Immaculata University is a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

university in

East Whiteland Township, Pennsylvania East Whiteland Township is a township in Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 10,650 at the 2010 census. Mailing addresses associated with East Whiteland include Malvern, Frazer, and a small area of Exton. History F ...

. It was founded by the

Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary The Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (I.H.M.) is a Catholic religious institute of sisters, founded by Fr Louis Florent Gillet, CSsR, and a co-founder of the Oblate Sister of Providence, Mother Theresa Maxis Duchemin, in 1845. ...

. The university is composed of 1,427 traditional undergraduate and adult undergraduate students, and more than 1,000 graduate and doctoral students. The university is located on more than .

History

Immaculata was founded as Villa Maria College, a

women's college Women's colleges in higher education are undergraduate, bachelor's degree-granting institutions, often liberal arts colleges, whose student populations are composed exclusively or almost exclusively of women. Some women's colleges admit male stud ...

in 1920. It was the first Catholic college for women in the

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

area. The name was changed to Immaculata College in 1929. Founded by the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Immaculata is part of the greater IHM community, which includes the neighboring House of Studies and an academy for girls (now split into two campuses, Lower School and High School). The university became

co-education Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to ...

al in the fall of 2005. The current location of Immaculata University is a tract of land in

Chester County, Pennsylvania Chester County (Pennsylvania Dutch language, Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Tscheschter Kaundi''), colloquially known as Chesco, is a County (United States), county in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is located in the De ...

, near the "Main Line" in Malvern, purchased by the sisters in 1906. The original plot has grown to since that time. In June 2002, Immaculata College received confirmation of university status from the

Pennsylvania Department of Education The Pennsylvania Department of Education is the executive department of the state charged with publicly funded preschool, K-12 and adult educational budgeting, management and guidelines. As the state education agency, its activities are directed ...

. Effective August 2002, the college is now known as Immaculata University. Barbara Lettiere assumed the office as the tenth president of Immaculata University on July 1, 2017, and is the first lay president of Immaculata.

Student life

The Immaculata Leadership Institute is a program which develops religious leadership. Students can join over 35 clubs and organizations, including: *Campus Ministry- students engage in volunteer and fundraising work to help those less fortunate. *English/Communications Club *IU Gamers' Guild *Garden Club *Cue and Curtain Theater *African-American Cultural Society *Latin Flavor *Fashion Group *Catholic Relief Services Student Ambassadors

Media

The Immaculatan is the student newspaper published with funds from the College of Undergraduate Studies. The Immaculata Magazine is published twice a year by the staff of University Communications.

Athletics

Varsity Teams: ;Men's Teams: ;Women's Teams: Conference:

Colonial States Athletic Conference The Colonial States Athletic Conference (CSAC) is an NCAA Division III collegiate athletic conference in the Mid-Atlantic United States. There are currently nine full member institutions as of 2018. The conference's membership, as with most Mid ...

(CSAC) through 2017–18;

Atlantic East Conference The Atlantic East Conference is an NCAA Division III collegiate athletic conference in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. History Beginning play in July 2018, the league consists of seven private universities, each former members o ...

thereafter
Affiliation:

NCAA Division III NCAA Division III (D-III) is a division of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States. D-III consists of athletic programs at colleges and universities that choose not to offer athletic scholarships to their stu ...

Nickname: Mighty Macs
Colors: Blue and White ;Home Fields Draper Walsh Stadium (Sprint turf surface) for field hockey, lacrosse, and soccer – 1,000 capacity
IU Softball Field (grass)
IU Baseball Stadium (grass) – 600 capacity There is a Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) which encourages athletics.

Women's basketball

The women's basketball team played in six straight AIAW basketball tournament final fours from 1972 to 1977, five straight finals from 1972 to 1976. They won three consecutive national championships from 1972 to 1974. The team was featured for its 1970s accomplishments on a ''

SportsCenter ''SportsCenter'' (SC) is a daily sports news television show, television program that serves as the flagship program and brand of United States, American cable television, cable and satellite television television network, network ESPN. The show ...

