Babson College History
From Focused Beginnings to Global Impact
Beginning in 1908, Roger Babson, offered a correspondence course on how to sell bonds through the Babson Statistical Organization (BSO). This endeavor was an instant success and courses in economics, finance, and distribution followed. Babson saw the need for a private college that specialized in business education and in June 1919, in a special letter to clients of the BSO, Roger Babson announced the establishment of a school of business administration to provide not only practical but also ethical training for young men wishing to become business executives.
Babson’s Timeline
The Babson Institute was founded in Wellesley, Massachusetts in 1919 by financier Roger Babson to educate the “sons of businessmen” to take over their father’s businesses, the Babson Institute issued certificates until 1947.
1919
- On September 3rd, the Babson Institute opened its doors at Roger and Grace’s Abbott Road home in Wellesley. The Institute began with 27 students, high hopes, and Roger W. Babson as its first President.
- The Babson Institute offered a one-year Certificate in Business Administration also called a Certificate in Management. The program presumed some business and/or college experience.
- Ralph B. Wilson was the first employee of the new Babson Institute and Austin Fittz the first member of the faculty.
1920
- The first class graduated in June received one year Certificates in Business Administration with Arthur M. Cleveland of Plymouth, Indiana, receiving the first Babson diploma.
- The Institute is housed in the Washington Street (Wellesley) building that was the former home of the Babson Statistical Organization. The building is now known as the Stuart Building.
1921
- George William Coleman, a prominent Boston civic leader, becomes the second President of the Babson Institute.
- The Babson Institute is incorporated in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
- Roger Babson purchases 69 acres of Edward Lyon’s farm as a residential base for the campus.
- The campus founding date seems to be November 23rd.
- Alice Coleman becomes the first female member of the Babson Institute Board of Trustees.
- The first yearbook, The Babsonian 1920–1921 (pdf), is published. The Babsonian is its name for its entire run.
1922
- Boston architect George F. Marlowe is hired to design the first buildings (Georgian style, at Mr. Babson’s request) and John Nolen is retained to design the campus grounds. A plan is made and construction begins on campus buildings.
- The Babsonian 1922 (pdf)
1923
- The Babson Institutes’s first four buildings open: the Administration Building (named Mustard Hall in 1975 and now the home of the Lunder Admissions Center), Bryant Hall, Lyon Hall (renamed Luksic Hall in 1996), and Knight Auditorium.
- The Commonwealth of Massachusetts charters the Babson Institute for the purpose of “furnishing education in all matters.”
- The Babsonian 1923 (pdf) lists three women in attendance, the most taking classes at Babson until 1968.
1924
- Peavey Gymnasium, named in honor of Babson Statistical Organization President Leroy D. Peavey opens.
- The student body numbers 37. The first alumni magazine is published.
- The Coleman Map Building, built to house the Great Relief Map and named for President Coleman, is begun.
- The Babsonian 1924 (pdf)
1925
- Babson Park Clubhouse (renamed Park Manor South in 1930) opens with hotel-like amenities.
- There are 50 students enrolled at the Babson Institute.
- The Great Relief Map is begun.
- The Babsonian 1925 (pdf)
1926
- Westgate is constructed as a home for the President. It was used as such until the Institute closed during World War Two.
- The Babsonian 1926 (pdf)
1927
1928
1929
- WBSO-AM studios are built at 1763 Great Plain Avenue, Needham, for the Babson Statistical Organization’s radio station. It is currently part of the Olin College of Engineering’s campus.
- Roger Babson builds a house at 56 Whiting Road as a gift for his daughter, Edith Babson Webber. Since 1957, it has served as the home of the President of the College.
- The Babsonian 1929 (pdf)
1930
- Park Manor (named Park Manor Central in 1951) is built as a residence hall and opens the following year.
- Philip C. d’Arcis of Switzerland becomes the first European to complete the certificate program at Babson Institute.
- The Babsonian 1930 (pdf)
1931
- "For the first time in the history of Babson Institute a regularly organized athletic team represented the school in combat." The basketball team went 7-5 and called themselves "The Financeers."
- There are 129 students enrolled at Babson Institute and there are over 580 alumni.
- On March 13th the Town of Wellesley votes to allow Roger Babson and his immediate family to be buried on campus.
