Location

East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania is nestled in the foothills of the Pocono Mountains. The combination of quiet woodlands, mountain streams, and refreshing clean air has made the Poconos famous as a resort area for more than 100 years.

Because of the university’s location in the Poconos, students take advantage of the many scenic, historic, and recreational sites, including the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area, Bushkill Falls, and the Pocono ski areas. Others have found that the resorts and restaurants offer an excellent opportunity for employment. In addition, the area offers fine restaurants, high-quality entertainment, and excellent shopping. Situated on a hill facing Prospect Street in the community of East Stroudsburg, the university is characterized by large areas of grassy expanses comfortably shaded by a variety of towering trees.

The campus is located approximately 75 miles west of New York City and Newark, 85 miles northeast of Philadelphia, 40 miles southeast of the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton area, and 40 miles northeast of the Allentown/Bethlehem/Easton area. Students and faculty alike enjoy the opportunities and advantages of visits to the metropolitan areas.

The university, which is located approximately one-quarter mile from the East Stroudsburg exit off Interstate 80, Exit 308, is within easy reach of major highway systems and commercial air services.

Accreditation

East Stroudsburg University is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, 3624 Market St., Philadelphia, PA 19104, 215-662-5606. The Commission on Higher Education is an institutional accrediting agency recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education and the Commission on Recognition of Postsecondary Education.

Accreditations awarded to academic programs include:

• All eligible teacher education programs offered by East Stroudsburg University are accredited by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education and approved by the Pennsylvania Department of Education.
• The undergraduate Athletic Training Professional Practice degree program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education.
• The undergraduate Computer Science program is accredited by the Computing Accreditation Commission of ABET (Board of Engineering and Technology) 
• The undergraduate Nursing degree program is accredited by the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN). In addition, the program is approved by the Pennsylvania State Board of Nursing.
• The undergraduate Recreation Services Management degree program is accredited by the Council on the Accreditation of Parks, Recreation, Tourism and Related Professions (COARPT).
• The graduate Public Health degree program is accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health.
• The graduate Speech-Language Pathology degree program is accredited by the Council of Academic Accreditation of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association.
• The undergraduate Exercise Physiology, Sport and Exercise Conditioning, and graduate Exercise Science degree programs are accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs.
• The undergraduate Hotel, Restaurant & Tourism degree program is accredited by Accreditation Commission for Programs in Hospitality Administration.

Pennsylvania's State System of Higher Education

East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania is a member of the Pennsylvania's State System of Higher Education.

The State System comprises Pennsylvania’s 14 public universities, with a combined enrollment of more than 115,000 making it the largest provider of higher education in the Commonwealth.

The 14 State System universities offer degree and certificate programs in more than 120 areas of study. Approximately 500,000 PASSHE alumni live and work in Pennsylvania.

The 14 State System universities are Bloomsburg, California, Cheyney, Clarion, East Stroudsburg, Edinboro, Indiana, Kutztown, Lock Haven, Mansfield, Millersville, Shippensburg, Slippery Rock and West Chester Universities of Pennsylvania.

History of the University

East Stroudsburg University, a comprehensive university in northeastern Pennsylvania offering 56 undergraduate and 24 graduate degree programs, is one of the 14 institutions in the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education.

It opened its doors on September 4, 1893, as East Stroudsburg Normal School. A faculty of 15 greeted a group of 320 students who entered two-year programs in elementary and science education.

Although the Normal School was originally privately owned, ownership was transferred to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in 1920, and the name was changed to East Stroudsburg State Normal School.

In 1927, the right to confer the degrees of Bachelor of Science in education and Bachelor of Science in health education was granted, and the school became the State Teachers College at East Stroudsburg.

In 1960, the name was changed to East Stroudsburg State College, reflecting the addition of liberal arts and science curricula.

In November 1982, the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education was authorized by Senate Bill 506, and the college officially became East Stroudsburg University on July 1, 1983.

Computing and Communication Services

The university Computing and Communications Center supports administrative computing, academic computing and telecommunications. Administrative computing is served by the Banner student information system, encompassing more than 30 online systems and providing services to the students, faculty and staff.

The academic computing network consists of 30 UNIX or Windows based servers that are connected to approximately 2,200 personal computers provided to support instruction, Internet access, campus network access, and email. They are located in 35 computer laboratories across campus. There is an open-access computer lab in each residence hall.

