State University of New York at Purchase

In bringing two styles of education—traditional liberal arts and sciences programs and conservatory-based arts programs—into close contact on one campus, the founders of Purchase College hoped to inspire an appreciation for both intellectual and artistic talents in all students.

Founded by Governor Nelson Rockefeller in 1967 as the cultural gem of the State University of New York system, Purchase College today enjoys a world-class reputation for its arts programs and high rankings for its liberal arts and sciences programs. The College attracts students and faculty from around the world seeking a place where they can develop their talents, expand their minds, and prepare for a life of creative independence.

The focus and diversity at Purchase College are notable. The 4,000 students and 300 faculty members here are not passive culture appreciators, they are active culture generators. By choosing to come here, individuals make a conscious decision to pursue their studies and their careers in a more intense environment.

Princeton Review named Purchase College as one of the "Best 361 Colleges." The College is also included in America's Best 100 College Buys, the Unofficial Biased Guide to the 328 Most Interesting Colleges, and it is one of the 151 colleges in the Princeton Review's Best Northeastern Regional Colleges. And graduates of Purchase College rank among the most famous, the most successful, and the most satisfied. Our graduates are also among the most sought after—by businesses, social organizations, and cultural institutions throughout the country.




Academics

The Purchase College School of the Arts contains four professional conservatory programs for those looking for a career in the performing or visual arts.

The buildings and open spaces of the campus are visually distinctive models of late modernist architecture. The plans and a scale model of the campus were exhibited at MOMA, New York's Museum of Modern Art. The artist and critic Peter Halley once remarked that the SUNY Purchase campus typified a rigid modernist aesthetic, calling it reminiscent of "Nuremburg."

The Visual Arts Building has 160,000 square feet (15,000 m²) of studios, exhibition spaces, workshops and labs.

The Dance Building was the first in America created specifically for the training of dancers.

The Music Building has two recital halls, 75 practice rooms, 80 Steinway pianos, and professional recording studios. The Studio Composition program was one of the first in the country, and the faculty and student showcase Purchase Records has earned 3 Grammy nominations for its 5 releases. The Film Conservatory is housed within the lower level of the Music Building.

The Conservatory of Theatre Arts & Film is comprised of four departments: Acting, Dramatic Writing, Film, and Theatre Design/Technology. Purchase College is one of four schools in the Consortium of Professional Theatre Training Programs, along with Carnegie Mellon, North Carolina School of the Arts and Boston University. Purchase is one of a handful of colleges capable of training theatre and film students at this level and primarily as undergraduates. The programs are very selective: annually the film program receives 700 applications, Design/Technology 500, Dramatic Writing 200 and the Acting Program sees 1,200 auditions each year in nine cities across the country. Each year the Conservatory of Theatre Arts & Film accepts 20 filmmakers, 20, Dramatic Writing students, 40 Design/Technology students and 26 Acting majors. Collaboration among the four programs distinguish this unique training setting- at Purchase: Actors, filmmakers, writers and designers get to work together in faculty led curriculum as well as independently on student generated creative work. The four programs draw a faculty from the highest ranks of professional theatre and film.

Each conservatory program is highly selective and requires either a portfolio or audition for admission. Outside of the renowned conservatory programs, the Lily Lieb School of Creative Writing within the Humanities and Liberal Arts program is the only one to require the submission of a portfolio from students for acceptance.

Purchase students in the humanities and sciences make up about 60% of the college's student body. The college emphasizes creativity and independent study that culminates in a senior project featuring the student's original research or creative project. Many Purchase grads use their senior project as a spring board to a job or to professional or graduate school.

In addition, the campus offers outstanding athletic facilities and cultural opportunities.

The Neuberger Museum of Art, the eighth largest university museum in the nation, houses a permanent collection of 6,000 works of art and features a full schedule of exhibitions, lectures, films and inter-media events.

The Performing Arts Center, a five-theater complex considered the finest of its kind on the East Coast, presents more than 100 professional and student performances each year.




Culture

Purchase College, with its proximity to the cultural mecca of Manhattan and the variety of arts programs offered to its students, is a well-spring of cultural and counter-cultural movements. Social activism plays a healthy part in shaping the scene at Purchase, and many students choose to participate in Student Government, and various clubs and organizations.

Dance, Music, Theater, Film, and the Visual Arts dominate Purchase culture. The Purchase Student Government and the college have provided spaces around campus for the display of student murals and a cornucopia of music can be heard bellowing from the campus' dormitory windows. Dance and theater productions are always an option for a "night out". The school is home to various performance venues, where Purchase bands and well-known touring artists take stage.

The student-funded and operated Student Center was opened in 2003 by the PSGA. Since its grand opening, the Student Center has featured free-use billiards tables, ping pong tables, a growing videogame arcade, air hockey, foosball, various board games, two concert venues (the main Student Center stage, and Whitson's Memorial Greeting Hall), and a film screening area. In later updates computers with wireless access and a student art gallery space were added. The school's devotion to the Student Center project was solidified by a major renovation done on the exterior of the building. It is known affectionately to many of its patrons as "The Stood" (sounds like "dude"). Normal hours of operation are 4PM - 2AM 7 days a week.

The students' musical tastes are celebrated at the school's annual Culture Shock festival, the most well-attended program at the school. The weekend festival, typically held in April (4/20 this year) showcases the talents of Purchase students as well as world renowned musical acts and performance artists. Recent Culture Shock headline performers include Ween, GWAR(rained out), Kool Keith, Animal Collective, GZA, Girl Talk, Man Man, Cat Power, Blonde Redhead, Bouncing Souls, Ghostface Killah, Saul Williams, Ted Leo, Biz Markie, Slick Rick and Dead Prez. Culture Shock is funded by the student's mandatory activity fee and put together by the Major Events Coordinator (MEC).