- The Babsonian 1931 (pdf)
1932
- Arthur Van Winkle and R. Howard Webster receive their Certificates in Business Administration. Both men eventually have their names on buildings.
- The Babsonian 1932 (pdf)
1933
- In the darkest year of the Great Depression, Babson Institute drops tuition, room, and board fees from $3,000 to $2,000 as enrollment drops to 46.
- Chin Hsi Li of Hankow, China becomes the first Asian graduate of Babson.
- Alexander Suero of Havana, Cuba is the first Latin American to graduate from Babson.
1934
- Babson Institute begins a two-year Certificate of Business Administration program. This effectively drops the “some college” requirement for admission to the Institute allowing recent high school graduates to apply.
- President Coleman writes about the founding years of Babson Institute.
- The Babsonian 1934 (pdf)
1935
- George W. Coleman retires after 14 years as President of the Babson Institute. He is granted “Emeritus” status. Northeastern University Dean, Carl David Smith becomes the 3rd President of Babson Institute.
- The Babsonian 1935 (pdf)
1936
- The “Ancient Royal Order of the Goat,” founded by Dean John Millea during Babson’s earliest days continues to grow with members never quite sure why they were selected. The organization ends with Millea’s joining the U.S. Army after the U.S. entry into WWII.
- Babson’s Retorts, a parody of the founder’s primary publication, produces two issues.
- The Babsonian 1936 (pdf)
1937
- The Student Handbook from 1937 begins: “The objectives of Babson Institute emphasize the training of men [sic] in practical business principles and the raising of ethical standards of business administration and executive control, the development of proper habits of work by observing business hours in a business environment and by making efficient use of each day. They further emphasize that soundness of character and moral integrity are fundamental to worthwhile achievement in life.”
- The Babsonian 1937 (pdf)
1938
- The Fore-Parlour from Sir Isaac Newton’s St. Martin Street residence is purchased for 450 Pounds Sterling. The room is to be placed in the new Babson Institute Library.
- Eleanor Haywood, B.S. (Simmons), M.B.A. (Boston University), M.S. (University of Wisconsin) leaves Babson for the W.P.A. after 19 years as Registrar and Librarian and the de facto engine that made things work.
- Chester W. Cleveland, Class of 1921, becomes the first Babson graduate to receive an honorary degree.
- The Babsonian 1938 (pdf)
1939
- The Babson Institute Library is dedicated on October 14th.
- The library handbook provides instruction: “No man can hope to learn more than a small portion of collected knowledge, but to know where and how to find what is desired often will point the way to success or failure.”
- The Babsonian 1939 (pdf)
1940
- The Great Relief Map is completed on December 31st.
- Roger W. Babson places third in his run for President of the United States.
- Another effort at a student press, The Statistician, has a run of 13 issues.
- The Babsonian 1940 (pdf)
1941
- Freeman T. Putney is elected Treasurer.
- The Babsonian 1941 (pdf)
1942
- Babson enrollment which had been creeping back up since the depths of depression drops from 112 to 58 students as the country gears up for war.
- The Babsonian 1942 (pdf)
1943
- The Commonwealth of Massachusetts grants authority to award a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (B.S.B.A) degree for the completion of a three-year program. The ability to grant Masters of Business Administration (MBA) degrees is granted at the same time and is put on hold until 1951.
- The U. S. Navy uses Babson facilities for training its supply officers as Babson Institute is closed on June 8th for the duration of the war.
- The Babsonian 1943 (pdf)
1944
- President Smith resigns effective October 31st.
- John K. Horner becomes de facto president.
1945
- Babson Institute reopens on October 1st with 76 students.
- The Poor’s Printing Building is purchased and renamed for Babson associate and accounting teacher Dwight G. W. Hollister.
1946
- On July 1st, Edward Barnard Hinckley becomes the fourth President of Babson Institute.
- The Class of 1949 enters Babson Institute to find that the personal secretaries, maid service, and the time clock, all fixtures of pre-war Babson, had disappeared.
- Roger W. Babson founds his third school called Utopia College in Eureka, Kansas.
- The Babsonian 1946 (pdf)
1947
- The first bachelor degree (B.S.B.A.) is awarded at the June Commencement.
