Simmons University history

In 1901, the Corporation of the recently founded, but yet unopened, Simmons Female College asked Lefavour to conduct a study and write a report on a program of organization that would translate John Simmons's vision into reality.

In October 1902, the first class was admitted to the College.

By the fall of 1903, a complete staff of teachers was recruited and a faculty formed, comprised of the president, the dean, and senior representatives of departments.

In 1904, Simmons, in collaboration with Harvard University, established the Boston School for Social Workers.

The first dormitory, South Hall, and the dining hall, known as the Refectory, were built in 1905 on property purchased on Brookline Avenue, a five-minute walk from the Main College Building.

Simmons College held its first commencement exercise at nearby Jordan Hall in June 1906.

A student-created celebration of social worker Eva Whiting White (Class of 1907), the Elizabeth Peabody House, and life in Boston's West End

Outdoor sports made possible in 1910 when the playing field in back of the Main College Building was enclosed by a high fence included annual competitions and tennis tournaments, and, several years later, field hockey.

The longest continuous tradition, May Day, began in 1912, with the strawberry shortcake breakfast perhaps the most enjoyable part of rising at dawn.

Simmons graduated its first African American student in 1914.

Everyone involved in this grand undertaking to educate women to "acquire an independent livelihood" was determined to have Simmons Female College succeed. (The name changed to Simmons College in 1915.)

In recognition of Doctor Simmons’ leadership, the University was renamed Simmons University in 1918.

Together, President Henry Lefavour and Dean Sarah Louise Arnold (who retired in 1919) built the foundation for a highly innovative Boston institution and provided the intellectual underpinnings for the Simmons community.

The only other construction that took place in this time period was the elegant Evans Hall dormitory built on the Residence Campus in 1938.

Jean A. Dowdall, born 1942, received a B.A in anthropology and a Ph.D. in sociology, both from Brown University.

The first male veterans to take advantage of the opening of Simmons courses to men entered in the fall of 1945, two men enrolling in the School of Library Science and two men in the School of Social Work.

In 1949, the School of Library Science began offering a Master of Science degree in addition to a Bachelor of Science.

Simmons Hall, which anchored the Residence Campus triangle, opened in 1956.

1963 was a pivotal year for Simmons: the Continuing Education program for non-traditional-aged students - now known as the Dix Scholars Program - began; the College offered its first Bachelor of Arts degree through the School of Education; and the Self-Study Committee was appointed.

In 1967, a new combined health center and infirmary, outfitted with the latest in x-ray equipment, was built near North Hall.

Simmons entered the computer age in 1970 when Professor Teresa Carterette brought the first computer to campus for research in psychology.

The modern four-story Park Science Center, featuring up-to-date laboratories specifically designed for science education, opened in 1972, consolidating for the first time all the science programs in one building.

President William J. Holmes oversaw a major two-part fundraising campaign that began in 1975.

In 1979, the gymnasium moved from a small west wing room to the renovated third floor assembly hall area in the east wing, paving the way for intercollegiate sports.

The Main College Building was in need of extensive renovation and that work, at a cost of $5 million, was completed by 1980.

Other cutting-edge programs and cultural opportunities form part of the legacy of the "modern years." The James P. and Joan M. Warburg Chair in International Relations was endowed in 1983, with former United States Ambassador Robert E. White named as first holder.

Computing at the College also leapt forward in 1984 when the Alumnae Sky Club funded the first full-fledged Microcomputer Lab and Classroom, located in the Beatley Library building.

First steps toward a campus computer network were taken by Physics professor Edward Prenowitz; the experiments quickly grew into a high speed network connecting the Main College Building, Science Center, and Beatley Library that went online in 1988.

Another expansion occurred in 1989 when the Graduate School for Health Studies became the fourth graduate school.

In her inaugural address in November 1993, Dowdall summarized Simmons's mission:

Daniel S. Cheever, Jr. became the College's sixth president in 1996 and has focused on shaping Simmons's financial status and bringing John Simmons's vision into the 21st century.

Another major undertaking was the "Strategic Plan 1999," which reinvested $51 million in the College's facilities and technology.

Drinan received the John D. Erdlen Five Star Award, the highest award given annually by the Northeast Human Resource Association; in 2001, she was named a Fellow of the National Academy of Human Resources.

In 2005, Doctor Kevin W. Cosby was selected as the 13th President of Simmons beginning a resurgence that continues today.

Scrimshaw was named the seventh president of Simmons College and began her tenure on July 1, 2006.

In 2008, Scrimshaw stepped down from the Presidency to pursue significant work promoting public health on the international level and to serve as interim President at the Sages College.

Simmons University is saddened to announce the passing of Linda Watkins '82MS. Watkins was the librarian for the School of Library and Information Science for thirty-three years, until her retirement in 2014.

The co-ed online MBA program, MBA@Simmons, was founded in 2016.

In 2018 Simmons College decided to change their name to Simmons University after reorganizing the structure of the school.

*Numbers as of fall 2019 unless otherwise noted See our Common Data Set for more information about Simmons University.

Drinan is a member of several organizations dedicated to empowering women including the Advisory Council of the Women in Public Service Project; 2020 Women on Boards, and the Massachusetts Women's Forum.

For the Spring 2021 semester, the residence halls opened at 50% capacity.