Records of the School of Liberal Arts and Sciences

From the late 1930s to the early 1950s, the Pratt Institute transformed itself from a technical school into a rigorous college offering liberal arts degrees. In 1938, the Pratt Institute started offering four-year degrees in the sciences. By 1948, the Pratt Institute had become an accredited institution by the Middle States Association of Colleges. Pratt’s engineering and design programs were complemented by a liberal arts curriculum. To that end, the School of the Liberal Arts and Sciences (SLAS) was created. This approach remains a part of the Pratt curriculum.

The School of Liberal Arts and Sciences currently offers curriculum in Humanities and Media Studies, Mathematics and Science, Social Science and Cultural Studies, and History of Art and Design. Courses include astronomy, botany, chemistry, communications, cultural history, creative writing, cultural studies, ecology, English, foreign languages, gender studies, humanities, mathematics, music, performance, philosophy, physics, psychology, science, and social science. SLAS offers both undergraduate and graduate level degrees. SLAS also includes the Writing and Tutorial Center, the Certificate of English Proficiency Program, the Intensive English Program, and coordinates Writing Across the Curriculum.

The School of Liberal Arts and Science created records under all of the following names: School of General Studies, Department of English, Department of English and Humanities, MFA in Writing, Department of English and Humanities, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Department of Computer Science, Department of Food Science and Management, Department of Mathematics and Sciences, Department of Social Sciences, and Department of Social Science and Management.