Ramapo College of New Jersey (RCNJ) is a public

liberal arts college 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 ...

in Mahwah, New Jersey. It is part of New Jersey's public system of higher education. As of the fall 2021 semester, there were a total of 5,732 students enrolled at the college, including 576 graduate students and 11 doctorate students.

History

In the late 19th century, the Ramapo Valley was developed for large estates by many wealthy families. Theodore Havemeyer and his family arrived in the area in the 1870s. Havemeyer, a founder of the American Sugar Company, purchased and renovated a home on the road that would become Route 202 and developed more than surrounding the mansion into a farm. In 1889 he had a second mansion built on the property for one of his daughters. That mansion and about of the original 1,000 were later purchased by

Stephen Birch Stephen Birch (1873–1950) was the President of the Kennecott Copper Company. Early life Birch was born in New York City on March 24, 1873. He was the second son out of six children. His father was a Union Army sergeant who died when Steph ...

, president of the

Kennecott Copper Company Kennecott Utah Copper LLC (KUC), a division of Rio Tinto Group, is a mining, smelting, and refining company. Its corporate headquarters are located in South Jordan, Utah. Kennecott operates the Bingham Canyon Mine, one of the largest open-pit mi ...

.Henry Bischoff, ''A History of Ramapo College of New Jersey: The First Quarter Century – 1971–1996'' (Mahwah: Ramapo College of New Jersey,1997). In 1968, the New Jersey Department of Higher Education authorized establishing a new state college in

Bergen County Bergen County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of New Jersey.suburbanization. The criteria for the new college's location were sufficient land for the construction of current needs and future expansion, and proximity to at least one major highway. The locations of existing public and private institutions in the state were also taken into consideration. The college was planned to serve economically deprived students from urban and rural areas, in addition to a full range of middle-class families. George Potter, an administrator at

Grand Valley State University 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 ...

in Michigan, was appointed the first President of the college before a location had been determined. After many board meetings, it was decided that the former Birch Estate in Mahwah would be the location for the new college. Although the land was farther north than originally intended for the campus, its proximity to Route 17 and mountainous surroundings made it an attractive site. The architects drew up plans for an L-shaped, glass-walled facility consisting of five two-story academic buildings connected by large entry spaces, with each building devoted to a particular department or division. The architects recommended this approach to allow for rapid construction of additional wings onto the various entry spaces, allowing quick expansion of the college. The former Havemeyer mansion was adapted as the president's house, and the former Birch Mansion was renovated to be used as the administration building of the college. Rodney David Smith served as college's third president, from July 1, 2001, to June 30, 2004. He was succeeded by Dr. Peter Philip Mercer, who was succeeded by Cindy Jebb on July 6, 2021.

Academics

Ramapo College offers bachelor's degrees in the arts, business, the social and natural sciences, and the humanities, as well as in professional studies programs such as nursing and social work. Seven programs are offered leading to a master's degree: Master of Business Administration (MBA), Master of Social Work (MSW), Master of Arts in Educational Leadership (MAEL), Master of Science in Educational Technology (MSET), Master of Arts in Special Education (MASE), Master of Science in Nursing Education (MSN), and a Master of Science in Accounting (MSAC). The college also offers a physician assistant (B.S./M.S.) and physical therapy (B.S./D.P.T.) with the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey; a B.A./Master's degree program in Art Therapy with

Caldwell University Caldwell University is a private Catholic university in Caldwell, New Jersey. Founded in 1939 by the Sisters of St. Dominic, the university is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, chartered by the State of New Jersey, ...

; a B.S./Doctor of Chiropractic with New York Chiropractic College; a B.S./D.D.S. and a B.S./D.M.D. with the

Rutgers School of Dental Medicine The Rutgers School of Dental Medicine (formerly New Jersey Dental School) is the dental school of Rutgers University. It is one of several professional schools that form Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences, a division of the university. Estab ...