Additionally, many academic departments maintain discipline-specific computer laboratories for their curricula. Wireless computing zones are located throughout campus and outdoors. Students can connect to the Internet in these areas using a standard wireless device or smart phone. In addition, faculty and students use wireless for conducting specialized labs in a variety of courses. Helpful computing information can be found at esu.edu/ac.

Additionally, the Office of Computing and Communication Services supports faculty, administration, students, and affiliated businesses with services such as local and long distance telephone, voice mail, digital cable TV, and Internet.

The McGarry Communication Center is the campus base for the Instructional Resources Department, including the audiovisual, graphics, and television services units. The Communication Center houses two television studios and is the distribution center of campus cable television as well as the community-wide ESU television telecasts. WESS 90.3 FM radio is also located in the Center.

Kemp Library

Kemp Library provides students with opportunities to acquire, process and apply information in pursuit of their academic and career goals. A wide variety of resources as well as services offered by library faculty and staff support this goal. The library builds collections of print and electronic books, provides electronic course reserves and licenses an array of full-text databases, most of which are accessible both on- and off-campus. It also provides effective and speedy interlibrary loan and document delivery services to supplement its holdings.

Kemp Library is a repository of federal and Pennsylvania state documents and includes an Instructional Materials/ Educational Resource center with collections of children and young adult literature and other instructional materials that support ESU's teacher education programs. Assistive technology is available in the library to make its resources fully accessible to all students.

As the library continues to provide access to new products, information formats and delivery systems, its instructional role has become more pronounced. To keep current with the library’s resources and services, students and faculty are invited to take full advantage of the library’s Reference Services; participate in group instruction offered by its public services librarians; and check the library Web site - www.esu.edu/library.

History of the Graduate College

East Stroudsburg University inaugurated Graduate Studies in 1962 with three Master of Education (M.Ed.) programs: Biological Sciences, General Science, and Health and Physical Education. In 1969, the first Master of Arts (M.A.) programs, in History and Political Science, were approved.

Over the years, graduate programs in a variety of fields, including a Master of Public Health (M.P.H.) have been approved and offered. In 2001, ESU entered into a memorandum of understanding with Indiana University of Pennsylvania to offer the Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) in Administration and Leadership Studies on campus. In 2004, three new Master of Science (M.S.) programs were added: Exercise Science, Management and Leadership, and Sport Management. Also in 2004, the M.S., Cardiac Rehabilitation was revised to the M.S., Clinical Exercise Physiology. In 2007, our first distance education graduate program, M.S., Athletic Training, was approved. In July 2009, the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education approved a new M.S., Information Security, also to be offered online. Most recently, the university was approved to offer an M.A. in Professional and New Media Writing and a new Organizational Behavior concentration within the M.S. in Management and Leadership program.  In 2016, the university was approved to offer its first doctoral degree, an Ed.D. in Educational Leadership and Administration.

In its first graduating class of 1964, the university awarded 10 graduate degrees. Today, the university offers over 30 degree and certification programs. From 1964 to 2015, East Stroudsburg University conferred nearly 8,000 graduate degrees.

The Campus and Academic Buildings

The campus of East Stroudsburg University includes 66 buildings located on approximately 258 acres in East Stroudsburg Borough and Smithfield Township.

Forty-six acres of the property in Smithfield Township are leased to University Properties, Inc., which constructed University Ridge, a ten-building student apartment complex with 541 beds on 43 acres, and to the Visiting Nurses Association, which built a six-bed Hospice House on three acres.

The Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, located on the corner of Brown Street and Route 447 in Smithfield Township, was completed in 2010. This 51,000 sq. ft. $11.25M facility includes ESU's Research and Economic Development Division, Business Accelerator Program, Office of Sponsored Projects and Research, Office of Workforce Development, Wet Lab Facilities, Entrepreneurial Leadership Center, ESU's Northeast Wildlife DNA Laboratory, and Computer Training Labs.

The buildings in East Stroudsburg Borough include academic facilities, nine residence halls, a 1,000-seat dining hall, a Student Center, and 60,000-square-foot Recreation Center.

The nine residence halls include the addition of two new UPI residence halls, Hemlock Suites (157,000 sq. ft.) and Hawthorn Suites (173,000 sq. ft.). These new residence halls provide 970 beds and offer one full bath to every two students. They also provide the students with five suite- style options from which to choose. The new residence halls are heated and air conditioned using geothermal technology and have Wi-Fi available to students. The Hawthorn Suites also offer a spin studio and an alternative Recreation Center, accessible to all students with a membership to the original Recreation Center. The Hemlock Suites also now house the University Police Station.

