Arcadia University

Arcadia University is a private university in Glenside, Pennsylvania. The university enrolls approximately 3,200 undergraduate, master's, and doctoral students. The 94-acre (380,000 m2) Glenside campus features Grey Towers Castle, a National Historic Landmark; the university also includes a campus in Christiana, Del., as well as several centers around the world.
History
Beaver Female Seminary
The Arcadia University legacy begins in 1853, in Western Pennsylvania, when Sylvania Jones and Juliet A. Poundstone left their family homes in Lafayette County, to pursue an education. The students accompanied Dr. Sheridan Baker, principal at the Brownsville School they had attended, to the newly chartered Beaver Female Seminary.
Led by President Baker, Beaver teaches liberal arts, ancient history, rhetoric, logic, and analogy during an era when few colleges for young women exist. In 1872 the school attained collegiate status, with the name of the Beaver College and Musical Institute.
Beaver College
In the late 19th century, the college became coeducational for the first time. In 1907, Beaver College and Musical Institute is simplified to Beaver College. Enrollment was again limited to women.
In 1925, the college moved east across Pennsylvania to Jenkintown, Pennsylvania, to the Beechwood Hall estate. This location afforded larger facilities, an adequate campus, and greater development opportunities, increasing enrollment but maintaining the advantages of a small college. In 1928, the Trustees secured a nearby estate in Glenside, Pennsylvania. This spacious property offered unique stone buildings, including the now iconic Grey Towers Castle.
Professor Benton Spruance was made full professor and chair of the Art Department in 1933, served on the Board of Trustees, and was involved with the Philadelphia Art Commission. In 1953, it led to a city ordinance requiring that one percent of construction costs for new public buildings be allocated to the creation and placement of artwork. This "percent for the arts" was a cornerstone for funding public art in the U.S.
In the summer of 1948, a Beaver College economics instructor, his wife, and 17 undergraduate women arrived in post-World War II Europe. The group sails from New York City to Southampton, England, on a mission of education and discovering post-war rebuilding efforts. This post-World War II cohort was the precursor to what would be one of the largest and most renowned international study programs in the United States. Arcadia continues to be a pioneer in study abroad.
Beaver College constructed eight new campus buildings, established the Center for Education Abroad, and, in 1973, became coeducational again. In the mid-1960s the institution consolidated all campuses to Glenside.
In 1985, Dr. Bette Landman was appointed president, the first female president in the institution's history. Her tenure saw the dedication of the Kuch Athletic and Recreation Center, the establishment of Preview, joining the NCAA Division III, and, in 1992, membership of the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference. Under her leadership, Beaver College achieved university status, and was led through the transition from Beaver College to Arcadia University.
Arcadia University
On November 20, 2000, it was announced that Beaver College would become Arcadia University. The official change of name and status occurred at a formal ceremony on July 16, 2001. During the first quarter of the 21st century, the university established six academic colleges and schools, including the College of Global Studies as the first college of a university dedicated to international education.
In April 2018, Dr. Ajay Nair was named the 22nd president of Arcadia University. As the first person of color to serve as President, and one of a dozen Indian American presidents at colleges and universities in the U.S., Dr. Nair's focus on innovation helps the university remain flexible and visionary in working to meet the needs of students in the 21st century. A social justice scholar and an expert in student affairs, Dr. Nair made increasing diversity throughout the university, especially at the leadership level, a priority.
Anti-Black racism commission
In 2019, Nair established a commission on Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI)] to conduct a review of Arcadia's policies, practices, and campus climate. In 2020, Arcadia established the combating anti-Black racism (CABR) initiative as a university-wide collaborative effort. Highlights of this initiative include changing curriculum requirements, the creation of Black living and learning communities, and the inception of the Center for Antiracist Scholarship, Advocacy, and Action (CASAA), the Living Our Values Experience program (LOVE), and the Center for Teaching, Learning, and Mentoring (CTLM).
Arcadia has received national recognition for their efforts in DEI. There have been multiple pieces written about the university in the Chronicle of Higher Education, including a panel regarding what it means to be a student-centered institution with Nair. The Philadelphia Inquirer recognized Arcadia's commitment to anti-racist scholarship through the opening and support of CASAA.
University rankings
Arcadia is dedicated to engaging in integrative, real-world learning opportunities such as internships, evidence-based research, service projects, interdisciplinary study, problem-based learning, and co-curricular experiences that expand beyond the classroom. The university's Doctor of Physical Therapy and Physician Assistant programs retain high national rankings by U.S. News and World Report. The Institute for International Education's Open Doors Report has ranked Arcadia University for study abroad participation, and U.S. News & World Report ranked the program ninth in the nation.
In July 2022, the university expanded its campus size, purchasing 125 Royal Avenue, the site of the former Bishop McDevitt High School.
Academics
Undergraduate programs
Arcadia University has been ranked among The Princeton Review's "Best in the Northeast" for eight consecutive years from 2015 to 2022. The university offers more than 65 fields of study in its undergraduate programs. Undergraduate majors are offered through the College of Arts & Sciences, College of Health Sciences, School of Education, and School of Global Business.
Graduate programs
Graduate and professional studies at Arcadia University range from liberal arts to professional degree programs. In May 2023, Arcadia launched fully redesigned hybrid and fully online graduate programs. The Doctor in Physical Therapy program can now be completed in hybrid mode of delivery, combining engaging online sessions, on-campus immersions, and hands-on clinical experiences to allow students across the country to earn their DPT without relocating. The School of Global Business’ online MBA program consists of a business core and a specialization in one of three concentrations. This shift to asynchronous learning provides more flexibility for students to work at their own pace.
International programs and study abroad
The Institute of International Education has ranked Arcadia among the nation's top 10 institutions for study abroad for 11 of the last 13 years, and The Princeton Review has ranked Arcadia among the "Best in the Northeast" for eight consecutive years.
Student life
Athletics
Arcadia University teams compete in the NCAA Division III within the MAC Freedom of the Middle Atlantic Conference.
Men's and women's sports teams include ice hockey, track and field, baseball, softball, basketball, cross country, field hockey, golf, lacrosse, soccer, swimming, tennis, and volleyball. In 2025, the university has announced the addition of men's and women's wrestling.
Arcadia also competes in esports leagues for games including Overwatch, Valorant, Rocket League, Hearthstone, Super Smash Bros.
Notable people
Alumni
Anil Beephan Jr., New York State Assembly member
Julianne Boyd, former theater director
William Evanina, former director of the U.S. National Counterintelligence and Security Center
Catherine Gunsalus González, religious author and professor emerita at Columbia Theological Seminary
Joe McKeehen, former World Series of Poker champion
Dorothy Germain Porter, amateur golf champion
Abbey Ryan, artist (painter)
M. Susan Savage, Secretary of State of Oklahoma and former Mayor of Tulsa, Oklahoma
Edith Schaeffer, religious author and co-founder of the L'Abri study center
Oliver B. Shallenberger, electrical engineer
Anna Deavere Smith, actress
Marjorie Smith, New Hampshire state legislator
Florence Wickham, contralto and composer
See also
Thoresby House
Notes
References
External links
Official website
1853 establishments in Pennsylvania
Universities and colleges established in 1853
Former women's universities and colleges in the United States
Universities and colleges affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA)
Universities and colleges in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania
Private universities and colleges in Pennsylvania