; a B.S./Doctor of Optometry (O.D.) with

SUNY State College of Optometry The State University of New York College of Optometry is a public school of optometry in New York City. It is part of the State University of New York (SUNY) system and was established in 1971 as result of a legislative mandate of New York. I ...

; and a B.S./Doctor of Podiatric Medicine through New York College of Podiatric Medicine (NYCPM). The five interdisciplinary schools include the Anisfield School of Business (Dean Edward Petkus), the School of Contemporary Arts (Dean Ken Goldstein), the School of Humanities and Global Studies (Interim Dean Susan Hangen), the School of Social Science and Human Services (Dean Aaron Lorenz), and the School of Theoretical and Applied Science (Interim Dean Edward Saiff).

Accreditation

Ramapo College was established in 1968 as a state-supported, co-educational, four-year College for liberal arts, sciences, and professional studies. Ramapo received accreditation from the

Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools The Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools (Middle States Association or MSA) was a voluntary, peer-based, non-profit association that performed peer evaluation and regional educational accreditation, accreditation of public and priva ...

in 1975. Individual programs also received accreditation. The Social Work Program is accredited by the Council on Social Work Education, the Chemistry Program is approved by the American Chemical Society (ACS), the Nursing Program is accredited by the National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission (NLNAC) and the New Jersey Board of Nursing, the Teacher Certification program is approved by the Teacher Education Accreditation Council (TEAC) and the

State of New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware Ri ...

, and the Anisfield School of Business is accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business ( AACSB). Ramapo College is also a founding member of the Council of Public Liberal Arts Colleges.

Rankings

''U.S. News & World Report'' ranks Ramapo 37th among 196 "Regional Universities in the North" in its 2018 list. According to '' Forbes'', as of 2018, Ramapo College of New Jersey was rated #370 in Top Colleges, #127 in Public Colleges, and #143 in the Northeast region. However, in 2019, Forbes ranked Ramapo College at #341 in Top Colleges, #116 in Public Colleges, and #133 in the Northeast region, and ranked Ramapo at #206 in America's Best Value Colleges of 2019.

Campus

Ramapo College, Salameno Spiritual Center

Praised for its accessibility and modernity which is juxtaposed by the picturesque outdoors, Ramapo College, which lies at the foothills of the Ramapo Mountains, was named by '' CondeNast Traveler'' as one of the 50 Most Beautiful College Campuses in America in 2020. The campus includes modern academic buildings, the Robert A. Scott Student Center (which houses student offices, the Birch Tree Inn and Atrium cafeterias, and J. Lee's student lounge); entertainment and meeting rooms; a library with electronic research facilities; the Ramapo Spiritual Center, an administration building; athletic playing fields and 12 lighted tennis courts. The Angelica and Russ Berrie Center for Performing and Visual Arts houses performance theaters, art galleries and specialized spaces devoted to fine arts, computer art, photography, theater, dance and music. The Berrie Center includes a number of art galleries that are aligned with the School of Contemporary Arts and display a wide variety of art including faculty artwork and international collections. The visual arts faculty uses the exhibitions as an educational tool to illustrate the creative process to students. The art galleries include the Kresge Gallery, Pascal Gallery, Selden Rodman Gallery, Potter Library Gallery, and the Photo Lounge Gallery. The Potter Library Galleries showcase regional artists and student work. A campus-wide building program during recent years has resulted in the completion of the

Anisfield School of Business The Anisfield School of Business is a business education institution located at Ramapo College of New Jersey. By educating students through business disciplines and liberal arts, the school has been a fixture at Ramapo College since 1979. Rama ...

