History

= Stevenson University Highlights   1947-2010  =


 * 2010 **
 * Stevenson welcomes its largest freshman class to date during its August 19 Convocation, the first convocation to be held in the new Gymnasium on the Owings Mills campus.
 * On August 12, the new Stevenson Football Team holds it first practice on the turf field at Owings Mills. During the practice, a new Mustangs Athletics logo is unveiled to the campus and sports media.
 * In July, CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield awards a $25,000 grant in support of a Community Health Simulation Program for Stevenson’s nursing program.
 * In June, the University receives a $100,000 Walmart College Success Award to help first-generation college students.
 * ** Stevenson University’s School of Graduate and Professional Studies ** releases its first annual //Stevenson University Forensics Journal//, an outgrowth of the School’s master’s programs in forensic studies and forensic science.
 * On May 21, Wikipedia.com co-founder Jimmy Wales helps to celebrate the last commencement in the Greenspring Gymnasium as the keynote speaker for the Class of 2010. Future commencements will be held in the new 60,000-square-foot Gymnasium on the Owings Mills campus, set to open by fall 2010.
 * The men’s lacrosse team enters 2010 ranked No. 1 in the nation among Division III teams and heads for the NCAA Division III Play-Offs after winning the CAC Championship against archrival Salisbury University in April.
 * On April 29, the University dedicates its new mock trial courtroom to local attorney and mediator Francis X. Pugh, Esq., long-time Trustee and the founding director of the paralegal studies program at what was then Villa Julie College.
 * Thomas Coogan, Associate Professor and Coordinator of the Forensic Studies Program, receives a Fulbright Scholar Award to lecture at the University of Malta during the spring semester of 2011.
 * In February, after a survey of December 2008 and May 2009 graduates, Stevenson announces that 95 percent of its graduates were placed in jobs or graduate programs by the end of 2009.
 * Stevenson introduces a new bachelor’s program in Fashion Merchandising and a Master’s in Nursing Education and Leadership.
 * Stevenson is named to the 2009 President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll, the highest federal recognition a college or university can receive for its commitment to volunteering, service learning, and civic engagement.
 * A new entrance to the Owings Mills campus opens on Owings Mills Boulevard.
 * The University announces the completion of //Inspiring Students, Building Careers: The Campaign for Stevenson University//, which raises more than $20.4 million in support for Stevenson.


 * 2009 **
 * On November 18, Stevenson introduces its first Head Football Coach, Ed Hottle, during a morning press conference held inside the former Ravens Practice “Bubble” on the Owings Mills campus.
 * The University dedicates the Avalon Community Center on the Owings Mills campus to the late Donald B. Ratcliffe, architect and long-serving SU Board member, on Founder’s Day.
 * In August, the University opens its newest residence hall, Wooded Way Hall. The name hearkens back to Villa Julie’s first residence hall. The hall hosts a variety of student experiential learning communities, and its ground floor houses the new offices of career services and the Stevenson’s signature “Learning Beyond” program.
 * In June, SU announces the launch of football, bringing its number of NCAA Division III men’s and women’s sports to 20.
 * NPR’s Juan Williams is the keynote speaker for the University’s 2009 commencement on May 15. He is awarded an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters.
 * The University’s $20 million comprehensive campaign reaches at total of $18.8 million in total donations as of May 1. The campaign is set to conclude on December 31, 2009.
 * In April, the University welcomes entrepreneur and publisher Steve Forbes, Lt. Governor Anthony Brown, and other dignitaries to its Owings Mills campus to announce the naming of the new School of Business and Leadership as the Howard S. Brown School of Business and Leadership in honor of Baltimore builder and developer Howard S. Brown. The School is to be known as the Brown School of Business and Leadership.
 * University sees surge in numbers of applicants, which surpass the 2008 total by 10%.
 * Stevenson’s nursing program is accredited by the Board of Commissioners for the National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission (NLNAC), receiving eight years of continuing accreditation, the maximum number of years NLNAC can award.
 * The University’s Men’s Lacrosse Team climbs to No. 1 in the NCAA Division III national rankings only to fall back to No. 4 after being defeated by archrival Salisbury University in the Capitol Athletic Conference championship game. Nonetheless, the team’s 15-1 record-setting season earns them a second round game in their first NCAA Division III Men’s Lacrosse Championship.
 * In March, President Kevin J. Manning, Ph.D., approves the University Restructuring Plan adopted by the Faculty Council, effectively creating a six school structure headed by deans: the School of Design, the School of Education, the School of the Sciences, the School of Humanities and Social Sciences, the School of Business and Leadership, and the School of Graduate and Professional Studies.
 * The University opens its new state-of-the-art Mock Trial Courtroom located in the School of Business and Leadership.
 * Stevenson launches “The Career Place” branding campaign to reinforce its new name and its distinct focus on career-preparation.
 * In January, the University changes its policy and allows freshmen to bring cars to the campus after President Kevin J. Manning, Ph.D. approves plans to add a 500-space parking lot to accommodate the parking needs of new students.


