The State University of New York, Empire State University (also referred to as Empire State University or SUNY Empire) is a public university headquartered in Saratoga Springs, New York. It is part of the State University of New York (SUNY) system.
Empire State University is a multi-site institution offering associate, bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees, as well as distance degrees through the Center for Distance Learning. The university has approximately 12,000 undergraduate students and has an acceptance rate of 51%. The university is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education.
History Empire State College was designed by then SUNY Chancellor Ernest Boyer in a document titled "Prospectus for a New University College." In 1971, Ernest L. Boyer, chancellor of the State University of New York, conceived a new college for the state's public university: a college dedicated to adult student-centered education. Empire State College was designed removing impediments to access such as time, location, institutional processes, and curricular customs. In this design, students would individually define their academic needs, purposes, and efforts. The college would be flexible in supporting them through its faculty, policies, and procedures, to achieve college-level learning.
Mascot
In 2020, Empire State University named its first-ever mascot, Blue the Bluebird. A campus-wide vote took place and Blue the Bluebird beat out other finalists, Cam the Chameleon and Van the Vanguard. Students, faculty, staff, and alumni cast 9,922 total votes in the finals. The bluebird is New York's state bird.
Presidents Name Tenure James W. Hall 1971–1998Jane Altes (interim*)January 1998 – September 2000 Joseph B. Moore September 2000 – June 2007 Kimberly Cline (acting*) June 2007 – October 2007 Joyce Elliott (interim*) October 2007 – July 31, 2008 Alan Davis August 1, 2008 – July 31, 2012 Meg Benke (acting*) August 1, 2012 – May 8, 2013 Merodie A. Hancock May 9, 2013 – March 3, 2018 Mitchell Nesler (Officer-in-Charge*) March 3, 2018 – July 14, 2019 Jim Malatras July 15, 2019 – August 30, 2020 Beth Berlin (Officer-in-Charge*) August 31, 2020 – June 30, 2022 Lisa VollendorfJuly 1, 2022 – present *title designates acting/interim leaders
Academics Undergraduate demographics as of Fall 2023 Race and ethnicityTotal White Black Hispanic Unknown Asian Two or more races Economic diversity Low-income Affluent The university offers undergraduate and graduate distance education, extensive transfers of credits from other universities, prior-learning assessment for knowledge gained through independent studies, standardized evaluations, and the opportunity to design one's own degree with an academic advisor or mentor.
Rankings
In 2024, U.S. News & World Report ranked Empire State University No.151-165 out of 171 Regional Universities North, No.57-60 in Top Public Schools, tied at No.392 in Nursing, and No.161 in Top Performers on Social Mobility.
Notable alumni
Stephen Chan (American politician), NY State Senator Amy Arbus (2003), photographer Ita Aber, artist and curator Kenny Barron (1978), jazz pianist Ginny Brown-Waite (1976), former member U.S. House of Representatives Herman Benson (1975), Union Reformer Dawoud Bey (1990), photographer Frank Enea (1993), musician and composer Alice Fulton (1978), English professor, winner of the 1991 MacArthur Fellows Program Award, commonly referred to as the "genius" award, for poetry Susan Gibney, actress Deborah Gregory (1986), author of Cheetah Girls Karl Grossman (1976), professor of journalism SUNY Old Westbury, author, TV program host Bob Herbert (1988), The New York Times columnist Rich Hickey (1992), creator of Clojure programming language Erick Johnson, American contemporary artist Bernard Kerik (2002), former Commissioner of the New York Police Department James J. LeCleir (1974), U.S. Air Force Major General Steven McLaughlin, member of the New York State Assembly, County Executive of Rensselaer County, New York Kathy Muehlemann (1978), abstract painter & professor Elliott Murphy (1988), singer-songwriter & author Mae Ngai (1992) historian, Columbia University Alan Rachins (1974), television actor Mark J.F. Schroeder (1982), New York Commissioner of Motor Vehicles Norman Seabrook, former president Of New York City Correction Officers' Benevolent Association (1995–2016), convicted on corruption charges James M. Sheppard (1999), chief of the Rochester Police Department and member of the Monroe County Legislature Randall Terry (2006), anti-abortion activist and Constitution Party nominee for the 2024 United States presidential election Melba Tolliver (1998), journalist, reporter, and news anchor Herb Trimpe (1997), artist on "The Incredible Hulk" comic series Bob Watson (1999), major league baseball player and executive Reggie Witherspoon (1995), college basketball coach
See also University of New York, Tirana University of New York, Prague SUNY Learning Network Non-traditional student
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