'' special on March 23, 2008. On January 26, 1975, Immaculata played in the first nationally televised women's intercollegiate basketball game. Facing

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

at Cole Field House, Immaculata won 80–48 in a game noted more for its turnovers (70) than scoring (56 field goals, 16 free throws). On February 22, 1975, they played in the first women's college basketball game ever played in

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylva ...

. Immaculata won 65–61. On January 4, 2015, Immaculata and

Queens College Queens College (QC) is a public college in the Queens borough of New York City. It is part of the City University of New York system. Its 80-acre campus is primarily located in Flushing, Queens. It has a student body representing more than 170 ...

played in the Maggie Dixon Classic as a commemoration of the 40th anniversary of the first game played between women's college basketball teams in Madison Square Garden. The story of the basketball team was adapted into a movie, ''

The Mighty Macs ''The Mighty Macs'' is a 2009 American sports drama film by director Tim Chambers. It stars Carla Gugino in the lead role of Cathy Rush, a Hall of Fame women's basketball coach. The film premiered in the 2009 Heartland Film Festival and was release ...

'', which was released in 2011. Directed by Tim Chambers, the film chronicles the first Mighty Macs championship in 1972. The head coach of the women's team from 1972 to 1977,

Cathy Rush Cathy Rush (born Cathy Cowan; April 7, 1947) was the head women's basketball coach at Immaculata from 1972 to 1977. She led Immaculata to three consecutive AIAW national titles from 1972–1974. She led the Mighty Macs to six consecutive fin ...

, was inducted into the

Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 1000 Hall of Fame Avenue in Springfield, Massachusetts. It serves as basketball's most complete library, in addition to promoting and pres ...

in 2008, and the

Women's Basketball Hall of Fame The Women's Basketball Hall of Fame honors those who have contributed to the sport of women's basketball. The Hall of Fame opened in 1999 in Knoxville, Tennessee, USA. It is the only facility of its kind dedicated to all levels of women's ba ...

in 2010. The 1972–1974 teams were announced on April 7, 2014, as part of the 2014 induction class of the Naismith Hall, and were formally inducted as a team on August 8. Players

Theresa Grentz Theresa Marie Shank Grentz (born March 24, 1952) is an American college basketball coach. Her coaching career spanned five decades, with over 680 career wins, multiple national and conference coaching awards, and a national championship. She is ...

and

Marianne Stanley Marianne Crawford Stanley (born April 29, 1954) is an American basketball coach. She previously served as the head coach of the Washington Mystics and Indiana Fever of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Born in Yeadon, Pennsyl ...

were inducted into the Naismith Hall in 2022 for their subsequent accomplishments as college coaches.

