Editing Pennsylvania (section)

===Higher education===
{{See also|List of colleges and universities in Pennsylvania}}
[[File:Benjamin Franklin statue in front of College Hall.JPG|thumb|The ''[[Statue of Benjamin Franklin (University of Pennsylvania)|Statue of Benjamin Franklin]]'' on the campus of the [[University of Pennsylvania]] in [[West Philadelphia]], which pays tribute to [[Benjamin Franklin]], a [[Founding Father of the United States|Founding Father]] who founded the university, now an [[Ivy League]] institution and one of the world's top universities, in 1740<ref>{{Cite web |date=January 1, 2022 |title=Best National University Rankings |url=https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/national-universities |access-date=April 27, 2022 |website=U.S. News & World Report}}</ref>]]

"Pennsylvania has the fourth most higher education institutions of any state," according to ''[[Inside Higher Ed]]'', with 250 universities and colleges.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Knox |first=Liam |date=July 12, 2023 |title=Fighting for Scraps in Pennsylvania |url=https://www.insidehighered.com/news/admissions/traditional-age/2023/07/12/pa-public-colleges-battle-students-and-funding |access-date=July 12, 2023 |work=Inside Higher Ed}}</ref> The state is ranked second among the nation’s top destinations for freshman out-of-state college students, according to [[NPR]]/[[PBS]] affiliate [[WHYY-TV|WHYY]], which cites a study by the [[Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Pennsylvania]] (AICUP).<ref>{{Cite news |last=Williams |first=Stephen |date=September 12, 2024 |title=Pa. ranked 2nd among nation's top destinations for freshman out-of-state college students, survey says |url=https://whyy.org/articles/pennsylvania-freshman-out-of-state-students/ |access-date=September 12, 2024 |work=WHYY (NPR/PBS)}}</ref> Pennsylvania is third in the nation for the quantity of "Best Colleges", according to ''[[The Wall Street Journal]]''.<ref>{{Cite news |last=King |first=Brendan |date=September 5, 2024 |title=Wall Street Journal ranks Pennsylvania colleges third in the nation |url=https://www.fox43.com/article/life/announcements/wall-street-journal-pennsylvania-ranked-third-colleges/521-6c2c50c5-6b06-42b5-8280-647814cf4b89 |access-date=September 5, 2024 |work=WPMT Fox43}}</ref> 

The [[Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education]] (PASSHE), which includes 14 state-owned universities and colleges, is Pennsylvania's [[public university]] system. [[West Chester University]] is by far the largest of the 14 with nearly 15,000 students. The [[Commonwealth System of Higher Education]] is the organizing body of Pennsylvania's four state-related schools, which include [[Pennsylvania State University]], [[Lincoln University (Pennsylvania)|Lincoln University]], the [[University of Pittsburgh]], and [[Temple University]]. There are 15 publicly-funded two-year [[Community colleges in the United States|community colleges]] and technical schools in Pennsylvania that are separate from the PASSHE system, and many private two- and four-year technical schools, colleges, and universities.

[[Carnegie Mellon University]], [[Pennsylvania State University]], the [[University of Pennsylvania]], and the [[University of Pittsburgh]] are members of the [[Association of American Universities]], an invitation-only organization of leading research universities. [[Lehigh University]], founded in 1865 and located in [[Bethlehem, Pennsylvania|Bethlehem]], is a private research university. The Pennsylvania State University is Pennsylvania's [[land-grant university]], [[National Sea Grant College Program|Sea Grant College]], and [[National Space Grant College and Fellowship Program|Space Grant College]]. 

The University of Pennsylvania, founded in [[West Philadelphia]] in 1740 by [[Benjamin Franklin]], a [[Founding Father of the United States|Founding Father]] of the nation, is Pennsylvania's only [[Ivy League]] university, and is the geographically most southern of the nation's eight Ivy League universities. The University of Pennsylvania was one of the [[first university in the United States|first universities established in the nation]]; its medical school, [[Perelman School of Medicine]], founded in 1765, was the first [[List of medical schools in the United States|medical school]] established in the nation.

The [[Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine]] (LECOM) is a private graduate school of medicine, dentistry, and pharmacy with a main campus in Erie, a branch campus in [[Greensburg, Pennsylvania|Greensburg]], and two additional campuses outside Pennsylvania. It is the largest medical school in the United States.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://lecom.edu/about-lecom/quick-facts/|title=Quick Facts|access-date=August 13, 2020}}</ref> The [[Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts]] is the first and oldest [[art school]] in the United States.<ref name="pafa.org">{{cite web|title=History of the School |url=http://www.pafa.org/School/Overview/History-of-the-School/350/ |website=pafa.org|access-date=April 8, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110615012302/http://www.pafa.org/School/Overview/History-of-the-School/350/|archive-date=June 15, 2011 |url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Philadelphia College of Pharmacy]], now part of [[University of the Sciences |University of the Sciences in Philadelphia]], was the first [[pharmacy school]] in the United States.<ref name="usciences.edu">{{cite web |title=About—University of the Sciences |url=http://www.usciences.edu/about/|website=usciences.edu|access-date=April 8, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110524050754/http://www.usciences.edu/about/ |archive-date=May 24, 2011 |url-status=live}}</ref>