Leonard N. Stern School of Business - NYU Stern School of ...

LEONARD N. STERN SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
THE UNDERGRADUATE COLLEGE
By the turn of the 20 th century, the American business organization had grown in
complexity, prompting a need for more sophisticated and scientific approaches to
studying it. Yet, there were few opportunities to study business at the country’s
universities. Recognizing this, representatives from the New York State Society of
Certified Public Accountants and New York University came together to start a new
school – one of the first of its kind – that would offer professional training to young
business people in New York City. Thus began the long tradition of business study at
NYU, and in 1900 the NYU School of Commerce, Accounts, and Finance was founded
with Charles Waldo Haskins as dean.
From its start, the School of Commerce led the way in formulating objective
scholarly standards of academic excellence. It became a charter member of The
Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) and a pioneer by
awarding a Bachelor of Science degree that included a solid grounding in the liberal arts
and sciences. With the success of the undergraduate School of Commerce came demand
for graduate coursework, and in 1916 NYU’s Graduate School of Business
Administration was established as a satellite division near Wall Street.
In the mid-1980s, the College and the graduate school received a major gift from
alumnus Leonard N. Stern, chairman and chief executive officer of the Hartz Group, Inc.
In recognition of Mr. Stern’s generosity, the schools were unified under one name –
Leonard N. Stern School of Business – and united on NYU’s Washington Square
campus.
Now, more than 100 years after the Undergraduate College’s founding, the
challenges facing business leaders continue to grow in scope and complexity amid
unprecedented rates of technological and social change. In response, NYU Stern
perseveres as an innovator while remaining committed to the principle of an integrated
four-year curriculum, combining a first-rate business education with a broad-based liberal
arts foundation. Engagement in NYU’s College of Arts and Science continues to be a
cornerstone of the undergraduate experience, as does a rigorous and challenging
analytical approach to study of the business enterprise.
At the NYU Stern Undergraduate College, our vision is to build, educate and
inspire a community of socially engaged, intellectually vibrant, global leaders and
thinkers. As part of this vision, the Undergraduate College abides by a set of guiding
educational principles that play an integral role in helping the School achieve its
academic mission. They are to
• Achieve proficiency—by instilling professional levels of competence in the core
functions of business,
• Encourage intellectualism—by inspiring intellectual curiosity, high levels of
engagement and open mindedness to new ideas and alternate points of view,
• Foster collaboration—by developing skills to thrive in groups, organizations and
communities, and
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