Editing Chatham University

{{Short description|Private university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, US}}
{{Infobox university
|name                   = Chatham University
|image                  = Chatham University.png
|image_size             = 150
|motto                  = ''Filiae Nostrae Sicut Antarii Lapides'' ([[Latin]])
|mottoeng               = That our daughters may be as cornerstones, polished after the similitude of a palace.
|established            = {{Start date and age|1869|12|11}}
|type                   = [[Private university]]
|endowment              = $106.6 million (2021)<ref>As of June 30, 2021. {{cite report |url=https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/datacenter/facsimileView.aspx?unitid=211556&goToReportId=6&year=2021&surveyNumber=6 |title=NCES IPEDS Data Center: Chatham University |publisher=U. S. Department of Education |date=November 1, 2021 |access-date=August 22, 2023}}</ref>
|president              = [[Rhonda Phillips]]
|campus                 = {{convert|39|acre|ha}}
|city                   = [[Pittsburgh]]
|state                  = [[Pennsylvania]]
|country                = United States
|students               = 2,300 (approx.)
|free_label             = 
|free                   = 
|former_names           = Pennsylvania Female College (1869–1890)<br />Pennsylvania College for Women (1890–1955)<br />Chatham College (1955–2007)
|athletics_affiliations = [[NCAA Division III]] – [[Presidents' Athletic Conference|PAC]]
|sports_nickname        = Cougars
|mascot                 = Carson the [[Cougar]]<ref name="mascot">{{cite news|title=Athletics' mascot gets a new name|url=http://www.chatham.edu/news/index.php/2011/03/athletics-mascot-gets-a-new-name|archive-url=https://archive.today/20140916145746/http://www.chatham.edu/news/index.php/2011/03/athletics-mascot-gets-a-new-name|url-status=dead|archive-date=September 16, 2014|publisher=chatham.edu|date=March 31, 2011}}</ref>
|colors                 = Purple and Gray<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://moodle.chatham.edu/pluginfile.php/59227/mod_resource/content/2/CU%20brand%20graphics%20guidelines_0715.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=2018-11-24 |archive-date=2018-11-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181124220319/https://moodle.chatham.edu/pluginfile.php/59227/mod_resource/content/2/CU%20brand%20graphics%20guidelines_0715.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref> {{color box|#4e2a6e}} {{color box|#686f76}}
|academic_affiliation   = 
|website                = {{URL|https://www.chatham.edu/| chatham.edu}}
|logo                   = Chatham univ purplelogo.png
| logo_size = 200
}}

'''Chatham University''' is a [[private university]] in [[Pittsburgh]], Pennsylvania. Originally founded as a women's college, it began enrolling men in undergraduate programs in 2015. It enrolls about 2,110 students, including 1,002 undergraduate students and 1,108 graduate students.<ref>{{cite web|title=Chatham Quick Facts|url=http://www.chatham.edu/about/quickfacts.cfm|access-date=22 August 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170823024506/https://www.chatham.edu/about/quickfacts.cfm|archive-date=23 August 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref> 

The university grants certificates and degrees including bachelor, master, first-professional, and doctorate degrees in the School of Arts, Science & Business, the School of Health Sciences, and the Falk School of Sustainability & Environment.

==History==
[[File:Pennsylvania College for Women Freshman Class 1914-1915.jpg|thumb|left|Freshman class, 1914–15]]
Founded as the "Pennsylvania Female College" on December 11, 1869, by Reverend William Trimble Beatty (the father of renowned operatic [[contralto]] [[Louise Homer]]), it was located in the Berry mansion on Woodland Road off Fifth Avenue in the neighborhood of Shadyside. Shadyside Campus today is composed of buildings and grounds from a number of former private mansions. The college was renamed "Pennsylvania College for Women" in 1890, and "Chatham College" in 1955. The latter name was to honor [[William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham]], after whom the city of Pittsburgh is [[Namesake|named]].<ref>[http://digital.library.pitt.edu/cgi-bin/f/findaid/findaid-idx?c=ascead;cc=ascead;q1=chatham%20university;rgn=main;view=text;didno=US-PPiU-dar192508 William Pitt Family Papers, 1757-1804], DAR.1925.08, [[The Darlington Collection]], Special Collections Department, University of Pittsburgh</ref>

The school gained [[university]] status from the [[Pennsylvania Department of Education]] on April 23, 2007, and publicly announced its new status on May 1, 2007, changing its name to Chatham University.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07121/782468-100.stm|access-date=2009-08-16|date=2007-05-01|first=Tim|last=Grant|work=[[Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]]|title=Chatham gains university status}}</ref>

With elements designed for the original Andrew Mellon estate by the [[Olmsted Brothers]], the {{convert|39|acre|ha|adj=on}} Shadyside Campus was designated an [[arboretum]] in 1998 by the American Association of Botanical Gardens and Arboreta.

