[5] By 1969, the college had become private with a predominantly lay board of trustees[6] and in 2003, the Catholic Church recognized Marist as a secular institution.

The Marist Brothers, a Catholic society founded in France by Saint Marcellin Champagnat in 1816, focused on educational work throughout the world.

In 1908, the Brothers purchased the Edward Bech estate to enable the hermitage to expand, increasing the size of their property to 150 acres (0.61 km2).

[15] It was named for Monsignor J. F. Sheahan (pastor of St. Peter's Church, Poughkeepsie)[15] without whom the Marist Brothers might not have been able to purchase the Bech Estate that now comprises the entire south campus area.

[26] Completed in 1999 and built out of fieldstone with a concentrated focus on technology, the 83,000-square-foot (7,700 m2) James A. Cannavino Library is considered to be the jewel and the heart of the main campus.

Also, the Upper Fulton Townhouses were featured on Good Morning America in 2007 for a report on how some colleges and universities were building nicer dormitories to attract more students.

[34] The donation consisted of the 60-acre (240,000 m2) Col. Oliver Hazard Payne Estate located in the Ulster County town of Esopus plus $10 million.

Rich Leadership Institute, which has since been focusing on teaching students the communication, interpersonal, and social skills necessary to lead complex organizations in a global setting.

[35] In spring 2011, Marist completed construction of a new technology building, the Hancock Center,[36] which is on the main campus where the Benoit and Gregory (residence houses) used to stand.

[38] During summer 2011, the New York State Department of Transportation completed a pedestrian underpass under US 9 to facilitate safer movement between the sections of campus, which the boulevard separates.

Plans call for the construction of a 100,000 square foot (9,300 m2) building on the Vassar Brothers Medical Center campus in the City of Poughkeepsie, which will house school administration and classroom space.

In addition to the main campus Marist owns the Payne Estate which has 60 acres (0.24 km2) on the west bank of the Hudson River in the town of Esopus, in Ulster County, the 18,000 square foot (1,700 m2) Marist Executive Center encompassing the 14th floor of 420 Fifth Avenue in midtown Manhattan[59] and a branch campus in Florence Italy.

The main building, situated in Via Faenza, dates back to the 13th century and originated as a convent connected to a medieval church, San Jacopo in Campo Corbolini.

The requirements are the same for all majors and emphasize Marist's tradition of a liberal arts education while ensuring that students are introduced to a broad range of disciplines.

In the fall 2002 semester, the institution installed a new zSeries 900 mainframe that provided a level of computing power ordinarily associated with large research universities and Fortune 500 companies.

[82] In early 2012, the School of Computer Science and Mathematics installed two IBM z114 mainframes with a zEnterprise BladeCenter Extension (zBX), making Marist the first college or university in the world to have this combination.

[84] In October 2019, Marist installed the world's first IBM LinuxONE III, a secured enterprise platform for mission-critical applications and sensitive data for hybrid cloud.

[85] In the 2017 issue of U.S. News & World Report's "America's best colleges", Marist was listed ninth in the category "Regional Universities (North)".

[92][93][94] In 2012, Marist's online MBA was one of only 14 graduate business programs in the nation named to U.S. News & World Report's honor roll.

[22] Furthermore, the library, under the control of the National Archives and Records Administration, serves as the primary resource for student history majors completing capping papers.

Marist University has 93 registered clubs and organizations that cover a variety of interests: performing arts, sports, religion, politics, and student government.

The ministry strives to foster a culture of faith for the institution and the surrounding Poughkeepsie community by building and nourishing hospitality, prayer, service and education.

Habitat for Humanity has a very active Marist University Chapter in which students volunteer for local and national fundraising, building and education projects.

At the beginning of each holiday season Christmas trees in campus buildings are decorated with color-coded ornaments designating different gift categories needed by local families.

Run by the institution's Campus Ministry, the Giving Tree has sponsored 515 families and donated 16,000 gifts since its inception in 1991, providing presents ranging from winter clothing and household necessities to toys, games and more.

The Chamber Singers performed at the World Choral Fest in 2018 and 2016 (in Austria and Kansas City, respectively) and sang at Carnegie Hall on multiple occasions.

Separate men's and women's teams are sponsored for basketball, tennis, crew, lacrosse, soccer, cross country, track, swimming and diving.

[130] Marist also had 57 student athletes selected to the PFL's Academic Honor Roll[131] and four men's rowers named to the Intercollegiate Rowing Association (IRA) 2019 All-Academic Team.

Club sports are very popular and give Marist students the opportunity to compete against other colleges and universities without the strict requirements of the NCAA.

Notable Marist graduates include Eric Adams, the 110th Mayor of New York City; Joe Borelli, ‘04, the Minority Leader of the New York City Council, political commentator, and former state legislator; Jon Gabrus, a notable member of UCB and host of the High and Mighty with Jon Gabrus podcast; Ian O'Connor '86, a New York Times best-selling author and national sports columnist;[135] Bill O'Reilly '71, political commentator and former host of The O'Reilly Factor on the Fox News Channel;[136] Vijay Gupta '05, violinist and social justice advocate; Rik Smits '88, NBA All-Star and second pick, overall, in the 1988 NBA draft;[137] Daniel Dromm, New York City Councilor; Terrence Fede, professional football player; Jared Jordan, professional basketball player; Jason Myers, professional football player; Kevin McCarthy, professional baseball player; and Captain Paul X. Rinn, USN (Ret.