| Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico | |
|---|---|
| Pontificia Universidad Católica de Puerto Rico | |
| Established | 1948 |
| Type | Private University |
| President | Dr. Jorge Iván Vélez Arocho |
| Students | 12,000[1] |
| Location | Ponce, Puerto Rico |
| Website | www.pucpr.edu |
The Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico is a Roman Catholic university located in Ponce, Puerto Rico. It provides courses in the areas of education, business administration, arts and human studies and science, leading to Bachelor's, Master's and Doctorate Degrees. Its campus is also home to a Law School as well as a new (August 2010) School of Architecture.[2] The university's original name (Catholic University of Santa Maria)[3] was changed in 1968 to Catholic University of Puerto Rico with the opening of campuses in Mayagüez and Arecibo. In 1984 the name was again changed to its current name, to commemorate the visit to Puerto Rico of Pontiff Pope John Paul II.
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The university was founded in spring of 1948 by James E. McManus, C.S.S.R., Bishop of the Diocese of Ponce, and James Peter Davis, Bishop of the Diocese of San Juan. It was originally founded as the Catholic University of Santa Maria.[3] Its first president was Monseñor Vicente Murga.[4] 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 (0.49 km2) 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 School of Law (Escuela de Derecho) 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 Puerto Rican 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. In 2009 the university also opened a School of Architecture (Escuela de Arquitectura).[5]
In 2011, the university announced it was engaging in a $20 million expansion plan that would result in the creation of three new schools over a ten-year period. The three new schools were reported to be a School of Graphical Design, a School of Fashion, and a School of Cinematic Arts.[6]
Aside from its main campus in barrio Canas Urbano, on Avenida Las Americas (PR-163), the university has two additional campuses: the Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico at Arecibo in Arecibo and the Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez in Mayagüez. It also has a satellite extension in Coamo. The School of Architecture is also a separate campus from the main campus on Avenida Las Americas and is located across from Plaza Las Delicias in downtown Ponce.
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