Keystone College history

The Academy moved to the newly-completed Harris Hall in 1870.

As the Academy grew in size and scope over the next sixty years, Trustee John H. Brooks initiated the first steps in 1932 toward transforming it from an academy to an independent junior college.

Brooks and other trustees, including Board Chairman, L. A. Watres, oversaw this noteworthy transition, which was formalized in 1934.

1936 – First associate degree awarded to A. Llewellyn Baer.

President Hollinshead was succeeded in 1945 by Doctor Blake Tewksbury, who had served as Dean of the College and continued to champion the academic quality of a Keystone education.

1973 – Keystone College Observatory officially dedicated and opened to the public.

Following this growth of facilities and enrollment, former trustee John B. Hibbard assumed the leadership of Keystone in 1975.

Doctor Louis V. Wilcox, Jr. became the fifth president of Keystone, following the retirement of President Hibbard in 1983.

Margaretta B. Chamberlin, an active trustee and community leader, took office in 1985.

In 1995, Doctor Edward G. Boehm, Jr., became Keystone’s ninth president.

In 1998, the school received formal approval from the Pennsylvania Department of Education to offer baccalaureate degree programs.

2000 – First baccalaureate degree, a bachelor of science in criminal justice, was awarded to Stacy Davis Bell.

2001 – The opening of the College’s newest residence hall, Boehm Hall (formerly known as the Keystone Commons).

2005 – 103.5 WKCV-FM, Keystone’s student-run radio station began on-air broadcasting and has since advanced with web-streaming royalty rights so the station can broadcast over the Internet and can be heard by anyone, anywhere, with an internet connection.

2006 – The College inducts its inaugural class into the Athletics Hall of Fame.

2007 – The College introduces The Gathering, an annual three-day symposium featuring lectures, workshops, performances, and discussions.

2010 – Renovations to the exterior and interior upgrades of the Hibbard Campus Center

2011 – Keystone establishes the Howard Jennings Nature Preserve in honor of Howard Jennings, retired biology professor.

David L. Coppola, Ph.D., began his tenure as Keystone’s tenth president in 2013 and emphasized the campus-wide priority of “students first,” through the customized student development program, Stairs to Success.

New musical opportunities were made available to the campus and surrounding communities in 2014, through the newly formed Department of Performance Music.

2016 – College awards first master’s degrees.

2017 – Keystone renames the School of Arts and Sciences to the Turock School of Arts and Sciences in honor of Keystone alumni Betty J. Turock, Ph.D. ’53, David L. Turock, Ph.D. ’77, and the late Frank Turock ’52.

Tracy L. Brundage, Ph.D., became the eleventh president of Keystone College in July 2018 and has strengthened the College’s emphasis on preparing students for successful careers and providing them with skills needed for lifelong learning, leadership, and citizenship.

2019 – Keystone launches its Professional Development Institute offering workforce development programs that connect education and employment and provide customized, credentialed, industry-focused coursework.