After more than 50 years of offering a two- or three-year
teacher-preparation curriculum, the College granted its first Bachelor of
Education degrees in 1942 to students who completed a four-year curriculum.
In 1948, the Oneonta State College of Education was one of the founding
members of the State University of New York system. In the same year, the
College initiated an undergraduate program in home economics and began
offering graduate programs in teacher education.
From 1949 through the 1970s, the College expanded as the new campus was
developed on a hill overlooking "Old Main," the College’s first building.
With the addition of a full range of programs in the arts and sciences in
1964, the State Teachers College at Oneonta became the State University of
New York College at Oneonta, and enrollment grew substantially.
In 2009, the main campus includes 30 instructional and support buildings
and 15 residence halls, including Higgins Hall, the newest building, which
was completed in 2004. The College’s facilities also include the Biological
Field Station on Otsego Lake in Cooperstown, where the Cooperstown Graduate
Program in History Museum Studies is located.
Today, SUNY Oneonta offers 69 undergraduate and 10 graduate programs,
including three new master’s degrees in Education. On the 120th
anniversary of its first class, the College has built a reputation for
outstanding faculty, strong academic programs, innovative educational
technology, and a commitment to community service. In the
U.S. News rankings of "America’s Best Colleges
2010," SUNY Oneonta received its highest ranking ever: 10th among
public colleges and 45th overall among master’s-granting
universities in the North.
