Empire State University (SUNY Empire) is a

public university A public university, state university, or public college is a university or college that is State ownership, owned by the state or receives significant funding from a government. Whether a national university is considered public varies from o ...

headquartered in

Saratoga Springs, New York Saratoga Springs is a Administrative divisions of New York#City, city in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 28,491 at the United States Census 2020, 2020 census. The name reflects the presence of mineral springs in the ...

. It is part of the

State University of New York The State University of New York (SUNY ) is a system of Public education, public colleges and universities in the New York (state), State of New York. It is one of the List of largest universities and university networks by enrollment, larges ...

(SUNY) system. Empire State University is a multi-site institution offering associate,

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

master's A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

doctoral degrees A doctorate (from Latin ''doctor'', meaning "teacher") or doctoral degree is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism '' licentia docendi'' ("licence to teach ...

, and distance degrees worldwide through the Center for Distance Learning. The university has approximately 12,000 undergraduate students and has an acceptance rate of 51%. The university is accredited by the

Middle States Commission on Higher Education The Middle States Commission on Higher Education, abbreviated as MSCHE and legally incorporated as the Mid-Atlantic Region Commission on Higher Education, is a voluntary, peer-based, non-profit membership organization that performs peer evalua ...

. The School for Graduate Studies offers master's degrees. Empire State University's Center for International Programs also has special programs for students in

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

through the American University of Science and Technology,

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

, and Greece. From 2005 to 2010, Empire State University and Anadolu University in Turkey offered a joint MBA program. It also has arranged learning opportunities with UAW-Ford University, United Steelworkers of America, Corporate Noncredit Training, Navy College Program, and the

International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) is a trade union, labor union that represents approximately 820,000 workers and retirees in the electricity, electrical industry in the United States, Canada, Guam, Panama, Puerto Rico, an ...

(Local Union #3). Empire State University administrative offices are located in

History

Empire State College was designed by then SUNY Chancellor Ernest Boyer in a document titled "Prospectus for a New University College." In 1971, Ernest L. Boyer, chancellor of the

, conceived a new college for the state's public university: a college dedicated to adult student-centered education. Empire State College was designed removing impediments to access such as time, location, institutional processes, and curricular customs. In this design, students would individually define their academic needs, purposes, and efforts. The college would be flexible in supporting them through its faculty, policies, and procedures, to achieve college-level learning.

Mascot

In 2020, Empire State University named its first-ever mascot, Blue the Bluebird. A campus-wide vote took place and Blue the Bluebird beat out other finalists, Cam the Chameleon and Van the Vanguard. Students, faculty, staff, and alumni cast 9,922 total votes in the finals. The bluebird is

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

's state bird.

Presidents

Academics

The university offers undergraduate and graduate

distance education Distance education, also known as distance learning, is the education of students who may not always be physically present at school, or where the learner and the teacher are separated in both time and distance; today, it usually involves online ...

, extensive transfers of credits from other universities, prior-learning assessment for knowledge gained through independent studies, standardized evaluations, and the opportunity to design one's own degree with an academic advisor or mentor.

Rankings

In 2024, '' U.S. News & World Report'' ranked Empire State University No.151-165 out of 171 Regional Universities North, No.57-60 in Top Public Schools, tied at No.392 in Nursing, and No.161 in Top Performers on Social Mobility.

Notable alumni

* Stephen Chan (American politician), NY State Senator * Amy Arbus (2003), photographer * Ita Aber, artist and curator *

Kenny Barron Kenneth Barron (born June 9, 1943) is an American jazz pianist and composer who has appeared on hundreds of recordings as leader and sideman and is considered one of the most influential mainstream jazz pianists since the bebop era. Early life ...

(1978), jazz pianist * Ginny Brown-Waite (1976), former member

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

* Herman Benson (1975), Union Reformer * Dawoud Bey (1990), photographer * Frank Enea (1993), musician and composer *

Alice Fulton Alice Fulton (born 1952) is an American author of poetry, fiction, and nonfiction. Fulton is the Ann S. Bowers Professor of English Emerita at Cornell University. Her awards include the American Academy of Arts and Letters Award in Literature, ...

(1978), English professor, winner of the 1991 MacArthur Fellows Program Award, commonly referred to as the "genius" award, for poetry * Susan Gibney, actress * Deborah Gregory (1986), author of ''Cheetah Girls'' * Karl Grossman (1976), professor of journalism SUNY Old Westbury, author, TV program host *

Bob Herbert Robert Herbert (born March 7, 1945) is an American journalist and former op-ed columnist for ''The New York Times''. His column was syndicated to other newspapers around the country. Herbert frequently writes on poverty, the Iraq War, racism a ...

(1988), ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' columnist * Rich Hickey (1992), creator of

Clojure Clojure (, like ''closure'') is a dynamic programming language, dynamic and functional programming, functional dialect (computing), dialect of the programming language Lisp (programming language), Lisp on the Java (software platform), Java platfo ...

programming language * Erick Johnson, American contemporary artist * Bernard Kerik (2002), former Commissioner of the

New York Police Department The City of New York Police Department, also referred to as New York City Police Department (NYPD), is the primary law enforcement agency within New York City. Established on May 23, 1845, the NYPD is the largest, and one of the oldest, munic ...

* James J. LeCleir (1974), U.S. Air Force Major General * Steven McLaughlin, member of the

New York State Assembly The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Ass ...

, County Executive of

Rensselaer County, New York Rensselaer County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 161,130. Its county seat is Troy, New York, Troy. The county is named ...

* Kathy Muehlemann (1978), abstract painter & professor * Elliott Murphy (1988), singer-songwriter & author * Mae Ngai (1992) historian,

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

* Alan Rachins (1974), television actor * Mark J.F. Schroeder (1982), New York Commissioner of Motor Vehicles * Norman Seabrook, former president Of New York City Correction Officers' Benevolent Association (1995–2016), convicted on corruption charges * James M. Sheppard (1999), chief of the Rochester Police Department and member of the Monroe County Legislature * Melba Tolliver (1998), journalist, reporter, and news anchor *

Herb Trimpe Herbert William Trimpe (; May 26, 1939 – April 13, 2015) was an American comics artist and occasional writer, best known as the seminal 1970s artist on '' The Incredible Hulk'' and as the first artist to draw for publication the character Wol ...

(1997), artist on "The Incredible Hulk" comic series *

Bob Watson Robert José Watson (April 10, 1946May 14, 2020) was an American professional baseball player, Coach (baseball), coach and General manager (baseball), general manager. He played in Major League Baseball as a first baseman and left fielder from ...

(1999), major league baseball player and executive * Reggie Witherspoon (1995), college basketball coach

References

External links

* {{Coord, 43.0777, -73.7826, region:US_type:edu, display=title State University of New York university colleges Public universities and colleges in New York (state) Distance education institutions based in the United States Buildings and structures in Saratoga Springs, New York Universities and colleges on Long Island Tourist attractions in Rockland County, New York Universities and colleges in Rockland County, New York Universities and colleges in Syracuse, New York *