History of New England Institute
New England Institute (NEI) began its early history in 1893 as the Oriental School of Embalming and two years later incorporated as the Massachusetts College of Embalming. Today, as a result of the 1989 merger, it is an integral part of Mount Ida College – making it one of the oldest such institutions in the country.
Known for its progressive approach to funeral service education, NEI was founded by A. Johnson Dodge – a pioneer in the fields of embalming, embalming chemistry, anatomy and funeral service education. He began his career near the turn of the 20th century working for the Egyptian Chemical Company of Boston. Determined to make a difference, Dodge set out on his own – purchasing the Oriental School of Embalming with his brother, George B. Dodge, in 1893. In 1907, A. Johnson Dodge left the parent institution and founded the New England Institute of Anatomy, Sanitary Science and Embalming, chartered by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in 1910 as a nonprofit educational institution.
Although the school has seen many changes in its more than 90 years of existence, Dodge’s successors have worked diligently to protect his legacy, and today NEI is universally acknowledged as one of the most advanced and finest funeral service programs available offering bachelor degrees in funeral home management and bereavement studies, as well as an associate degree in funeral service.
- 1907 New England Institute is founded
- 1910 becomes chartered as a nonprofit educational institution by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts·
- 1951 merges with Boston School of Anatomy and Embalming, Inc.
- 1969 receives authorization to grant an associate of science in funeral service degree from the Massachusetts Board of Higher Education
- 1979 becomes fully accredited as a junior college by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges
- 1989 merges with Mount Ida College