Boston State College
Boston, Massachusetts
1852-1982
E-Travel
Having attended conferences at Northeastern University, I have been in the neighborhood of the old Boston State College. The University of Massachusetts-Boston has made available digital copies of various Boston State College annuals on Internet Archive. The earliest yearbook dates from 1917; the last from 1980.
History
In its 130-year history, Boston State College moved from a high school for girls with an enrollment of 86 to an urban co-educational, multi-disciplinary college of 11,000 students.
Known as Girls High School in 1852, it became Boston Normal School in 1872, with the teacher training portion separated from the high school. In 1904 males were admitted for the first time. In 1924 the school took the name Teachers College of the City of Boston and became the first normal school in the nation to require a four-year high school degree for admission. Two years later it was gived the authority to offer a Masters in Education degree. In 1942 it received accredidation from the AACTE, the national accrediting body for institutions of teacher education.
In 1952 Boston State was received into the state system under the name State Teachers College at Boston, and in 1960 it took the name Boston State College. In 1975 it awarded 527 Bachelors degrees and 330 Masters degrees. In addition to education, students earned degrees in urban studies, regional studies, art, music, nursing, psychology, philosophy, and physical education.
With an urban campus and a multi-cultural student body, Boston State offered a number of clubs and activities for its students. These included an international coffee club, a social club, a ski club, an Irish club, a biology club, and a women’s perspective organization.
The history of Boston State College sadly came to a close in 1982, the result of cost-cutting by the state. Having created a University of Massachusetts branch in Boston in 1964, the state then closed Boston State as a separate entity
Bricks and Mortar
After occupying various locations, in 1907 the Boston Normal School got a permanent building at 625 Huntington Avenue in the Longwood Medical District, surrounded by Northeastern University, Harvard Medical College, Boston Latin School and Simmons College. After becoming a state college, Boston added to the campus. The Kennedy Building opened in 1964 and the Fenway Building opened in 1970.
The campus is now occupied by the Massachusetts College of Art and Design.
(Left) Aerial view of the Boston State College campus in 1975. The 1907 buildings are the square to the right.(Lampas <archive.org/details/yearbook1975bost) accessed 11-17-2017
Sports
Team name: Warriors
Colors: Green and Gold
Boston State did not begin intercollegiate sports until 1948, when it fielded a men’s basketball team. Although hampered by lack of facilities, the school ultimately competed successfully in 20 men’s and women’s sports. Athletics at Boston State ended with the women’s basketball team competing in the D-III National Invitational Tournament.
The school played football only for the final 11 years of its existence. Both the first and last Warrior teams finished with only a single win. But they enjoyed four winning seasons. Both the 1975 team (7-3) and the 1978 team (6-3) were co-champions of the New England Football Conference. The 1978 team played all nine games on the road.
In 1932 the Women Athletic Association organized intramural activities such as tennis, softball and field hockey. These activities morphed into women's intercollegiate sports. (Lampas <archive.org/stream/yearbook1932teac#page/128/mode/2up>) accessed 11-17-2017
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