 * 2008 **
 * Stevenson University opens a new library in the School of Business and Leadership for students on the Owings Mills campus.
 * The University celebrates Founders Day on October 1, recognizing the leaders critical to its growth and development. Three buildings on the Greenspring campus are dedicated with new names. The Student Union is named the Carolyn Manuszak Student Union after the long-time Villa Julie College President. The Rose Dawson Academic Center recognizes the former Academic Dean who served alongside President Manuszak. The Learning Resource Center—home of the Library and Administrative Offices—is named the Villa Julie Administration Building to honor the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, who founded Villa Julie College.
 * In August, the new School of Business and Leadership building opens on the Owings Mills campus.
 * The 2009 edition of //U.S. News & World Report//’s America’s Best Colleges, released in August, ranks Stevenson as the // only “School to Watch” in the Northern Region of Baccalaureate Colleges. // The “Up-and-Coming Schools/Schools to Watch” category recognizes only 70 select institutions that are making promising and innovative changes in academics, faculty, students, campus, or facilities.
 * On June 11, 2008, the College’s Board votes unanimously to change the name of the institution, and the name Stevenson University is unveiled to the media on June 12. The Board votes to keep the Villa Julie name alive by creating the Villa Julie College of Arts and Sciences as part of Stevenson University.
 * The College starts a long phase of quantitative and qualitative research to determine the best name for the new university. Alumni, current students, prospective students, and their families are among the groups surveyed for their opinion on the new name.
 * In April, the College is reaccredited by the Middle States Commission.
 * The College becomes one of the few institutions in the country offering an online RN to BS nursing degree.
 * In March, the College becomes Maryland’s first institution to establish a teacher preparation program designed specifically for middle school education.
 * Dr. Shelton Rhodes is appointed to head the College’s newly-formed School of Business and Leadership.
 * President Kevin J. Manning, Ph.D., is named a 2008 Influential Marylander by //The Daily Record//.