- The first Founders Day is celebrated on November 14th.
- The 1500 pound, 42 inch diameter Hotchkin Bell is hung in the Babson Institute Library (now Tomasso Hall.)
- In May, the Cup ’n Saucer opens in Park Manor.
- Volume 1, #1 of the Babson News begins the post-WWII student press. It is renamed “Babson Beaver” by its third issue.
- The Babsonian 1947 (pdf)
1948
- The first class to enter Babson in the new three-year undergraduate program receives its Bachelors of Science in Business Administration degrees.
- Songs of the Babson Institute is published.
- President Hinckley begins his column “Our Mutual Enterprise” in the October 8th issue of the Babson Beaver.
- The Babsonian 1948 (pdf)
1949
- The John E. Millea Swimming Pool in Peavey Hall is dedicated on November 10th.
- The Student Christian Hour has its first meeting on November 11th.
- The Babsonian 1949 (pdf)
1950
- The B.S.B.A. is accredited by the New England Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools effective December 1st.
- George W. Coleman, Babson’s second president, dies on July 31st.
- The Babsonian 1950 (pdf)
1951
- The new Park Manor North residence hall opens in the fall.
- The first class of 25 enters the newly formed two-year MBA.
- The Babsonian 1951 (pdf)
1952
- The Institute purchases buildings and grounds from the Channing Sanitarium—now known as Woodland Hill and chiefly graduate student housing—with the intent of locating the new graduate program on the site.
- Babson Institute is elected to membership in the New England Conference on Athletics, officially beginning its intercollegiate sports programs.
- The Babsonian 1952 (pdf)
1953
- A Newton Apple Tree is purchased from the Pennsylvania Historical Commission and is prepared for planting on the Babson Institute grounds.
- Ground is broken for the Babson World Globe on May 30th.
- The first MBAs (six in all) are awarded at the June Commencement.
- The Babsonian 1953 (pdf)
1954
- Wilson F. Payne becomes the first Dean of the Graduate School.
- Husband and wife team of Kal Kubinyi and Doris Hall are engaged to create the paneled "skin" of the Babson World Globe.
- The Babsonian 1954 (pdf)
1955
- Roger W. Babson resigns as Chairman of the Corporation.
- Babson Institute holds its first Honors Day on May 19th.
- The Babson World Globe is dedicated on June 18th.
- The Board of Trustees vote to change the name of the Babson Institute Library to the Sir Isaac Newton Library.
- Hall of Flags is dedicated in the Sir Isaac Newton Library on April 19th.
- The Babson Chair is offered for the first time.
- The Babsonian 1955 (pdf)
1956
- Babson’s original diploma and program, the one-year Certificate in Business Administration, is no longer offered.
- Grace Knight Babson, Roger’s wife, business partner, and force behind acquisition of the Newton Collection, dies on April 30th.
- Edward Hinckley resigns as President.
- The Babsonian 1956 (pdf)
1957
- Gordon Mariner Trim is elected Babson’s 5th President on March 4th.
- The Babson Dramatic Club performs Good News on Mar 2nd.
- On June 1st, Roger Babson marries long-time associate, Nona Dougherty.
- The last issue of the Babson Beaver is published on October 24th. The student newspaper reemerges as the Babson Globe News on October 31st. It published until 1961.
- The Babsonian 1957 (pdf)
1958
- Nathaniel Wright II becomes the first African-American to receive a degree at Babson Institute.
- Liberians John R. H. Bright and Lafayette K. Morgan become the first Africans to graduate from Babson, earning their B.S.B.A.s in March.
- The Babsonian 1958 (pdf)
1959
- The Babson Institute Theatre Guild performs The Boy Friend on February 21st.
- The Boston Celtics begin use of Peavey Gym for pre-season workouts, which continues for several years.
- The Children’s Convalescent Hospital is purchased and eventually becomes Forest Hall.
- Earliest known photograph of the Babson Beaver as mascot appears in this year’s Babsonian.
- The Babsonian 1959 (pdf)
1960
- The last class required to take Industry Analysis. (Only those who were required to take this course really know what this meant.)
- The Babsonian 1960 (pdf)
1961
- President Gordon Trim dies suddenly on May 5th. Henry August Kriebel, Dean of Faculty and Professor of Accounting, becomes Babson’s 6th President on June 5th.
