Wilmington University (WilmU) is a

private university Private universities and private colleges are institutions of higher education, not operated, owned, or institutionally funded by governments. They may (and often do) receive from governments tax breaks, public student loans, and grant (money ...

with its main campus in

Wilmington Manor, Delaware Wilmington Manor is a census-designated place (CDP) in north-eastern New Castle County, Delaware, United States. The population was 7,889 at the 2010 census. Geography Wilmington Manor is located at (39.6867795, -75.5843695). It is just northwes ...

, with a New Castle street address. - It was founded in 1968 as Wilmington College by educator Dr. Donald E. Ross. As of 2016, the university served a total student body of 20,522 undergraduate and postgraduate students in nearly 100 degree and certificate programs. The university's programs are offered at its main campus in historic New Castle as well as at six additional campuses in Delaware, several partnership locations in

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, and a single partnership location in northeastern

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 ...

History

Wilmington University was founded just outside historic New Castle, Delaware, in 1968 by Dr. Donald E. Ross, who served as the institution's president until 1977. The school began with a charter class of 194 students in 1968; between 1979 and 2006, the university grew to more than 10,000 students under the leadership of president Dr. Audrey K. Doberstein. Doberstein was inducted into the

Hall of Fame of Delaware Women The Hall of Fame of Delaware Women was established in 1981 by the Delaware Commission for Women, a division of the Secretary of State of Delaware. The hall of fame recognizes the achievements and contributions of Delaware women in a variety of field ...

in 2011 in recognition of her contributions to Wilmington University and the community. The university now offers graduate and doctoral degrees, and serves more than 20,000 students enrolled annually in online and on-campus classes at campuses in three states. Founded as Wilmington College, the institution officially became Wilmington University on September 10, 2007, after the approval of the board of trustees and the

Middle States Commission on Higher Education The Middle States Commission on Higher Education (abbreviated as MSCHE and legally incorporated as the Mid-Atlantic Region Commission on Higher Education) is a voluntary, peer-based, non-profit membership organization that performs peer evalua ...

. The name was changed to reflect the emphasis on undergraduate and postgraduate degree programs.

Campuses

Main campus

The main campus is in Wilmington Manor, a

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counterparts of incorporated places, such ...

unincorporated Unincorporated may refer to: * Unincorporated area, land not governed by a local municipality * Unincorporated entity, a type of organization * Unincorporated territories of the United States, territories under U.S. jurisdiction, to which Congress ...

New Castle County, Delaware New Castle County is the northernmost of the three counties of the U.S. state of Delaware (New Castle, Kent, and Sussex). As of the 2020 census, the population was 570,719, making it the most populous county in Delaware, with nearly 60% of the ...

. The campus has a "

New Castle, Delaware New Castle is a city in New Castle County, Delaware, United States. The city is located six miles (10 km) south of Wilmington and is situated on the Delaware River. As of the 2010 census, the city's population was 5,285. History New Castl ...

" postal address but it is outside of the New Castle city limits. It is along

U.S. Route 13 U.S. Route 13 (US 13) is a north–south U.S. highway established in 1926 that runs for from Interstate 95 (I-95) just north of Fayetteville, North Carolina to US 1 in the northeastern suburbs of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in Morrisville ...

. The main campus hosts more than 80 degree programs at the undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral levels. In addition to classroom facilities, the main campus in New Castle features the Pratt Student center, opened in 2013 after an extensive renovation of a former university gymnasium. New Castle is also home to the Wilson Graduate Center, where the most of the university's graduate and doctoral degree programs are offered in northern Delaware.

Site locations

; Delaware * New Castle area: the Graduate Center is in an unincorporated area *Brandywine: In an unincorporated area * Athletic Complex *

Dover Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...

Dover Air Force Base Dover Air Force Base or Dover AFB is a United States Air Force base under the operational control of the Air Mobility Command (AMC), located southeast of the city of Dover, Delaware. 436th AW is the host wing and runs the busiest and largest a ...

* William A. Carter Partnership Center ( Georgetown) ;New Jersey *

Rowan College at Burlington County Rowan College at Burlington County (RCBC) is a public community college in Burlington County, New Jersey. Main facilities are located in Mount Laurel with other campuses in Mount Holly, Willingboro and Joint Base. History Founded as Burlin ...

Cumberland County College Cumberland County College was a public community college in Vineland and Millville, Cumberland County, New Jersey. It became the Cumberland Campus of Rowan College of South Jersey (RCSJ–Cumberland) on July 1, 2019 as part of a merger with Ro ...

Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey McGuire AFB/McGuire, the common name of the McGuire unit of Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, is a United States Air Force base in Burlington County, New Jersey, United States, approximately south-southeast of Trenton. McGuire is under the ju ...

Rowan College at Gloucester County Rowan College of South Jersey (RCSJ) is a public community college with two campuses in New Jersey, including one in Sewell (Gloucester Main Campus) and one in Vineland and Millville (Cumberland Branch Campus). The college was established in ...

Salem Community College Salem Community College (SCC) is a public community college in Salem County, New Jersey. Salem Community College's main campus is in Carneys Point Township. SCC is authorized to grant associate degrees—Associate in Arts, Associate in Fine ...

