While an overcast summer morning provided some much-appreciated shade, Mount Saint Mary College welcomed hundreds of students to campus on Sunday, August 28.
With new friends and academic adventure awaiting them, the students – including upperclassmen, transfer students, and those just starting their college careers – were excited to be on campus.
Isis Jimenz, an English major from the Bronx, was one of the first to move into Sakac Hall this semester. It’s been a long time coming, she explained: she wanted to be a Mount student from the first time she visited the college, approximately six years ago.
“I’ve been dreaming about the Mount since I was in middle school and had my first tour,” Jimenz explained. “Now it’s time to prove to myself that I can do it and take on adulthood on my own.”
Freshman Justin Ribera, a Nursing major from Absecon, N.J., comes from a long line of nurses. He hopes to make his family proud with future academic and professional accomplishments. Mount Nursing students enjoy state-of-the-art simulation labs and clinical relationships with top area hospitals. The Mount’s passionate faculty are dedicated to the success of both their undergraduate and graduate students.
Ribera, who will be playing on the college’s basketball team, added that he selected the Mount for its friendly atmosphere: “I felt welcomed here,” he said. “I didn’t want to be just a number.”
Like Ribera, Mia Basso of Huntington, N.Y., who is on the college’s Adolescent Education track, is carrying on a family tradition: She’s looking forward to a career in teaching, like her Mount alumni family members.
“I’ve heard great things about the Mount’s education program,” Basso said, “and the location is beautiful. I’m excited!”
Basso’s roommate, Dana Donnelly of Eldred, N.Y., is also on the college’s Teacher Education track.
“I like the tight-knit community here,” said Donnelly, adding that she is “looking forward to a quality education.” She will also be playing on the Mount’s softball team.
Many Mount first-year students – like Danny Mack of Ramsey, N.J. – are majoring in Business. Mack said he was thrilled to begin his college career and join the college’s baseball team. His teammate, Robert Tansey of Belmore, N.Y., is also a Business major. “I really like the culture here,” said Tansey.
Mount Business programs include Accounting, Business Management and Administration, Finance, Marketing, and Sports Management. The college also offers comprehensive areas of study in Math, Information Technology, Sociology, History, and more.
There is much to look forward to in the Fall 2022 semester at the Mount, which will begin on Monday, August 29.
New Programs
The Mount is offering many new, exciting programs this semester, including:
- Game Programming, which will give students the skills to build video games for a variety of platforms. Graduates will be able to create 2D and 3D games using modern programming languages and software engineering practices.
- New concentrations within the Biology major: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; Ecology and Evolutionary Biology; and General Biology.
Introducing Esports
The Mount’s Esports program debuted in the Fall 2022 semester, with Brian Venard taking the reigns as the program's first ever head coach.
Esports describes the world of competitive gaming. The Mount will initially compete with ECAC Esports in games like Overwatch, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, League of Legends, and more. Matches will be streamed on the program’s Twitch channel, twitch.tv/MSMCKnights.
Venard comes to the Mount with extensive gaming experience, including serving as the Team Manager/Captain of the Esports program at Thomas College in Waterville, Maine.
Women’s Golf will also be offered for the first time, starting this semester.
Guzman renovations looking good
Renovations to Mount Saint Mary College’s Guzman Hall, the future home of the Desmond Center for Community Engagement and Wellness, are well underway.
Funded in part by grants from the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation and New York State’s Higher Education Capital (HECap) program, the Desmond Center provides accessible and equitable educational, health, and wellness services for community members and families in the local area, including the uninsured, while also creating learning opportunities for Mount students.
Mid Hudson Construction Management is renovating the first two floors of Guzman Hall to help support the Desmond Center’s mission. The finished space will include a two-story glass atrium, exam rooms for patients, and offices for healthcare staff and students. The renovations are scheduled to be completed before the start of the Spring 2023 semester.
During the construction, Desmond Center programming is being offered on campus and in other locations around Newburgh. Recent events included a COVID-19 vaccine and booster clinic, online health equity talks discussing healthcare disparities faced by women of color, and more.