- The Exec (later Executive) begins publication.
- The Evening (aka Part-time) MBA program begins in September with an enrollment of 60. It is directed by Economics Professor Frank Genovese. The program is co-ed from the beginning with several women enrolled but no woman completes an MBA until Carolyn Levosky in 1969.
- The prospect of tenure is made available to Babson faculty for the first time.
- The Babsonian 1961 (pdf)
1962
- The new student newspaper, The Exec, completes it first year of publication.
- Henry Kriebel is inaugurated on February 9th.
- The Babsonian 1962 (pdf)
1963
- Roger Babson’s second wife, Nona, dies on July 13th.
- Ground breaking for the Trim Dining Hall occurs on October 3rd.
- Latin motto “Navis Commericii Institum Babsonis 1919” is seen from October 30th.
- The Babsonian 1963 (pdf)
1964
- Trim Dining Hall opens on September 7th.
- First Evening MBA graduation in June.
- The Babsonian 1964 (pdf)
1965
- Babson Institute offers a $1,000 scholarship for any son of any member of the U.S.S. Thresher (SSN 593). The Thresher went down during a deep dive in the North Atlantic, April 9, 1963.
- The Division of Distribution becomes the Marketing Division on April 30th.
1966
- Brian Miller Barefoot, former Chairman of the Babson College Board of Trustees (1996–2001), and the 11th President of Babson College (2001–2008), receives his B.S.B.A.
1967
- Roger Ward Babson, founder of Babson College, dies on March 5th at the age of 91.
- Last sighting of the Latin motto on April 19th.
1968
- Babson launches the first phase of its new five-year Master Plan.
- Babson becomes co-educational in October. Anne McCormick and Sandra Adams become the first women in the undergraduate program, both earning their B.S.B.A.s in 1970
- In September Babson adopts a 12 point grading scale.
1969
- Babson Institute becomes Babson College (See Chapter 5 From Institute to College in Continuity and Change) on April 25th.
- Carolyn Levosky, MBA, becomes the first woman to receive a degree at Babson College.
- Babson College has its first sophomore class.
- Former President Carl Smith dies on October 16th.
- The undergraduate summer school begins.
1970
- The Midwest Institute of Business Administration, originally Utopia College, closes its doors. Its hometown is accessible online at History of Greenwood County.
- Ina Mae Harmon becomes the first Black woman to receive a degree at Babson College, completing her MBA in December.
- Babson’s Black Society is formed.
- The first issue of the Babson Free Press is published on October 1st.
1971
- Canfield Hall and Keith Hall are dedicated on October 2nd.
- Babson College is granted authority to grant a Bachelor of Science "without specification" on March 3rd.
- WRWB radio goes on the air.
- The earliest record of the "Editor’s Wastebasket" and "flashing" occurs in the September 8th issue of the Babson Free Press.
1972
- Frances Burgess retires after 49 years as secretary to Presidents of Babson.
- Babson College offers its first graduate course in entrepreneurship.
- School for Executive Education is founded.
1973
- Gerber Hall and Babson Hall are constructed in the first phase of the the "Educational Center."
- Cheryl Williams is elected the first female class president.
- Debra Amidon becomes the first female Dean (Student Affairs).
- Craig St. Armour (BS 1975) becomes the first Babson All-American winning for swimming three years running.
- The B.S.B.A. is last offered for the May Commencement. Henceforth the undergraduate degree is an unrestricted BS.
- The Beaver Brau is established by an October 13th vote of the Board of Trustees.
1974
- Henry Kriebel retires. Harvard Business School Marketing Professor Ralph Zellar Sorenson becomes Babson’s 7th President on September 1st. His inauguration is October 10th.
- McCullough Hall is dedicated on November 13th.
- Babson College’s first pub, the Beaver Brau, opens in the basement of Coleman Hall on April 4th.
1975
- Babson’s original Administration Building is named in honor of Edith Babson Webber Mustard on December 15th.
- The Babson International Student Organization (BISO) is organized.
- The men’s soccer team wins Babson’s first NCAA title.
1976
- Kriebel Hall is dedicated on November 13th.