Mercer County Community College Mercer County Community College (MCCC) is a public, community college in Mercer County, New Jersey. More than 7,000 students enroll in one or more credit courses each year. Established in 1966, MCCC has an open-door admission policy. The West ...

Camden County College Camden County College (CCC) is a public community college in Camden County, New Jersey. Camden County College has its main campus in the Blackwood section of Gloucester Township, with satellite locations in Camden, Cherry Hill and Sicklervil ...

Academics

Wilmington University offers nearly 100 degree and certificate programs across its seven academic colleges and 14 campus locations throughout Delaware, New Jersey, and Maryland, as well as dozens of academic minors and concentrations that specialize its degree offerings.

College of Arts & Sciences

Specializing in a traditional, liberal arts education, the College of Arts & Sciences features undergraduate programs in liberal studies, environmental science, and communication, with minors in art, drama, history, mathematics, and natural science. The college expanded in 2017 to include a graduate program in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages ( TESOL).

College of Education

Accredited by the

National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education The National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) was a professional accreditor focused on accrediting teacher education programs in U.S. colleges and universities. It was founded in 1954 and was recognized as an accreditor by ...

(NCATE) in 2007, the College of Education is one of the largest academic colleges at Wilmington University and offers teacher preparation programs that range from elementary education to specialized secondary education fields, school leadership, innovation, and much more. At any given time, there are more than 1,000 Wilmington University education students performing supervised field work, such as student teaching instruction, throughout Delaware and the wider Philadelphia metropolitan area.

College of Business

The College of Business, accredited by the

International Assembly for Collegiate Business Education The International Accreditation Council for Business Education (IACBE), formerly the International Assembly for Collegiate Business Education, is an educational accreditation agency for college and university business programs founded in 1997. It ...

,Wilmington University: College of Business Accreditation
Retrieved August 28, 2013. offers 10 undergraduate, 4 graduate, and 1 doctoral program in fields like business administration, accounting, finance, economics, marketing, and analytics. Certificate programs, as well as six concentrations, are also offered. The College of Business maintains an active chapter of the

Sigma Beta Delta Sigma Beta Delta () is a scholastic honor society that recognizes academic achievement among students in the fields of business, management, and administration . History Sigma Beta Delta was founded by Beta Gamma Sigma on January 16, 1994, in La ...

international honor society for students in business, management, and administration programs.

Notable faculty

* Jennifer Cohan,

Delaware Department of Transportation The Delaware Department of Transportation (DelDOT) is an agency of the U.S. state of Delaware. The Secretary of Transportation is Nicole Majeski. The agency was established in 1917 and has its headquarters in Dover. The department's responsibil ...

SecretaryMarkell nominates transportation secretary
Retrieved January 6, 2015. *

Henry Milligan Henry "Hammerin' Hank" Milligan (born September 16, 1958, in Camden, New Jersey) is a retired professional boxer from the United States. His highest achievement came in amateur boxing, when he was ranked #9 heavyweight in the world by the AIBA in F ...

, actor, engineer, and professional boxer

College of Health Professions

The College of Health Professions is unique among universities in the region, in that its undergraduate programs are offered only as "completion" programs for students who have already attended a two-year nursing program and become a Registered Nurse. The college, which has full accreditation by the

Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education The Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) is a nursing education accrediting agency in the United States. The CCNE is recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. CCNE accreditation is a voluntary, self-regulatory process, and the ...

(CCNE) for its undergraduate and graduate programs, enrolled its first class of RN-to-BSN students in 1986. In 1993, the university approved the addition of a Master of Science in Nursing program, which today features three distinct concentrations that fit students' unique needs. In 2005, an undergraduate completion program in Allied Health was approved, giving students access to one of the fastest-growing academic and professional practice areas in the health professions. The College of Health Professions also offers a Doctor of Nursing Practice program.

College of Social & Behavioral Sciences

With degree programs ranging from political science and legal studies to clinical mental health counseling and organizational dynamics, the College of Social & Behavioral Sciences is one of the largest colleges at Wilmington University. Many programs offered by the college are professionally accredited; the Bachelor of Science program in legal studies has been approved by the

American Bar Association The American Bar Association (ABA) is a voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students, which is not specific to any jurisdiction in the United States. Founded in 1878, the ABA's most important stated activities are the setting of acad ...

(ABA), while the college's graduate program in clinical mental health counseling has achieved accreditation by the

Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or natio ...

(CACREP). Students in the College of Social & Behavioral Sciences often participate in the CAP co-op program, which offers academic credit in exchange for a semester-long internship relevant to the student's course of study.

Notable faculty

* Dr. Lem Burnham – former director and vice president for player & employee development at the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL), former

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team plays ...

defensive end, current vice president for the Philadelphia chapter of

NFL Alumni The NFL Alumni Association is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that is composed of former National Football League (NFL) players, coaches, team staff members and associate members who work voluntarily to raise funds for youth-oriented causes and ...

