Catholic and Dominican
Providence College is a Roman Catholic, four-year, liberal arts college and the only college or university in the United States founded by and conducted under the auspices of the Dominican Friars. Formally known as the Order of Preachers, the Dominicans were founded by the Spanish priest St. Dominic de Guzman in 1216.
The 13th century was a time of rapid social change and one in which people were beset with a welter of competing ideologies that vied for their loyalty. Amidst it all, people longed for the authentic Christian message. Unfortunately, the church was ill equipped to provide what people needed. The clergy was often poorly educated, corruption was rife, and there seemed to be little authentic witness to the Gospel.
St. Dominic therefore gathered together men and women, Friars and nuns, and later sisters and laity, who would live the Gospel more authentically and preach its truth with both their words and their lives. From the beginning, he sent his Friars to the great universities of the time: Oxford, Paris, and Bologna. He wanted his Friars to be educated so that their preaching and teaching would be informed, able to answer the questions of the day, and meet people’s longing for the Gospel. Ideally, his Friars were to be men of faith, prayer, and learning who could respond to the needs of their time without fear and confident that the human mind, a mere creature, could rightly, if imperfectly, understand its Creator.
Although Providence College is relatively young, having been founded in 1917, the values and goals embodied in its mission reach back 800 years. And while the 13th century may seem distant to us, it serves as a mirror of our own age: a time of rapid social change, competing ideologies, and amidst the confusion, a yearning for what is true, good, and holy.
A Catholic and Dominican College For Our Time
In some ways, the fact that Providence College is a Catholic and Dominican college is obvious. The Friars wear their habits when teaching or ministering, St. Dominic Chapel is located in the very center of campus, and crucifixes adorn the walls of classrooms and offices. Additionally, most students, faculty, and staff are Catholic; the 10:30 Mass on Sunday nights is always standing room only; and students are required to take classes in philosophy and theology.
Other aspects of the Catholic and Dominican identity are more subtle or even unexpected. Catholic teaching guides the investment of the endowment, the enforcement of parietals in the residence halls, and the generosity extended to students and employees in need. Hundreds of students volunteer their service through Campus Ministry every year, and at all hours someone can be found praying quietly in the chapel.
By charter, Providence College was the first college or university in Rhode Island to welcome students of every faith or none, and it has a long, close, and continuing relationship with Rhode Island’s Jewish community.
Yet in some ways the Catholic and Dominican character of Providence College precisely as a college is most evident in its approach to faith and reason. For many people, faith and reason stand in opposition to one another; they are black and white, irreconcilable, and best kept apart. Not so for Dominicans. In the tradition of St. Thomas Aquinas, Dominicans assert that faith and reason are compatible, complementary, and point to a single truth.
There is no opposition between the theory of evolution and belief in divine providence, for example, because how God accomplishes His purposes is a distinct question from why, even as the answers to the two questions are intimately related. Science has every right to try and understand how the universe works—indeed, it is God’s will that the human mind probe creation in order to understand it—and theology has every right to assert that everything that takes place is in service of a loving plan. What remains true is that it is God’s creation. Moreover, while faith is a gift from God, reason supports faith. This means that faith in God is not merely the result of custom, feeling, and private choice but can be a thoughtful and reasonable response to the evidence at hand. Indeed, while intimate knowledge of God in himself—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—requires revelation, knowledge that God exists can be arrived at by reason alone.
The implications of this assertion of the compatibility of faith and reason for education are profound. Questions, debates, and challenges are welcomed, as are people of hesitant faith, different faiths, or even no faith at all. Believers cannot take refuge in the assurances of faith but must learn to provide reasons for what they believe and, when it comes to the classroom, they must pursue biology, history, or accountancy with uncompromising rigor and integrity as a biologist, historian, or accountant.
At the same time, those of questioning or absent faith will be challenged by their studies in the Development of Western Civilization, philosophy, and theology. There they will have to contend with an understanding of God that is hardly the sop of comfort that Marx and Freud asserted, and will have to reconsider whether in fact faith in God is a more exacting stance than is non-belief.
It should be evident that Providence College aims at something ambitious and critically important. It attempts to provide an education for the whole person—body, mind, and soul—that bridges the common divides between matter and spirit, God and creation, faith and reason. In doing so, it affirms the distinctively Catholic sense of sacrament and grace and, like the black and white of the Dominican habit, joins together apparent opposites in a greater unity. If successful, this means that everyone at Providence College will understand that they are made in the image and likeness of God; that their work, love, and play can be replete with God’s grace; and that they have a unique role in God’s loving plan, that is, in His providence.
Non-discrimination policy
Providence College admits students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin, sex, religion, disability, age, or veteran status to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the College. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national and ethnic origin, sex, religion, disability, age, or veteran status in the administration of its education policies, admission policies, scholarship and loan programs, and athletic and other College-administered programs, and employment policies. In accordance with Title IX, it does not discriminate on the basis of sex in its educational programs or activities. For further information, refer to the Providence College Anti-Harassment Policy and Grievance Procedures.
The Associate Vice President for Human Resources is designated as the College’s Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Officer, the Title IX Coordinator, and the ADA/Section 504 Coordinator for employees (Harkins 407, 401-865-2430). Inquiries regarding ADA/Section 504 issues for students may be directed to the Office of Academic Services (Library 250, 401-865-1121) and the Office of Residence Life (401-865-1955).
