Lourdes University is a private Franciscan university in Sylvania, Ohio. Established in 1958, the university is sponsored by the Sisters of St. Francis of Sylvania.
In 1916 Mother Adelaide Sandusky traveled from Minnesota to northwest Ohio to establish a province of the Rochester Franciscans that eventually became the Sisters of St. Francis of Sylvania. For nearly 50 years, she cultivated the Sylvania Franciscan community establishing ministries including the Catholic and Franciscan institution known today as Lourdes University. Initially created as an extension campus of the College of St. Teresa, Lourdes Junior College was founded in 1958 to educate the Sisters of St. Francis. In 1964, the liberal arts institution was accredited by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. As time passed and there were fewer candidates in formation, Lourdes began admitting lay students with women enrolling in 1969 and men in 1975.
Campus
Lourdes University is located in the suburban city of Sylvania, Ohio
The Russell J. Ebeid Recreation Center offers a gaming area for esports athletics and competition-level basketball and volleyball courts.
The Grille
Adjacent to the planetarium lobby and Mother Adelaide Hall, The Grille is a 9,500 square footdining hall featuring an open floor plan, large seating area, food stations, and an outdoor dining patio.
The Canticle Center
The Canticle Center is home to the Graduate School, the Art Department offices and studios, the Music Department office and classrooms, music practice rooms, undergraduate and graduate classrooms, a 40-seat computer classroom, a Student Lounge, a conference room, and a gym for student recreation and Athletic Team practices. The Canticle Center also houses offices for the Sophia Center, sponsored ministry of the Sisters of St. Francis.
Academic Success Center
The Academic Success Center provides computers, tutors and academic coaches to students. Each semester, workshops are offered to assist students with various topics.
The Franciscan Center features a full-service theater that seats 850 patrons and is capable of hosting a fully staged and technically challenging performance or a simple lecture event. It also features smaller conference rooms seating anywhere from 15 to 200, a gymnasium, and a commons area that can be used for dinners, banquets, style shows, a multitude of special events and wedding receptions. As a rental facility, the Franciscan Center is available for wedding receptions, meetings, parties, trade shows, seminars and other types of events.
The Appold Planetarium features SciDome, a single projector fulldome video system powered by Starry Night that allows real-time 3D sky simulation, fulldome shows and multi-media presentations.
Library
The Duns Scotus Library at Lourdes University is named after a 13th-century Franciscan scholar. It has a collection of over 60,000 volumes. Lourdes University is a member of the OPAL/OhioLINK, a consortium of universities sharing their library resources electronically.
