What does the University of Bridgeport look like today? 11/20/2021

What does the University of Bridgeport look like today? 11/20/2021#aryland #bridgeportct
Beginnings
The university began in 1927 as the first junior college in Connecticut. Founders E. Everett Cortright, Alfred Fones, and Sumner Simpson saw a need in Bridgeport, then one of only six American cities of more than 100,000 residents lacking a college or university. The school expanded significantly, adding dormitories and a school of business. The school purchased the former P. T. Barnum estate and neighboring property adjacent to Seaside Park and became a four-year institution in 1947, when it was renamed the University of Bridgeport.[5]
1947 to 1990
The university continued to grow rapidly from 1947 to 1969, due to the increased number of people seeking to attend a U.S. college resulting from the baby boom, Vietnam War veterans eligible for a higher education under the G.I. Bill, and international students who wanted to attend college in the United States. In 1953, the University of Bridgeport absorbed Arnold College of Milford, Connecticut.[6] Enrollment peaked at 9,100 students in 1969, and an Ed.D. program in Educational Leadership was added in 1979.[7][8] Enrollment declined throughout the 1970s and 1980s after the waves of baby boom and Vietnam era veterans eligible for the G.I. Bill declined. By 1990, the university had cut tuition, room and board fees to $18,000 per year, but enrollment continued to decline, due to the decreased birth rate, increased competition, and the then-high crime rate in the neighborhood. In 1990, more than a third of the 50 campus buildings were empty. To cut costs, the university decided to terminate 50 tenured faculty, and asked the other faculty to accept a 30% wage cut.[9] In addition, the university decided to eliminate its liberal arts college, alienating many students.[10] This led to the longest faculty strike in the history of American higher education. Dr. Janet Greenwood, the president at the time, quit abruptly, and around 1,000 students left the school, contributing to the cash crisis.[11]
1990 to 2003
In 1990, after severe endowment losses, discussion began about affiliating or possibly merging the university with either the University of New Haven or Sacred Heart University.[12] The university was approached by the Professors World Peace Academy (PWPA), an affiliate of the Unification Church, but its offer to bail out the university was spurned by the trustees who said the school was "not going to have anything to do with the offer" and were concerned that such an affiliation would damage the university's reputation.[10][13][14]
Problems continued to plague the university; enrollment fell to 1,300 in 1991. Debt rose to over $22 million in 1991-92. Serious plans to merge the university with Sacred Heart fell through in 1992; the law school instead wanted to associate with Quinnipiac University, but Sacred Heart maintained that any takeover would have to include the Law School.[15] There were other universities willing to take over the school, but were unwilling to take on its debt.[13] The university's charter required the trustees to enter into "serious negotiations",[13] and they accepted the offer, giving the PWPA sixteen spots as trustees, constituting a majority.[16] The PWPA invested $50.5 million in the university on May 30, 1992,[17] enabling the university to keep its accreditation.
A two-year faculty strike, started in the midst of the university's financial troubles, intensified when the trustees gave control to the PWPA. Eventually, sixty-six professors and librarians agreed to a "divorce" with the university in return for compensation of up to a year's salary. In a similar move, the Law School decided to cut ties with the university,[16] separating from it. In order for the law school to remain open it had to merge with a financially sound university. The law school faculty and students voted to merge with Quinnipiac University and the name was officially changed to the Quinnipiac University School of Law.[16]
Once PWPA-appointed trustees constituted a majority on the board of trustees, the trustees retained the president at the time, Dr. Edwin G. Eigel, Jr. (1932-2008). Eigel served as president until 1995. He was succeeded by distinguished Holocaust scholar, professor emeritus at Florida State, and former PWPA president Dr. Richard L. Rubenstein, who served from 1995 to 1999.[18] Neil Albert Salonen, a member of the Unification Church, was the chairman of the university's board of trustees when he was chosen to serve as ninth University president in 1999. He had earlier managed several Unification Church related organizations, and had served as president of the Unification Church of the United States from 1973 to 1980, and as chairman of the International Cultural Foundation, prior to becoming the chief executive of the university

[@bhromjak]

Awesome

[@cynthiakleist9513]

Keep doing these videos they r greatly appreciated more than you know

[@alexanderpisaretz8218]

It’s sad that nobody came to the rescue other than the Moonies. The politicians and city leaders after Barnum’s death all failed to follow Barnum’s example on how to grow and preserve the city for future generations. Will Bridgeport ever be so lucky to blessed with another leader like PT Barnum?

[@alexanderpisaretz8218]

It’s sad that after 60’s everything fell apart. The university was noted for its excellent Engineering and Business Administration programs. The long term Socialist mayor (1933-1957) and the Democratic mayor, who followed did nothing to honor the city that PT Barnum built by himself. Everybody only recognizes Barnum as the Circus Man and fails to recognize that he was one of the greatest city planners of the 19th century. East Bridgeport is the exact duplicate of Manhattan Island. Does Bridgeport have to wait for someone else like PT Barnum?
It’s hard to believe a city can be destr