Education in Philadelphia

Education in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania has a rich and storied history. This history began with Benjamin Franklin's founding of the University of Pennsylvania as European styled school and America's first university. Today's Philadelphia region is home to nearly 300,000 college students, numerous private and parochial secondary schools, and the 8th largest school district in the country.

Public schools

Philadelphia is served by the School District of Philadelphia.

See also: List of schools of the School District of Philadelphia

Parochial schools

Philadelphia is home to the most extensive Catholic education system in the nation. Along with hundreds of parish-based elementary schools, there are also twelve Catholic high schools within the city ranging from Archdiocesan high schools to private Catholic high schools. All of the Catholic schools are affiliated with the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia.

See also: Philadelphia Catholic League

Private schools

• William Penn Charter School was founded by Penn in 1689, and claims to be the oldest Quaker school in the nation, although it is not affiliated with any Quaker meeting, is not a sectarian institution and is not a member of the Friends School League, the Greater Philadelphia area's association of Quaker preparatory schools.

• Girard College (a primary and secondary educational institution) was endowed by French-American merchant, mariner and banker, Stephen Girard, opening its doors to disadvantaged youth in 1848.

• Chestnut Hill Academy, an all-boys-school

• Springside School, an all-girls' school affiliated with and abutting Chestnut Hill Academy

• Friends Select School, a Quaker prep school affiliated with the Arch Street and Race Street Friends Meetinghouses

• Germantown Friends School, a Quaker prep school affiliated with the Germantown Monthly Meeting

• Philadelphia Mennonite High School, a Mennonite high school in the Fairmount neighborhood

Higher education

Philadelphia is one of the largest college towns in the U.S., with over 120,000 college and university students enrolled within the city limits and nearly 300,000 in the metropolitan area.

Colleges and Universities within the city: The Art Institute of Philadelphia [1] Chestnut Hill College Community College of Philadelphia Curtis Institute of Music Drexel University Holy Family University La Salle University Moore College of Art and Design Peirce College Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine Philadelphia University The Restaurant School Saint Joseph's University Temple University Thomas Jefferson University University of the Arts University of the Sciences in Philadelphia University of Pennsylvania

Colleges and universities near Philadelphia include: Arcadia University (formerly Beaver College), in Glenside, Pennsylvania Bryn Athyn College of the New Church, in Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania Bryn Mawr College, in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania Bucks County Community College, with campuses in Newtown, Bucks County, Pennsylvania and Perkasie, Pennsylvania Cabrini College, in Radnor Cheyney University of Pennsylvania, in Cheyney, Pennsylvania Delaware County Community College [2], located in Marple Township, Pennsylvania Delaware Valley College, in Doylestown, Pennsylvania Eastern University (formerly Eastern College), in St. David's, Pennsylvania Gratz College, in Melrose Park, Pennsylvania Haverford College, in Haverford, Pennsylvania Immaculata University, in Malvern, Pennsylvania Lafayette College, in Easton, Pennsylvania Lehigh University, in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania Lincoln University, located in Lincoln University, Pennsylvania Manor College, in Jenkintown, Pennsylvania Montgomery County Community College, in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania Neumann College, in Aston, Pennsylvania Pennsylvania State University, in Abington and Media, Pennsylvania, with a graduate campus in Malvern, Pennsylvania Reconstructionist Rabbinical College, in Wyncote, Pennsylvania Rosemont College, in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania Rowan University, in Glassboro and Camden, New Jersey Rutgers University, in Camden, New Jersey Swarthmore College, in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania Temple University, in Ambler, Pennsylvania Temple University's Tyler School of Art, in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (School of Osteopathic Medicine), in Stratford, New Jersey Ursinus College, in Collegeville, Pennsylvania Villanova University, in Villanova, Pennsylvania West Chester University of Pennsylvania, in West Chester, Pennsylvania Westminster Theological Seminary in Glenside, Pennsylvania Widener University, in Chester, Pennsylvania