Massachusetts's campuses and the stories they hold.
The Story
Elms College is a small Catholic college on Springfield Street in Chicopee. The Sisters of St. Joseph founded it as a women's college, and it began admitting men in 1998. Its School of Nursing is its largest draw: Niche ranked it the fourth-best nursing school in Massachusetts in 2025, and it offers degrees from the B.S.N. through the Doctor of Nursing Practice. The campus also includes the Second Empire mansion of Emerson Gaylord, a Chicopee leather-goods manufacturer.
About this site
Elms College is a college & university in Chicopee, Hampden County. It is one of 8 colleges & universities documented in Hampden County, among 3,815 historic sites cataloged across the county on MassRoam.
The site sits at 42.1418, -72.6015 near Chicopee. The nearest cataloged historic site is McClench, William W. House (landmark), about under a tenth of a mile away. Others within a short drive include Tuttle and Humphrey House, Tuttle, Frank E. - Humphrey, James L. House, and Tuttle, Frank E. House.
This record is drawn from MassRoam. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.
What makes Elms College different
On October 7, 1997, the trustees voted 23–5 to admit men, ending nearly seven decades as a women's college. The first coeducational class enrolled in the 1998–99 school year. en.wikipedia.org
The campus includes the Second Empire mansion of Emerson Gaylord, a Chicopee leather-goods maker who supplied military gear in the Civil War era. The college now uses it for housing and classes. en.wikipedia.org
Since 2019 the School of Nursing has partnered with the nursing faculty of the Episcopal University of Haiti in Léogâne, work the W.K. Kellogg Foundation backed with a major grant in 2024. elms.edu
The Center for Natural and Health Sciences, opened in 2014, was the college's first new academic building in more than 30 years. en.wikipedia.org
Civil rights leader and congressman John Lewis gave the commencement address in 2015. youtube.com
Softball player Katie Cosmos '25 was one of three national finalists for the 2025 Honda Inspiration Award, which honors college athletes who return to their sport after serious adversity. elms.edu
Founding president Bishop Thomas M. O'Leary designed the first diploma and wrote the first catalog himself. elms.edu
Elms College is a private Catholic liberal arts college in Chicopee, Massachusetts, founded in 1928 by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Springfield. Its roots trace to the Academy of Our Lady of the Elms, a school for girls established in 1897 that relocated from Pittsfield to Chicopee in 1899. Today the college grants associate, bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees.
In 1899 the school moved to Chicopee and operated as St. Joseph's Normal College, training teachers. In 1927 the Sisters of St. Joseph asked the state to charter a four-year women's liberal arts college. The charter came in 1928, and Springfield's Bishop Thomas M. O'Leary served as the first president until his death in 1949. Three buildings went up while he led the college, including the hall that bears his name.
Elms expanded in stages to serve working adults in western Massachusetts. It started an evening program in 1953 and added nursing, business and communication sciences and disorders in the 1960s and '70s. Weekend College, paralegal studies and a Master of Arts in Teaching came in the late 1980s. Nursing became a separate School of Nursing in 2013, and the next year the college opened the Center for Natural and Health Sciences, its first new academic building in more than 30 years.
Harry E. Dumay has led Elms since 2017 and later chaired the board of the Council of Independent Colleges. The college now offers doctorates in nursing practice, a master's in social work and an M.S. in applied behavior analysis. In 2024 the Kellogg Foundation renewed its funding for Elms' nursing partnership in Haiti. In 2026 Elms offered transfer grants to students displaced by the closing of Hampshire College.
#4 Best Colleges for Nursing in Massachusetts (also #21 Best Colleges in Massachusetts and #3 Best Catholic Colleges in Massachusetts) — Niche, 2025source
#170 among Northeast colleges on its 'Best Colleges for Your Tuition and Tax Dollars' list — Washington Monthly, 2026source
#279 among master's universities (#128 for access) — Washington Monthly, 2025source
Majors & programs
Elms offers more than 50 degrees across the arts and sciences, business, education, social sciences and a School of Nursing. Undergraduates can major in nursing, biology, psychology, accounting, communication sciences and disorders, education and more. Graduate options include the MBA, MSN, MSW, an M.S. in applied behavior analysis and the Doctor of Nursing Practice.
Known for
Nursing (BSN through DNP)
Niche ranked Elms the #4 college for nursing in Massachusetts in 2025. Its B.S.N., M.S.N. and D.N.P. nurse-practitioner programs are CCNE-accredited.
Known for
Speech-language pathology assistant
Elms reports 100% job placement for its SLPA program, in which students do clinical fieldwork in schools under licensed speech-language pathologists.
Known for
Applied behavior analysis
The Division of Social Sciences offers an M.S. in applied behavior analysis and a post-graduate certificate that prepares students for the BCBA credential.
Known for
Global nursing in Haiti
Since 2019 Elms nursing faculty have worked with the Episcopal University of Haiti to train Haitian nurse educators, backed by a W.K. Kellogg Foundation grant awarded in 2024.
Congressman John Lewis speaks at Elms College Commencement · WWLP-22NewsElms College named top nursing and value school in Massachusetts · WWLP-22NewsElms College nursing students abroad impacted by Haiti earthquake · WWLP-22NewsElms offers $5K grant, support to Hampshire College students · WWLP-22News
Nursing is Elms' best-known program. Niche ranked it the #4 college for nursing in Massachusetts in 2025, and its CCNE-accredited programs run from the B.S.N. to the Doctor of Nursing Practice.
Is Elms College Catholic?
Yes. It was founded by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Springfield and remains a Catholic liberal arts college.
Is Elms College coed?
Yes. It was a women's college until the trustees voted in 1997 to admit men, starting with the 1998–99 year.
How big is Elms College?
NCES counted 1,268 students in Fall 2024: 1,002 undergraduates and 266 graduate students. Average class size is 12 to 18.
What division is Elms College?
NCAA Division III. The Elms Blazers compete in the Great Northeast Athletic Conference.
Who is the president of Elms College?
Harry E. Dumay, Ph.D., MBA.
Where is Elms College?
At 291 Springfield Street in Chicopee, about two miles from downtown Springfield.
The self-guided Elms College campus tour tells the story of each landmark as you reach it (0.0 mi · walking · ~32m · 4 stops). It's included with MassRoam+, alongside 82,000+ Massachusetts historic sites on one live map.
Massachusetts