With new investments in programs, faculty, and learning spaces, Fairfield is preparing today’s students for an exciting future.
For the past decade, the School of Engineering’s unique “Walk on Water” competition has been a rite of passage for undergraduate engineers. But this year, both the competition and the course were redesigned to enhance the overall learning goals following a grant from the Engineering Information Foundation.
The course now incorporates a communication element — oral and written — to develop the public communication skills that professional engineers need.
Also new this year, student teams incorporated a service-learning component to the event by engaging with Wakeman Boys & Girls Club members. Fairfield undergrads shared their designs with visiting local youth in a presentation at the new state-of-the-art Innovation Annex, before heading over to the RecPlex to put their creations to the test.
Setting records as the University’s largest and academically strongest first-year cohort, the Class of 2026 also made history as part of Fairfield’s biggest-ever applicant pool.
Additionally, the students were encouraged to incorporate spare, repurposed, and recyclable parts into their designs. With a budget of only $200, students scavenged their dorms or homes for found materials. All participants were required to tie their designs to the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals.
Fairfield is growing, with a current undergraduate student body of 4,850 fulltime students and 1,223 graduate students. The rising numbers have been accompanied by an increase in new programs and developments in innovative pedagogy across all academic concentrations – such as the evolution of the “Walk on Water” event. There are now 51 undergraduate majors and minors, and 51 graduate programs across the five schools.
“Over the past five years, we have grown the faculty by approximately 25 percent going from 270 full-time professors in fall of 2017 to 336 full-time professors this fall,” said University Provost Christine Siegel, PhD. “Our spending on faculty has increased by $13.8 million dollars.” “During the same time period, we have invested significantly in classrooms, instructional technology, and teaching and learning spaces,” Dr. Siegel continued. “Over the past five to six years, we have invested $18.4 million in these types of academic infrastructure.”
These efforts are reflected in the University’s national standings. This year, in a particular point of pride, Fairfield University earned the #29 spot among national universities ranked for Best Undergraduate Teaching. The University also debuted as the highest-ranked institution among the 60 schools that moved into U.S. News & World Report’s Best National Universities ranking for the first time. Among private institutions in the National Universities category, Fairfield placed in the top 75.
English Professor Emily J.Orlando, PhD, the E. Gerald Corrigan Chair in the Humanities and Social Sciences
Recent work in the evolution of academic programs has built upon Fairfield’s Magis Core curriculum — a distinctly Jesuit element of the Fairfield experience — which is meant to ensure that all undergraduates develop the capacity to communicate, the ability to think across fields of study, and the aptitude to think with others.
The core is still comprised of traditional subjects but has a refreshed focus on interdisciplinary study and “writing across the curriculum,” as well as social justice and advocacy. Out of this reimagining, new programs have sprung into existence and longstanding courses of study have evolved.
When considering the future of academic excellence at Fairfield, Dr. Siegel said she would “like the University to continue to be known for having the best exceptional teaching across all of our degree programs, and for that teaching to continue to translate into excellent student outcomes.” That way, Fairfield graduates will continue to be “really highly sought after for what they know, and what they can do, and for the type of people that they are.”
Another of Fairfield’s unique strengths is “meeting students — collectively and individually — where they are,” which means, Dr. Siegel specified, “really being aware of and responding to experiences that shape the students whom we have within our learning community.”
To this end, the University has paid careful mind to the integration of technology into the classroom. Moreover, Fairfield has been exploring new instructional modalities, renovating academic spaces, and supporting professors and teaching staff with regular workshops to enhance or support the use of technology.
At the same time, Fairfield’s current and potential Gen-Z undergraduates have increased mental health needs and other vulnerabilities. “We’re prepared to support their needs as well as their interests and goals,” Dr. Siegel assured, “both undergraduate and graduate; we see this diverse group’s desire for learning, and we continue to work on increasing access to a Fairfield education for them.”
A School of Engineering student test-drives the Stags Racing vehicle on campus in preparation for the Baja SAE Design Competition and Validation Event in Louisville, Ky.
Among the many recent academic achievements and developments, here are a few highlights from the past year:
FAIRFIELD’S ONLINE PROGRAMS CONTINUE TO EXPAND
Since 2020, the University has launched 25 online master’s degree programs and graduate certificates in a variety of fields and professional concentrations, while successfully increasing enrollment in the past year. Included in this portfolio are the University’s two newest online master’s degree programs in Business Administration (MBA) and Public Health (MPH), as well as its fully online graduate programs in Cybersecurity, and Public Administration, which launched late last spring.
DOLAN WELCOMES MORE THAN 40 ALUMNI FOR STAGS ON WALL STREET EVENT
Last April, Fairfield Dolan welcomed more than 40 alumni from the following companies at the Stags on Wall Street event: Bank of America, BlackRock, Blackstone, BNP/Paribas, BNY Mellon, Citibank, Deutsche Bank, Franklin Templeton, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley, Nexseer Capital, SMBCNIKKO, TD Securities, Wells Fargo, and UBS. Fairfield’s strong alumni network has been recognized by the Princeton Review and is ranked #14 for Best Alumni Network (2020).
