New England College is a private

Private school

Private schools, also known as independent schools or nonstate schools, are not administered by local, state or national governments; thus, they retain the right to select their students and are funded in whole or in part by charging their students' tuition, rather than relying on mandatory...

 four-year college

College

A college is an educational institution or a constituent part of an educational institution. Usage varies in English-speaking nations...

 in Henniker, New Hampshire

Henniker, New Hampshire

Henniker is a town in Merrimack County, New Hampshire, United States. As of the 2010 census, the town had a total population of 4,836. Henniker is home to New England College, Ames State Forest and Craney Hill State Forest....

, enrolling a total of approximately 1800 undergraduate and graduate students.

History

The school was created in 1946 for students attending college on the G.I. Bill after World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, and the rural 26 acres (105,218.4 m²) campus features 30 buildings.

Campus

The Contoocook River

Contoocook River

The Contoocook River is a river in New Hampshire. It flows from Pool Pond and Contoocook Lake on the Jaffrey/Rindge border to Penacook , where it empties into the Merrimack River. It is one of only a few rivers in New Hampshire that flow in a predominantly northward direction...

 runs through the center of the Henniker village and alongside the campus. A covered bridge

Covered bridge

A covered bridge is a bridge with enclosed sides and a roof, often accommodating only a single lane of traffic. Most covered bridges are wooden; some newer ones are concrete or metal with glass sides...

 joins the main campus with roughly 20 acres (8.1 ha) of athletic fields.

Academics

The school accepted 76% of its total number of applicants in 2008. The school offers associate's, bachelor's, and master's degrees. It is accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges

New England Association of Schools and Colleges

The New England Association of Schools and Colleges, Inc. is the U.S. regional accreditation association providing educational accreditation for all levels of education, from pre-kindergarten to the doctoral level, in the six-state New England region. It also provides accreditation for some...

 through its Commission on Institutions of Higher Education to award the bachelor's and master's degrees. The teacher education

Teacher education

Teacher education refers to the policies and procedures designed to equip prospective teachers with the knowledge, attitudes, behaviors and skills they require to perform their tasks effectively in the classroom, school and wider community....

 program is approved by the New Hampshire Department of Education

State education agency

A state education agency , or state department of education, is a formal governmental label for the state-level government agencies within each U.S...

. The Henniker Review is the school's annual literary publication.

Student life

There are several student organizations, including various student government committees, Adventure Bound Outdoor Leadership, Environmental Action Committee (EAC), the International Student Association, and Hillel

Hillel: The Foundation for Jewish Campus Life

Hillel: The Foundation for Jewish Campus Life is the largest Jewish campus organization in the world, working with thousands of college students globally...

. Students also publish an award-winning campus newspaper called The New Englander as well as operate an online streaming campus radio station WNEC-FM

WNEC-FM

WNEC-FM is a radio station licensed to serve Henniker, New Hampshire. The station is owned by New England College. It airs a college radio format....

. Fraternities and sororities are also an active and vital part of New England College campus life. The Greek life chapters on campus are Alpha Phi Omega

Alpha Phi Omega

Alpha Phi Omega is the largest collegiate fraternity in the United States, with chapters at over 350 campuses, an active membership of approximately 17,000 students, and over 350,000 alumni members...

 (co-ed), Phi Mu Delta

Phi Mu Delta

Phi Mu Delta is a small, national fraternity founded on March 1, 1918 at the Universities of Connecticut, New Hampshire, and Vermont. The fraternity is focused on the three ideals of democracy, service, and brotherhood.-Founders' Creed:...

, and Kappa Delta Phi

Kappa Delta Phi

Kappa Delta Phi is a college general men's fraternity that was founded on April 14, 1900 at the Bridgewater Normal School, now known as Bridgewater State University...

 NAS.

Athletics

The New England College "Pilgrims" compete in 15 intercollegiate NCAA Division III

Division III

Division III is a division of the National Collegiate Athletic Association of the United States.-Membership:The division consists of colleges and universities that choose not to offer athletically related financial aid to their student-athletes...

 athletic sports, including lacrosse

Lacrosse

Lacrosse is a team sport of Native American origin played using a small rubber ball and a long-handled stick called a crosse or lacrosse stick, mainly played in the United States and Canada. It is a contact sport which requires padding. The head of the lacrosse stick is strung with loose mesh...

, soccer, ice hockey

Ice hockey

Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...

, field hockey

Field hockey

Field Hockey, or Hockey, is a team sport in which a team of players attempts to score goals by hitting, pushing or flicking a ball into an opposing team's goal using sticks...

, softball

Softball

Softball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of 10 to 14 players. It is a direct descendant of baseball although there are some key differences: softballs are larger than baseballs, and the pitches are thrown underhand rather than overhand...

, baseball

Baseball

Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...

, basketball

Basketball

Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...

, cross-country

Cross country running

Cross country running is a sport in which people run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open country, and include hills, flat ground and sometimes gravel road...

, and indoor and outdoor track and field

Track and field

Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...

 teams.

New England College Athletics begins competing in the North Atlantic Conference

North Atlantic Conference

The North Atlantic Conference is an athletic conference, affiliated with the NCAA’s Division III, consisting primarily of small liberal arts colleges throughout the New England states of Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont....

 (NAC) starting fall of 2011, after over a decade of membership in The Commonwealth Coast Conference.

Notable persons

Notable alumni include Geena Davis

Geena Davis

Virginia Elizabeth "Geena" Davis is an American actress, film producer, writer, former fashion model, and a women's Olympics archery team semi-finalist...

, Academy Award and Golden Globe-winning American actress who attended her freshman

Freshman

A freshman or fresher is a first-year student in secondary school, high school, or college. The term first year can also be used as a noun, to describe the students themselves A freshman (US) or fresher (UK, India) (or sometimes fish, freshie, fresher; slang plural frosh or freshmeat) is a...

 year before transferring to Boston University

Boston University

Boston University is a private research university located in Boston, Massachusetts. With more than 4,000 faculty members and more than 31,000 students, Boston University is one of the largest private universities in the United States and one of Boston's largest employers...

, Ira Joe Fisher

Ira Joe Fisher

Ira Joe Fisher is an American meteorologist and poet. He was the weather reporter for CBS's The Saturday Early Show, a position he held from 1999 until 2006...

, formerly a weather reporter for CBS

CBS

CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...

's The Saturday Early Show, Allen Steele

Allen Steele

Allen Mulherin Steele, Jr. is an American science fiction author.Steele began publishing short stories in 1988. His early novels formed a future history beginning with Orbital Decay and continuing through Labyrinth of Night...

, Jr., a science fiction

Science fiction

Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...

 author, Wallace Stickney

Wallace Stickney

Wallace Elmer Stickney is an American civil servant, most prominently as the Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency under President George H. W. Bush.Stickney was born in Salem, New Hampshire...

, Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency

Federal Emergency Management Agency

The Federal Emergency Management Agency is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security, initially created by Presidential Reorganization Plan No. 1 of 1978 and implemented by two Executive Orders...

 (FEMA) under President

President of the United States

The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....

 George H. W. Bush

George H. W. Bush

George Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to...

, and writer Mariela Griffor

Mariela Griffor

Mariela Griffor , is a journalist, poet, short story writer, international activist, columnist, and scholar.-Early life:...

. Other alumni include David C. Arnold, president and CEO of Softdesk, Inc, an AutoCAD software development company.

External links

• Official website