, designed by local firm SNS Architects & Engineers, which opened in Fall 2007 and the Bill Bradley Sports and Recreation center with its 2,200-seat arena, fitness center, climbing wall, dance/aerobics studio, gymnasium and indoor swimming pool. The center has also been used for live music. A new synthetic outdoor running track was laid down in the summer of 2008, and further refurbishments to the main athletic stadium are ongoing. Five residence halls, Mackin Hall, Bischoff Hall, Overlook Hall, Laurel Hall, as well as the Village, an apartment-style complex, were also completed. Restoration of the College Park Apartments, built during the late 1970s, is also underway, reaching Phase II of the project. As per the other residence halls, they are relatively modern, with Pine Hall being completed in 1986 and Linden Hall completed in 1990. Bischoff Hall opened in 1999, followed by Mackin Hall in 2000, the Village apartments in 2002, the distinctively designed Overlook Hall in 2004, and Laurel Hall in 2005. The Salameno Spiritual Center is now open. The Adler Center for Nursing Excellence opened in the fall of 2015 and houses both undergraduate and graduate nursing programs, featuring three simulation rooms where students work with computer-simulated patients, in addition to a nursing skills lab and a laboratory for anatomy and physiology. The school has an independent FM radio station,

WRPR WRPR (90.3 FM) is a freeform campus radio station licensed to Mahwah, New Jersey and owned by Ramapo College. Its call letters were assigned on October 9, 1979, and it began broadcasting on July 7, 1980. WRPR today can be heard on 90.3 FM i ...

, 90.3 FM, a free-form station featuring numerous genres and talk shows. The Roukema Center for International Education is located in the Anisfield School of Business. Here, advisement is given for those students who want to study abroad. There are more than 50 countries in Ramapo's study abroad program, which includes a variety of faculty-led trips to international destinations such as China, Cuba, Ghana, India, Japan, Spain, Peru, and Portugal.

Athletics

Ramapo College currently has 8 men's teams and 12 women's teams, and participates in NCAA Division III sports. Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country running,

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

, swimming, tennis, track and field, and volleyball. Women's athletic teams at Ramapo College consist of basketball, cheerleading, cross country running,

dance Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

, field hockey, lacrosse, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, track and field, and volleyball. Ramapo also offers a club DIII ice hockey team. The men's basketball team won the 2017 New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) championship and advanced to the NCAA Division III playoffs. However, Ramapo was eliminated after the second round of playoff competition. The hockey team won the Metropolitan Collegiate Hockey Conference title for 2016–2017 season. Student supporters of Ramapo College's athletic teams are known as the Ramapo Rowdies.

Affiliations

* NCAA Division III, ECAC * New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) * North East Collegiate Volleyball Association (NECVA) * Skyline Conference * Metro (NCAA Men's Volleyball Championship, NCAA Men's Volleyball Championship Division III)

Notable alumni

Lauren H. Carson Lauren H. Carson (born February 26, 1954) is an American politician and Democratic member of the Rhode Island House of Representatives, representing the 75th District since 2015. This district includes the city of Newport, Rhode Island. She i ...

(born 1954), member of the Rhode Island House of Representatives, representing the 75th District since 2015. * Frank Eufemia (born 1959), former MLB relief pitcher who played with the

Minnesota Twins The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. The team is named after the Twin Cities area w ...

. *

Tim Eustace Timothy James Eustace, commonly known as Tim Eustace (born December 27, 1956) is an American chiropractor and Democratic Party politician from Maywood, New Jersey who served in the New Jersey General Assembly, representing the 38th Legislative ...

(born 1956), one of New Jersey's first openly gay assemblymen, he has represented the state's 38th Legislative District since 2012. * Don La Greca (born 1968), sportscaster who is the co-host of '' The Michael Kay Show'' on

ESPN New York WEPN-FM (98.7 MHz) branded as ''ESPN New York'', is an all-sports radio station licensed to New York City. The station is owned by Emmis Communications and its operations are controlled by Good Karma Brands, under a local marketing agre ...

. * Grace Helbig (born 1985), comedian, actress, '' New York Times'' bestselling author and creator and host of the web series ''It's Grace''. *

Ron Cephas Jones Ron Cephas Jones (born January 8, 1957) is an American actor. He is best known for his role in the drama series ''This Is Us'' (2016–2022), which earned him four consecutive Primetime Emmy Award nominations, winning twice for Outstanding Guest ...