 * 2007 **
 * The College announces a $20 million expansion project on its Owings Mills campus that will include a new gymnasium, a new entrance from Owings Mills Boulevard, expanded parking, and a 300-bed residential building.
 * President Kevin J. Manning, Ph.D., receives the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year**®** 2007 Award in the Education category in Maryland. Awards are given to entrepreneurs who have demonstrated excellence and extraordinary success in such areas as innovation, financial performance, and personal commitment to their businesses and communities.
 * At a special event featuring Baseball Hall of Fame member Cal Ripken, Jr., the College announces the largest fundraising event in its history. //Inspiring Students, Building Careers: The Campaign for Villa Julie// will strive to raise $20 million to support the new School of Business, the endowment, and special projects.
 * Villa Julie rises to its highest spot in the //U.S. News & World Report// rankings, finishing 13th among the 69 Comprehensive Colleges-Bachelor’s for the North Region.
 * Villa Julie unveils a year’s worth of activities as part of the College’s 60th anniversary celebration. The events include the first Founders Day ceremony on October 1. The College also publishes a history book covering Villa Julie’s first 60 years.
 * The College breaks ground on a new academic building to house the School of Business on the Owings Mills campus. Lt. Governor Anthony Brown leads a group of distinguished visitors at the event. The 60,000-square-foot building will include a mock trial courtroom, 14 classrooms, five computer labs, six seminar rooms, and 24 faculty offices.
 * The Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) selects the College to be the state’s University Affiliate for the new Project Lead The Way (PLTW) Biomedical Sciences Program. Teachers from Baltimore City and eight Maryland counties spend two weeks at Villa Julie over the summer learning from VJC instructors how to better prepare high school students for college science courses.
 * ** Villa Julie ** is chosen as the top four-year institution in the country for the ** 2007 Datatel Partner in Excellence Award ****, ** awarded by national software engineering firm ** Datatel, Inc. ** The award recognizes the College’s collaboration with the company in the College’s implementation of new software initiatives designed to streamline student, faculty, and staff data.
 * College Health Nurse Pam Kelleman, RN, receives the E. Dean Lovett Award at the American College Health Association (ACHA) conference in San Antonio earlier this summer. The honor recognizes ACHA members who have directed or contributed significantly to the development of a college health program. Kelleman helped Villa Julie become the top participating college or university in the country on National Alcohol Screening Day.


 * 2006 **
 * Villa Julie College announces plans to open a School of Business, to be used by the business and information technology programs, housed in a new 60,000-square-foot building next to Garrison Hall. Groundbreaking is set to begin in 2007.
 * The Owings Mills campus opens Rockland Center (dining and student center) and the Caves Sports and Wellness Center in the fall. At Stevenson, renovations on the Exchange create new space for the music program, and the expanded Nursing Skills Lab offers a new home for SimMan, a life-like manikin designed to develop the clinical skills of nursing students.
 * The College welcomed its largest freshman class—more than 650 students—for the 2006-07 academic year. More than 70 percent of the incoming class will live in on-campus housing at the Owings Mills campus.
 * Villa Julie College takes the successful Master’s in Forensic Studies program online after the Commission on Higher Education, Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, the highest standard for accreditation, approves an expanded version of the degree.
 * Villa Julie’s Nursing Division receives the College’s largest grant, $1 million, from the Maryland Health Services Cost Review Commission's (HSCRC) Nursing Support Program II to expand the College’s already successful nursing program. The Division also receives a federal grant just shy of $1M to expand the RN-to-BS program.
 * In May, the College has a record-breaking commencement with more than 500 students, the largest graduating class in Villa Julie history. The ceremony includes the first graduates from the Master’s in Forensic Studies and Public History undergraduate programs. Dr. Neal Baer, M.D., executive producer of //Law & Order: Special Victims Unit// was the speaker.
 * The College announces its plan to sponsor the Baltimore Speaker Series at the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall, set to begin in September 2006. Villa Julie will welcome some of America’s top speakers to Baltimore with a lineup of seven speakers to appear through April 2007.
 * The first annual National Career Conference: Integrating a Career Culture in Your Institution was sponsored by the College. The event was a huge success as the College welcomed career professionals and administrators from 165 colleges and universities from the U.S., Canada, and the Middle East.

