Founded in 1869, Ursinus College is a liberal arts institution in Collegeville, a town in eastern Pennsylvania thirty miles from Philadelphia. While a secular institution today, the college was founded by members of the German reformed church, hence its naming for theologian Zacharias Ursinus, and motto ＆On the Firm Foundation of God＊.
There are over 60 courses of study and interdisciplinary options available, with the departments of Arts, Humanities, Science, Social Sciences, and a series of preprofessional programmes. Freshman students will usually be clustered together in residence halls to ensure support networks and a shared experience.
The Kaleidoscope Performing Arts Centre is home to the schools of Theatre and Dance. Contained inside are the Lenfest theatre, seating 380 and with a modern proscenium arch stage, and the
Blackbox Studio theatre, which can seat up to 150. Jazz and wind ensemble concerts also take place in the centre.
Athletics teams are known as the Bears, and compete in the NCAA Division III. There are a total of eleven men＊s sports programmes and twelve women＊s, including volleyball and gymnastics. A sycamore tree once grew in the endzone of Patterson Stadium, home to the American football team, and upon its felling a one tonne piece was carved into a bear that now stands in Helfferich gymnasium.
Alumni of Ursinus include congressman Ryan Costello, Nobel Laureate Gerald Edelman, and JD Salinger, author of seminal American novel The Catcher in the Rye.
