Lehman College (/ˈliːmən/LEE-mən) is apublic college inNew York City, United States. Founded in 1931 asthe Bronx campus ofHunter College, it became an independent college in 1967. The college is named afterHerbert H. Lehman, a former New York governor, United States senator, and philanthropist. It is a senior college of theCity University of New York (CUNY) and offers more than 90 undergraduate and graduate degree programs and specializations.
First flag raising, commissioning ceremonies for the U.S. Naval Training Center, Women's Reserve, Bronx, on February 8, 1943
TheBronx Branch of Hunter College was first established in 1931.
The campus was the main national training ground for women in the military duringWorld War II. For a decade before the entry of theUnited 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 theUnited States Navy who used the facilities to train 95,000 women volunteers for military service asWAVES andSPARS.[3]
When the Navy vacated the campus, the site was occupied for six months in 1946 by the nascentUnited Nations, which held its first Security Council sessions at the Bronx campus.[1] From March to August 1946, the first American meetings of theUnited 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 theUnited 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.[citation needed]
The process of separating Lehman College from its Hunter College-affiliated predecessor began in 1967, culminating in the establishment of an independent unit of theCity University of New York on July 1, 1968.[4] This new college, known asHerbert H. Lehman College or Lehman College, was established as a senior undergraduate college. The newly established school was named afterHerbert H. Lehman, the former, four-term governor of New York. Lehman College's founding president wasLeonard Lief.[5]
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.[6] 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.[7]
The college switched toremote learning on March 11, 2020, in response to the coronavirus outbreak. Later, in April, the university released a study that concluded that the virus could be spread through a building's ventilation system.[8] On October 5, 2020, 98% of classes were fully online due to the coronavirus pandemic.[9] On May 26, 2022, after two years of conducting commencement ceremonies online due to the COVID-19 restrictions regarding mass gathering in NYC, Lehman held its first commencement ceremony post COVID-19 lockdowns.[10]
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.[12]
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 aLEED platinum rating from theU.S. Green Building Council, the first CUNY building to earn the top green building rating.[13] Leslie E. Robertson Associates (LERA) served as the structural engineers for this project.[citation needed]
Old Gymnasium
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.[14]
The Apex, Lehman College's post-modern style athletic and fitness facility, opened in 1994. Designed by architectRafael Viñoly, the Apex stands in contrast to the original Gothic Revival buildings that define the campus.[citation needed]
In 2024, Lehman opened a new building dedicated to nursing.[15] The $95 million building,[16] designed by Urbahn Architects, is four stories high.[17]
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.
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.
The highly selectiveMacaulay 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.[21][22]
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.[23]
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.[24]
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.
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.[25]
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.[26]
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.[27]
Lehman College teams participate as a member of theNational Collegiate Athletic Association'sDivision III. The Lightning Bugs are a member of theCity University of New York Athletic Conference (CUNYAC). Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, soccer, swimming & diving, track & field, tennis and volleyball; while 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).[28]
Ruth Westheimer (born Karola Siegel, 1928; known as "Dr. Ruth"), German-American sex therapist, talk show host, author, professor, Holocaust survivor, and formerHaganah sniper.
Eric Wolf, former distinguished professor of anthropology
Gary Axelbank, journalist, disk jockey and TV personality based in The Bronx
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 brotherKevin Bacon
Lewis Gordon, philosopher, works in Africana philosophy, philosophy of human and life sciences, and phenomenology
Micki Grant, singer (soprano), actress, writer, and composer
Ramona Hernández, community leader, sociologist and historian, Professor of Sociology at theCity College of New York, and director of the CUNY Dominican Studies Institute
David L. Spector, cell and molecular biologist and professor atCold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) and head of the Gene Regulation and Cell Proliferation program of the CSHL Cancer Center
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