Canisius Profile
Canisius College is one of 28 Jesuit colleges in the nation and is consistently ranked among the top regional colleges in the Northeast.
Founded in 1870 by German Jesuits, Canisius College is named for St. Peter Canisius, a renowned Dutch educator and one of the original members of the Society of Jesus. What began in a single building in downtown Buffalo now consists of 37 buildings located on 58 acres in a residential neighborhood in North-Central Buffalo.
President
President of Canisius since 1993, Rev. Vincent M. Cooke, S.J., has raised the bar for academic standards, capital improvements and fund raising during his tenure. Over the past 13 years, Father Cooke has overseen the investment of nearly $117 million in the campus.
A native of New York City, Father Cooke received bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Fordham University; a licentiate in philosophy from Loyola Seminary, Shrub Oak; advanced theology degrees from Woodstock College and Yale University; and a doctorate from the University of Wisconsin.
Father Cooke’s academic areas of expertise focus on ethics, the theory of knowledge and the philosophy of language. He served previously as provincial of the New York Province of the Society of Jesus, and as executive and academic vice president of John Carroll University.
Mission
Canisius College is proud to share in the Jesuit heritage, which offers students a highly personalized education solidly based in the liberal arts that emphasizes the development of the whole person.
Canisius prepares leaders – intelligent, caring, faithful individuals – able to pursue and promote excellence in their professions, their communities and their service to humanity.
Enrollment
Fall 2007 – 4,984
- Undergraduate – 3,490
Full-time – 3,233, Part-time – 257 - Graduate – 1,494
Full-time – 831, Part-time – 633
- 42 percent male
- 58 percent female
- 39 states represented
- 19 foreign countries represented
- 1,589 live in campus housing, including 73 percent of the fall 2007 entering class
- College of Arts and Sciences
- Richard J. Wehle School of Business
- School of Education and Human Services
Average class size is 17
Faculty
The student-faculty ratio is 12:1, which allows students to work closely with their instructors, often publishing or presenting scholarly articles based on joint research. There are 217 full-time faculty at Canisius, of whom 95 percent hold a PhD or other terminal degree.
Curriculum
There are more than 1,000 courses in over 70 distinct majors, minors and special programs offered at Canisius.
Recently Created Programs
Undergraduate:
- Accounting Information Systems
- Bioinformatics
- Catholic Studies minor
- Digital Media Arts
- Entrepreneurship
- Golden Griffin Fund
- International Business
- Music
- Studio Art minor
- Health and Human Performance
- Physical Education On-line
Canisius students and faculty have access to a library collection of more than 417,000 items, including books, periodicals, videotapes and DVDs. The library has wireless network access and loans laptop computers to students for use in the library.
Campus Ministry / Chapel
Mass is celebrated in Christ the King Chapel for the college community at 11:30 a.m., Monday through Friday, and 11:45 a.m. and 9:30 p.m. on Sunday.
Student Services / Activities
More than 100 college-sponsored organizations offer Canisius students experiences related to service, the media, student government, academics, and religious and social interests. Students serve others through opportunities that are offered and encouraged through Campus Ministry, including volunteering at area hospitals, tutoring, visiting the elderly and staffing local soup kitchens.
2005 - 2006 Graduates
- Undergraduate – 600
- Graduate – 275
The college has nearly 37,500 living alumni who reside in all 50 states and around the world.
2006 – 2007 Financial Profile
Annual Operating Budget $81.2 million
- Financial Aid $34 million
- Market Value of Endowment $64.4 million
Undergraduate Tuition and Fees
- Full-time — $23,930 per year
- Part-time — $683 per credit hour
- Full-time — $9,480 per year
- $645 per credit hour
- Canisius College’s regional accreditation was reaffirmed by the Middle States Association Commission on Higher Education in 2005.
- In 2005, the Canisius College School of Education and Human Services was granted professional accreditation by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE).
- Canisius is consistently ranked among the top tier schools in the North by U.S. News and World Report.
- The fall 2006 entering class had an average SAT score of 1098 and a high school average of 89.2. Seventy-six percent of the class had a high school average of 85 percent and above.
- In the last 18 years, 35 national fellowships and scholarships have been awarded to Canisius College graduates, including the Fulbright Scholarship, Jacob K. Javits Fellowship, Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship, Andrew M. Mellon Fellowship, the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship and the Harry Truman Scholarship.
| 1870 | Canisius College, established in Buffalo, New York, is named for St. Peter Canisius, one of the original members of the Society of Jesus. Rev. William Becker, S.J., serves as the first president. | |
| 1884 | Alumni Association is organized with 47 charter members | |
| 1910 | Ground is broken for new building at Main Street and Jefferson Avenue. | |
| 1958 | Canisius opens its School of Business. | |
| 1961 | Canisius College becomes co-educational. | |
| 1966 | Rev. James M. Demske, S.J., is named 22nd president of Canisius College. | |
| 1977 | School of Business Administration receives undergraduate accreditation from AACSB (American Assembly of Collegiate Schools of Business). | |
| 1987 | The Canisius College Golden Griffins join the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. | |
| 1993 | Rev. Vincent M. Cooke, S.J., is named the 23rd president of the college. | |
| 1995 | The School of Education & Human Services is established | |
| 2002 | Canisius announces its Employer Assisted Housing Program, a forgivable loan program to assist employees with down payments or closing costs in eligible neighborhoods. |