** 2005 **
 * Villa Julie receives the largest research grant in school history, a five-year, $500,000 award from the National Institutes of Health to establish an Office of Research and Development.
 * The Nursing Division is recognized by //The Daily Record// with an “Innovator of the Year” award for its nursing distance education program that spreads the RN to BS program across the state. Earlier in the year, //The Daily Record// recognized the Division at the “Healthcare Heroes” awards for the community outreach efforts in trying to increase the number of nurses in Maryland//.//
 * Villa Julie purchases the two-story office building at the Owings Mills campus that already housed 20,000 square feet of classrooms and offices before the College purchased the 60,000-square-foot facility.
 * Villa Julie moves up in the //U.S. News & World Report// rankings and received recognition as a “Best Value”. The College was ranked 14th among Comprehensive Colleges-Bachelor’s for the North Region. The ranking, the highest ever for Villa Julie, puts the College in the top 25 percent of similar colleges from Maine to Maryland. In the “Great Schools, Great Prices” rankings, Villa Julie was rated 9th among Comprehensive Colleges-Bachelor’s for the North Region.
 * Villa Julie opens the first of three planned suite-style residence buildings that accommodate between three and four students in a mixture of single and double bedrooms, bringing the resident population to nearly 800 students. The College names the residence buildings and community center after historical sites in Baltimore County, such as the Avalon Inn and various valleys, including Cromwell Valley and Worthington Valley.
 * **Culminating several years of planning and negotiations, the College** agrees to buy the former Baltimore Ravens training facility from the City of Baltimore. The facility, originally built in the late 1970s for the Baltimore Colts, covers 33 acres, including 20 acres of unusable wetlands. The purchase brings Villa Julie’s Owings Mills site to 48 acres. The facility includes two full-sized fields (one of them on artificial turf) suitable for soccer and lacrosse, and one half-sized field. A men’s lacrosse game on April 9 marked the first official contest at the facility.
 * **Kevin G. Byrnes** is elected Chair of the Board of Trustees. Byrnes, President and Chief Operating Officer of Provident Bank, takes over from Charles E. “Ted” Herget, Jr., who steps down after 30 years on the Board.
 * // The Daily Record // honors Dr. Barbara Payne Shelton, Ph.D., Director of the Early Childhood Leadership program, as one of Maryland’s Top 100 Women.
 * Villa Julie College joined the Maryland Interlibrary Consortium (MIC), which allows area college libraries to share their collections using a courier service so students can get books within 24 hours. Through the MIC, students will have access to 750,000 volumes plus journal articles.
 * ** The College ** dedicates a new pair of research laboratories. A lead gift from an anonymous donor initiated the renovation of two classrooms into the labs, one for biology and one for chemistry. Becton-Dickinson followed with an additional support gift.
 * ** Villa Julie ** added to its diverse list of academic majors with the announcement of a Bachelor of Science in Medical Technology (MT). The program will replace the Associate of Applied Science degree in Medical Laboratory Technology (MLT), the last two-year program offered by Villa Julie.


 * 2004**
 * ** Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski ** visits **Villa Julie College** to announce $248,000 in federal funding for the College’s Nursing Distance Learning Program. The federal funds will expand the distance learning initiative beyond Chesapeake College, the first site using distance learning with Villa Julie. The money will expand the technology at the Verizon Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning, where distance learning classes take place on Villa Julie's campus. The money will also pay for additional staff and faculty to teach the classes and support students.
 * Rankings in //U.S. News & World Report// put Villa Julie at its highest position ever, 16th among Comprehensive Colleges-North Region, which stretches from Maryland to Maine. The ranking represents a spot in the top 25 percent of similar colleges in the region.
 * Villa Julie opens its first College-owned housing complex. The Owings Mills site has seven residential buildings housing more than 540 students.
 * The College announces plans to build more housing and an academic building at the Owings Mills site. The next phase of housing is scheduled to open in fall 2005 with an academic center scheduled for a fall 2006 opening. A $2.2 million state grant will help fund the academic center.
 * ** Villa Julie joined its first athletic conference, the North East Athletic Conference (NEAC). **
 * ** Two new master’s programs were approved by the state for Villa Julie students. The Master’s in Forensic Studies will offer an accelerated program beginning in August 2004. The Master’s in Forensic Science will debut in fall 2005. **
 * ** Thanks to a gift from Verizon, the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CET) opens in August 2004. The Center has classes beamed to other locations via full-motion video. Additionally, faculty can participate in training for technology at the CET. **
 * // The Daily Record // honors Associate Dean Joyce Becker, Esq., and Lois Fenner McBride, Esq., Lecturer/Assistant Professor of Law, as two of Maryland’s Top 100 Women. McBride joins the Circle of Excellence for being named to the Top 100 Women list three times.


