Christopher Newport University

Newport News

According to the school, called one of our nation’s hidden gems by The Washington Post, Christopher Newport University (CNU) is a public school offering a private school experience — great teaching, small classes averaging 22 students, and a safe, vibrant campus. A ‘student-first, teaching-first’ community, CNU is dedicated to the ideals of scholarship, leadership and service. We celebrate the values inherent in the liberal arts and sciences and live as a community of honor transforming hearts and minds. Led by former U.S. Senator Paul Trible, CNU is a university of choice for high-ability students. Over the past decade, applications have soared by nearly 700 percent, and SAT scores have increased by more than 250 points. CNU has also more than doubled the size of its freshman class and increased the number of its distinguished faculty, adding more than 100 new Ph.D.s in recent years. Over the next few years, we will welcome 100 additional accomplished scholars while maintaining a freshman class of 1,200. CNU isn’t getting bigger, it’s getting better. The University’s dramatic transformation is evident through the groundbreaking work of our faculty and students. We offer outstanding academic programs, encourage service and leadership, and provide students with opportunities to participate in regional and national research and arts programs. Through our strong focus on undergraduate research, students collaborate with faculty on cutting-edge scholarly pursuits. Stellar teaching inspired by sound scholarship remains our primary focus, and personal attention creates an environment where creativity and excellence flourish. CNU students develop the qualities of mind and spirit that prepare them to lead lives of success and significance. Our outstanding undergraduate curriculum stimulates intellectual inquiry and fosters social and civic values. CNU students thrive on academic challenge. Each fall, the President’s Leadership Program accepts approximately 200 high-achieving freshmen who have exhibited leadership characteristics in their schools and communities. Through the four-year Honors Program, academically talented students enjoy a rich educational experience, participating in challenging courses and cultural/intellectual activities. The University also promotes study abroad for all students, sponsoring international study programs for cross-cultural education and growth. Our faculty and students interact on a beautiful 260-acre campus with world-class facilities, and CNU has completed more than $500 million in capital construction over the past decade. As the intellectual center of campus, the Paul and Rosemary Trible Library is a dynamic teaching and learning facility filled night and day with students and faculty. Through a unique partnership with The Mariners’ Museum, The Mariners’ Museum Library is housed at the Trible Library. It contains the Western Hemisphere’s largest maritime collection, providing an incomparable resource for students, faculty, and international scholars and researchers. Additional highlights include the Ferguson Center for the Arts, a world-class facility that enriches academic and cultural life and welcomes the world’s finest performing artists, many who offer master classes for students; the spectacular three-story David Student Union, an amazing ‘home’ for student life; the Freeman Sports and Convocation Center, the competition venue for our championship basketball, volleyball and track teams and one of the nation’s most successful NCAA Division III programs, a state-of-the-art health and fitness center, and a gathering place for university events; and nine contemporary residence halls offering outstanding accommodations for residential students. Construction is currently under way on a $30 million academic building to house CNU’s liberal arts programs while the design of a 160,000-square-foot center for the sciences is nearing completion.