You Know You Went to Pace When…

Pace has never stood still. Campuses evolve, buildings get new names, and each generation leaves its mark. But for all the change, some things stick—moments, traditions, and little quirks that somehow carry through the years. The kind of things that make you smile and think, yep…that was Pace.

You know you went to Pace when…

Here are some of the traditions, places, and moments that have stayed with us across generations. Some are still here. Some are long gone. All of them are unmistakably Pace.

• Students today favor comfort, but back in the 1960s the dress code required male students to wear jackets and ties to class. No exceptions!
• The Pleasantville Campus once had a very different soundtrack than NYC's taxi horns and subway roar: bleats and bahs from the sheep and goats at the old farm property in the center of campus. That was then.

Image

• Speaking of animals, Pleasantville students could catch a demonstration of birds of prey by the Center’s former assistant director and master falconer James Eyring.
• On the Elisabeth Haub School of Law on our White Plains Campus, there’s a statue of the Virgin Mary (a remnant from its days as Good Counsel College)… though students throughout the years affectionately call this statue “Big Momma.”
• Tossing your keys off a New Dorm balcony just so you didn't have to walk down the stairs to let your friends in.
• A late-night wedge run to Rocky’s. Did you know that the deli is celebrating its 60th year of business and has not once closed its doors in the last 20 years? Mmm. Balboa anyone?
• If you had a class with Professor Ivan Fox ’54, you were in the presence of a Pace rockstar. Not only was he known for his colorful wardrobe, but he also wrote Pace’s school song.
• BECSPK from the caf.
• The basement of 41 Park Row has seen many transformations. Before it was the Dezer Den, it was the Pace Pub, and before that it was originally home to the New York Times’ printing press!

Image

• Pace Perk lives in Martin Hall now but it originated in the dining hall of the Briarcliff Campus.
• Speaking of, do you remember Pace’s Briarcliff Campus? Or the tiring commute between Briarcliff and Pleasantville (a whole seven-minute drive!)
• Dow Hall was probably haunted. Residents used to report hearing footsteps from the unoccupied fourth floor. Or maybe it was raccoons. Either way, spooky.
• Honors College trips. It's OK if you can't remember Montreal.
• Good times at The Ratt on the College of White Plains of Pace University campus.
• The Beekman Pub (now sadly closed) was a favorite for post-exam celebrations for New York City students, or perhaps you preferred to unwind in the game room behind the Student Union at One Pace Plaza.

Image

• Once upon a time, the iconic Maria's Tower was simply called the NYC Dorm, the only residence hall for our NYC students. Now Maria’s Tower is getting a facelift, and we have five NYC residence halls to call home.
• Through every decade and across every campus, the events were where Pace really showed up. From Homecoming concerts and football games to the Le Café student talent show and the legendary "Fabulosity" drag competitions.

Pace looks different depending on when you were here and which campus you called home. But in that difference is a shared thread—the places that felt like yours, the people who made it matter, the moments that stick.