(born 1957), actor known for '' This is Us'', '' Mr. Robot'' and ''

Across The Universe "Across the Universe" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles. It was written by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney. The song first appeared on the 1969 various artists' charity compilation album ''No One's Gonna Change Our W ...

''. * Mark Leiter (born 1963), former MLB pitcher. * Todd Lowber (born 1982), former

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major ...

/ CFL professional football player, who was on the

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...

championship team *

Joshua Orwa Ojode Joshua Orwa Ojode (29 December 1958 – 10 June 2012) was a Kenyan politician. He was first appointed to parliament on June 28, 1994 to represent the Ndhiwa Constituency for the National Development party. In 2007 he joined the Orange Democratic ...

(1958-2012), Kenyan politician and assistant interior minister. * Laura-Ann Petitto (born c. 1954),

cognitive neuroscientist Cognitive neuroscience is the scientific field that is concerned with the study of the biological processes and aspects that underlie cognition, with a specific focus on the neural connections in the brain which are involved in mental processe ...

and a developmental cognitive neuroscientist, known for her discoveries involving the language capacity of chimpanzees. * Jeff Phillips (born 1968), fitness trainer and former actor best known for his work on ''

Guiding Light ''Guiding Light'' (known as ''The Guiding Light'' before 1975) is an American radio and television soap opera. It is listed in ''Guinness World Records'' as the third longest-running drama in television in American history. ''Guiding Light'' a ...

'', '' As the World Turns'' and the 1996 film ''

Independence Day An independence day is an annual event commemorating the anniversary of a nation's independence or statehood, usually after ceasing to be a group or part of another nation or state, or more rarely after the end of a military occupation. Man ...

'' *

Mike Roche Mike Roche (born September 23 in Pascack Valley, New Jersey) is an American actor. Roche played Humphrey James in the 2007 Off-Broadway revival of ''Night Over Taos''http://www.variety.com/review/VE1117934921 by Maxwell Anderson directed by ...

, actor. * Kevin J. Rooney (born 1960), member of the New Jersey General Assembly representing the state's 40th Legislative District since 2016. *

Jay Seals Jay Seals (born March 23, 1976) is an American actor, known for his recurring role in the television drama ''Mad Men'' on AMC from 2010 to 2015. Some of his other credits include the 2012 American television police procedural fantasy drama ''Awake ...

(born 1976), actor, known for his recurring role in the television drama '' Mad Men'' from 2010 to 2015. * Rich Skrosky (born 1964), football player and coach. * Patrick Stickles (born 1985), singer, guitarist, and songwriter in the band Titus Andronicus

Notable faculty

Murray Bookchin Murray Bookchin (January 14, 1921 – July 30, 2006) was an American social theorist, author, orator, historian, and political philosopher. A pioneer in the environmental movement, Bookchin formulated and developed the theory of social ec ...

(1921-2006), political theorist, pioneer in the ecology movement and former faculty member. * Thilmeeza Hussain (born 1978), Maldivian Ambassador to the United Nations (2019–present) and former adjunct professor. *

Laura McCullough Laura M. McCullough (born 1960) is an American poet and writer living in the state of New Jersey. McCullough is the author of seven published collections and is the founding editor of ''Mead: the Magazine of Literature and Libations.'' She was a ...

(born 1960), poet and former professor.

Demographics

Ramapo College of New Jersey CDP is also a

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counterparts of incorporated places, su ...

(CDP) covering the Ramapo College campus in

Bergen County, New Jersey Bergen County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Official athletics website
{{authority control Universities and colleges in Bergen County, New Jersey Educational institutions established in 1969 Ramapos Mahwah, New Jersey 1969 establishments in New Jersey Liberal arts colleges in New Jersey Public universities and colleges in New Jersey Public liberal arts colleges in the United States