The Student Activity Association, Inc. owns Stony Acres, a 119-acre off-campus student recreation area near Marshalls Creek, which includes a lodge and a small lake.

The newly renovated, 30,200-square foot Monroe Hall reopened in August 2012. It was converted from a residence hall to instructional space, and the heating and air-conditioning systems were updated to use geothermal technology. Monroe Hall contains two computer laboratories, four classrooms, a 68-seat stepped auditorium, three conference rooms, and offices. This building also houses the ESU Speech and Hearing Center and the Speech-Language Pathology and Communication Studies departments.

ESU opened additional locations in Philadelphia in 2011 (graduate education only) and in Bethlehem (the Lehigh Valley Center) in 2012.  Lehigh Valley offers Extended Learning, including Accelerated Graduate Degree, Undergraduate Degree Completion, Continuing Education, and Non-Degree programs

The 130,600-squarefoot Warren E. '55 and Sandra Hoeffner Science & Technology Center opened in August 2008. Along with a planetarium and observatory, it houses 17 teaching laboratories, nine research laboratories, a multi-use 200-seat auditorium, classrooms, and offices.

The Schisler Wildlife Museum of Natural History, located in the Science & Technology Center, houses the Schisler family’s donated collection of wildlife and biological specimens, as well as the University’s existing collection. The Museum also provides an educational venue for school children to visit and is also open to the public on weekends. It features three large dioramas, interchangeable display, a large aquarium, curator office space, storage space, and informal classroom space

The primary academic building is Stroud Hall. This four-story classroom building contains lecture halls, computer and language laboratories, instructional spaces, and office areas. Beers Lecture Hall, which opened in 1997, seats 140 students and serves as a distance learning facility.

The Fine and Performing Arts Center consists of two theaters, a gallery, concert hall, rehearsal areas, various art studios, and classrooms. The Koehler Fieldhouse and Natatorium serves as the primary physical education and intercollegiate athletics facility. Zimbar-Liljenstein Hall houses the Graduate College office, the Student Enrollment Center, a teaching gymnasium, and academic classrooms and office areas for physical education and sport management, as well as the Mekeel Child Care Center. The University Center includes a food court, commuter lounge, convenience store, game room, student activities offices, and the University Store.

Other major classroom buildings are: Moore Biology Hall, which contains a large group lecture hall, a greenhouse and wildlife museum; Gessner Science Hall which contains laboratories for physics and, in the near future, exercise science; DeNike Center for Human Services, which houses classrooms and has laboratory areas for the departments of health, nursing, and recreation services management; Rosenkrans Hall, which houses offices as well as digital media and technologies classrooms and labs; and The Center for Hospitality Management, including hotel, restaurant, and tourism management, and the Keystone Room.

The Graduate College Office

The senior administrator for the Graduate College reports directly to the provost and vice president for academic affairs. The senior administrator sits on the Provost’s Leadership Team and is a member of the University Senate.

The Graduate College professional and support staff provide essential services for all graduate faculty and students at ESU, from application through program completion. The Graduate College also offers special academic opportunities for graduate students, including research and travel support.

The Graduate Advisory Council provides guidance and recommendations to the graduate dean on policies and procedures for admission, assistantships, academic status, degree candidacy, and other matters related to graduate studies. Committee membership includes the graduate coordinator from each academic department offering a graduate degree program. Graduate coordinators are appointed by the department chair. For a current list of graduate coordinators, contact the Graduate College office at 570-422-3536.

All areas of graduate curricula, including the review and approval of new courses, programs, or methods of delivery are the role of the university curriculum process. Curriculum proposals are initiated by the academic departments for consideration by the University Curriculum Committee. Following approval by the committee, the Academic Council reviews all course and program proposals before recommending them to the provost, who acts on behalf of the president of the university for final curriculum approvals.

Each academic department identifies its graduate faculty according to established criteria. Faculty members hold high academic credentials and a long-standing commitment to teaching excellence; collectively, they are recipients of numerous grants and honors. ESU’s faculty are diverse and represent many prestigious institutions of higher education in the United States and internationally. The terminal degree is held by 88 percent of the instructional faculty.

The Graduate College office is located in Zimbar-Liljenstein Hall, Room 154, and can be contacted via telephone at 570-422-3536 or e-mail at grads@esu.edu.

The mailing address is:

The Graduate College

East Stroudsburg University

200 Prospect St

East Stroudsburg, PA 18301