|
Keist Business College, 1894 - 1896
Morgan Business College, 1896 - 1911
Here is a list of milestones in the history of Thomas College, beginning
with its origin as Keist Business College on Main Street, Waterville, in 1894.
1894 - Keist Business College was
founded three floors above F.W. Woolworth Co. in the Edith
Building as a non-sectarian co-educational college dedicated
to career training.
1896 - Keist Business College, with a growing
reputation for coeducational career training, was purchased
by William Morgan. It was renamed Morgan Business
College.
1911 - Morgan Business College was purchased by
Peterborough, N.H., railroad administrator John L. Thomas
Sr., who himself was a business college graduate. The
College was renamed Morgan-Thomas Business College.
For more than 45 years the college trained accountants and
secretaries, and gained an excellent reputation and saw
increased enrollment. Thomas, “principal” of the
school, developed a reputation as a gifted teacher.
1950 - Morgan-Thomas Business College was renamed
Thomas Junior College.
1956 - The College moved to the former home of John
Ware on Silver Street, which was known as one of
Waterville's largest and finest estates. The College
used two buildings there, one for administrative offices,
library and classrooms, and the other was redesigned for a
women's dormitory, dining room, store and student lounge.
John L. Thomas Jr. was named President.
Thomas College - Silver Street Campus, 1956 - 1971
1958 - The Maine State Legislature granted Thomas
College the right to confer Associate in Arts and Associate
in Secretarial Science degrees
1959 - Thomas College was re-chartered as a
non-profit institution.
1960 (approx.) - Jewell Hall, a men's dormitory named
for Ralph A. Jewell, the first chairman of the Board of
Trustees, was dedicated.
1962 - A new classroom building was opened and became
the hub of all academic activity. Thomas Junior
College was renamed Thomas College.
1963 - The Maine State Legislature granted Thomas
College the right to confer four-year Bachelor of Science in
Business Education and Bachelor of Science in Administration
degrees.
1964 - Mariner Library was opened. it was named
for Ernest C. Mariner, who served as Chairman of the Thomas
college Board of Trustees for 15 years. The former
library was converted into more classroom space.
1965 - A theater for lectures, concerts and dramatic
presentations was added to the main classroom building.
In September, a new dining center and women's dormitory was
finished. The building was named for Ann S. Parks, the
first woman trustee.
1969 - The Maine State Legislature granted Thomas
College the right to confer Associate in Science degrees.
1969 - Telephone workers who were on strike and had
children enrolled at Thomas helped build a baseball field on the new campus.
The workers on the ball field were paid $3.25 per hour. John L.
Thomas and Ford Grant thought the bill for the field was excessive at $4,200.
That same ball field today would cost more than most people's annual salary.
1970 - A dormitory with accommodations for both men
and women in separate wings was opened at the new campus on
West River Road. A student union and dining center was
opened that December.
1971 - The entire College was now operating at the
West River Road campus.
1972 - A student village with townhouse-like
accommodations for upper classmen, was opened at the new
Thomas College campus on West River Road.
1974 - The Maine State Legislature granted Thomas
College the authority to award Bachelor of Science in
Professional Studies.
1976 - The Maine State Legislature gave Thomas
college the right to confer a Master of Science degree in
Business.
1976 - Thomas College purchased its first computer, a
Digital Equipment Corporation PDP-11.
1980 - John Thomas Jr. died. Ford A. Grant, a
former teacher and the College's Vice President for
Financial Affairs, became temporary President. Paul G.
Jenson, the former Dean of Faculty, was named full-time
President at Thomas College.
1982 - The Computer Information Systems major begins.
1983 - The first personal computers - 2 Macintosh and
a Compaq portable PC - were purchased by Thomas College.
1983 - Instituted Internship Program
1984 - The Maine Sate Legislature granted Thomas
College the authority to award Master of Business
Administration degrees.
1985 - The Thomas College Portland Center
established.
1986 - Cyril M. Joly, Jr. was named to replace the
retiring Paul Jenson as President.
1988 - The first computer system dedicated to
administrative use was purchased; the first local area
network was created.
1989 - David F. Emery was named to replace Cyril M.
Joly, Jr. as interim President, pending selection of Joly's
permanent successor. Emery served for six months.
George R. Spann was named Thomas College President.
1994 - All dormitory rooms were equipped with voice,
data, and video lines connected to the Internet. The
addition of this technology was funded by a grant from the
National Science Foundation. The first
building-to-building network connection was completed, and
Thomas college signed on to Internet.
1995 - Thomas College announced a partnership first
with MINT. In later years this partnership would turn
to one with Adelphia Incorporated, which acquired MINT.
