FAIRFIELD, Conn.—Sacred Heart University’s campus may look a little different this semester with its abundance of hand-sanitizing stations and directional signage, but the excitement and emotions of a fresh start and a new school year, were palpable as students arrived on campus recently.
Most freshmen moved into the on-campus residence halls the week before classes started. Wearing masks and following safety guidelines, families unloaded cars and brought bags and boxes of clothes, snacks and school supplies into rooms. Sacred Heart’s student ambassadors cheered and applauded the eager students as they arrived, happily answered questions and directed students where to sign in. Then the unpacking began.
“I just want to get in her room and start organizing her closet,” said Nancy Giustiniani of Brooklyn, NY, whose granddaughter, Samantha Tommaso, moved into Toussaint Hall. “We came [to SHU] for a tour, and we loved it. We visited so many colleges, and we agreed this was it … Everyone was so nice and helpful. That really matters.”
Giustiniani said the family has worries about the future in light of the pandemic, of course, but her granddaughter follows safety protocols and is doing everything she can to protect herself. Hand-sanitizer stations and signs around campus encouraging everyone to wear masks, wash hands and stay six feet apart will help maintain safety. All students, faculty and staff were also asked to sign SHU’s pledge, the Pioneer Promise, to protect themselves, their fellow Pioneers and the community.
Kayla Ryan, 18, of South Windsor, also moved into Toussaint Hall. Her family piled her belongings on the lush grass outside the building and decided what to haul into her room first. The nursing major said she chose SHU for its amazing nursing and honors programs and its beautiful campus.
Nearly all of SHU’s class of 2019 nursing students passed the National Council Licensure Exam – Resisted Nursing, the first time they took it. This is a great achievement and testament to the faculty and students’ hard work.
“I definitely visited a lot of schools, but by the end of it, SHU was the only choice I really loved,” Ryan said. She added that she is excited to meet new people.
“It was a lonely quarantine,” she said with a laugh, referring to her summer at home.
Ryan’s dad, Kevin, said he was a little nervous to see his daughter go, but he was happy she already made friends with her roommates and hallmates. “I have a good feeling about this,” he said.
First-year statistics
The class of 2024 has 1,681 students—the largest incoming class the University has seen. There were 12,080 applicants, also the largest in SHU history.
“Our undergraduate admissions committee worked tirelessly to identify students who not only achieved academic success, but also demonstrated leadership abilities in and out of the classroom,” said Pam Pillo, executive director of undergraduate admissions. “We look for well-rounded students who will add to our door-holding campus culture. Just recently, we were excited to be included in The Princeton Review’s top 10 listing of ‘Students Most Engaged in Community Service,’ a recognition that reflects SHU’s dedication to enrolling socially responsible students.”
Sacred Heart’s incoming class of freshmen also includes 566 National Honor Society students, another record number. The class as a whole has an average GPA of 3.55.
Students hail from 26 states and 15 countries, with the majority coming from Connecticut, New York, New Jersey and Massachusetts. The University also welcomed approximately 145 transfer students.
Popular interests among students in the incoming class include club sports, fraternity and sorority life, community service, varsity athletics and performing arts.
Facilities
Construction on campus continues. Crews worked diligently all summer on a new parking garage in the south part of campus. The structure will be open for the start of the school year and includes about 250 parking spaces for students.
Crews also worked on new residence halls in SHU’s Upper Quad. Toussaint, Frassati and Wiesel residence halls are up and running, but students can expect two more to open for the spring semester. These two new halls will house approximately 340 students. In the meantime, work is still underway on a new dining hall in the Upper Quad, with a tentative opening of 2021.
Over at West Campus (the former GE headquarters), crews spent the last several months renovating the East Building, home of the Jack Welch College of Business & Technology. At the end of this year, students, faculty and staff will have a new lobby that pulls together the campus’s entrances. This will provide comfortable gathering spaces for students and a pleasant spot to take a break, catch up on work or meet with a classmate.
Accolades
Sacred Heart continues to receive recognition from various organizations for its excellence.
- The Princeton Review’s latest publication of its Best 386 Colleges guide, it ranks SHU as one of the nation’s best institutions for undergraduates to earn their degree; lists SHU among the top 20 in the U.S. for “Most Religious”; and, as noted above, placed the University among the top 10 for students’ community service (the latter two lists each comprise 20 schools)
- Money Magazine included Sacred Heart on its list of “Best Colleges for Your Money”
- U.S. News & World Report ranked the Jack Welch College in Business & Technology’s MBA program
- The RN-to-BSN program at the Dr. Susan L. Davis, RN, & Richard J. Henley College of Nursing was highlighted as one of the best in the Northeast by Nursing Process, and the college’s BSN program earned the top rank on RNtoBSNProgram.com
- The College of Health Professions’ health care informatics program was ranked 10th in the nation by Intelligent.com
To download an image, visit SHU’s Photoshelter archive.
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About Sacred Heart University
As the second-largest independent Catholic university in New England, and one of the fastest-growing in the U.S., Sacred Heart University is a national leader in shaping higher education for the 21st century. SHU offers more than 80 undergraduate, graduate, doctoral and certificate programs on its Fairfield, Conn., campus. Sacred Heart also has satellites in Connecticut, Luxembourg and Ireland and offers online programs. More than 9,000 students attend the University’s nine colleges and schools: Arts & Sciences; Communication, Media & the Arts; Social Work; Computer Science & Engineering; Health Professions; the Isabelle Farrington College of Education; the Jack Welch College of Business & Technology; the Dr. Susan L. Davis & Richard J. Henley College of Nursing; and St. Vincent’s College. Sacred Heart stands out from other Catholic institutions as it was established and led by laity. The contemporary Catholic university is rooted in the rich Catholic intellectual tradition and the liberal arts, and at the same time cultivates students to be forward thinkers who enact change—in their own lives, professions and in their communities. The Princeton Review includes SHU in its Best 385 Colleges–2020 Edition, “Best in the Northeast” and Best 252 Business Schools–2019 Edition. Sacred Heart is home to the award-winning, NPR-affiliated radio station, WSHU, a Division I athletics program and an impressive performing arts program that includes choir, band, dance and theater. www.sacredheart.edu