In 2005 the university expanded its programs to include online advanced degree programs (bachelors, masters, doctoral) through the School of Continuing Education, later the School for Continuing and Professional Studies. Two years later, Chatham's MFA in Creative Writing program was named one of the top five Innovative/Unique Programs by ''[[The Atlantic Monthly]]''.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200708/mfa-programs|access-date=2009-08-16|year=2007|magazine=The Atlantic Monthly|title=The Best of the Best|first=Edward J.|last=Delaney}}</ref>

Chatham received some national attention in 2014 when it announced that it was engaging in a period of study "considering admitting men for the first time in that college's history,"<ref>{{cite web|last=Schackner |first=Bill |url=http://www.post-gazette.com/local/breaking/2014/02/18/Chatham-U-trustees-approve-resolution-to-study-going-all-coed/stories/201402180194 |title=Chatham University considers enrolling men as undergraduate students &#124; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette |website=Post-gazette.com |date=2014-02-18 |access-date=2017-03-13}}</ref> resulting in "reactions of surprise and anger" from its alumnae.<ref>{{cite web|last=Schackner |first=Bill |url=http://www.post-gazette.com/news/education/2014/02/19/Chatham-graduates-express-shock-at-possible-co-ed-move-wage-fight-to-keep-undergraduate-college-single-sex/stories/201402190157 |title=Coed possibility concerns Chatham alumnae &#124; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette |website=Post-gazette.com |date=2014-02-19 |access-date=2017-03-13}}</ref> Undergraduate men began attending in 2015.<ref>{{cite web|last=Perrine |first=Shannon |url=https://www.wtae.com/article/first-male-undergrads-arrive-at-historically-all-female-chatham-university-1/7473236 |title=First male undergrads arrive at historically all-female Chatham University |website=WTAE.com |date=2015-08-26 |access-date=2020-07-06}}</ref> The president of Chatham University is [[Rhonda Phillips]]. Phillips is the 10th woman to serve as the university's president across its 154-year history.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.post-gazette.com/news/education/2023/04/18/chatham-university-pittsburgh-president-rhonda-phillips/stories/202304180083 | title=Chatham University names Rhonda Phillips its new president }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.wesa.fm/education/2023-04-18/chatham-university-president-rhonda-phillips | title=Chatham University selects economic development and sustainability expert as 10th female president | date=18 April 2023 }}</ref>

Chatham maintains a connection to its roots as a women's college with the Women's Institute, which celebrated 10 years in 2025.<ref>{{Cite web |title=10 Years of the Chatham Women's Institute |url=https://www.pulse.chatham.edu/blog-stories/chatham-womens-institute-10-year-anniversary-pcwp-jessie-ramey |access-date=2025-04-24 |website=Pulse @ ChathamU |language=en-US}}</ref>

==Campuses==
Chatham's original Shadyside Campus is part of historic Woodland Road. The Shadyside Campus also includes the Chatham Eastside building,<ref>[http://www.chatham.edu/news/story.cfm?ID=316 Chatham.edu] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090421004254/http://www.chatham.edu/news/story.cfm?ID=316 |date=2009-04-21 }}</ref> which serves as the home for the health science and interior architecture programs.  
 
The university's new {{convert|388|acre|ha|adj=on}} Eden Hall Campus is located north of the city of Pittsburgh in Richland Township, Pennsylvania; it is the home of Chatham's Falk School of Sustainability & Environment. Programs at Eden Hall Campus include a Bachelors in Sustainability, a Masters of Sustainability, an MA in Food Studies, and dual degrees in Masters of Sustainability or MA in Food Studies + Masters in Business Administration. The Eden Hall Campus was donated to Chatham University by the Eden Hall Foundation on May 1, 2008. In 2011, the university engaged the architectural team of Berkebile Nelson Immenschuh McDowell (BNIM) of Kansas City, Mo. and the landscape design firm Andropogon Associates of Philadelphia to lead the master planning process. The first phase of development was designed by the firm Mithun, was completed in 2016, and won an award for sustainable development.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://mithun.com/project/chatham-university-eden-hall-campus/?from=featured|title=Chatham University Eden Hall Campus - Mithun|work=Mithun|access-date=2018-01-29|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.chatham.edu/news/index.php/2017/04/chatham-news/eden-hall-campus-receives-american-institute-of-architects-award-for-sustainable-design-excellence|title=Eden Hall Campus receives American Institute of Architects Award for Sustainable Design Excellence|date=2017-04-20|work=Chatham News|access-date=2018-01-29|language=en-US}}</ref>

In 2013, the Falk Foundation made its largest and final grant to the School of Sustainability & the Environment for the completion of the Eden Hall Campus. The grant was also the largest grant in the history of Chatham University.<ref name="ref-chatham-2013">{{cite press release| author= <!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> | title=Chatham University Receives $15 Million Gift From the Falk Foundation | url= https://www.chatham.edu/news/index.php/2013/10/chatham-news/chatham-university-receives-15-million-gift-from-the-falk-foundation
| location=[[Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania]] | publisher= Chatham University | date=2013-10-11 | access-date=2019-06-21}}</ref><ref name="ref-trib-chatham-2013">{{cite news |last=LaRussa |first=Tony |date=2013-10-10 |title=Chatham gets $15M by Falk Foundation to help build Richland facility |url=https://archive.triblive.com/local/pittsburgh-allegheny/chatham-gets-15m-by-falk-foundation-to-help-build-richland-facility/ |work=Trib Total Media |location=[[Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania]] |access-date=2019-06-21}}</ref> The School of Sustainability & the Environment was renamed the ''Falk School of Sustainability''. The Falk Foundation made its first grant to Chatham in 1952 with the funding of Chatham's Falk Hall, named in honor of Laura Falk, wife of foundation founder Maurice Falk.<ref name="ref-trib-chatham-2013" /><ref name="ref-chatham-2013" />