- Elizabeth McCarthy becomes the first female Editor-in-Chief of the campus newspaper.
- Virginia Harrison retires after 17 years as Curator of the Grace K. Babson Collection of the Works of Sir Isaac Newton.
1977
- Margaret Weinblatt becomes the first woman to receive tenure at Babson College.
- The Babson Alumni Magazine does a feature on computers.
- Academy of Distinguished Entrepreneurs is founded.
1978
- Center for Entrepreneurial Studies founded. See the Arthur M. Blank Center for Entrepreneurship.
- In April Babson College established its first endowed chair called the Paul T. Babson Professorship in Entrepreneurial Studies.
- Berry Gordy, Soichiro Honda, Ray Kroc, Royal Little, and Kenneth Olsen are the first inductees into the Academy of Distinguished Entrepreneurs.
- Babson College’s Writing Center opens in the fall with Professor Kathleen Kelly as its first director.
- Babson College first tries "flex time" in the summer.
1979
- Diane Von Furstenberg becomes the first female member of the Academy of Distinguished Entrepreneurs. This class includes Byung-Chull Lee, John Erik Jonsson, John H. Johnson, and Thomas Mellon Evans.
- The men’s soccer team won its second NCAA title.
- Babson offers its first undergraduate major in entrepreneurship.
- This is the last year that "The Cave" was occupied.
1980
- President Sorenson offers his resignation effective June 1981.
- The undergraduate program is accredited by the AACSB (American Assembly of Collegiate Schools of Business) effective June 13th.
- Babson College repeats as Division III Men’s Soccer Champions.
- Horn Library, named to honor the memory of Charles Lilley Horn of the F. W. Olin Foundation, is dedicated on October 18th.
- Pietz Hall is opened.
- The third class of inductees into the Academy of Distinguished Entrepreneurs consists of Lewis E. Lehrman, Mary Wells Lawrence, Mary Hudson, and J. Peter Grace.
- The Babson Players present Pippin.
1981
- William Rankin Dill, Dean of New York University’s Graduate School of Business, is inaugurated as Babson’s 8th President October 2nd.
- Tomasso Hall, the renovated Sir Isaac Newton Library, is dedicated to honor Angelo Tomasso, father of Victor F. Tomasso (B.S.B.A. 1951).
- Babson Players perform Guys and Dolls April 2-4.
- The Graduate Program is accredited by the AACSB effective May 6th.
- The former "Spear and Staff Building" opens as the new Alumni Hall.
- Bennett E. Bidwell, Charles J. McCarthym and Richard M. Nichols are awarded the first Babson Medals. The Babson Medal is awarded to distinguished alumni and friends in recognition of leadership and/or contributions to the College, th community, their profession, or some combination of the above.
- Walter H. Carpenter, Jr., long-time faculty member and former Dean of Faculty, dies on October 13th.
- Gustavo A. Cisneros, Undergraduate Class of 1968, becomes the first Babson graduate to be inducted into the Academy of Distinguished Entrepreneurs. This class includes An Wang, Marcus Walenberg, and Franklin P. Perdue.
- Executive-in-Residence program begins with Al Ries as the first in residence.
1982
- North Hill is leased to Life Care Services, Inc. for fifty years.
- Former Babson Bulletin editor Frances Dalton wins the first Carpenter Prize. This annual prize is awarded to employees in recognition of outstanding service to the College and community.
- Wally Amos, William C. Norris, and Carl G. Sonthemier are this year’s new inductees into the Academy of Distinguished Entrepreneurs.
- The Dry Dock snack bar is rebuilt and renamed The Exchange.
1983
- The Certification Program in Advanced Management Studies begins.
- A Commencement tradition, "That Special Goodbye," is given for the first time. (Thank you Mr. Bishop.)
- Esther Buffler is the first Charles D. and Marjorie J. Thompson Visiting Poet performing on February 24th.
- The Babson Players perform Once Upon A Mattress and M.A.S.H.
- Clinton Petersen, Professor of Accounting, is the second winner of the Carpenter Prize.
- The 1983 class of the Academy of Distinguished Entrepreneurs consists of Frederick W. Smith, Sidney R. Rabb, Frederick C. Hamilton (B.S.B.A. 1948), and Nolan K. Bushnell.
