Private company

Suffolk University

Logo: Suffolk University, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons4

Private university in Boston, Massachusetts, US

Suffolk University is a private university in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. With 7,560 students on all campuses, it is the tenth-largest university in metropolitan Boston. It was founded as a law school in 1906 and named after its location in Suffolk County, Massachusetts.2 It was founded by Gleason Archer, Sr.1 It employed 1,285 people in 2020.1 Wikipedia text CC BY-SA 4.0

Last updated Oct 21, 2026.

Overview

1906Founded1
  • Industryhigher education1
  • HeadquartersBoston, United States1
  • Websitewww.suffolk.edu
  • Legal formNon-Profit Corporation3
  • LEI549300R2AMOORDIO5N773
  • StatusActive3
  • LEI statusLapsed (not renewed)3
  • Registered address73 Tremont Street, 02108 Boston, United States3
Archer Building Suffolk University
Photo: Swampyank at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons6

Suffolk University is a private university in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. With 7,560 students on all campuses, it is the tenth-largest university in metropolitan Boston. It was founded as a law school in 1906 and named after its location in Suffolk County, Massachusetts. The university is also host to its namesake public opinion poll, the Suffolk University Political Research Center.2

Corporate structure

Suffolk University sits at the top of its group. 2 entities, 1 country on record. Switch between the flow chart and the network, and select any entity to see its details.

  • Suffolk University Boston, Massachusetts, United States
    • Suffolk University Law School Subsidiary · Boston, United States

Built from parent and subsidiary links from GLEIF, the Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation (CC0); subsidiaries, stakes and holdings from Wikidata (CC0). Each entity in the chart links to its source.

The story

Founded by Gleason Archer, Sr. in 1906.1

Suffolk University was initially founded as a law school in 1906 by Boston lawyer Gleason Archer Sr., who named it "Archer's Evening Law School", intending it for law students who worked during the day. The school was renamed "Suffolk School of Law" in 1907, after Archer moved it from his Roxbury, Massachusetts home into his law offices in downtown Boston.

A year later the first of Archer's students had passed the bar, leading to a boost in registration. The school's original goal was to "serve ambitious young men who are obliged to work for a living while studying law."

By 1930, Archer developed Suffolk into one of the largest law schools in the country, and decided to create "a great evening university" that working people could afford.

The school became a university in the 1930s when the "Suffolk College of Arts and Sciences" was founded in 1934 and the Sawyer Business School—then known as the "College of Business Administration"—in 1937. That same year, the three academic units were incorporated as Suffolk University.

During the 1990s Suffolk constructed its first residence halls, began satellite programs with other colleges in Massachusetts, and opened its international campuses. From 1990 to 2005, its endowment increased over 400%, to approximately $72 million, and enrollment climbed.

Presidents

Gleason Archer Sr. (1906–1948)

Walter Burse (1948–1954)

Robert Munce (1954–1960)

Read the full text

Dennis C. Haley (1960–1965)

John E. Fenton (1965–1970)

Thomas Fulham (1970–1980)

Daniel Perlman (1980–1989)

David Sargent (1989–2010)

Barry Brown (2010–2012) (interim)

James McCarthy (2012–2014)

Norman R. Smith (2014–2015) (interim)

Margaret McKenna (2015–2016)

Marisa Kelly (2016–present)

From Wikipedia’s article on Suffolk University, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.5

Leadership

Who has led Suffolk University, and when. Pick a name to see everywhere that person has worked.

Subsidiaries and ownership

Subsidiaries

  • Suffolk University Law School

From Wikidata.1

Employees over time

  • 20201,2851

Timeline

  1. 1906Founded Founded1

Funding

Where the company's money came from, by calendar year: private offerings filed with the SEC, federal grants, loans, contracts and other assistance from USAspending.gov, and PPP loans from the SBA. Each bar links to the records below.

