Bucknell University

Founded in 1846 as the University at Lewisburg, Bucknell traces its origin to a group of Baptists from White Deer Valley Baptist Church who deemed it "desirable that a Literary Institution should be established in Central Pennsylvania, embracing a High School for male pupils, another for females, a College and also a Theological Institution."[6]

The group's efforts for the institution began to crystallize in 1845, when Stephen William Taylor, a professor at Madison University (now Colgate University) in Hamilton, New York, was asked to prepare a charter and act as general agent for the development of the university. The charter for the University at Lewisburg, granted by the Pennsylvania General Assembly and approved by the governor on February 5, 1846, carried one stipulation–that $100,000 ($3,300,000 today) be raised before the new institution would be granted full corporate status. More than 4,000 subscribers ultimately contributed, including a small boy who gave 12 cents ($4 today).

In 1846, the "school preparatory to the University" opened in the basement of the First Baptist Church in Lewisburg. Known originally as the Lewisburg High School, it became in 1848 the Academic and Primary Department of the University at Lewisburg.[7]

In 1850, the department moved into the first building completed on campus, now called Taylor Hall. Built for $8,000 ($280,000 today), the building housed both women's and men's studies until the opening of the Female Institute in 1852. While studying together, women were required to face east while men faced west.

The school's first commencement was held on August 20, 1851, for a graduation class of seven men. Among the board members attending was James Buchanan, who would become the 15th President of the United States. Stephen Taylor officiated as his last act before assuming office as president of Madison University. One day earlier, the trustees had elected Howard Malcom as the first president of the university, a post he held for six years.

The University at Lewisburg (1870s)

Although the Female Institute began instruction in 1852, it wasn't until 1883 that college courses were opened to women. Bucknell, though, was committed to equal educational opportunities for women. This commitment was reflected in the words of David Jayne Hill of the Class of 1874, and president of the college from 1879 to 1888: "We need in Pennsylvania, in the geographical centre of the state, a University, not in the German but in the American sense, where every branch of non-professional knowledge can be pursued, regardless of distinction of sex. I have no well-matured plan to announce as to the sexes; but the Principal of the Female Seminary proposes to inaugurate a course for females equal to that pursued at Vassar; the two sexes having equal advantages, though not reciting together."[8] Within five years of opening, enrollment had grown so sharply that the college built a new hall–Larison Hall–to accommodate the Female Institute. Women could venture into town only in the company of a female teacher who had a minimum of six years' experience.

In 1881, facing dire financial circumstances, the college turned to William Bucknell, a charter member of the board of trustees, for help. His donation of $50,000 ($1,520,000 today) saved the college from ruin. In 1886, in recognition of Bucknell's support of the college, the trustees voted unanimously to change the name of the University at Lewisburg to Bucknell University.[9] Bucknell Hall, the first of several buildings given to the institution by Bucknell, was initially a chapel and for more than a half century the site of student theatrical and musical performances. Today, it houses the Stadler Center for Poetry.[10]

Bertrand Library

The 40 years from 1890 until 1930 saw a steady increase in the number of faculty members and students. When the Depression brought a drop in enrollment in 1933, several members of the faculty were "loaned" to found a new institution: Bucknell Junior College in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. Today, that institution is a four-year university, Wilkes University, independent of Bucknell since 1947. The depression era also saw the commissioning by President Homer Rainey (1931–35) of architect Jens Larson to design Bucknell's master plan. Subsequent expansion of the university still largely adheres to this plan.[11]

The post-War period saw a dramatic increase in higher education enrollment across the United States, thanks first to the G.I. Bill and then to the baby boom. Like other institutions, Bucknell's campus grew to accommodate a growing student body, and the college broke ground on many of the academic buildings that comprise upper campus. Chief among these is the Ellen Clarke Bertrand Library, commissioned in 1946 under Bucknell President and former Governor of Maine Horace Hildreth and opened in 1951.[12] Other major additions from the building spree of the 1950s and 60s include the Olin Science Building and Coleman, Marts and Swartz Halls.

A growing reputation and changing expectations for undergraduate education in the United States called for improved facilities. The 1970s brought construction of the Elaine Langone Center, the Gerhard Fieldhouse and the Computer Center. In the 1980s, the capacity of Bertrand Library was doubled, facilities for engineering were substantially renovated, and the Weis Center for the Performing Arts was inaugurated.

Heading into the 21st century, new facilities for the sciences included the renovation of the Olin Science Building, the construction of the Rooke Chemistry Building in 1990 and a new Biology Building in 1991. The Weis Music Building was inaugurated in 2000, the O'Leary Building for Psychology and Geology opened in the fall of 2002, the new Kenneth Langone Recreational Athletic Center opened in 2003 and the Breakiron Engineering Building in 2004.[13]

Fall on the Sciences Quad

Academic West opened in fall 2013. It added 70,000 sq ft (6,500 m²) of academic space and houses mostly social science departments: economics, geography, international relations, political science, sociology/anthropology, Critical Black Studies, Latin American Studies and Environmental Studies and Sciences.[14] The South Campus Apartment Buildings and MacDonnell Commons were opened in 2015, providing upperclassmen with apartment-style housing that offers a more independent residential experience. In 2018, Hildreth-Mirza Hall became the home to Bucknell's Center for the Humanities, Bucknell University Press and the Griot Institute for the Study of Black Lives and Culture. Academic East was inaugurated in 2019 to house the Department of Education and programs in the College of Engineering. A new building housing the Freeman College of Management and the Department of Art and Art History opened in 2021, after being delayed from the original date of 2020 due to the global Covid-19 pandemic.

