Paul Gargiulo/NJCU University Communications
By Laura D.C. Kolnoski
OCEANPORT – Over 300 students who enrolled for the first semester at New Jersey City University’s new campus in a transformed Squier Hall, within the Oceanport section of the former Fort Monmouth, began attending classes yesterday.
All students, faculty and staff, regardless of vaccination status, are required to wear masks in all indoor public spaces.
Students must receive their first vaccination no later than Sept. 17 and their second dose by Oct. 8 to continue in-person activities. All employees are “strongly encouraged” to get vaccinated or undergo mandatory weekly COVID-19 testing. Additional protocols and testing guidelines are detailed on the school’s website, njcu.edu.
Squier Hall, built circa 1935 as home to the U.S. Army Signal Corps, was named for Maj. Gen. George O. Squier (1865 – 1934), a United States Military Academy graduate who invented aeronautic telegraphic systems and Muzak. Over the past three year, the university completely renovated the hall into a 76,000-square-foot state-of-the-art institution of higher education on 22 acres. The project is a key part of the redevelopment of Fort Monmouth following its closure by the U.S. Army, which maintained a base there for 100 years.
The main campus of NJCU is located in Jersey City. The university has had a presence in Monmouth County for more than 15 years, offering degree-completion programs in partnership with Brookdale Community College on its Wall and Lincroft campuses. In its new location, NJCU offers an advanced Nursing Education Center complete with an intensive care unit, a computer lab containing a Bloomberg Terminal with access to the stock market, a high-tech cybersecurity program, and courses in criminal justice, fire science and exercise science.
A ceremonial ribbon-cutting was held on the school steps Aug. 25, attended by state, county and local officials including Oceanport Mayor Jay Coffey, a proponent of having a university located in the borough. Attendees included representatives from the Office of the Secretary of Higher Education (OSHE), the New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA), the Fort Monmouth Economic Revitalization Authority (FMERA) and the Monmouth County Chamber of Commerce, which recently partnered with NJCU for future cooperative ventures. In announcing that recent development, NJCU director Michael Edmondson, Ph.D., said he is looking to foster more mutually beneficial relationships with area organizations and the community.
“This is a once in a lifetime opportunity,” Edmondson said of locating the university within the historic confines of Fort Monmouth, spread over 1,126 acres covering portions of Eatontown, Oceanport and Tinton Falls. He noted the Signal Corps insignia still marks the front of Squier Hall (pronounced ‘square’ not ‘squire,’ he instructed).
“It is an extraordinary accomplishment to open NJCU for this school year,” said Tim Sullivan, CEO of the New Jersey Economic Development Authority. “Welcoming NJCU onto Fort Monmouth furthers two of Gov. Murphy’s goals – increasing access to institutions of higher education, and repositioning stranded assets to drive equitable and inclusive investment in our communities. FMERA has worked tirelessly toward restoring Fort Monmouth to its place as a creator of jobs and reinventing it as a driver of economic activity centered around innovation.” Some 5,000 civilian jobs were lost when the base shut down in 2011.
Newly named NJCU president Sue Henderson said the university will offer “high quality, low cost education for the area’s diverse population” to prepare students for a global future.
“This is a major milestone in the history of our institution,” said Henderson, NJCU’s first female president. “Through our investment in this multiyear project and our partnership with FMERA, many more students in the state will have the opportunity to complete their undergraduate studies and pursue master’s degrees close to home without incurring significant debt.”
State Sen. Vin Gopal said he has high hopes NJCU’s nursing program, ranked in the top 10 percent in the nation, would help ease New Jersey’s current shortage of nurses. Former Lt. Governor Kim Guadagno, also attended, as did Assemblypersons Joann Downey and Eric Houghtaling, who presented a resolution to the university on behalf of the Senate and General Assembly.
Could film and media production-related courses be added to the curriculum should Netflix purchase a large portion of the former fort for a new operation, as first reported in The Two River Times July 29? Ira Thor, NJCU senior director of university communications and media relations/university spokesman, provided this statement in response to that question:
“NJCU, in a process that involves its deans and the Office of the Provost, frequently reviews the market data and creates new academic programs to help meet the needs of our students. As future projects at Fort Monmouth become clearer, NJCU will consider all relevant new programming options.” Thor said thus far, NJCU “has not had any discussion with or regarding Netflix.”
The article originally appeared in the September 2 – 8, 2021 print edition of The Two River Times.
