# Eastern University (United States)

Eastern University (EU) is a private Christian university in the St. Davids, Pennsylvania area, with additional locations in Philadelphia and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. The university offers undergraduate, graduate, and seminary programs. Eastern University is affiliated with the American Baptist Churches USA and has an interdenominational student body, faculty and administration.

## History

The university has its origins in the foundation of Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary in 1925 in Philadelphia by six Conservative Baptist pastors from the American Baptist Publication Society. In 1932, a collegiate department was founded. The school became a separate institution in 1952 and moved to its present St. Davids location, taking the name Eastern Baptist College. In 1972, it was renamed Eastern College. In 2001, the Pennsylvania Department of Education granted the institution university status and it was renamed Eastern University. In 2004, the institution's Board voted to acquire its previous parent institution and Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary became a subsidiary of Eastern University. The following year, the seminary changed its name to Palmer Theological Seminary in honor of its longest serving president, Gordon Palmer (1936–48).

## Campus

The main campus is on 114 acres just west of Philadelphia. It is specifically in Radnor Township. It has a St. Davids postal address, but is outside of (though adjacent to) the St. Davids census-designated place.
It was originally a private estate, named Walmarthon, which was owned by leather tanning businessman Charles S. Walton. The size of the campus has expanded through purchases of surrounding buildings and land. The original buildings on campus were designed by locally renowned architect David Knickerbacker Boyd, in the Mediterranean style.
Warner Memorial Library is housed in the Harold Howard Center. The Mazie Hall African American History Room contains books and memorabilia from a local educator. The Edison Room houses several drawings and artifacts which belonged to Thomas Edison.
The Bradstreet Observatory consists of twin 14.5-foot diameter domes that house 16” diameter Meade LX200 Schmidt-Cassegrain telescopes. This addition to Eastern’s facilities created opportunities for astronomical work and research done on campus.
In addition to the main campus in St. Davids, Eastern has additional sites in Pennsylvania: Center City, Philadelphia; City Avenue, Philadelphia; and Harrisburg.

## Academics

Eastern University offers associate, bachelor's, master's, and doctorate degrees in more than 100 areas of study. The university also offers undergraduate, graduate and noncredit certificates. Academic programs at the institution are housed in seven schools:
* College of Arts and Humanities
* College of Business and Leadership
* College of Education
* College of Health and Sciences
* Palmer Theological Seminary
* Templeton Honors College
* Esperanza College

## Accreditation

Eastern University is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education. Several programs are also accredited:
* Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP)
* Association of Theological Schools in the U.S. and Canada
* Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs
* Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education
* Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE)
* Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) for the Baccalaureate Major in Social Work
* Master’s in Psychology and Counseling Accreditation Council (MPCAC)
* Association for Behavior Analysis International (Verified Course Sequence for Board Certified Behavior Analysts)
* American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (ASBMB)

## Student media

The Waltonian is Eastern University’s student-run newspaper. It is published monthly, and covers university, national, and international news.
Inklings is Eastern University's student-run literary magazine. It is published annually and features poetry, short stories, and photography.
Eastern is the magazine of Eastern University. It serves as a connection between the campus community of students, faculty, staff and administration and its alumni, trustees, friends, donors, parents and neighbors.

## Athletics

The school's sports teams are called the Eagles and are Division III members of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Eastern University joined the Middle Atlantic Conferences (commonly referred to as the MAC) in 2008.
Sports include men's and women's soccer, men's and women's basketball, men's and women's volleyball, men's and women's lacrosse, men's baseball, women's field hockey, women's flag football, men's football, women's softball, men's and women's tennis, men's and women's golf, and cross country. Eastern began fielding a football team in 2022 as an NCAA Division III independent and began playing in the MAC in 2023. Women's flag football was added in the 2024–25 school year, competing in the Division III Atlantic East Conference.
In 2002, senior Andrea Collesidis broke an NCAA scoring record for women's lacrosse.

## Notable people
### Alumni

* Morgan Hikaru Aiken, professional basketball player
* Imani Barbarin, writer and disability rights activist
* Tony Campolo, sociologist and pastor
* Shane Claiborne, author, prominent figure in New Monasticism movement, founder of The Simple Way
* Carolivia Herron, scholar of African-American Judaica
* Willie J. Hill Jr., bishop of the Reformed Episcopal Church
* Doug Mastriano, politician and retired military officer
* Jamie Moffett, film director, producer, and social activist
* Richard Muenz, actor and singer
* Marvin Rees, mayor of Bristol, England
* Brandon 'Scoop B' Robinson, sports writer, radio host, television personality most notably with CBS Sports Radio
* Bryan Stevenson, founder and executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative
* Regina Young, member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives

### Faculty

* Phillip Cary, philosophy professor, philosopher, Augustine scholar, and author
* Peter Enns, history of religions professor, scholar, author
* Wilson Goode, professor emeritus and former mayor of Philadelphia
* Christopher Hall, emeritus professor, Episcopalian theologian
* Ron Sider, professor, activist, author, and founder/president emeritus of Evangelicals for Social Action