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Albright’s newest class of students consists of 385 first year and 42 transfer students. Academically talented, these students come to Albright having demonstrated success in the classroom and a commitment to academic, civic and co-curricular pursuits.

Globally, they join the Reading, Pennsylvania, community from 21 different states and seven countries (Canada, Ghana, Haiti, Ireland, Nigeria, South Korea, Russia). The most popular majors for the class are business and nursing.

“Incoming students have demonstrated that they are engaged citizens with vast participation in community service, leadership and co-curricular activities like the arts, music, athletics and student organizations,” said Dwayne Walker, vice president for enrollment management. “More than 130 students plan to participate in intercollegiate athletics and over 80% plan to participate in student clubs and organizations, community service and study abroad while at Albright.”

10 graduated “top 10” in their high school class.

5 were Eagle Scouts.

6 the average number of honors classes they took.

57% were the first person in their family to go to college. 51% are male.

49% are female.

35% are student athletes.

38% are Black.

38% are white.

19% are Hispanic.

1.4% are Asian.

22 of them have Albright in common with a family member.

Albright is one of only 26 U.S. colleges and universities awarded a 2021 IDEAS Grant by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and World Learning.

The grant is being used to develop a Global Scholars program that will provide a month-long, faculty-led study abroad opportunity embedded within existing first-year programming. The project aims to engage students from groups underrepresented in study abroad, especially racial and ethnic minority, low-income, and first-generation students.

Albright’s program will operate for the first year in Ecuador and will then move to Costa Rica for the second, with a focus on food insecurity in the Americas.

A partnership between Albright College and Evolution Energy Partners is enabling Albright to build on its commitment to sustainability. The first phase of the partnership involves a campus-wide LED lighting upgrade, improving light levels to enhance productivity and safety while significantly reducing Albright’s energy consumption.

With no upfront cost, the LED lighting upgrade will result in total annual savings exceeding $206,000 and will reduce the college’s carbon footprint by more than 3.4 million pounds of CO2 annually.

“As an academic institution, conserving energy and developing green initiatives are not only critical to our operations, but to the overall educational experience of our students as well,” said President Jacquelyn S. Fetrow, Ph.D. ’82. “Showing our students how critical environmentally sustainable strategies are and engaging them in that process is an important part of the academic journey.”

Albright is now offering an online Music Production Certificate program, in which students earn dual Pro Tools certification in music and game audio while learning to navigate the music products industry.

Tailored to adults, the School of Professional Studies program consists of five classes that teach students to navigate the music industry by blending the vocational skills of Avid’s Pro Tools music software training with critical thinking — all while gaining industry-standard music technology certification. Students learn how music is recorded, mixed, mastered and distributed in the global marketplace, and gain tools to help change the music products industry for the better.

One of 12 college and university educators out of 219 music teachers celebrated throughout the country, Albright faculty member A.J. Merlino, D.M.A., has been named a 2022 Grammy Music Educator Award quarterfinalist by the GRAMMY Museum. This is Merlino’s fourth time earning GRAMMY’s honor.

The award recognizes educators who have made a significant and lasting contribution to the field of music education and who demonstrate a commitment to the broader cause of maintaining music education in the schools. Merlino is director of music industry studies and associate dean of student professional development and experiential learning at Albright.