Siena College - Saga Yearbook (Loudonville, NY)

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time, and were made available to men and women alike. The College is situated in one of the most historic sections of the state. Be- cause of its proximity to the locale chosen by Cooper for his Leatherstocking Tales, the name ilMohawksh was recently ascribed to its athletic teams. The highway running past the campus has been traveled since prev revolutionary days by those journeying be- tween Albany and Saratoga. A year later the west wing of the build- ing was erected, but it remained unnnished until September, 1040, when the Hoor space was partitioned into the needed Classrooms, laboratories, and library facilities. T0 the library was set aside nearly one third of the t0p Hoor. A large reading room was provided, and a stack room which at present houses approximately 10,000 vol- umes, and one of the most complete collec- tions of reference periodicals in the Capital District. The list of current periodicals num- bers nearly 150. Fr. Alcuin Shields, chief librarian, ordered the Classification of books Changed in 1939 from the Dewey Decimal System to that employed by the Library of Congress. In 1938, Siena students in need of Enane 0131 help to go on with their college work were enabled for the first time to receive assistance from the National Youth Admine istration. Fr. Cyril McGuire was made the college supervisor for the student aid pro- Blessing of the College, September, 1937

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F irst College Building first time on the 22nd of September, 1937, His Excellency invoked the blessings of the Church upon the new institution and de- livered afterward a brief speech to the ninety students who comprised the first Class. He declared that this ceremony inaugurated . . . one of the most important works which has been done in the Diocese of Albany. Nine months later, upon the occasion of the laying of the cornerstone, Bishop Gib- bons again addressed the students and faculty. We are grateful, he said, for this op- portunity to bless and erect a building dedia cated to God's glory and to the sacred cause of education. This college will stand for truth. The members of the faculty during the first year were: the Rev. Cyprian Mensing, O.F.M., Ph.D., Dean of Studies, and the Rev. Fathers Lambert Zaleha, Adalbert Ca1- lahan, Lawrence J. Kidder, Joseph Vann, Benjamin Kuhn, Alcuin Shields, Bernard A. Tobin, and Mr. John R. Wilkinson. The first permanent building was opened on October 17, 1938, to the ninety returning students of the Erst year, and 160 new en- rollees. Many additions were made to the faculty at this time, and Fr. Cyprian was made president of the College, which was now independent of St. Bonaventures and Operated under a temporary Charter granted by the University of the State of New York. Evening courses were offered for the Erst

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gram. Needy students were put to work in Clerical positions, library work, maintenance, and construction. Shortly after the 1940-41 school year had begun, another part of Siena,s thirty-eight acres was excavated for the second building, a gymnasium. It now stands on the site of a former apple orchard. In honor of His Excellency, the Most Rev. Edmund F. Gibbons, Bishop of Albany, the structure has been named Gibbons Hall. At about this time the College acquired a residential building towards Albany on the Loudonville road. It is being used to provide housing for lay professors. One of the Erst extracurricular activities organized at 816113 was its basketball team. First coached by John Carrol of Albany, and then by Hank Bunoski, a former basketball star of the St. Bonaventure team, the Siena players have met such schools as St. Jolnfs of Brooklyn, Seton Hall, the State College of Albany, and the University of Mexico. The present enrollment of the College now approaches 1,000 students, day and eve- ning. The faculty numbers nearly fifty; in all, an amazing growth from the country residence with its ninety students and eight teachers of only a few years ago. Following the laying of the cornerstone on June 20, 1938, the Rev. Father Thomas Plassman, president of St. Bonaventures College, spoke to those present and ex- plained, in part, the purpose of the new institution. These pictures depict the building progress toward the completion of Siena H211. May, 1938, marked the first stages of construction, as steel and stone began to give evidence of the new college