Spring on Malessardi Quadrangle.

Bucknell's 450-acre (180 ha) campus comprises more than 100 buildings located over a gentle rise adjacent to the West Branch Susquehanna River. The campus is divided into Lower Campus and Upper Campus by Miller Run and the Grove, a stand of oak trees that ascends the slope. Lower campus consists primarily of student housing and the institution's sports facilities. Upper campus consists primarily of academic buildings. It offers views northwest across the Buffalo Valley toward Nittany Mountain and southeast across the Susquehanna River toward Montour Ridge. Bucknell's campus forms a cohesive architectural ensemble due to the sustained use of brick and the recurrent themes of Georgian style. The institution's first building, Taylor Hall, was constructed in 1848.[15] Its newest building, Holmes Hall, was inaugurated in 2021.

Rooke Chapel in Late Summer

Rooke Chapel is the non-denominational setting for campus worship, weddings and celebrations. The chapel was a gift of Robert L. Rooke (class of 1913), a member of the board of trustees. The chapel is named in memory of Mr. Rooke's parents and was inaugurated on October 25, 1953. The main portion of the chapel includes the narthex, sanctuary, chancel area, organ chamber, choir rooms and balconies that surround the sanctuary on three sides. The sanctuary can seat 850. Attached to the chapel is a one-story wing housing the Office of Religious Life, the Chaplain's office and a meditation space.[16]

Christy Mathewson–Memorial Stadium is a 13,100-seat multi-purpose stadium built in 1924 and renovated in 1989 when it was also renamed in honor of Christy Mathewson (class of 1902), a New York Giants pitcher who was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1932.[17][18] It is home to the Bucknell University Bison football team and the Lewisburg High School Green Dragons football team.

The Kenneth Langone Athletics and Recreation Center was completed in 2003. It houses a fitness center, Olympic-size swimming pool and other athletic facilities. The 4,000-seat Sojka Pavilion, named for former college president Gary Allan Sojka, is home to the men's and women's basketball teams.

The Bucknell Farm was established in 2018, building on the success of the Lewisburg Community garden, a partnership between the university and the Borough of Lewisburg.[19] The 5-acre organic farm overlooking Montour Ridge offers learning and service opportunities for students and provides fresh, local produce for the university's dining system. Along with a 1.76-megawatt solar array installed in 2022,[20] the farm represents part of Bucknell's commitment to achieving carbon neutrality by 2030 and long-term environmental sustainability.[21]

Bertrand Library and Coleman Hall

The College of Arts and Sciences anchors Bucknell University in the liberal arts tradition. Its three divisions—arts and humanities, social sciences and natural sciences and mathematics—host 275 faculty members in 34 departments and 66% percent of all students enrolled in 50 majors.[25] The College Core Curriculum ensures that students receive a broad based, liberal education. The college emphasizes intellectual community in diversity, transformative education for the common good, mentorship that encourages students to lead examined lives and leading-edge research and scholarship.[26]

Academic East Building

Among American colleges that do not offer a PhD in engineering, Bucknell was ranked 7th, according to the 2024 edition of the U.S. News & World Report college ranking.[27] The same report ranked Computer Engineering 5th, Civil Engineering 3rd, Electrical Engineering 4th and Mechanical Engineering 3rd.[27] Engineering facilities are concentrated in three buildings: The Charles A. Dana Engineering Building, the adjoining Breakiron Engineering Building and Academic East (shared with the Education Department).

Students can choose from five tracks leading to the BSBA degree: managing for sustainability, markets innovation and design, global management, accounting & financial management or analytics and operations management. A five-year, dual degree in Engineering and Management is available for engineers with management career goals. In 2022, after four years as an independent college, The Freeman College of Management was ranked 17th among undergraduate business schools.[28]

The Bucknell Humanities Center opened in 2017 with the inauguration of Hildreth-Mirza Hall. The center is committed to the promoting and deepening Bucknell's tradition of humanistic inquiry through grants for student research, faculty-student collaboration and teaching; faculty and student fellowships; the coordination and conviviality among humanities faculty and students through the Humanities Council and Humanities Student Council; and space to gather, reflect, study, and research including offices for student thesis writers, a digital humanities lab and a faculty-donated library. It also coordinates robust programming ranging from faculty colloquia and guest speakers to the student-organized Humanities Week and annual themed programming on a variety of topics: "Surrealism" (2018–19), "Antifascism" (2019–20), "Floods" (2020–21), "Non/Humanity" (2021–22) and "Pandemics" (2022–23).[29]

Hildreth-Mirza Hall

The Geisinger-Bucknell Autism and Developmental Medicine Institute (ADMI) was formed in April, 2013 as a partnership between Bucknell and the Geisinger Health System, headquartered in nearby Danville. This facility combines clinical treatment and interdisciplinary research on neurodevelopmental disorders.[30]

Other centers and institutes include: the Bucknell Institute for Lifelong Learning, the Bucknell Institute for Public Policy, the Center for Social Science Research, the Center for the Study of Race Ethnicity and Gender, the China Institute, the Griot Institute for the Study of Black Lives and Cultures, the Stadler Center for Poetry and Literary Arts and the Weis Center for the Performing Arts.[31]

Fifty percent of Bucknell students study abroad. The institution sponsors semester-long programs in Accra, Athens, Tours, London and Granada, as well as short-term programs in Barbados, Denmark, Nicaragua, South Africa and other sites around the world. In addition, students have the opportunity to engage in direct exchanges with universities in Hong Kong, Accra and Nottingham as well as hundreds of approved exchanges facilitated by third parties.[32]