City College of New York (CCNY) is a public research university in New York City and a member of the CUNY system. Founded in 1847 as the Free Academy, it is the oldest of CUNY’s 24 institutions of higher education. CCNY is organized into eight schools and comprises more than 20,000 students pursuing undergraduate and graduate degrees. It offers bachelor’s and master’s degrees in over 70 disciplines, as well as doctorates through its Sophie Davis School of Biomedical Education.
The college was founded as the Free Academy in 1847 by wealthy businessman and philanthropist Townsend Harris, who donated $40,000 to establish it. The academy was one of the first free public colleges in the United States. It was initially intended to provide an education for poor immigrants who could not afford to pay for tuition elsewhere. In its early years, however, the school struggled financially and was forced to close temporarily on several occasions due to lack of funding.
Despite these difficulties, CCNY quickly became one of the leading educational institutions in New York City. It began admitting women in 1860 and became coeducational two years later. In 1864, it moved to its current location on Hamilton Heights overlooking Harlem. The college expanded rapidly during the early 20th century, adding new buildings and programs as enrollment grew. By 1930, it had grown to become one of the largest colleges in the country with over 15,000 students enrolled.
During World War II, CCNY served as an important training ground for military personnel from all branches of service. After the war ended, enrollment once again surged as returning veterans took advantage of their GI Bill benefits to attend college. The 1950s saw further growth with the construction of new dormitories and academic buildings added to accommodate increasing enrollments—which topped out at over 30,000 students by 1965 before declining slightly during much of next decade due partly escalating crime rates surrounding campus that peaked during 1970s . Nevertheless ,the college remained an important part of city’s cultural life , playing host to literary figures suchas Dylan Thomas , Maya Angelou ,and Allen Ginsberg ; jazz legends such Miles Davis , Charlie Parker ,and Dizzy Gillespie ;and political activists like Malcolm X .
In recent years CCNY has undergone somethingof a renaissance ,with significant investments madeto upgrade its facilities and attract top studentsand faculty . Undergraduate admissions have beenmore selective since 2006 when CUNY beganimplementing policies aimed at boostingacademic standards system-wide . As aresult ,CCNY’s freshman class now boastsan average SAT score above 1400 — placingit among top tier public universities nationally— while nearly 60 %of incoming studentsranked within top 10 %of their high schoolclass . Notable alumni include Pulitzer Prizewinners Isaac Bashevis Singer , Herman Wouk Nobel laureates Richard Feynman Mario Molina 28 MacArthur Fellows 13 Fields Medalists