1984
- Babson Players perform Hello Dolly in April.
- Women’s Field Hockey becomes a varsity sport.
- Men’s Ice Hockey wins its first NCAA title.
- Undergraduate students organize the Babson Student Federal Credit Union as an entrepreneurial venture.
- 175 campus trees are destroyed in an early spring storm.
- The Babson Entrepreneurial Exchange is founded.
- This year’s new members of the Academy of Distinguished Entrepreneurs (ADE) are Heinz Nixdorf, John K. Hanson, John J. Cullinane, and Henry W. Bloch.
- David Thompson is the second Thompson Visiting Poet reading on the ideal day of February 14th.
- Ed Sullivan, Head of Buildings & Grounds, is this year’s winner of the Carpenter Prize.
- Somethin’s Cookin’ At Babson, a collection of favorite recipes, is published to raise money for the Babson College Women’s Club.
1985
- A residence hall called "New Hall" is built. It is later named Putney Hall after Jesse and Freeman Putney (see 1991).
- Paul Cuneo (BS 1985) earns double All-American status for one and three-meter diving.
- Dr. Paula Rooney became Babson’s first female Vice President heading Student Affairs.
- Kathleen Spivak is the 1985 Thompson Visiting Poet on February 21st.
- Marketing Professor and Babson Baseball fan Norman Govoni is the 1985 winner of the Carpenter Prize.
- The Babson Players perform Anything Goes in April and Arsenic and Old Lace in November.
- The 1985 class of the Academy of Distinguished Entrepreneurs consists of Peter J. Sprague, Donald C. Burr, and Rubert Murdoch.
- Babson College hosts it first Symposium for Entrepreneurial Education.
1986
- Former President, Dean of Faculty, and Accounting Professor Henry Kriebel is awarded the Babson Medal.
- Roger Enrico, B.S.B.A. 1965, President & CEO, Pepsi-Cola Company, addresses the senior class and MBA candidates at commencement.
- Martin Robbins is this year’s Thompson Visiting Poet reading on February 27th.
- Coordinator of Academic Computing (and future Executive Assistant to the President) Mary Keyes is the 1986 Carpenter Prize recipient.
- This year finds Ueli Prager, Godtfred Kirk Christiansen, and Trammell Crow inducted into the Academy of Distinguished Entrepreneurs.
- The Babson Players perform Love, Sex, and the IRS in November.
1987
- The Horn Computer Center is dedicated on October 16th.
- The tenth class is inducted in the Academy of Distinguished Entrepreneurs. The new members are Sir John Marks Templeton and Gilbert Trigano.
- The 1987 Thompson Visiting Poet is John Hildebidle who read on February 11th.
- Babson Players perform Grease in April and Table Settings in November.
- Career Counselor Bill Wrenn is this year’s Carpenter Prize winner.
1988
- The Babson Free Press "flashes" for the last time in the final "Editor’s Wastebasket" in the November 17th issue.
- The Center for Executive Education is dedicated on May 14th.
- Kazuo Inamori, Edward Lowe, and J. Willard Marriott, Jr. are this year’s new inductees into the Academy.
- This is that last year that Undergraduate and Graduate Commencement exercises were combined.
- Former President Edward Hinckley died on September 21st.
- Babson Players perform Cabaret in the spring and The Odd Couple in the fall.
- The Babson Club is approved by the Board of Trustees on March 19.
- Roger’s Pub opens on September 26th.
- Jody Aliesan in the Charles D. and Marjorie J. Thompson Visiting Poet reading on February 17th.
- Joan Koehler, Director of Development, is the 1988 Carpenter Prize winner.
1989
- President Dill resigns as President effective June 30th.
- Xerox Vice-Chairman, William Francis Glavin, becomes Babson’s 9th President on July 1st. He was inaugurated on October 20th.
- The Webster Center is dedicated on November 10th.
- Babson’s new honors program gets the go-ahead in the spring.
- This year’s commencement is the first where the Graduate and Undergraduate Programs are separate.
- The Babson Players perform The Skin of Our Teeth in November.
- Maine Senator William Cohen is this year’s Thompson Visiting Poet (reading on February 13.)
- Nurse Evie McIntosh and Math/Science Professor John Saber share this year’s Carpenter Prize.
