Merrimack College

Merrimack College

Motto	“Per Scientiam Ad Sapientiam” (“Through Knowledge to Wisdom”)
Type	Roman Catholic, Augustinian
Established	1947
President	Richard Santagati
Undergraduates	2,150 full time 300 part-time
Location	North Andover , MA , USA
Campus	Suburban, 220 acres (350,515 sq. meters)
Website	http://www.merrimack.edu

Merrimack College is a small private, liberal arts, Catholic college in North Andover, Massachusetts, located on Route 114. It was founded in 1947 by Augustinians. Approximately 2,100 full-time and 300 evening students from more than 26 states and 17 countries are enrolled at Merrimack, approximately 80% of whom reside on campus.

The Augustinians in North America

The North American foundation of the order happened in 1796 when Irish friars arrived in Philadelphia. Michael Hurley was the first American to join the Order the following year. Friars established schools, Universities and other works throughout the Americas, also including Villanova University in Philadelphia and Merrimack College. Malvern Preparatory School was founded in Malvern PA in 1842, and by 1909 two Augustinian houses and a school had been established in Chicago, 1922 in San Diego, by 1925 a school in Ojai and Los Angeles; 1926 a school in Oklahoma; in 1947 this college; in 1953 a school in Pennsylvania; 1959 a school in New Jersey and in 1962 a school in Illinois.

Campus life

The vast majority of the student body is both Catholic and Caucasian and hails from Massachusetts and the surrounding New England states. The administration has a number of ongoing programs to increase minority attendance, which is less than 10% as of 2005.

The student body had consisted primarily of commuters up until the last several years. The construction of Deegan and Santagati halls brought the percentage of resident students up from roughly 50% in the early 1990s to 80% as of 2005.

As stated previously, the campus's relative isolation limits the available activities within walking distance. Though downtown Andover is roughly fifteen minutes away by foot, the majority of students simply drive or get a ride elsewhere to perform errands. There are currently three sororities, Alpha Sigma Tau, Theta Phi Alpha, and Zeta Tau Alpha, and three fraternities, Phi Kappa Theta, Tau Kappa Epsilon, and Theta Delta Chi. The Merrimack Beacon Newspaper, founded in 2002, functions as Merrimack's student-run news source. The Beacon is the successor to the now-defunct 'Argus' newspaper that had been in existence from the 1950s until the late 1990s. The school's yearbook is called the Merrimackan.

Athletics

Merrimack offers 16 varsity sports for men and women. The only NCAA Division I sport at Merrimack is men's ice hockey. The Warriors participate in the highly competitive Hockey East conference. NCAA Division II sports include men's and women's soccer, lacrosse, and basketball. There is also men's American football and baseball, men's and women's tennis, field hockey and volleyball. Highlights of Merrimack athletic history include the 1978 men's hockey victory the Division II national championship, and the 1994 women's softball team's Division II national championship. In 2006, Merrimack football became Northeast 10 Co-Champions and received their first NCAA Division II playoff bid to go on to win their first NCAA playoff game.

Merrimack's teams are known as the "Warriors". The symbol, or mascot, was formerly a Native American warrior; the use of this mascot was criticised by members of the college community as being disrespectful, or insufficiently sensitive to Native American culture. Following a contentious debate among students, alumni, faculty, and the college administration, the mascot was changed to an Ancient Greek warrior, modeled after a Spartan. The teams play at the on-campus Volpe Center, which has a hockey arena and basketball arena.

Notable alumni

• Greg Classen, NHL Hockey player for the Nashville Predators (2000-2003)
• Christopher G. Fallon, (B.S. 1975), member of the Mass. House of Representatives (served 1996 - present)
• John Jakopin, NHL Hockey player for the Florida Panthers, Pittsburgh Penguins & San Jose Sharks (1997-2003)
• Mike Macklin, TV News Reporter and WHDH-7 Political Correspondent
• Steve McKenna, NHL Hockey player for the LA Kings, Minnesota Wild, NY Rangers & Pittsburgh Penguins (1996-2004)
• James Murphy, member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives (2001 to present)
• Matt Foy, NHL Hockey player for the Minnesota Wild (Present)
• Charlie Day, Charlie Kelly from It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
• Adam Shepard, author, Scratch Beginnings
• Carl Yastrzemski, Hall of Fame Major League Baseball player, Played for the Red Sox. B.S. '66
• Anthony Messia, Ultimate Human being.

Points of interest

• Moseley Wrought Iron Arch Bridge

External links

• Merrimack Website
• Augnet International Cooperative Web Site for Schools in the Tradition of St. Augustine
• Merrimack College's McQuade Library website
• Woman's College Basketball: An Inside Look at Merrimack College Women's basketball