Springfield College is a private university in Springfield, Massachusetts, United States. The institution's mission, called the Humanics philosophy, calls for educating students in spirit, mind, and body for leadership in service to others. It is also notable for its historical significance as the birthplace of basketball, which was invented on campus in 1891 by Canadian-American instructor and graduate student James Naismith.
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History
Founded in 1885, as the Young Men's Christian Association department of the School for Christian Workers in Springfield, the school originally specialized in preparing young men to become General Secretaries of YMCA organizations in a two-year program. In 1887, it added a Physical Education department. In 1890, it separated from the School for Christian Workers and became the YMCA Training School and in 1891, the International Young Men's Christian Association Training School.
In 1905, the school became a degree-granting institution. In 1912, it took the name International YMCA College and in 1954, Springfield College.
Archives
Since 1999, the institutional archives have included archival material from the Society of Health and Physical Educators and some of its affiliates, including the papers of their leaders.
Presidents
Springfield College has had 13 leaders:
Academics
Springfield College offers bachelor's degrees in more than 40 majors, 25-plus master's degrees, and doctoral programs in counseling psychology, educational leadership, medical science, physical therapy, physical education and more. The institution is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE).
The institution comprises three schools:
School of Arts and Sciences
School of Physical Education, Performance, and Sport Leadership: This school incorporates the Springfield College East Campus Outdoor Learning Center.
School of Health Sciences: The school is a member of the College of Health Deans.
Springfield College also offers bachelor's degree completion programs and master's degrees in business, education, counseling and more, that are geared toward working adult students at its main campus, and online. Additionally, they are one of the few universities in the United States that offers a dedicated Sport and Exercise Psychology program
Rankings
U.S. News & World Report ranked Springfield College #26 for Best Regional Universities—North Region for 2021, the sixth consecutive year that it has been in the top 30. U.S. News also ranked Springfield College #18 among Best Value Schools for Regional Universities—North, the school's fifth consecutive year on the list.
Springfield College was the recipient of the 2016 Presidential Award in the education category of the President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll. This honor is the highest federal recognition a college or university can receive for its commitment to volunteering, service-learning, and civic engagement.
In 2015, the institution successfully for an optional community engagement classification in the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education.
Springfield College was named the 2016–17 College of Distinction for providing a teacher-centered undergraduate education.
Campus
The campus of Springfield College is located in Springfield, Massachusetts. The main campus spans 100 acres (40 ha) and contains ten residence halls, recreational and fitness facilities, science and academic facilities, a performing arts center, and the Flynn Campus Union, which includes a food court, activity and lounge space, and bookstore.
In fall 2023, Springfield College opened a new Health Sciences Center, which facilitates, expands on, and celebrates interprofessional education. Inside the four floors of the 86,000-square-foot building, simulation, anatomy, pediatrics lab, and makerspace environments enhance interdisciplinary collaboration as does expanded meeting space.
Springfield College's East Campus, which encompasses 57 acres (23 ha) of forest ecosystem, is located about one mile from the main campus.
Athletics
Springfield Pride
Springfield College's athletic teams have been known since 1995 as the Pride; the teams were nicknamed the Chiefs from 1968 through 1994, and prior to that were known as the Gymnasts or Maroons. The institution is a member of National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division III and most teams compete in the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC). Springfield's football team joined the NEWMAC when it began sponsoring football in 2017. The men's soccer, men's golf, cross country and gymnastics teams are affiliate members of the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC). The men's volleyball team competes as an independent.
Springfield College is known as the "Birthplace of Basketball" because basketball was created at the college by alumnus and faculty member James Naismith under the founding head of the Physical Education department Luther Gulick Jr. in 1891. Gulick is in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, which is named for Naismith and located in Springfield to honor the location of its invention.
Alumnus William G. Morgan invented the game of volleyball.
Stagg Field serves as the institution's main athletic field; it was named after former coach, Amos Alonzo Stagg who briefly coached Springfield and went on to play a pivotal role in the development of modern football.
On October 19, 2017, Springfield College unveiled a one-of-a-kind intercollegiate and adaptive baseball field that resulted from a partnership between Springfield College and the Cal Ripken Sr. Foundation. On that day, Major League Baseball Hall of Famer Cal Ripken Jr. joined Springfield College President Mary-Beth Cooper for a ribbon-cutting ceremony on the new field. The name of the baseball field was changed from Berry-Allen Field to the Archie Allen Field.
The Springfield softball team appeared in one Women's College World Series in 1977.
The Springfield College women's gymnastics team won the first intercollegiate national championship in 1969 and three of the first four (1971 and 1972).
Notable alumni and faculty
Harold Amos, microbiologist and professor
Rocky Aoki, founder of Benihana
Peter Avdoulos, All-American diver who coached the Springfield College diving team for two decades, leading them to seven national championships
Mark Banker, safeties coach for the Washington State Cougars football team
Stanley F. Battle, American educator, author, civic activist, and former leader of North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, Coppin State University and Southern Connecticut State University, 1973
Marilyn Bevans, the first Black American female to earn a medal at the Boston Marathon (1977)
Vaughn Blanchard, 1912 Olympian in Track and Field and Baseball
Rick Blangiardi, 15th mayor of Honolulu and former television executive
Jeff Blatnick, 1984 Olympic gold medalist in Greco-Roman wrestling, 2015 UFC Hall of Fame inductee
Roscoe Brown, flew 68 missions as part of the Tuskegee Airmen
Kevin Cahill, head football coach at Lehigh University, 2023–20215, Yale University, 2026-present.
Raymond Castellani, actor, activist on Los Angeles' Skid Row
John Cena, professional wrestler and actor
J. Howard Crocker, Canadian YMCA educator, and sports executive for the Amateur Athletic Union of Canada and the Canadian Olympic Committee; granted an honorary master's degree in physical education in 1916 for work in China and establishing the Far Eastern Championship Games