Our Commitment

As a Catholic and Jesuit institution, The University of Scranton is committed to responsibility and integrity in all that we do.

The University of Scranton is committed to an environment where open, honest communications are the expectation, not the exception. We want you to feel comfortable in approaching your supervisor or management in instances where you believe violations of policies or standards have occurred.

In situations where you prefer to place an anonymous report in confidence, you are encouraged to use this hotline, hosted by a third party hotline provider, EthicsPoint. You are encouraged to submit reports relating to violations of University policies and standards, as well as asking for guidance related to policies and procedure.

The information you provide will be sent to us by EthicsPoint on a totally confidential and anonymous basis if you should choose. You have our guarantee that your comments will be heard.

See the EthicsPoint FAQs for more information.

Mission Statement

The University of Scranton is a Catholic and Jesuit university animated by the spiritual vision and the tradition of excellence characteristic of the Society of Jesus and those who share its way of proceeding. The University is a community dedicated to the freedom of inquiry and personal development fundamental to the growth in wisdom and integrity of all who share its life.

About The University

The University of Scranton was founded as Saint Thomas College by Most Reverend William G. O’Hara, D.D., the first Bishop of Scranton, who had always hoped to provide an opportunity for higher education in the Lackawanna Valley. In August 1888, with few resources at hand, he blessed a single block of granite as a cornerstone for his new college, which would admit its first students four years later. The cornerstone of Old Main is preserved in the wall of St. Thomas Hall.

The college was staffed by diocesan priests and seminarians until 1896 and then, for one year, by the Xaverian Brothers. From 1897 until 1942 the school, which was renamed The University of Scranton in 1938, was administered for the Diocese by the Christian Brothers. In the late summer of 1942, at the invitation of Most Reverend William Hafey, D.D., 19 Jesuits, led by Rev. Coleman Nevils, S.J., the newly appointed president, arrived on campus to administer the University.

The Jesuits restructured and strengthened Scranton’s traditional and pre-professional programs with an emphasis on the liberal arts, which are the foundation for every program at a Jesuit university. This emphasis is intended to give Scranton students an appreciation for all disciplines as they develop specific subject knowledge.

The University has flourished under the Jesuits, growing from a primarily commuter school with fewer than 1,000 students to a broadly regional university with a total enrollment of about 5,300 students in undergraduate, graduate and nontraditional programs.