Purchase is known for its GLBT culture, which is celebrated during the annual "Fall Ball" - where Drag Queens and Kings compete on stage for the year's crown. Counter Culture and DIY sensibilities are very prominent as evidenced by the school's food co-op and student-run Student Center.

Students voice their opinions through a variety of campus media sources. Currently, there are two major student-run publications; The Independent (weekly news source), and The Submission (interdisciplinary journal of creativity).

Purchase has its own television station known as "PTV" (Purchase Television) which is cablecast on channel 69 on campus. The station is entirely funded and run by students. In addition to the TV station, the school also has a student-run radio station, WPSR, which broadcasts on 1610 am, and is simulcast on the internet.

Skateboarding has a unique presence at Purchase College due to its brick covered campus. The underground tunnels that connect the campus have smooth concrete and ramps. The campus has banned skateboarding on the mall and access to the tunnels is for the most part prohibited, making things difficult for the campus' skateboarding community. Previous classes have contributed to Purchase's skateboarding culture by publishing 5-0 Skate Zine and Trash Compactor.




Campus

The site chosen for the campus was a 500 acre (2 km²) estate, Strathglass Farm, in the middle of Westchester County, 40 minutes from Manhattan. It was originally the property of Thomas Thomas, a Revolutionary war soldier, whose family and slave cemetery still remains on the campus. In order to transform the former cattle farm into a college for thousands of students, SUNY engaged some of the most prominent American architects to design the campus. Edward Larrabee Barnes created the master plan, and nine distinguished architectural firms designed specific buildings. Buildings on the campus are located in the center of the property, and are isolated from the surrounding community by wooded areas around the perimeter of the property. The college is adjacent to the Westchester County Airport, and is across the street from PepsiCo's world headquarters. The campus is not within walking distance to any commercial area.

Various parts of the Campus are currently undergoing renovation. The new Student Services building opened in 2006, providing one-stop-shopping for most administrative services. The 'mall', or main campus plaza, is currently undergoing renovations to improve its aesthetics, create communal spaces, and to reduce flooding when it rains.




Dorms & Apartments




Crossroads
Dormitory for freshman. Students are housed in doubles, triples, and 4-person, 6-person or 8-person suites (which contain 2, 3 or 4 doubles). There is a laundry room for students in the basement. Connected to Farside & Big Haus via the basement. There are singles in this dorm, although they mostly go to Resident Assistants and Upperclass students who meet the GPA requirements.




Farside
Dormitory for freshmen. Students are housed in doubles, triples, and 4-person, 6-person or 8-person suites (which contain 2, 3 or 4 doubles). Connected to Crossroads, Big Haus, and public laundryroom via the basement. Like Crossroads, this building has some singles, although they are primarily for RA's and upperclass students.

During 2004, a large fire erupted from the first floor lounge but the damage was quickly fixed and put back into previous condition.




Big Haus
Largest of the dormitories. Forty percent freshman, although students of all years are allowed there. Students are housed in doubles, triples, and 4-person, 6-person suites (which contain 2, 3 or 4 doubles). A limited number of singles (primarily for RAs) are made available to upperclassmen. Connected to Farside, Crossroads, and public laundryroom via the basement.




Outback
Opened in 2001, this dorm houses students of all years, however, the majority of Outback's residents are upperclassmen. Outback is not connected to the other three dorms. It has elevators and its own laundry room. Outback is a "wellness" dorm, with no alcohol, drugs, or tobacco products allowed through its doors. The name was voted on by students, but the winning name, "Wham City," was never used. The rooms in Outback are doubles complete with private bathrooms. There are also 8 suites, 4 of which have kitchens.




Fort Awesome
The newest dormitory, completed in summer of 2006. The name was chosen by student Jesse Heffler in an election. He received $100 as a prize. Though this was the name chosen most residents refer to it as "The Fort." This dorm is all upperclassmen students, mostly sophomores. The student media services (including Purchase TV, WPSR, and The Independent) will move to the new building in 2007. In addition (and after much controversy) a Starbucks is planned to move in to the site. Rooms are doubles or triples, with Fort Awesome's highlights of HV/AC accommodations and private bathrooms (with shower) for each room, personal mailboxes (not in operation) in the building, a small but operational laundry room equipped with candy and soft drink vending machines, and larger rooms compared to the other dorms.




The Olde Apartments (Phase I)
The Olde comprises 3 "streets" - G, J, and H. The Olde as a whole is known for parties on the weekend. All streets have upstairs and downstairs apartments with kitchens. Most apartments in The Olde are 4 person apartments (with 2 singles and a double), but there are "Duplex" apartments with two floors that house 6 students (with 2 singles and 2 doubles). At one time both sexes were allowed to live together in the Duplex apartments. Several professors and their families occupy the Duplex apartments here, choosing to live on campus.




The Commons Apartments ("The Neu"/Phase II)
In "The Neu" apartments have several 4-person and 3-person apartment combos, although there are also 6 person apartments. It is the furthest student housing from the main campus area (except for possibly the back of Alumni).

The Neu Apartments are home to the Gender Neutral Housing Pilot slated for the 07-08 academic year, and there are currently four students living there, though if the program is successful more spaces may open.




Alumni Village
Alumni is the newest apartment complex on campus, opened for students in the fall of 2003. It consists of eight 4-person apartments in each of 12 buildings, and four 4-person apartments on the second floor of another building (the first floor contains a community space available for student use). Perks include single rooms for all students and a washer and dryer in each apartment. Two forms of PREP (Purchase Residence Extension Program) housing are available in Alumni Village. One allows students to live on campus all year and the other allows students to remain on campus for the academic year (August to May, including the winter break).

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State University of New York at Purchase Art School Location

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