Motto | In luce tua videmus lucem (Latin) |
---|---|
Motto in English
|
In Thy light we see light |
Type | Private, Coeducational |
Established | 1859 |
Endowment | $204.7 million (2016) |
President | Mark A. Heckler |
Academic staff
|
220 |
Students | 4,500 |
Undergraduates | 3,300 |
Postgraduates | 1,200 |
Location |
Valparaiso, Indiana, U.S. 41°27′49″N 87°02′37″W / 41.46361°N 87.04361°WCoordinates: 41°27′49″N 87°02′37″W / 41.46361°N 87.04361°W |
Campus | Suburban, 350 acres (141.6 ha) |
Athletics | 18 Division I NCAA teams |
Colors | Brown and Gold |
Nickname | Crusaders |
Affiliations | Independent Lutheran |
Website | www |
Valparaiso Male and Female College | Established | 1859 | Affiliation | Methodist |
Closed | 1871 to 1873 | |||
Northern Indiana Normal School and Business Institute | Acquired | 1873 | Affiliation | secular |
Valparaiso College | Renamed | 1900 | ||
Valparaiso University | Renamed | 1906 | ||
Acquired | 1925 | Affiliation | Lutheran |
University rankings | |
---|---|
National | |
Forbes | 234 |
Regional | |
U.S. News & World Report | 4 |
Master's University class | |
Washington Monthly | 4 |
Valparaiso University is a regionally accreditedprivate university located in Valparaiso, Indiana, United States. Commonly known as Valpo, the university is a coed, four-year, Lutheran institution that enrolls about 4,500 students from over 50 countries on a campus of 350 acres (140 ha).
Valpo consists of five undergraduate colleges, a graduate school, and a law school. It is the largest independent Lutheran university in the United States and is home to the second-largest collegiate chapel in the world, the Chapel of the Resurrection.
Originally named Valparaiso Male and Female College, Valparaiso University was founded in 1859 as one of the first coeducation colleges in the United States. Due to reverses brought about by the Civil War, the college was forced to close its doors in 1871. Two years later it was revived by educator Henry Baker Brown and named Northern Indiana Normal School and Business Institute. At the turn of the 20th century, Brown changed the college's name to Valparaiso College, and shortly after it was rechartered as Valparaiso University. Initially founded by Methodists, in 1925 the school was purchased by the Lutheran University Association, which continues to operate it today.
In 1859, citizens of Valparaiso were so supportive of the placement of the college that they raised $11,000 to encourage the Methodist Church to locate there. The school opened on September 21, 1859, to 75 students, and was one of the first coeducational colleges in the nation. Students paid tuition expenses of $8 per term (three terms per year), plus nearby room and board costs of approximately $2 per week. Instruction at the college actually began with young children, and most of the students were in elementary and grade levels. Courses at the collegiate level included math, literature, history, sciences, and philosophy. Courses stressing the Christian faith included “moral philosophy” and “moral science.” Due to the fallout of the Civil War, the school closed in 1871. At this time, most men (both students and administrative members) had enrolled in the army. In addition, Indiana passed an 1867 bill that provided state support for public education, and the Methodists’ broad statewide efforts toward higher education meant that none of the schools were self-sustaining. The combination proved too much to overcome for the Male and Female College.