Thomas Edison State College is a public institution of higher education located in Trenton, New Jersey. One of New Jersey's 12 public universities and colleges, Thomas Edison State College offers degrees at the undergraduate and graduate level. Thomas Edison State College was approved by the New Jersey Board of Education in December 1971, and established on July 1, 1972. The college was named in honor of Thomas Alva Edison, the New Jersey inventor who gained encyclopedic knowledge of many subject areas through self-directed learning. Thomas Edison State College moved into downtown Trenton in September 1979, at a time when other institutions were leaving cities. The 7-year-old college, which had spent three years at the Forrestal Center outside of Princeton, needed room for growth. At the same time, the state was looking for an appropriate tenant for the landmark Kelsey Building at the edge of the Capital Complex, while the city sought to preserve the building’s historic use as a school. Built in 1911 and one of the architectural landmarks of the city, the Kelsey Building housed three schools before serving as the headquarters for Thomas Edison State College.