Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico

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Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico
Pontificia Universidad Católica de Puerto Rico


Established:	1948
Type:	Private University
President:	Marcelina Velez de Santiago
Location:	Ponce, Puerto Rico
Website:	www.pucpr.edu

Front entrance of the of the university.

The Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico is a catholic university located in Las Americas Avenue in Ponce, Puerto Rico. It provides various courses in the areas of education, business administration, arts and human studies and science, in the levels of Bachelor's, Master's and Doctorate Degrees. Its campus is also home to a Law School. Its main entrance is located opposite of the Ponce Museum of Art.

1 History
2 Social
3 See also
4 External links

[edit] History

The university was founded in spring of 1948 by James E. McManus, C.S.S.R., Bishop of the Diocese of Ponce, and James Davis, Bishop of the Diocese of San Juan. It was originally founded as the University of Santa Maria. The original campus consisted of a few classrooms provided by the Padres Capuchinos and the Hermanas Josefinas, catholic clergymen and nuns, respectively, in the Colegio San Conrado in Ponce, a catholic primary educational school. This continued until 1949, when the university obtained 120 acres from the Puerto Rico government. It has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools since 1953.

In 1961, the university started the Pontifical Catholic University School of Law (Escuela de Derecho in Spanish) providing graduate law studies and student exchange programs with other law schools in the United States and in Spain. The school has been host to famous and respected puertorican law professors, including former Puerto Rico governor Rafael Hernández Colón.

In 1976, the university started the School of Medicine (Escuela de Medicina) as a graduate medical education program, which, when reorganized in 1979-1980, became an independent private non-profit medical school now known as the Ponce School of Medicine.

The university has two additional campuses, in Arecibo and in Mayagüez; and one satellite extension in Coamo.