The original partnership with MINT made Thomas College and
MINT the local internet providers for the Central Maine
region.
1998 - A new phone system was purchased to handle the
additional load of student dormitory rooms and for Y2K
compliance. Two new computer-related majors were
created, Computer Management and Software Development.
1999 - Thomas College announced the most extensive
Guaranteed Job Placement Program in the United States,
entitled the Thomas College Guaranteed Job Placement
Program. Thomas College became one of the first
colleges in the nation to establish a web-based computer
administrative system.
2000 - Streaming audio/video
capabilities were added. Thomas
Celebrated the opening of the Laurette
Ayotte Auditorium. This high tech
300-seat structure was completed in the
spring of 2000. It features a beautiful
lobby, and two technology-driven classrooms
in addition to the auditorium. With its
large projection screen, fantastic sound
system, both wired and wireless internet
connections, the Laurette Ayotte Auditorium
is one of the most multi purposed in the
Northeast. The Thomas community uses this
spacious state-of-the-art facility for
concerts, student events, meetings, special
events, and even a weekly Friday night
movie. Thomas College added new majors in
Elementary Education, Psychology, Criminal Justice, and
Computer Science. The College also announced
partnerships with the Maine Criminal Justice Academy and
Putnam Investments. Putnam Investments opened a center
on the Thomas College campus.
2001 - Thomas College announced a partnership with
Bridge Educational Computer Career5 Center of Westbrook,
Maine. The Thomas College baseball team won the NAIA
New England Championship. A partnership with the
Portland Sea Dogs was announced.
Thomas College - West River Road Campus, 1972 - 2001
2002 - A new major in Communications was announced.
Thomas College completed a campus wireless computer
infrastructure, which allowed wireless computer access for
students in most locations on campus. A partnership
with the Mid Maine Chamber of Commerce was announced.
2003 - In the summer of 2003, the College completed major renovations to the Dining Center and opened Bartlett Hall, a new 100 bed residence hall, to students. Each room is equipped to provide students with wireless internet, internet ports, voice mail, and cable television. Clusters of 3 and 4 suites share a lounge with TV room, kitchenette, and computer terminals.
2004 - Thomas has been selected for a second time in five years by the Microsoft Corporation as a case study for using the company's products. Microsoft recently examined the college's use of its ISA Server 2004 product for security, performance and reporting
2005 - Thomas received a $1.25 million challenge from the Harold Alfond
Foundation for construction of a $4.6 million athletic
center. The gift is the largest ever received by the college
for construction of a facility. Thomas announced the launch
an unprecedented $9.6 million capital campaign, The Thomas
Challenge: Guaranteeing the Future, on October 19. The
campaign, the largest in the College's history, is a push to
fund the new Harold Alfond Athletic Center, scholarship
endowment and annual operating funds. The College received
several generous challenges for the campaign to date
including the Harold Alfond Foundation challenge, an H.
Allen Ryan Challenge for $500,000 and a Unity Foundation
challenge for $150,000. In addition, 100 percent of Thomas's
Board of Trustees donated, and many regional businesses
contributed, including TD Banknorth, N.A., which made a
$250,000 pledge.
2006 - In September 2006, The Harold
Alfond Athletic Center opened for the first
time, and consists of a 38,000 square foot facility, a multi-sport, three court surface (striped for basketball, tennis and volleyball), an indoor track, lacrosse ball-wall, plyometrics room, locker rooms,
fitness center, multipurpose room, and lounge area. A variety of intramural, recreation and fitness programs, student pick-up games, and home varsity tennis matches are just some of the uses for this new facility.
A new Master of Science in Education program was launched after receiving overwhelming approval by the faculty senate. Classes began on January 2, 2006, and the first cohort officially entered in the fall.
Thomas welcomed its largest incoming class ever in fall 2006 with 234 new undergraduate, full-time students. Overall enrollment is up 39 percent since 2002. The record enrollment put the College on track for its ambitious goal of nearly doubling its undergraduate enrollment over 10 years.
The
Recreation Room - completed in 2006, is located
across from the Stickney Room - it has a pool
table, ping-pong table, foosball table,
couches, tables and chairs, and a large 56"
screen TV. Equipment for use in the
Recreation Room is available for sign-out at
the front desk of the Athletic Center.
The space will also be used by the
Department of Intramurals and Recreation,
Student Life office and CAB for periodic
programs
2007 - To support future expansion,
the College purchased 12 of the 13 lots of Eaglewood Estates
and an additional 26 acres connected to the south end of campus
along the Kennebec River and West River Road. The College also
purchased 10 additional acres of land across the road on the
north corner of Webb and West River Roads. This additional
50 acres of land will provide the College space for campus
growth as the enrollment increases over the next several years.
|
