Batten University

Batten University (formerly Virginia Wesleyan University) is a private university in Virginia Beach, Virginia, United States. The university is nonsectarian but historically affiliated with The United Methodist Church. It enrolls 4,632 learners in all locations: 1,676 students annually in undergraduate and graduate programs, 2,601 in VWU Global Campus (online and continuing education), and 355 students at LUJ/VWU Global (Japan). Virginia Wesleyan transitioned from a college to a university in 2017. The Batten University campus is also home to the Chesapeake Bay Academy, an educational institution that educates and guides students with learning disabilities, and the Tidewater Collegiate Academy, a teaching laboratory that extends from the primary grades through high school. Batten collaborates with Virginia Beach Economic Development for a work development center, The Hive, in Virginia Beach. In 2025, the University opened VWU-Chesapeake, a comprehensive program for those incarcerated at St. Brides Correctional Center and Indian Creek Correctional Center. In August 2025, university leadership announced that the university will operate as Batten University beginning July 1, 2026. This name change is to honor the substantial long-term financial support from Jane Batten, the wife of Frank Batten, and the Batten family. History The school was chartered in 1961 as Virginia Wesleyan College under the initiative of Methodist minister Joseph Shackford Johnston, later the college's first president. It became a university in 2017. Academics Colleges and schools Batten University consists of four schools devoted to specific areas of study: the Susan S. Goode School of Arts and Humanities, the Joan P. Brock School of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Birdsong School of Social Science, and the D. Henry Watts School of Professional Studies. Batten Honors College The Batten Honors College, named for Virginia Wesleyan Trustee Emerita Jane Batten and her late husband Frank Batten, Sr., was founded in 2017 with a mission to "inspire, engage, and prepare academically talented students to become leaders, environmental stewards, and impactful citizens in the global community." VWU Global Campus Founded in 2017, VWU Global Campus enrolls 2,601 students in early enrollment, evening and weekend, online (undergraduate, graduate, and non-credit) and at LUJ/VWU Global (Japan). VWU Global Campus operates all for-credit programs outside of the traditional undergraduate program, the campus in Japan, and also supports non-credit, continuing-education offerings. In 2024, Lakeland University (WI) and VWU announced the joint establishment of the Jane P. Batten and David R. Black School for International Studies. Virginia Beach Economic Development, Tidewater Community College, and VWU share a workforce development center, The Hive, in Virginia Beach. Approximately 3,000 continuing education learners benefit from joint programs at The Hive. Westminster/Wesleyan Lifelong Learning Institute The Westminster/Wesleyan Lifelong Learning Institute, a component of VWU Global Campus, was launched in 2017. Several courses will be taught during each of two regular semesters, and roughly half will be on faith-related topics. The University offers a wide variety of courses throughout the year for the nearly 1,000 residents of the Westminster-Canterbury on the Chesapeake Bay campus and roughly half are on faith-based topics. Over 1,100 learners enroll in Institute courses in 2024. Campus Situated on 300 acres (1.2 km2) in Virginia Beach, the university is separated into five villages. Bray Village (Village I) and Allen Village (Village II) offer combined living-learning environments built on the Jeffersonian model, with multi-purpose buildings. Brock Village (Village III) and Honors Village (Village IV) are solely housing units. Coastal 61 was added as a fifth village in 2020. The Robert "Bobby" T. Williams Trail, leading from the Blocker Youth Center to Lake Taylor, was dedicated in October 2019 in memory of the 1975 graduate who was killed in the Virginia Beach Municipal Center shooting in May 2019. The Greer Environmental Sciences Center, dedicated in 2017, received the Chesapeake Bay Foundation’s National Conservationist of the Year Award in 2018. The facility is a state-of-the-art center for teaching and research. The 18-acre Wilson Arboretum was established in 1995 in memory of William M. Wilson, dean of the university from 1971 to 1994. Since 1997, retiring faculty members have chosen a tree to be planted within the arboretum to honor their service to the institution The 12-acre (4.9 ha) Beech Forest, a rare example of an old-growth stand of beech trees, was designated a Natural Heritage Resource by the Commonwealth of Virginia in 1992. The campus features over 13 miles of biking and hiking paths and trails. In July 2023, Virginia Wesleyan and the Virginia Museum of Contemporary Art announced their collaboration on the construction of a $25 million facility to be built on the University's Virginia Beach campus. The groundbreaking ceremony took place in August 2024, celebrating the facility’s donors: Jane Batten, Joan Brock, and Susan and David Goode. Athletics Batten University sports teams are known as the Marlins. The university participates in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) and is a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division III. Batten also has a supplemental conference membership with the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference (ECAC). Notable alumni Kelly Convirs-Fowler, representative, U.S. State of Virginia's 21st House of Delegates District Kevin Nickelberry, assistant basketball coach and recruiting coordinator at Florida State, former head coach at Hampton University and Howard University Randy Peele, assistant men's basketball coach at Texas Southern University Sam Presti, executive vice president and general manager of the Oklahoma City Thunder Richard H. Stuart, State Senate of Virginia Bob Valvano, American sportscaster Keller Williams, American musician References External links Official website Athletics website