Eastern University (EU) is a private Christian university in St. Davids, Pennsylvania, with additional locations in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

and

Harrisburg Harrisburg is the capital city of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,135 as of the 2021 census, Harrisburg is the 9th largest city and 15th largest municipality in Pe ...

. The university offers undergraduate, graduate, and seminary programs. Eastern University is affiliated with the

American Baptist Churches USA The American Baptist Churches USA (ABCUSA) is a mainline/evangelical Baptist Christian denomination within the United States. The denomination maintains headquarters in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. The organization is usually considered mainl ...

and has an interdenominational student body, faculty and administration.

History

Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary was created to provide a theologically conservative seminary within the American Baptist Churches. Founded in 1925 as a department in the seminary, 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, in St. Davids, Pennsylvania. It was originally a private estate, named Walmarthon, which was owned by the Walton family. The size of the campus has expanded through purchases of surrounding buildings and land. 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. In addition to the main campus in St. Davids, Eastern has additional sites in Center City, Philadelphia; City Avenue, Philadelphia; and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

Academics

Eastern University offers associate, bachelor's,

master's A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

, and

doctorate degrees A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism '' l ...

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 The Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) is a nonprofit national association in the United States representing more than 2,500 individual members, as well as graduate and undergraduate programs of professional social work education. Founded in 19 ...

) for the Baccalaureate Major in Social Work * Master’s in Psychology and Counseling Accreditation Council * 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 bi-weekly, and covers university, national, and international news. ''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. They 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 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 will begin playing in the MAC in 2023. In 2002, senior Andrea Collesidis broke an NCAA scoring record for women's lacrosse.

Notable people

Alumni

Morgan Hikaru Aiken Morgan Hikaru Aiken 加藤ひかる (born July 15, 1994) is a former Japanese-American professional basketball player from Guam in the B.League. Aiken is the first player from Guam to play in the professional Japan Basketball League. Born in H ...

, professional basketball player * Tony Campolo, sociologist and pastor *

Shane Claiborne Shane Claiborne (born July 11, 1975) is a Christian activist and author who is a leading figure in the New Monasticism movement and one of the founding members of the non-profit organization, The Simple Way, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Claib ...

, author, prominent figure in New Monasticism movement, founder of

The Simple Way The Simple Way is a non-profit in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Shane Claiborne and five other Eastern University graduates founded an intentional community when they moved into a terraced house in the neighborhood of Kensington in J ...

Carolivia Herron Carolivia Herron (born Carol Olivia Herron; July 22, 1947) is an American writer of children's and adult literature, and a scholar of African-American Judaica. Personal life She was born to Oscar Smith Herron and Georgia Carol (Johnson) Herron, ...

, scholar of African-American Judaica * Willie J. Hill Jr., bishop of the

Reformed Episcopal Church The Reformed Episcopal Church (REC) is an Anglican church of evangelical Episcopalian heritage. It was founded in 1873 in New York City by George David Cummins, a former bishop of the Protestant Episcopal Church. The REC is a founding member ...

* Doug Mastriano, politician and retired military officer *

Jamie Moffett Jamie Moffett is an American independent motion picture director, producer, and social activist. Personal background Moffett attended Eastern University. After graduation, Moffett co-founded The Simple Way, a non-profit organization focused on ...

, film director, producer, and social activist *

Richard Muenz Richard Muenz (born March 9, 1948) is an American actor and baritone who is mostly known for his work within American theatre. Muenz has frequently performed in musicals and in concerts. He has also periodically acted on television. Early life an ...

, actor and singer *

Marvin Rees Marvin Rees (born April 1972) is a British Labour Party politician who has served as the Mayor of Bristol since 2016. Early life and education Marvin Rees was brought up in Bristol, partly in Lawrence Weston and Easton, by his British mother ...

, mayor of Bristol, England * Brandon 'Scoop B' Robinson, sports writer, radio host, television personality most notably with CBS Sports Radio *

Bryan Stevenson Bryan Stevenson (born November 14, 1959) is an American lawyer, social justice activist, law professor at New York University School of Law, and the founder and executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative. Based in Montgomery, Alabama, h ...

, founder and executive director of the

Equal Justice Initiative The Equal Justice Initiative (EJI) is a non-profit organization, based in Montgomery, Alabama, that provides legal representation to prisoners who may have been wrongly convicted of crimes, poor prisoners without effective representation, and oth ...

* Regina Young, member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives

Faculty

Phillip Cary Phillip S. Cary (born 1958) is an American philosopher who serves as a professor at Eastern University with a concentration on Augustine of Hippo and the history of the reception of Augustine's thought. Born on June 10, 1958, he received his Do ...

, philosophy professor, philosopher, noted

Augustine Augustine of Hippo ( , ; la, Aurelius Augustinus Hipponensis; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430), also known as Saint Augustine, was a theologian and philosopher of Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia, Roman North A ...

scholar, and author * Peter Enns, history of religions professor, scholar, author * Wilson Goode, professor emeritus and former mayor of

* Christopher Hall, emeritus professor, Episcopalian theologian *

Ron Sider Ronald James Sider (September 17, 1939 – July 27, 2022), was a Canadian-born American theologian and social activist. He was the founder of Evangelicals for Social Action, a think-tank which seeks to develop biblical solutions to social and e ...

, professor, activist, author, and founder/president emeritus of Evangelicals for Social Action

References

External links

* {{authority control Radnor Township, Delaware County, Pennsylvania Universities and colleges affiliated with the American Baptist Churches USA Educational institutions established in 1925 Universities and colleges in Delaware County, Pennsylvania Council for Christian Colleges and Universities 1925 establishments in Pennsylvania Private universities and colleges in Pennsylvania