$30,000 AWARDED AT THE TENTH STARTUP SHOWCASE
On April 27, Fairfield StartUp Showcase — the University’s entrepreneurship competition — returned to an in-person format at the Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts. First-place team Quantify won $12,500 in seed funding. In total, five student teams made five-minute pitches and competed for $30,000 in seed funding in front of a live audience and a panel of investors.
ENGINEERING TEAM TAKES FIRST PLACE AT NEBEC CONFERENCE
Senior engineering students represented Fairfield University’s School of Engineering and showcased team research on biomechanics in front of an audience of engineering professionals at the 48th NEBEC Conference, held at Columbia University on April 23 and 24.
SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING AWARDED $20,000 SUSTEMABILITY GRANT
Fairfield University’s School of Engineering was awarded a $20,000 E2 Energy to Educate grant from Constellation, in support of student STEM, energy, and sustainability projects. The grant will support Fairfield’s SuSTEMability, an initiative that will engage Fairfield engineering students and faculty members in STEM education projects with educators from Cesar Batalla School and the Wakeman Boys and Girls Club.
Naser Haghbin, PhD, professor of the practice in mechanical engineering, conducts lab work with Maksymilian Puk ’24; Since 2020, the University has launched 25 online master’s degree programs and graduate certificates.
PHIL KLAY HOSTS MFA INSPIRED WRITERS SERIES
As a companion speaker series to the College of Arts and Sciences’ MFA program, Inspired Writers Series events hosted by Fairfield professor and awardwinning author Phil Klay are designed to not only provide encouragement and inspiration for writers, but also to inform, entertain, and enlighten any participant with lively discussions from top authors.
DOLAN GRAD PROGRAMS RANK AMONG THE BEST IN THE COUNTRY
U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Grad Business Specialty Programs 2023” placed Fairfield Dolan master’s programs among the Top 25 in the U.S., with Accounting at #19, Marketing at #18, Finance at #19, and Business Analytics at #21. The part-time MBA program was ranked #92, placing it among the Top 35 percent in nation.
FIRST EDD RESIDENCY BRINGS STUDENTS TOGETHER
This past August, the first cohort of Doctor of Education in Education Leadership (EdD) students met on campus for the program’s inaugural three-day residency. The program in the School of Education and Human Development has since welcomed a second cohort of students. As part of the three-year, hybrid, lowresidency program, students complete two periods of residency that provide an in-depth focus on: leadership and communication, specific teacher-leadership challenges, and dissemination of ideas and research findings.
This year fairfield university earned the #29 spot among national universities for best undergraduate teaching, and debuted as the highest-ranked institution among the 60 schools that moved into u.s. news & world report’s best national universities ranking for the first time.
DOCTORATE IN CLINICAL NUTRITION PARTNERS WITH BRIDGEPORT RESCUE MISSION
Four Fairfield Egan clinical nutrition students completed their 60-hour community nutrition practicum at the Bridgeport Rescue Mission, an organization that provides vital services to those facing hunger, homelessness, and addiction. The students created a food labeling system, trained volunteers, and provided educational programs on healthy meal planning.
DR. JOYCE SHEA AWARDED 2022 APNA AWARD FOR PSYCHIATRIC NURSE OF THE YEAR
Joyce Shea, DNSc, APRN, PMHCNS-BC, is one of eight psychiatric-mental health nurses recognized for their work in the field by the American Psychiatric Nurses Association
Simulation instructor Elizabeth Denby-Callahan works with an Egan School nursing student.
FAIRFIELD AWARDED $378K GRANT FROM HOWARD HUGHES MEDICAL INSTITUTE (HHMI)
A team of science and mathematics faculty members was awarded a prestigious HHMI grant to improve retention and success for all STEM students, especially students of color and others who have been traditionally excluded from these disciplines.
GAVRIEL ROSENFELD, PHD, APPOINTED PRESIDENT OF CENTER FOR JEWISH HISTORY
This past fall, Fairfield University Professor Gavriel Rosenfeld was named president of the Center for Jewish History in New York City — the world’s largest collection of Jewish history and culture held outside Israel.
FAIRFIELD DOLAN LAUNCHES EXECUTIVE DBA PROGRAM
The Charles F. Dolan School of Business will soon launch a three-year, part-time hybrid doctorate in business administration program offering a flexible schedule with synchronous classes that meet online on weekends and two, in-person weekends that take place at the beginning and at the end of the semester. The program will be ideal for business professionals looking to gain training in sophisticated research methodologies to lead corporate research and analytics, professionals such as consultants, coaches, and executives who want to distinguish themselves in their respective fields, and business professionals who are teaching and wish to secure a fulltime instructor position.
DR. RENÃ ROBINSON GIVES PRESTIGIOUS JEAN DREYFUS LECTURE
The College of Arts and Sciences’ Chemistry and Biochemistry departments hosted the distinguished speaker Renã A. S. Robinson, PhD, professor of chemistry and Dorothy J. Wingfield Phillips Chancellor’s Faculty Fellow of Vanderbilt University, for the Jean Dreyfus Lecture this past fall on Thursday, Nov. 3.
