Lehman College ( LEE-mən) is a public college in New York City, United States. Founded in 1931 as the Bronx campus of Hunter College, it became an independent college in 1967. The college is named after Herbert H. Lehman, a former New York governor, United States senator, and philanthropist. It is a senior college of the City University of New York (CUNY) and offers more than 90 undergraduate and graduate degree programs and specializations.
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History
The Bronx Branch of Hunter College was first established in 1931.
The campus was the main national training ground for women in the military during World War II. For a decade before the entry of the United States in World War II, only women students attended, taking their first two years of study at the Bronx campus and then transferring to Hunter's Manhattan campus to complete their undergraduate work. During the war, Hunter leased the Bronx Campus buildings to the United States Navy who used the facilities to train 95,000 women volunteers for military service as WAVES and SPARS.
When the Navy vacated the campus, the site was occupied for six months in 1946 by the nascent United Nations, which held its first Security Council sessions at the Bronx campus. From March to August 1946, the first American meetings of the United Nations Security Council were held in the Gymnasium Building where intercollegiate basketball, archery, swimming, and other sports have been played. During festivities marking the 40th anniversary of the United Nations in 1986, the Southern New York State Division of the United Nations Association presented the college with a commemorative plaque, now displayed outside the Gymnasium Building. The college participated in the United Nations' 50th anniversary activities in 1995–96.
The process of separating Lehman College from its Hunter College-affiliated predecessor began in 1967, culminating in the establishment of an independent unit of the City University of New York on July 1, 1968. This new college, known as Herbert H. Lehman College or Lehman College, was established as a senior undergraduate college. The newly established school was named after Herbert H. Lehman, the former, four-term governor of New York. Lehman College's founding president was Leonard Lief.
A Lehman-Hiroshima campus existed from 1990 to 1994. This campus was established as a study-abroad opportunity for CUNY students as well as an institution for Japanese students to experience an American education system.
President Lief was succeeded by Ricardo R. Fernández in 1991. In 2016, José Luis Cruz was appointed as the third president of the college. In 2019, Cruz was appointed as the CUNY Executive Vice Chancellor and stepped down from the Lehman presidency. On February 21, 2021, the CUNY board of trustees appointed Fernando Delgado to succeed interim president Daniel Lemons as the fourth president of the college.
Campus
Lehman has a 37-acre (15 hectare) campus with a combination of Collegiate Gothic and modern architecture, located near the Jerome Park Reservoir at 250 Bedford Park Boulevard West (250 West 200th Street). The school's architects were Kerr Rainsford, John A. Thompson, and Gerald A. Holmes; they had earlier designed the Archdiocesan Cathedral of the Holy Trinity in Manhattan's Upper East Side.
Lehman College houses a multimedia center in Carman Hall, comprising an acoustically designed recording studio, audio and video production control rooms, editing suites, student newsroom, media conversion room, graphics room, and "technology-enhanced" classrooms. BronxNet public access channel is also headquartered in Carman Hall, where many programs are produced including Bronx Talk and Open.
In 2012, Lehman dedicated its new $70 million Science Hall, a four-story building equipped with high-tech classrooms and laboratories, as well as a rooftop teaching and research greenhouse. In 2013, Science Hall was awarded a LEED platinum rating from the U.S. Green Building Council, the first CUNY building to earn the top green building rating. Leslie E. Robertson Associates (LERA) served as the structural engineers for this project.
The Lehman College Center for the Performing Arts is a professional theater which seats 2,310. The campus is also home to the Lehman College Art Gallery.
The Apex, Lehman College's post-modern style athletic and fitness facility, opened in 1994. Designed by architect Rafael Viñoly, the Apex stands in contrast to the original Gothic Revival buildings that define the campus.
In 2024, Lehman opened a new building dedicated to nursing. The $95 million building, designed by Urbahn Architects, is four stories high.
Public transit access
The New York City Subway's Bedford Park Boulevard–Lehman College station, served by the 4 train, is located near the campus and is named for the college. The college can also be reached with the Bx10, Bx25, Bx26 or Bx28 bus.
Student life
Students at Lehman College are from multiple ethnic and racial identities, multiple language backgrounds, various social classes, and diverse sexual orientations with many international students.
Enrollment (2023–2024 academic year) of Lehman College:
Undergraduates: 11,227
Graduate students: 1,884
Total: 13,111 students
Academics
Lehman College is organized into six schools, plus the Macaulay Honors College. Lehman College offers undergraduate and graduate programs in its Schools of Arts & Humanities, School of Education, School of Natural and Social Sciences, School of Business, School of Health Sciences, Human Services, and Nursing, and School of Continuing Education.