Campus

The following buildings are located on campus: Alumnae Hall was named in honor of Immaculata University alumnae. This building contains a gymnasium, fitness center, and a theater. The Mary A. Bruder Center focuses on Campus Health Services (nurses) and Counseling Services. The DeChantal and Marian halls are a residential complex containing 154 residential rooms with kitchenettes on most floors, student and study lounges, and laundry facilities, as well as a chapel. The Faculty Center contains faculty and administrative offices of the College of Undergraduate Studies. The three-storied Gabriele Library contains computers and study rooms and houses the writing center and archives along with a coffee shop on the first level, which is called the ImmacuLatte. Gillet Hall contains the faculty residences, mainly occupied by the IHM Sisters. The building is named after Father Louis Gillet. Good Counsel Hall was the university's first main classroom building. It contains a bookstore, humanities department, and music listening rooms. The Lillian P. Lettiere Center houses financial aid and admissions and also the Esports arena. Lourdes Hall, attached to Villa Maria Hall, serves as a residential hall with 60 residential rooms and also contains Great Hall for large events and functions. Loyola Hall is the university's second main classroom building and contains administrative offices—College of Graduate Studies, nursing and allied health sciences, amphitheaters, art, education, mathematics, psychology, science departments, computer centers, curriculum library, laboratories, and math center. Nazareth Hall includes the main cafeteria and the campus chapel. Classrooms are also located in this building for fashion and nutrition majors. In the year 2000, air conditioning, heating, and sprinkler systems were installed. Villa Maria Hall, with its Italian Renaissance architecture, is a beautiful building capped by a dome. Villa Maria is the principal building of the Immaculata University campus. Ballinger & Perrot designed this building, along with Nazareth Hall. With the vision of the IHM Sisters, Villa Maria Hall was placed between Harrisburg and Philadelphia in order to have a convenient location to build a college for women. It was opened in 1914. In the year 2000, Villa Maria had renovations done. Air conditioning, heating, and sprinkler systems were added to the building. Immaculata events such as Carol Night, Ring Ceremony, Pinning Ceremony, Homecoming, and others are held in this building. The third floor contains a residence hall, while offices are located on the first and second floors. Immaculata University had a

post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional serv ...

with a ZIP code of 19345, which is now closed. In 2022, a new building, the Parsons Science Pavilion, will house the sciences. It will be composed of modern laboratory spaces for chemistry and biology, complete with cutting-edge scientific and simulation equipment.

Alumni

Megan Brennan Megan Jane Brennan served as the seventy-fourth Postmaster General of the United States. Brennan became the first woman to hold the office when she assumed the position on February 1, 2015. Early life and education A native of Pottsville, Penn ...

1984, first woman to serve as

United States Postmaster General The United States Postmaster General (PMG) is the chief executive officer of the United States Postal Service (USPS). The PMG is responsible for managing and directing the day-to-day operations of the agency. The PMG is selected and appointed by ...

1974, college basketball athlete and coach and member of the

E. Gail de Planque Eileen Gail de Planque (also Eileen Gail de Planque Burke, best known as E. Gail de Planque; 1944 – September 8, 2010) was an American nuclear physicist. An expert on environmental radiation measurements, she was the first woman and first ...

1967, nuclear physicist and first woman to serve as a commissioner of the

Nuclear Regulatory Commission The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is an independent agency of the United States government tasked with protecting public health and safety related to nuclear energy. Established by the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974, the NRC began operat ...

Rene Portland Maureen Theresa Muth "Rene" Portland (March 31, 1953 – July 22, 2018) was an American head coach in women's college basketball, known for her 27-year tenure with the Penn State Nittany Lions basketball team. Her career included 21 NCAA to ...

1975, college basketball athlete and coach for the

Penn State Nittany Lions The Penn State Nittany Lions are the athletic teams of Pennsylvania State University, except for the women's basketball team, known as the Lady Lions. The school colors are navy blue and white. The school mascot is the Nittany Lion. The interc ...

for 27 years *

Eileen M. Rehrmann Eileen M. Rehrmann (born November 30, 1944) is a Democratic politician from the State of Maryland, having served Harford County in several different elected positions. Retrieved on January 12, 2014 Education Rehrmann attended Immaculata Coll ...

1997, Maryland state legislator and

Harford County Harford County is located in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 census, the population was 260,924. Its county seat is Bel Air. Harford County is included in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is al ...

executive Executive ( exe., exec., execu.) may refer to: Role or title * Executive, a senior management role in an organization ** Chief executive officer (CEO), one of the highest-ranking corporate officers (executives) or administrators ** Executive dir ...

1976, athlete and 1984-1985 NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Championship coach

References

External links

Official website

Official athletics website
{{authority control Catholic universities and colleges in Pennsylvania Educational institutions established in 1920 Former women's universities and colleges in the United States Universities and colleges in Chester County, Pennsylvania Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities 1920 establishments in Pennsylvania