- The ADE adds Michael W. J. Smurfit, Patrick J. McGovern, and Alan Bond to its membership.
- In September Babson College gives up the 12 point grading scale returning to the better recognized 4 point grading scale.
1990
- After 43 years teaching accounting and character at Babson, Clinton "Pete" Petersen retires.
- Paul Fireman and Sandra L. Kurtzig are inducted into the Academy.
- The Babson Players perform Little Shop of Horrors in April and The Night of January 16th in November.
- Professor Bill Nemitz gives up his telephone number to HELP the IT Support Services.
- G.I.V.E. (Get Into the Volunteer Experience) a student-run community service organization is formed.
- Mary Oliver is the 1990 Thompson Visiting Poet on February 23rd.
- Babson alumnus, teacher, and administrator, Henry Deneault, is the 1990 recipient of the Carpenter Prize.
1991
- Babson College creates an "Athletics Hall of Fame."
- The One-Year MBA Program begins in May.
- The Butler Did It is the fall show by the Babson Players.
- Jesse Putney, B.S.B.A. 1956, MBA 1959, retires ending 50 years of Putneys (father and son) as the Babson College Treasurer.
- The Academy of Distinguished Entrepreneurs taps Amar G. Bose, John R. Furman, and William G. McGowan as its newest members.
- Galway Kinnell is the Thompson Visiting Poet on February 11th.
- Groundskeeper Jim Touhy is the 1991 Carpenter Prize winner.
1992
- Senior Jim Pierrakos becomes Babson’s first Basketball All-American.
- Knight Annex is renamed Malloy Hall by vote of the Board of Trustees on February 8th.
- Ewing Marion Kauffman, John C. Merritt (B.S.B.A. 1961), Anita Roddick, and Leslie H. Wexner are this year’s new members of the ADE.
- The Babson Players do Bye Bye Birdie in April and Rumors in November.
- Babson College "Toolachs" make their debut at the Wellesley Spelling Bee.
- A new Two-Year MBA curriculum is initiated.
- Marge Piercy is the Charles D. and Marjorie J. Thompson Visiting Poet for 1992.
- The Babson Literary Society publishes volume one of a new "little magazine" called Options.
- Economics Professor Bill Casey is this year’s Carpenter Prize winner.
1993
- Bryant Hall reopens as a residence hall for "non-traditional" students after a much-needed renovation.
- Babson Players perform Oklahoma! in April and Fools in November.
- Van Winkle Hall opens on the campus highpoint.
- The Babson Literary Society publishes volume two of Options.
- October brings the beginning of the year-long 75th Anniversary celebration.
- The refurbished Babson World Globe is rededicated on October 2nd.
- Martin Espada is this year’s Thompson Visiting Poet on February 17th.
- Human Resources Benefits Coordinator Susan Roskey is this year’s Carpenter Prize winner.
- Robert A. Swanson and Jacob Stolt-Nielson, Jr. are the 1993 Class of the ADE.
1994
- The former Dean’s residence at 227 Forest Street is renovated and named in honor of John E. Millea, Dean of Students and member of the faculty from 1920 until World War II. It serves as home to College Marketing.
- Joy Harjo is this year’s Thompson Visiting Poet on February 16th.
- Volume three of Options is published by the Babson Literary Society.
- Babson Alumni Bulletin Editor Dianne Coryell and Marketing Professor Bob Eng share the 1994 Carpenter Prize.
- The ADE inducts Earl G. Graves and Leon A. Gorman as this year’s new members.
- The Babson Players fall show is Noises Off.
1995
- John Mulkern’s Continuity and Change: Babson College, 1919—1994 is published.
- Mark Doty is the 1995 Thompson Visiting Poet (February 1st).
- Presidential Administrative Assistant Annette Robinson is this year’s Carpenter Prize winner.
- S. Robert Levine, Bernie Marcus, and Edward C. Johnson, 3rd join Craig R. Benson (BS 1977) and Arthur M. Blank (B.S.B.A. 1963) as this year’s new inductees into the Academy of Distinguished Entrepreneurs.
- The Babson Players perform Godspell in the spring and Lend Me a Tenor in the fall.
- The last students for whom FME is an elective enter Babson College.
- The Babson One Card is introduced in March 1996.
