Plymouth State University (PSU) is a public university in Plymouth, New Hampshire, United States. It was founded as Plymouth Normal School in 1871. Since that time, it has evolved to a teachers college, a state college, and finally to a state university in 2003. PSU is part of the University System of New Hampshire.
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History
The current Plymouth State University traces its origins to 1808, when the State of New Hampshire established the Holmes Plymouth Academy, a private institution akin to a high school, with some teacher preparation as well. It went through several name changes before closing its doors in 1870. The building and grounds continued to be used for various educational purposes, including as a seminary and high school. On March 15, 1871, the grounds became a public normal school, the Plymouth Normal School. Plymouth Normal School was subsequently renamed Plymouth Teacher's College and later Plymouth State College. In between these name changes in 1948, the school expanded its curriculum to include graduate degrees. The college was renamed as a university by the New Hampshire General Court in 2003, thus adopting its current name, "Plymouth State University".
Academics
The university offers both undergraduate and graduate degrees, including BA, BFA, BS, MA, MAT, MBA, MS, and MEd degrees, the Certificate of Advanced Graduate Studies (CAGS), and the Doctor of Education (EdD) in Learning, Leadership, and Community.
Plymouth State is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education, the New Hampshire Postsecondary Education Commission, and the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE). Program-specific accreditations include the Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education (CAATE) for athletic training; Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP) for undergraduate and graduate degrees; the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) for social work; the Society of Public Health Education and the American Association of Health Education (SOPHE/AAHE) for health education; and the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) for the Master of Education in Counselor Education, including mental health counseling and school counseling concentrations.
The university currently has 19 academic departments. Within each department there are several different study options and degree programs. The most popular majors at Plymouth State are business and education. Other popular majors include physical education, health education, art, social science, psychology, and communication studies. In 2011, Plymouth State University added a BS in nursing degree to its list of available programs of study.
Beginning in fall of 2017, the university switched to a "cluster model" with seven interdisciplinary areas instead of academic departments or colleges. The clusters are:
Arts and technology
Education, democracy and social change
Exploration and discovery
Health and human enrichment
Innovation and entrepreneurship
Justice and security
Facilities
Rounds Hall, with its iconic clock tower, was built in 1890 and named for Principal Charles Collins Rounds, who, as enrollment grew, strongly advocated for construction of a new classroom building. Today, Rounds Hall houses the university's education departments. An annual tradition called Pumpkins on Rounds has been ongoing since 1975.
In spring 1923, Plymouth Normal School opened Samuel Read Hall Dormitory, named after a teacher educator who taught at Holmes Plymouth Academy in the late 1830s. The facility is now focused on human and environmental health.
Built in 1974, Hyde Hall is named for Plymouth State's 10th president, Harold E. Hyde, whose 26-year tenure from 1951 to 1977 was a period of growth for the institution in both number of students and in campus facilities. Today, Hyde Hall is home to academic programs.
Boyd Science Center is the heart of scientific research and study at PSU. The building, named for longtime science professor Robert L. Boyd, is also home to the Mark Sylvestre Planetarium and the Judd Gregg Meteorology Institute, a resource for students in PSU's undergraduate and graduate meteorology degree programs, the only such programs in New Hampshire.
The Enterprise Center at Plymouth (ECP) opened in 2013 as a collaboration between the university and the Grafton County Economic Development Council. The ECP serves as a business incubator and accelerator, assisting start-ups and existing businesses with professional services and resources.
Built in 1916 and renovated in 2006, Mary Lyon Hall is named after Mary Lyon (1797–1849), an American pioneer in women's education. In 2012, Mary Lyon Hall was added to the New Hampshire State Register of Historic Places. Mary Lyon is home to PSU's international programs as well as the Center for Student Success, which offers academic support programs, undergraduate advising, global education resources, and career services.
The center of student life on campus, the HUB, is a multi-function building. The HUB is home to student-run and professional offices. The HUB is also home to the Daily Paws Cafe, the Union Grille, and university offices. A PSU annual tradition called First Fire is held in the HUB Fireplace Lounge each fall and students come out to collect their unique First Fire Mug.
Residential halls and apartment buildings
Most first-year students will reside in double or triple rooms in one of the university's traditional residence halls: Belknap, Geneva Smith, Grafton, Mary Lyon, and Pemigewasset. Newly admitted Upper Division students and graduate students are eligible to request housing in the White Mountain Apartments, Langdon Woods, and Merrill Place. Most notably, Langdon Woods was the first college dormitory building in New Hampshire to receive LEED Gold accrediation and is one of the more energy efficient dorms in the country.
Museum of the White Mountains
The Museum of the White Mountains showcases artifacts and art from the White Mountains region and supports the university's teaching and research missions. Among the collections acquired by the museum are:
Archives and images, including rare glass-plate photographs, stereoscopic images, hotel ledgers, postcards and more donated by the late Dan Noel.
A comprehensive collection early and first edition as well as more recent books and guides about the region from John W. (Jack) and Anne H. Newton.
White Mountains art by women artists from Frances "Dolly" MacIntyre.
Images and collectables from the Balsams Grand Resort Hotel from Steve Barba.
Athletics
Plymouth State University's athletic teams are known as the Panthers. The athletic teams' colors are green and white. PSU competes in NCAA Division III as a member of the Little East Conference (LEC) for most of its intercollegiate sports. They've been successful in men's and women's skiing, ice hockey, football, basketball, and soccer, and women's field hockey, swimming and diving, and volleyball. The school's main rival is Keene State College, which also competes in the LEC. Every year the President's Cup is awarded to the school which has more victories in total sports competitions against each other.
Plymouth State University athletics mostly take place in the Physical Education (PE) Center which was opened in the Spring of 1969. Since that time it has undergone several expansions and renovations, and plans are now being developed to build a new, larger facility.
Plymouth State gained national attention in 1985 when Sports Illustrated featured PSU student and football player Joe Dudek as their favorite to win the Heisman Trophy. Dudek, a running back for the Panthers, earned the attention for breaking Walter Payton's mark for career touchdowns.
Notable people
Alumni
Ken Barlow (b.1962), television meteorologist
Robin Alexis (b. 1955), radio and television personality
Bill Morrissey (1951–2011), American folk singer, attended that year but did not graduate (1971)
Ethan Paquin, B.A., American poet
Paul Reubens (1952-2023), actor known for his character Pee-wee Herman (did not graduate)
Chris Romano (b. 1978), television producer, co-creator of Blue Mountain State
Jack Storms (b. 1970), glass sculptor
Anok Yai (b. 1997), fashion model
Ella Knowles Haskell (1860–1911), first woman to argue a case in the U.S. Supreme Court (attended for one year)
Jeffrey R. Howard (b. 1955), U.S. Courts of Appeals judge (1978)
Chuck Morse (b. 1960), President of the New Hampshire Senate, Acting Governor
Kenneth A. Randall (1932–2021), member of the New Hampshire House of Representatives
Raymond S. Burton, longest serving member of the Executive Council of New Hampshire in state history.
Dennis Ruprecht (b. 1999), member of the New Hampshire House of Representatives from 2018-2021.
Bonnie Ham, former member of the New Hampshire House of Representatives
Faculty
Donald Birx, American physicist and university administrator, 15th president of Plymouth State University.
Karl Drerup (1904–2000), professor of fine arts from 1948 to 1968; namesake of university's art gallery
Robert Frost (1874–1963), American poet; taught at Plymouth Normal School in 1911
Joseph Monninger (1953-2025), professor of English and writer of fiction and non-fiction