College of Technology

The College of Technology was awarded in 2011 by the

National Security Agency The National Security Agency (NSA) is a national-level intelligence agency of the United States Department of Defense, under the authority of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI). The NSA is responsible for global monitoring, collecti ...

as a National Center of Academic Excellence in Information Assurance Education (CAE/IAE). The CAE/IAE designation from the NSA applies to the College of Technology undergraduate Computer and Network Security degree program and the Information Systems Technologies, Information Assurance graduate program.

College of Online & Experiential Learning

The College of Online and Experiential Learning houses all of Wilmington University's more than 95 online degree programs, concentrations, and certificates. The college serves 41 percent of the student body, as of 2016, with distance education programs in business, education, technology, and many other fields. Online programs at Wilmington University have received recognition from several major publications. U.S. News & World Report ranks the online program 161st nationally.

School of Law

In October, 2022, Wilmington announced that it would open a law school beginning with the 2023 academic year, naming Phillip J. Closius, formerly Dean of

University of Baltimore School of Law The University of Baltimore School of Law, or the UB School of Law, is one of the four colleges that make up the University of Baltimore, which is part of the University System of Maryland. The UBalt School of Law is one of only two law schools i ...

and the

University of Toledo College of Law The University of Toledo College of Law is the law school at the University of Toledo, and is located on the university's main campus in a residential neighborhood in western Toledo, Ohio. The school is fully accredited by the American Bar Associ ...

as its first Dean.

Athletics

Wilmington University's athletic teams are known as the Wildcats, and are represented by the school's mascot, named "Wiley D. Wildcat." The university's teams compete in

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

Division II and the

Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference The Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (or CACC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level. Its fourteen member institutions are located in the northeastern ...

for all sports.

Athletic facilities

Athletic teams at the university are served by the Wilmington University Athletic Complex in

Bear, Delaware Bear is a census-designated place (CDP) in New Castle County, Delaware, United States. The population was 19,371 at the 2010 census. Originally a small crossroads in a rural area, approximately south of Wilmington, the area supported small fa ...

. Opened in 2013, this sports complex includes outdoor fields as well as an indoor, multi-purpose playing court for basketball and volleyball. The complex provides athletic facilities and a home field to the men's and women's basketball and soccer teams as well as the women's lacrosse and volleyball teams.

Notable alumni

* Anthony Allison, professional soccer player *

Paul Bechly Paul Lorin Bechly (born 1958) is an American chemical engineer known for his work in the development of an environmentally-oriented perfluorocarbon gas policy for DuPont and other industries. He currently works in the financial industry. Educat ...

, American chemical engineer * Hugh T. Broomall,

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

* Richard C. Cathcart, former house majority leader,

Delaware House of Representatives The Delaware State House of Representatives is the lower house of the Delaware General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Delaware. It is composed of 41 Representatives from an equal number of constituencies, each of whom is ...

Bushra Gohar Bushra Gohar ( ps, بشرا ګوهر; ur, بشریٰ گوہر) is a Pakistani Pashtun politician and a senior leader of the National Democratic Movement (NDM). She has served as a member of the National Assembly of Pakistan from 2008 to 2013. S ...

, Pakistani-Pashtun politician * Thomas P. Gordon, county executive, New Castle County, Delaware * Ruth Briggs King, member,

Trinidad Navarro Trinidad Navarro is an American politician who is the Delaware Insurance Commissioner and previously served as New Castle County Sheriff. He is a Democrat. Education and career Navarro received his associate's degree from Delaware Technical Co ...

, Insurance Commissioner of Delaware * Charles Potter Jr., member,

David D. Rudolph David D. Rudolph (born June 12, 1949) is an American politician from Maryland and a member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party. He was a member of the Maryland House of Delegates, representing Maryland's Maryland House of De ...

, member,

Maryland House of Delegates The Maryland House of Delegates is the lower house of the legislature of the State of Maryland. It consists of 141 delegates elected from 47 districts. The House of Delegates Chamber is in the Maryland State House on State Circle in Annapolis, ...

John C. Sigler John C. Sigler (born 1945) is an American lawyer, gun rights activist, former chair of the Republican State Committee of Delaware and former president of the National Rifle Association (NRA). Sigler graduated from Milford High School in 19 ...

, former president,

National Rifle Association The National Rifle Association of America (NRA) is a gun rights advocacy group based in the United States. Founded in 1871 to advance rifle marksmanship, the modern NRA has become a prominent Gun politics in the United States, gun rights ...

* Terry R. Spence, former speaker,

* Peter C. Schwartzkopf, speaker,

Francis D. Vavala General Francis D. Vavala (born June 28, 1947) is a retired Army National Guard officer who served as the Adjutant General of the State of Delaware. He received the promotion in February 1999 after the retirement of Major General George Hastings. ...

adjutant general An adjutant general is a military chief administrative officer. France In Revolutionary France, the was a senior staff officer, effectively an assistant to a general officer. It was a special position for lieutenant-colonels and colonels in staf ...

State of Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...

* R. Thomas Wagner Jr., Delaware's auditor of accounts

References

External links

Official website
{{Authority control 1968 establishments in Delaware Education in New Castle County, Delaware Educational institutions established in 1968 Private universities and colleges in Delaware