Iona College (New York)

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The main entrance to Iona College

Iona College is located in New Rochelle, New York, 20 miles north of Manhattan in suburban Westchester County. The college occupies 35 acres (140,000 m²) on North Ave.

Founded in 1940 by the Congregation of Christian Brothers, Iona College is a private, coeducational institution of learning in the tradition of American Catholic higher education. Iona, currently listed in the US News and World Report's annual "America's Best Colleges 2006" and The Princeton Review's Best Northeastern Colleges 2006 edition, offers undergraduate degrees in liberal arts, science, and business administration, as well as master of arts, master of science and master of business administration degrees and numerous post-graduate certificate programs.

There are 3,000 undergraduates, and total enrollment is 4,800. Iona College at Blue Hill is a branch campus in Rockland County, New York launched in 2003.

Iona College is named after the island Iona, which is located in the Inner Hebrides off Scotland.

[edit] Quick facts

Baccalaureate and Master degrees are offered in both the School of Arts and Sciences and the Hagan School of Business.

The Iona Gaels are part of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) and participate in twenty-two (22) NCAA Division I programs. In most sports, their fiercest rivals include Manhattan College, Fordham University, and Fairfield University. The Iona Men's Basketball team made it to the 2006 NCAA Basketball Tournament, only to be ousted by the LSU Tigers in the first round.

Iona College is mainly focused for students who wish to pursue undergraduate business degrees. The Hagan School of Business at Iona is innovative and rapidly climbing the rankings of the top business schools of the Northeast. Some distinguished faculty at Hagan include Dr. Nicholas Beutell and Dr. Ursula Wittig-Berman. Another notable faculty member at the Hagan School of Business is former president of the American Chess Federation, George DeFeis. The Hagan School of Business offers undergraduate degrees in management, accounting, finance, business administration, information technology, marketing, international business, and general business.

Iona was recently named one of US News and World Report's top Northern Masters Colleges. Iona has recently passed Siena College and Manhattan College in terms of Admissions Ratings on the Princeton Review Web site, both of which are schools Iona has long been considered inferior to.

[edit] Notable Alumni

John Bonacic, New York State Senator
Catherine R. Kinney current president and co-chief operating officer of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE)
Robert Greifeld current president and chief executive officer of The Nasdaq Stock Market, Inc. (NASDAQ)
Erin Whalen 1999 Rhodes Scholar
Richie Guerin, basketball star who played professionally with the New York Knickerbockers
Tim Idoni, former mayor of New Rochelle
Dennis Leonard, baseball star, who then pitched professionally for the Kansas City Royals
Warren Isaac, basketball star in 1964 and 1965, who then played professionally in Europe
Richard Kiplagat, nationally ranked long distance runner, placed 2nd at 2005 NCAA Cross Country National Championships
Jeff Ruland, basketball star in 1980 who took the Gaels to the NCAA tournament. He then played professional basketball and returned to coach the team after his playing career ended.
Sweeney, John, current president of the AFL-CIO.
Don McLean (American Singer-songwriter), Most famous ballad was 'American Pie' which has lyrics in the song that make subtle references to his days while attending Iona. Although he dropped out of Iona before he could obtain a degree he is still considered one of Iona's most famous alumni.
Steve Burtt Sr. (Basketball star from 1980 to 1984), All time leading scorer in Iona College history with 2,534 points. He was drafted by the Golden State Warriors in the 1984. He played 10 seasons in the NBA for the Warriors, Clippers, Suns, and Bullets. His son Steve Burtt Jr. ('06) is the second all time leading scorer at Iona. The two became the all-time leading father-son scoring duo in NCAA history with a combined 4,568 points.