Money received by year$166.3M 2008–2026
Money received by yearMoney received by year, 2008–2026: $166.3M in all. Federal grants $52.7M; Other federal assistance $113.2M; Federal contracts $379.3K.$0$10M$20M$30M2008 · Federal grants: $501.4K2008 · Other federal assistance: $5.4M2008 · Federal contracts: $5.2K20082009 · Federal grants: $2.1M2009 · Other federal assistance: $7.6M2009 · Federal contracts: $40.1K2010 · Federal grants: $1.3M2010 · Other federal assistance: $8.8M20102011 · Federal grants: $455.4K2011 · Other federal assistance: $8.4M2012 · Federal grants: $631.7K2012 · Other federal assistance: $8.6M20122013 · Federal grants: $1.2M2013 · Other federal assistance: $8.7M2014 · Federal grants: $1.9M2014 · Other federal assistance: $8.7M20142015 · Federal grants: $1.2M2015 · Other federal assistance: $8.5M2016 · Federal grants: $2.1M2016 · Other federal assistance: $7.9M20162017 · Federal grants: $1.4M2017 · Other federal assistance: $5.8K2018 · Federal grants: $2.5M20182019 · Federal grants: $1.9M2019 · Federal contracts: $98.2K2020 · Federal grants: $7.1M20202021 · Federal grants: $21.1M2021 · Federal contracts: $53.9K2022 · Federal grants: $1.8M2022 · Other federal assistance: $3.3M2022 · Federal contracts: $54.3K20222023 · Federal grants: $1.4M2023 · Other federal assistance: $8.9M2023 · Federal contracts: $77.5K2024 · Federal grants: $1.9M2024 · Other federal assistance: $10.6M20242025 · Federal grants: $1.1M2025 · Other federal assistance: $11.5M2025 · Federal contracts: $50.0K2026 · Federal grants: $1.2M2026 · Other federal assistance: $6.4M2026
Figures by year
YearFederal grantsOther federal assistanceFederal contractsTotal
2026$1.2M$6.4M–$7.6M
2025$1.1M$11.5M$50.0K$12.6M
2024$1.9M$10.6M–$12.4M
2023$1.4M$8.9M$77.5K$10.4M
2022$1.8M$3.3M$54.3K$5.2M
2021$21.1M–$53.9K$21.1M
2020$7.1M––$7.1M
2019$1.9M–$98.2K$2.0M
2018$2.5M––$2.5M
2017$1.4M$5.8K–$1.4M
2016$2.1M$7.9M–$10.0M
2015$1.2M$8.5M–$9.7M
2014$1.9M$8.7M–$10.7M
2013$1.2M$8.7M–$9.8M
2012$631.7K$8.6M–$9.2M
2011$455.4K$8.4M–$8.8M
2010$1.3M$8.8M–$10.1M
2009$2.1M$7.6M$40.1K$9.7M
2008$501.4K$5.4M$5.2K$5.9M

Federal awards

Obligated amounts from USAspending.gov7, by calendar year, 2008–2026, for its registration. Obligations are what agencies committed, not always what was paid out. Contracts pay for goods and services; grants, loans and direct payments are assistance. Loans are charted at the face value of the loans listed here. An award’s amount below is its lifetime total, and some began before the years charted.

Largest grants

  1. May 7, 2020$13.9M from Department of Education: Education Stabilization Fund8 To SUFFOLK UNIVERSITY Award P425F202588
  2. May 10, 2020$11.5M from Department of Education: Education Stabilization Fund9 To SUFFOLK UNIVERSITY Award P425E204015
  3. Jun 1, 2022$1.6M from Department of Education: Trio Upward Bound10 To SUFFOLK UNIVERSITY Award P047A221127
  4. Jun 1, 2017$1.5M from Department of Education: Trio Upward Bound; Trio_Upward Bound11 To SUFFOLK UNIVERSITY Award P047A170473
  5. Sep 1, 2018$1.4M from Department of Education: Trio Upward Bound12 To SUFFOLK UNIVERSITY Award P047V180020
  6. Sep 30, 2016$1.4M from Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration: Substance Abuse And Mental Health Services Projects Of Regional And National Significance13 To SUFFOLK UNIVERSITY Award U79SM080037
  7. Oct 1, 2022$1.4M from Department of Education: Trio Mcnair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement14 To SUFFOLK UNIVERSITY Award P217A220037
  8. Oct 1, 2017$1.3M from Department of Education: Trio Mcnair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement15 To SUFFOLK UNIVERSITY Award P217A170016

Largest direct payments

  1. $9.8M from Department of Education: Federal Pell Grant Program16 To SUFFOLK UNIVERSITY Award P063P240214
  2. $9.3M from Department of Education: Federal Pell Grant Program17 To SUFFOLK UNIVERSITY Award P063P250214
  3. $7.6M from Department of Education: Federal Pell Grant Program18 To SUFFOLK UNIVERSITY Award P063P230214

Largest contracts

  1. Jun 6, 2019$98.2K from National Aeronautics and Space Administration: This is a purchase order for computational investigation of dimethylsilanediol production from volatile methylsiloxanes and hydroxyl radical19 To SUFFOLK UNIVERSITY Award 80NSSC19P0619
  2. Aug 5, 2025$50.0K from National Aeronautics and Space Administration: Investigation of surface films as reservoir for volatile methylsiloxane svocs and updated phase partitioning analysis using iss gas and part20 To SUFFOLK UNIVERSITY Award 80NSSC25PB623
  3. Jul 28, 2023$49.9K from National Aeronautics and Space Administration: Research services on project: formation of secondary organic aerosols via oxidation of volatile methylsiloxane21 To SUFFOLK UNIVERSITY Award 80NSSC23PB994
  4. Jun 24, 2009$39.3K from U.S. Coast Guard: Lodging - sailboston 200922 To SUFFOLK UNIVERSITY Award HSCG2409P1W4001
  5. Mar 27, 2023$27.6K from Department of the Navy: Tuition and fees23 To SUFFOLK UNIVERSITY Award N0024423F0117