 * 2003**
 * Villa Julie unveils plans to build a second campus on Owings Mills Boulevard, starting with the construction of garden-style apartments to house more than 500 students. Construction of the campus, which will also include a community center, will be completed in time for the fall 2004 semester.
 * The Verizon Foundation awards $25,000 to continue the career education programs for science majors developed by the Science Department and //Career HQ®// staff.
 * The School of Graduate and Professional Studies introduces the area’s first accelerated programs for adult students in paralegal, business administration, nursing, and other areas of study.
 * President Kevin J. Manning, Ph.D., is selected as one of Maryland’s //Innovators of the Year// by //The Daily Record// for his introduction of the values-based career planning process of //Career Architecture// SM.


 * 2002 **
 * Villa Julie is named as one of the 2002 “Best Values in Education” by the //U.S. News & World Report’s// ranking for Northern Comprehensive Colleges.
 * The College receives more than $250,000 from the Peter Bauer estate. Mr. Bauer, a resident and merchant of Roland Park, requested that the money be used to fund scholarships.
 * Villa Julie College is one of four finalists in the American Marketing Association’s Marketing Excellence Awards for the //“Imagine your future. Design your career.®”// campaign.
 * For the first time in the College’s history, two commencement ceremonies are held to accommodate the largest graduating class. Four sets of twins helped make up the class of just under 350 students.
 * The Board of Trustees elects Charles E. “Ted” Herget, Jr. as Chairman of the Board of Trustees. He assumes the role from Donald B. Ratcliffe, AIA, who has held the position since 1989.
 * The Verizon Foundation awards a $20,000 grant to Villa Julie to help science students and other freshmen at the campus broaden their knowledge of science career opportunities and their life goals.
 * // The Daily Record // honors Ellen Yerman, Director of Career Services, and Lois Fenner McBride, R.N., Lecturer/Assistant Professor of Law, as two of Maryland’s Top 100 Women. Villa Julie Board member The Hon. Helen Delich Bentley joins the Circle of Excellence for being named to the Top 100 Women list three times.
 * Villa Julie leases off-campus apartments at The Colony in Towson for more than 300 students. Formerly, the College had off-campus housing at the Wooded Way apartments near Pikesville.
 * The Lumina Foundation names Villa Julie as one of the 100 Most Affordable Private Colleges to lower income families in the United States.


 * 2001 **
 * // U.S. News & World Report // names Villa Julie as one of the nation’s best comprehensive colleges.
 * The College’s Partnerships and Student Success (PASS) is one of seven schools nationwide to receive a 2001 Retention Excellence Award from Noel-Levitz. PASS partners freshmen with VJC faculty and staff mentors to help ease the transition into the academic and social environments of college.
 * Villa Julie’s paralegal program receives a seven-year renewal from the American Bar Association.
 * MHEC endorses a new Master’s of Science degree program in Business & Technology Management.
 * The Villa Julie College/Union Memorial Hospital Nursing Program presents the first three graduates in the RN to BS option, a distinctive approach for registered nurses to earn a bachelor’s degree.


