SHU is the second largest Catholic university in New England, behind Boston College, and offers more than 40 degree programs to over 7,500 students at the bachelor's, master's and doctoral levels.
Sacred Heart University was founded in 1963 by the Most Reverend Walter W. Curtis, Bishop of the Diocese of Bridgeport. It was established to provide the community with an affordable, quality education at a local Catholic university. The University was to be led and staffed by the laity independent and locally oriented, serving the needs of the diocese and of southwestern Connecticut. Former American ambassador and Diplomat Thomas Patrick Melady served as President of the University from 1976 to 1986.
Enrollment has risen from the original class of 173 to over 6,000 full and part-time undergraduate and graduate students, and the faculty has increased from 9 to 237 full time professors and over 350 adjunct professors since 1963.
he University has enhanced the undergraduate student experience in several notable ways. The first dorms, Scholars Commons previously known as Hill, were built 1991, giving the university the ability to accept students who wanted the residential experience. It now has 10 residential buildings with 70% of the full-time undergraduates residing in university housing.
New degree programs and majors in relevant disciplines are regularly added to the curriculum. The University offers Division I athletics with 31 varsity teams. The $17.5 million William H. Pitt Health and Recreation Center is available to all students and to the community at large. The University campus is a wireless environment.
The University consists of five colleges: College of Arts & Sciences, John F. Welch College of Business, College of Health Professions, Isabelle Farrington College of Education and University College. The University College is committed to the adult learner, and its evening, weekend and accelerated courses earn praise for their diversity and relevance to changing lifestyles.
In the 1980s, former United States president George H.W. Bush received an honorary degree from Sacred Heart University.
On January 25, 2006, Jack Welch gave a large sum of money and his name to Sacred Heart University's College of Business, which is now known as the John F. Welch College of Business.
On Sunday, September 27, 2009, Sacred Heart University opened its new chapel, dedicated to the Holy Spirit.
In 2012, the University opened a new Student Commons building Dedicated as the Linda E. McMahon Student Commons after McMahon donated approximately $5 million. The new Commons includes dining facilities, lounge space, meeting rooms, and several other amenities.
In 2012 the University approved construction of two new buildings for the John F. Welch College of Business and the Isabelle Farrington School of Education. The two new buildings will be designed by the Watertown, MA firm of Sasaki & Associates Who also designed The Chapel of the Holy Spirit and the Linda E. McMahon Student Commons. Construction and development is expected to begin in 2012 on a recently acquired parcel of land at the corner of Jefferson St and Park Ave in Fairfield.
In 2013, Sacred Heart University opened their new Wellness Center. The two-story, colonial-style, 5,800-square-foot building, situated on Park Avenue across from the main campus, serves as a place for acute health and medical needs and will also offer students counseling and therapeutic services.
In the summer of 2014, Sacred Heart University broke ground for a planned new learning center, to be called the Student Success Center dedicated to helping SHU students and young students from the surrounding region achieve success in their educational pursuits.
In 2015, Sacred Heart University again broke ground on a brand new state of the art dorm building.
In the summer of 2015, Sacred Heart University broke ground on a new Health Sciences building. This new building will feature state of the art features in order to lead students to future success in their professional career.
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