- The F. W. Olin Graduate School of Business building is dedicated in October. The building was achieved as part of a $30 million grant, one of the largest ever given to a business school.
- Lyon Hall is completely renovated and renamed Luksic Hall in honor of A. Andronico Luksic, a member of the Academy of Distinguished Entrepreneurs, and his son Andronico (BS 1976)
- First year students entering this fall are the first to experience the new integrated undergraduate curriculum.
- Volume one of the Babson Journal is published.
- The ADE offers membership to: Richard Branson, Elly R. Callaway, A. Andronico Luksic, and Lillian Vernon.
- The Babson Players perform Guys and Dolls and Moonchildren.
- Li-Young Lee is this year’s Thompson Visiting Poet on February 14th.
- Professor of Accounting and future Provost Michael Fetters wins the 1996 Carpenter Prize.
1997
- William Glavin retires on June 30th after eight years as President.
- Leo Ignatius Higdon, Jr., Dean of the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business, becomes the 10th President of Babson College on July 1st. He is inaugurated on September 19th.
- Warren Buffett speaks on March 19th.
- Volume Two of the Babson Journal is published.
- Sonia Sanchez is the 1997 Thompson Visiting Poet reading on February 11.
- Willie D. Davis, Leo Kahn, Leslie C. Quick, Jr., and Thomas G. Stemberg are inducted into the ADE as its 20th class.
- Three new campus facilities are dedicated—the Glavin Family Chapel, the Richard W. Sorenson Center for the Arts, and the Donald W. Reynolds Campus Center.
- Director of Strategic Projects Dick Bishop and future VP for Administration Mary Rose share the 1997 Carpenter Prize.
1998
- The Arthur M. Blank Center for Entrepreneurship is dedicated.
- Richard J. Egan and Abraham D. Grossman are inducted into the Academy of Distinguished Entrepreneurs.
- The Institute for Latin American Business is launched.
- A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum is April’s Babson Players production.
- Babson College Radio goes on the air at noon on February 17th and becomes the first college web radio station in the United States.
- Robert Pinsky is the Charles D. and Marjorie J. Thompson Visiting Poet on February 10th.
- Special Event’s Jean Collins is the 1998 Carpenter Prize winner.
1999
- Babson College sells a parcel of its Needham property to the F. W. Olin Foundation. The new Olin College of Engineering breaks ground.
- The Academy of Distinguished Entrepreneurs inducts Ellen Gordon, Marie Gray, Robert Gray, and Masayoshi Son into its membership.
- Marie Howe is this year’s Charles D. and Marjorie J. Thompson Visiting Poet.
- Former President Henry Kriebel dies on May 6th.
- The Babson Players perform Biloxi Blues in the fall.
- Entrepreneurship Intensity Track makes its debut in the MBA program.
- Babson Journal’s third volume appears.
- Math/Science Professor Gordon Prichett is the 1999 Carpenter Prize recipient.
The 1st decade of the 21st century has been an exciting time for the college. Not only has the campus become more dynamic and vibrant, but the college’s position as the leader in entrepreneurial education has solidified. Babson is developing into a small school that does “big things.”
Continuity and Change: Babson College, 1919-1994
In 1994, as part of the celebration of the College’s 75th Anniversary, retired Professor John R. Mulkern wrote Continuity and Change: Babson College, 1919-1994, a detailed history of the College.
- Front Matter: About the Author, TOC, Preface, Dedication (pdf) pp. i–vii
- Chapter One: The Founding Father (pdf) pp. 1–16
- Chapter Two: Created in His Own Image (pdf) pp. 17–36
- Chapter Three: The Babson Program (pdf) pp. 37–60
- Chapter Four: Crisis, Conflict, and Change (pdf) pp. 61–84
- Chapter Five: From Institute to College (pdf) pp. 85–108
- Chapter Six: America's #1 Business Specialty School (pdf) pp. 109–132
- Chapter Seven: The Quest for Diversity (pdf) pp. 133–152
- Chapter Eight: College Life Part I (pdf) pp.153–170
- Chapter Nine: College Life Part II (pdf) pp. 171–194
- Chapter Ten: Looking Ahead (pdf) pp. 195–212
- Back: Index (pdf) pp. 213–214