<gallery mode=packed heights= 90>
file:Berry Hall, Chatham University, 2023-04-20, 01.jpg|Berry Hall
file:Laughlin Hall, Chatham University, 2023-04-20, 01.jpg|Laughlin Hall
File:Chatham University - IMG 7653.JPG|Campus labyrinth
file:Chapel, Chatham University, 2023-04-20, 03.jpg|Chapel
file:Chatham University Arboretum - IMG 7664.JPG|Arboleum
File:Laughlin House, Chatham University, 2023-04-20, 01.jpg|Laughlin House 
</gallery>

== Accreditation ==
Chatham University is [[Higher education accreditation in the United States|accredited]] by the [[Middle States Commission on Higher Education]].<ref>{{cite web|last1=Ltd.|first1=Info724|title=Middle States Commission on Higher Education|url=https://www.msche.org/institutions_directory.asp?txtRange=c|website=www.msche.org|access-date=24 September 2017}}</ref>

==Athletics==
[[file:Chatham athletics wmark.png|thumb|left|150px|Chatham athletics wordmark]]
Chatham University teams, also known as the Cougars, participate as a member of the [[NCAA Division III]]. The Cougars are a member of the [[Presidents' Athletic Conference]] (PAC). Chatham has both Men's and Women's varsity teams in basketball, cross country, ice hockey, lacrosse, soccer, softball, squash, swimming & diving, track & field, volleyball, and Co-ed sideline cheerleading.  Men's and women's ice hockey play in the [[United Collegiate Hockey Conference]]. {{Cn|date=November 2024}}

[[File:Pennsylvanian (1919) (14586869518).jpg|thumb|230px|Chatham's athletics team of 1919]]
The women's ice hockey team was the first NCAA women's ice hockey team in Pennsylvania.{{Cn|date=June 2023}}

Chatham athletics announced in November 2024 that they will be adding a Co-ed competitive cheerleading team for the 2025-2026 season.

The college mascot was previously Pennsy the Seal. The cougar mascot was adopted in 1992 and was named Carson in honor of alumna [[Rachel Carson]] in 2011.<ref name="mascot"/> In 2023, 55.6% of students participating in a non-binding referendum held by the student government voted to reinstate Pennsy the Seal as the college mascot.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gates |first=Carson |last2=Clark |first2=Jackie |date=2023-04-12 |title=Results from the recent CSG elections |url=https://chathamcommunique.com/9051/news/results-from-the-recent-csg-elections/ |access-date=2023-08-02 |website=Communiqué}}</ref> The vote did not affect the college mascot.

==Notable alumni==

*[[Muriel Bowser]], mayor of Washington, D.C.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-politics/dc-mayor-elect-muriel-bowser-dc-council-members-to-be-sworn-in-friday/2015/01/01/ee6892ec-91fc-11e4-a412-4b735edc7175_story.html|date=January 2, 2015|newspaper=The Washington Post|title=Muriel Bowser sworn in as D.C. mayor; pledges to make city healthier, safer|last1=DeBonis |first1=Mike |last2=Davis |first2=Aaron C. }}</ref>
*[[Brian Broome]], writer<ref>{{Cite web |title=Yes I Said Yes I Will Yes: Brian Broome ’17 {{!}} Chatham University |url=https://www.chatham.edu/news-and-stories/stories/yes-i-said-yes-i-will-yes-brian-broome-17.html |access-date=2024-09-27 |website=www.chatham.edu}}</ref>
* [[Rachel Carson]], [[biologist]] and [[zoologist]]
*[[Catherine Chisholm Cushing]], playwright
*[[Meredith Dixon]], member of the [[New Mexico House of Representatives]]
*[[Kathie L. Olsen]], former deputy director of the [[National Science Foundation]]
*[[Elaine Scarry]], author and Walter M. Cabot Professor of Aesthetics and the General Theory of Value at [[Harvard University]]
*[[Lea Wait]], author of mystery novels and children's books
*[[Lesley B. Wells|Lesley Brooks Wells]], [[United States district judge]]
*[[Mildred Weston]], author and composer
*[[Margaret Scully Zimmele]], artist

==See also==
*[[Chatham University Arboretum]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{ccat}}
* {{oweb}}
* [https://gochathamcougars.com/ Athletics website]
* {{Cite Collier's|wstitle=Pennsylvania College for Women |short=x}}

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{{coord|40.44917|N|79.92583|W|type:edu|display=title}}
[[Category:Chatham University| ]]
[[Category:Universities and colleges established in 1869]]
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