 * 2000**
 * Kevin J. Manning, Ph.D., assumes his role as Villa Julie’s fourth president. A week of events are held on campus leading up to Inauguration on Saturday, Oct. 28. Dr. Robert Shiller, renowned Yale economist/author speaks to local executives, faculty, staff, and students as part of Inauguration week activities.
 * Villa Julie wins Network 2000’s //Business 2000 Award// recognizing the College for its demonstrated commitment to the advancement and support of women.
 * The College offers accelerated BS/MS in Advanced Information Technology, enabling students to earn both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in five years.
 * MHEC endorses three new bachelor’s programs for Villa Julie including Early Childhood Leadership, Business Communications, and Family Studies.
 * Villa Julie’s Education Division receives three Higher Education grants totaling $120,000 to establish new professional development schools and to support the ones already in progress.
 * Villa Julie and Union Memorial Hospital announce four-year Nursing Education Agreement.
 * The College’s scholarship fund receives a $300,000 grant from the France-Merrick Foundation and $20,000 from the William G. McGowan Charitable Fund.
 * Inscape Theatre presents the first production of a new script version of the rock musical //Hair.// Co-author James Rado and original lyricist Galt MacDermot attend the production.


 * 1999**
 * College honors retiring President Carolyn Manuszak and Vice President and Dean of Students Rose Dawson for their more than 30 years of service to the college.
 * Villa Julie receives a $200,000 endowment gift from PHH Foundation in honor of Jerome W. Geckle, a member of the VJC Board of Trustees for 15 years and Chairman of the Board for 2.5 years, to establish The Jerome W. Geckle Professorship in Information Technologies.


 * 1998**
 * The College establishes a Professional Development School within its Early Childhood Education program.
 * New Science Center opens with leading-edge research facilities and equipment.
 * Middle States Association reaffirms Villa Julie’s accreditation.
 * 1,000 people attend the dedication of Villa Julie’s new buildings.
 * Fiftieth Anniversary celebration concludes with representatives from each of Villa Julie’s fifty graduating classes returning to march in the Academic Procession during Commencement Exercises.


 * 1997**
 * Fiftieth Anniversary Celebration begins with Cornerstone Laying and lecture by Pulitzer Prize-winning historian, David McCullough.
 * New Academic Center, Theatre, and Art Gallery open in August. New Student Union/Gymnasium opens in November.
 * Maryland Higher Education Commission (MHEC) endorses five new bachelor’s programs in Biology, Chemistry, Interdisciplinary Studies, English, and Psychology.


 * 1996**
 * Master’s program in Advanced Information Systems approved.
 * State awards $3.5M matching facilities grant.
 * The architectural design of Villa Julie’s two new buildings wins award sponsored by the Baltimore Chapter of the American Institute of Architects.


 * 1995**
 * Off-campus housing expands to three facilities, 86 students.
 * National League of Nursing accredits Nursing Program.
 * Teacher Education Certification Program receives approval from the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE).


 * 1994**
 * US Department of Education awards $516,000 for 5-year cooperative education program.
 * Board approves master’s program in Advanced Information Technologies; state approval process begins.
 * Athletic programs accepted into NCAA Division III.


 * 1993**
 * Off-campus student housing opens at Wooded Way.
 * Middle States Association reaffirms full accreditation.


 * 1991**
 * Villa Julie College/Union Memorial Hospital partnership/bachelor’s degree program in Nursing is established.


 * 1989**
 * **“**Million Dollar Campaign” raises $1M in half-year for scholarships.


 * 1988**
 * State approves bachelor’s degree programs in Liberal Arts and Technology, Business Systems, Business Systems/Computer Accounting, and Business Systems/Business Information Systems.
 * Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools accredits Villa Julie College as a four-year college.


 * 1985**
 * State approves bachelor’s degree program in Paralegal Studies.


 * 1984**
 * Villa Julie becomes a four-year college by offering a bachelor’s degree in Computer Information Systems.


 * 1972**
 * Villa Julie officially becomes a co-educational college with the admission of male students on a full-time basis. Males had attended the College on a part-time basis for several years.


 * 1967**
 * A newly formed Board of Trustees takes over governance, making Villa Julie College independent.


 * 1947**
 * Villa Julie Medical-Secretarial School opens on October 1.