Macaulay Honors College at Lehman
The highly selective Macaulay Honors College at Lehman provides a full tuition scholarship, Apple laptop computer, and opportunities fund of $7,500 that can be used for various activities such as study abroad, reimbursements for internships or research, and service learning. Students in the honors college are required to take 4 seminars relating to New York City, maintain a 3.5 grade point average, and graduate within four years. They also must take four Lehman Scholars Program Seminars, or "LSP"s.
Lehman Scholars Program
The Lehman Scholars Program is designed for capable and highly motivated students who have the desire and ability to pursue a somewhat more independent liberal arts course of study. The program includes special courses, seminars, and individual counseling. Students in the program are exempt from all of the normal degree requirements. They must, however, pass the CUNY Skills Assessment Tests to be admitted to the program and meet all course prerequisites and requirements for their major field.
College Now
The College Now program allows selected high school students to take college courses. The program is offered during the spring, summer and fall semesters and the courses are taught at the main Lehman campus.
Freshman Year Initiative
The Freshman Year Initiative is a program involving "blocks" of classes, similar to many high schools, which allows for new and first year students to get to know each other and become familiar with the college environment. All first-year students participate in the program, which promotes an interdisciplinary curriculum, faculty collaboration, and peer support. All students take mathematics and writing courses as well as a Freshman Seminar when they arrive to prepare them for the rest of their college courses.
Research
Mexican Studies Institute at CUNY
The Mexican Studies Institute at CUNY includes faculty, students, staff, and community organizations focused on research, advocacy, and services related to Mexico and Mexicans in the U.S. Its goals are to create courses and programs across CUNY campuses, support Mexican and Mexican-American student success, host annual conferences and events on Mexican topics, and serve as a resource and hub for community-based organizations. The institute also provides internships, research assistantships, and service-learning opportunities for students with institutions serving New York City's Mexican population.
Institute for Irish-American Studies
The CUNY Institute for Irish-American Studies (IIAS): Located at Lehman College in the Bronx, New York, the IIAS is a research unit that supports scholars and students studying Irish and Irish American history, culture, and society. They offer public events, distance education courses, and publications.
CUNY Institute for Health Equity
The central aim of the City University of New York (CUNY) Institute for Health Equity (CIHE) is to coordinate research, teaching, service, and community engagement to eliminate health inequalities, reduce health disparities, and promote health.
Athletics
Lehman College teams participate as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division III. The Lightning Bugs are a member of the City University of New York Athletic Conference (CUNYAC). Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, soccer, swimming & diving, track & field, tennis and volleyball; women's sports include basketball, cross country, soccer, softball, swimming & diving, tennis, track & field, volleyball, and cheerleading.
In 2012–13, the Lightning Bugs won CUNYAC Championships in men's swimming and diving and women's outdoor track and field. The school produced two All-Americans in women's outdoor track: Tobi Alli (100 m) and Jasmine Springer (triple jump).
Conference affiliations
Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC)
Notable faculty
There are nearly 400 full-time faculty. Notable faculty include:
Allison Amend (born 1974), professor of English, novelist, and short story writer
Michael Bacon, associate professor of music, Lehman alumnus, and Emmy Award winning composer and songwriter; performs in the band the Bacon Brothers with his brother Kevin Bacon
Jason Behrstock, professor of mathematics and computer science, Sloan Fellowship winner
Laird W. Bergad, distinguished professor of Latin American and Puerto Rican studies
Jerome Charyn, former professor of English, novelist, and film critic
Eugene M. Chudnovsky, distinguished professor of physics
Jane K. Cleland, lecturer in English
Billy Collins, professor emeritus of English, United States Poet Laureate 2001–2003
John Corigliano, distinguished professor emeritus of music, Academy Award winner
María Teresa Babín Cortés, professor emeritus of Latin American and Latino studies
Joseph W. Dauben, distinguished professor of history
J. Yellowlees Douglas, former assistant professor of English
Martin Duberman, distinguished professor emeritus of history
Notable alumni
André Aciman, writer, author of Call Me by Your Name, and professor at CUNY Graduate Center
Debo Adegbile, commissioner for the United States Civil Rights Commission
Andrea Apolo, medical oncologist and researcher at the National Cancer Institute
Gary Axelbank, journalist, disk jockey and TV personality based in the Bronx
Diana Ayala, politician, New York City Council member for the 8th district and deputy speaker of the New York City Council
Michael Bacon, Emmy Award-winning composer and songwriter, and associate professor of music at Lehman College; performs in the band the Bacon Brothers with his brother Kevin Bacon
Jacqueline Bishop, writer, visual artist and photographer from Jamaica and a professor at New York University
Steven Contursi, businessman and numismatist
Blondell Cummings, modern dancer and choreographer
Rubén Díaz Jr., borough president of the Bronx in New York City 2009–2021
Rubén Díaz Sr., member of the Democratic Party; represented the 32nd district in the New York State Senate 2003–2017
Jeffrey Dinowitz, politician who represents District 81 in the New York State Assembly
Brandon M. Easton, professional writer, screenwriter, and educator