Western New England University was founded in Springfield, Massachusetts in 1919. Begun as the Springfield Division of Northeastern College, known as Springfield-Northeastern, the University was originally established to offer part-time educational opportunities for adult students in law, business, and accounting.
In 1951, an autonomous charter was obtained to grant and confer the degrees of Bachelor of Business Administration and Bachelor of Laws. The Springfield Division of Northeastern University was renamed Western New England College. The present campus on Wilbraham Road was purchased in 1956 with the first building, today’s Emerson Hall, opening in 1959.
Sixty years later on July 1, 2011, Western New England College officially became Western New England University.