History and Mission
History
Siena College had its inception in the year 1937 when His Excellency, the Most Rev. Edmund F. Gibbons, D.D., Bishop of Albany, extended an invitation to the Franciscan Friars of the Province of the Most Holy Name, to establish an institution of higher education within the confines of the Capital Region. A site suitable for this purpose consisting of 38 acres, located iin Loudonville, was acquired in April of the same year as the first step in the realization of this project. Since the beginning, the College was placed under the patronage of St. Bernardine of Siena, the illustrious 15th century Franciscan scholar. St. Bernardine is a fitting patron for he embodies the rich and deep intellectual tradition that the followers of St. Francis bring to education.
The old farm “mansion” that had stood on the site for over 50 years immediately underwent extensive renovations to serve temporarily as a college building. On September 22, 1937, the new college opened its doors for the first time to 90 freshmen.
The Regents of the University of the State of New York provisionally chartered the College in 1938, granting absolute Charter in 1942. Siena College is accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools, and is a member of various academic and administrative organizations.
Since 1971, the College has been governed by an independent Board of Trustees. A Board of Associate Trustees serves to strengthen the relationship between the campus and the surrounding community. Siena has 201 full-time faculty members, 119 part-time faculty members, 194 administrators and 200 support staff employees.
Siena College, now located on 174 acres of land, offers its students a stimulating academic program featuring a core liberal arts education and professional programs in business, social work, and education. While pursuing any one of 29 majors and 45 minors and certificate programs, leading to the Baccalaureate, as well as a Master of Science in Accounting, Siena students participate in study abroad, internships, independent studies, honors programs, and undergraduate research, as well as NCAA Division I athletics, intramural athletics, and a wide variety of club and service organizations.
Mission
Siena College is a learning community advancing the ideals of a liberal arts education, rooted in its identity as a Franciscan and Catholic institution.
As a learning community, Siena is committed to a student-centered education emphasizing dynamic faculty-student interaction. Through a blending of liberal arts and professional education, Siena College provides experiences and courses of study instilling the values and knowledge to lead a compassionate, reflective, and productive life of service and leadership.
As a liberal arts college, Siena fosters the rigorous intellectual development of its students through a healthy exchange of ideas both inside and outside the classroom. It provides opportunities to develop critical and creative thinking; to make reasoned and informed judgments; to appreciate cultural diversity; to deepen aesthetic sensibility and to enhance written and oral communication skills. It develops in each individual an appreciation for the richness of exploring knowledge from a variety of perspectives and disciplines.
As a Franciscan community, Siena strives to embody the vision and values of St. Francis of Assisi: faith in a personal and provident God, reverence for all creation, affirmation of the unique worth of each person, delight in diversity, appreciation for beauty, service with the poor and marginalized, a community where members work together in friendship and respect, and commitment to building a world that is more just, peaceable, and humane.
As a Catholic college, Siena seeks to advance not only the intellectual growth of its students, but their spiritual, religious and ethical formation as well. To this end, Siena is composed of and in dialogue with people from different religious and cultural traditions; fosters a critical appreciation of the Catholic intellectual heritage in conversation with contemporary experience; provides ample opportunities for worship and service; explores the moral dimensions of decision-making in business and the professions; and affirms the dignity of the individual while pursuing the common good.
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