This collection encompasses material related to the overall administration of The New School from 1928-2008. It includes reports, financial papers, board of trustees meeting agendas and minutes, and documents prepared for accrediting by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools. The bulk of the files date from the late 1940s-early 1960s and the 1990s-2000s. Of note is "The New School Study" of 1952, also known as the "Swift Report."

The Schools of Public Engagement was formed in 2011 with the reorganization of the New School for General Studies. As of 2016, the division consisted of: the Bachelor's Program for Adults and Transfer Students (BPATS); the School of Languages; the School of Media Studies; the Milano School of International Affairs, Management, and Urban Policy; and the Creative Writing Program. The collection also holds the 1991-2008 records of the World Policy Institute. Dating largely from the 1990s until 2014, these records contain correspondence, memoranda, reports, budget and financial material, and faculty and personnel files relating to the administration and governance of the Schools of Public Engagement and their predecessor programs, departments, and schools. Some files are restricted. Please email archivist@newschool.edu for details.