Urbana University was a private university specializing in liberal arts education and located in Urbana, Ohio, United States. In its final few years, it was purchased by Franklin University and was a branch campus of that university.

History

Urbana University was founded in 1850 as Urbana College by followers of the 18th-century Swedish philosopher and scientist, Emanuel Swedenborg. The university was the second institution of higher learning in Ohio to admit women; the first was Oberlin College.

The groundwork for the founding of the university was in part laid by John Chapman, better known as Johnny Appleseed, who became the inspiration for the Johnny Appleseed Museum founded for his extraordinary history. While more famous for spreading apple seeds throughout the East, Chapman was also a Swedenborgian missionary and helped spread this faith among the early settlers around Urbana. Chapman encouraged his friend and fellow Swedenborgian, John Hough James, to donate the land on which Urbana University was built.

Classes for elementary and secondary students under the name Urbana Seminary began in the fall of 1850 in a rented room in a building in downtown Urbana.

In 2014, the university was purchased by Franklin University after undergoing significant budget shortfalls. Under the agreement, Urbana would retain its name, and act as a physical campus for both Urbana and Franklin students.

Campus

thumb|right|alt=Bailey and Barclay Halls|Bailey and Barclay Halls are two of the oldest buildings on the Urbana University campus.

The main campus was located on the southwest side of Urbana in west central Ohio. Its buildings ranged from historic 19th-century buildings styled in traditional architecture to modern structures. Bailey Hall, Oak Hall, and Barclay Hall are the three oldest buildings on the campus. All three are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The university had undergone various changes in the early 21st century with the construction of Sycamore Hall in 2004, the Urbana University Stadium, the Student Center in 2006, McConnell Hall in 2007, and Ross Hall in 2019.

Academics

Urbana University offered 28 undergraduate majors and Graduate programs in Nursing (MSN), Education (MEd), Business Administration (MBA), Criminal Justice Administration (MA), and a Post-Baccalaureate in Teacher Licensure

Athletics

The Urbana athletic teams were called the Blue Knights. Their athletic colors were blue and white. The university was a member of the NCAA Division II ranks, primarily competing in the Mountain East Conference (MEC) from 2013–14 to 2019–20. The Blue Knights previously competed in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) as a provisional member only during the 2012–13 school year; as an NCAA D-II Independent from 2008–09 to 2011–12; and in the defunct American Mideast Conference (AMC) of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) from 1971–72 to 2007–08.

Urbana competed in 19 intercollegiate varsity teams. Men's sports included baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, soccer, swimming, volleyball and wrestling; women's sports included acrobatics & tumbling, basketball, cross country, golf, lacrosse, soccer, softball, swimming, volleyball and water polo. Urbana University also offered club sport programs in shooting sports, bowling, and cheerleading.

In 2010, Urbana completed the transition from the NAIA to the NCAA in the Division II ranks. Also in that year, the Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) had accepted Urbana as an associate member of the GLVC in football only starting with the 2012 fall season. In 2011, the university and five other schools, many also transitioning to the NCAA from the NAIA, had announced their intentions to form the G-MAC in 2013. The G-MAC ultimately launched a year earlier than planned, in 2012, with Urbana as a member. The school spent only one season in the G-MAC; on August 20, 2012, Urbana was unveiled as a charter member of the MEC, a new Division II conference set to launch for the 2013–14 school year. The MEC is mostly made up of schools leaving the then-soon-to-be dissolved West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WVIAC), but also includes another Ohio school in Notre Dame College.

Notable alumni

  • T. Coleman du Pont, former president of DuPont industries and former U.S. Senator from Delaware
  • Justin Edwards, football player; professional mixed martial artist for the UFC's Lightweight Division
  • Graham Fach, professional ten-pin bowler, the first Canadian player to win a title on the PBA Tour
  • Filip Filipović, former NFL player
  • Jan Finney, softball player; professional MMA fighter
  • Ross McGregor, member of Ohio House of Representatives
  • Gretchen Worden, known for her contributions to the Mütter Museum and several appearances on the Late Show with David Letterman

References

  • Official website
  • Official athletics website
  • Digitized copies of the Oak Leaf (yearbook)