The College of New Rochelle was founded in 1904 by Ursuline nuns who had arrived in New Rochelle several years earlier. It was the first Catholic college for women in New York State. Within its first 25 years, the student body had grown to more than 700 students.
During the 1960s, CNR faced declining enrollment, and some creative innovations resulted. In 1967, for instance, the College began to offer several master’s programs. The School of Nursing was founded in 1976. Presently, more than 4,000 students are enrolled in CNR’s four schools: The School of Arts & Sciences (for women), The Graduate School, The School of New Resources, and The School of Nursing.
When I was an infant, my mother brought my twin sister and me to visit her Ursuline aunt. As she left, I apparently looked around as if I was “checking out” the unusual building. As a graduate student, I wrote a master’s thesis on the architectural history of the college.
—Sister Martha Counihan, OSU
Archivist/Special Collections Librarian, The College of New Rochelle
â–º For more of Westchester’s 100-Year-Old Businesses, click here.
â–º For more from 914INC’s Q2 2013 Issue, click here.
