ABC medical drama '' The Good Doctor''. Early life Spara was bor ...

, actress *

Tika Sumpter Euphemia LatiQue Sumpter, better known as Tika Sumpter, is an American actress, singer, producer, television host, and model. Sumpter began her career as the host of '' Best Friend's Date''. From 2005 to 2010, she appeared in the daytime soap ope ...

, actress * Jenna Ushkowitz, actress * Adrienne Warren, actress and singer

References

External links

Official website
{{Authority control 1936 establishments in New York City Educational institutions established in 1936 Former women's universities and colleges in the United States Former Catholic universities and colleges in the United States Universities and colleges in Manhattan Universities and colleges in New York City Private universities and colleges in New York City