Accreditation statement
Providence College is accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges, Inc., through its Commission on Institutions of Higher Education.
Accreditation of an institution of higher education by the New England Association indicates that it meets or exceeds criteria for the assessment of institutional quality periodically applied through a peer review process. An accredited college or university is one which has available the necessary resources to achieve its stated purposes through appropriate educational programs, is substantially doing so, and gives reasonable evidence that it will continue to do so in the foreseeable future. Institutional integrity is also addressed through accreditation.
Accreditation by the New England Association is not partial but applies to the institution as a whole. As such, it is not a guarantee of every course or program offered, or the competence of individual graduates. Rather, it provides reasonable assurance about the quality of opportunities available to students who attend the institution. Inquiries regarding the accreditation status by the New England Association should be directed to the administrative staff of the institution. Individuals may also contact:
Commission on Institutions of Higher Education
New England Association of Schools and Colleges
209 Burlington Road, Suite 201
Bedford, MA 01730-1433
781.271.0022 • E-mail: cihe@neasc.org
Schools and divisions
Providence College is a primarily undergraduate, liberal arts, Catholic institution of higher education. Committed to fostering academic excellence through the sciences and humanities, the College provides a variety of opportunities for intellectual, social, moral and spiritual growth in a supportive environment.
The College’s academic organization centers around four schools: Arts & Sciences, Business, Professional Studies (all featured in other catalogs) and the School of Continuing Education.
The School of Continuing Education
The School of Continuing Education (SCE) was founded in 1919 as the Extension Division of Providence College. For over 90 years, this division of Providence College has been providing an outstanding education for those men and women who might otherwise have been denied such an opportunity. The philosophy that has guided, and will continue to guide, the School of Continuing Education is set forth in Section 7 of the Act of Incorporation of Providence College: “No person shall be refused admission to said college as a student, nor shall any person be denied any of the privileges, honors or degrees of said college on account of the religious opinions he may entertain.”
Today we recognize such statements guaranteeing equal opportunity for all people in the pursuit of an education. However, this statement cited from the Act of Incorporation of Providence College was written in February 1917. In this historical context, it stands as an enlightened document which embodies the spirit and commitment of Providence College in the field of higher education. This spirit and commitment to education is the result of eight centuries of Dominican tradition.
The School of Continuing Education affords an individual the opportunity of pursuing his or her undergraduate education on a part-time or full-time basis in any one of a variety of capacities: as a degree candidate in one of 13 degree and eight certificate programs; as a nondegree candidate, taking courses to be applied to a degree candidacy at a later time or for personal enrichment; or as an auditor, attending solely for personal enjoyment. Courses are offered in 12 terms per year. Web-based distance-learning courses are also available. Semester bulletins of course listings are available from the SCE office and on the SCE website.
School of Continuing Education Mission Statement
The School of Continuing Education extends the distinctive Catholic, Dominican mission and liberal arts education of Providence College to adult learners of all backgrounds, enhancing their academic, professional, and personal growth. Our goal is to prepare students through college completion and lifelong learning opportunities to be educated and engaged 21st century citizens.
Graduate Programs
Providence College’s graduate programs develop scholars, teachers, and business leaders by providing opportunities for qualified persons to pursue advanced studies. Graduate programs lead to the degrees of master of arts in history; master of arts in biblical studies; master of arts in theology; master of theological studies; master of arts in teaching mathematics; master of business administration; and master of education in administration, counseling, special education, or literacy.
In 2001, the College inaugurated the Providence Alliance for Catholic Teachers (PACT) in partnership with the University of Notre Dame and Catholic dioceses in New England. This two-year program allows students to complete, at no cost, master’s-level teacher-preparation courses leading to the master of education degree, while at the same time making a significant contribution as a full-time faculty member of an inner-city New England diocesan elementary school, middle school (grades 5-8), or high school.
The program is designed for graduates of both liberal arts and education programs. Liberal arts majors pursue master’s degree studies leading to initial certification in secondary education in a specific content area. Education majors pursue master’s degree studies leading to certification in special education or literacy.
National Alumni Association
The Providence College National Alumni Association is an organization that exists to foster a spirit of association among alumni/ae and to provide opportunities for alumni/ae to develop a life-long relationship to Providence College.
To accomplish these goals, the association sponsors an extensive program of educational, service, spiritual, and social activities to involve alumni in the mainstream of Providence College life. Through this program, the association also works to mobilize the tremendous resources of talent among the approximately 50,000 alumni of the College, to be used for the benefit of Providence College and its current and former students.
Scholarship events, assistance to student organizations, and career advising programs utilizing alumni volunteers are just a few of the alumni association activities that may be of interest to prospective Providence College students.
Academic Calendar
2012-2013 Fall Semester
September 2010
September 3 • Monday
Holiday: Labor Day
September 4 • Tuesday
Fall semester and Term I classes begin.
September 17 • Monday
Rosh Hashana
September 26• Wednesday
Yom Kippur
October 2010
October 8 • Monday
Holiday: Columbus Day
All classes suspended.
October 9 • Tuesday
All classes resume.
MONDAY CLASS SCHEDULE TO BE FOLLOWED.
October 19 • Friday
Last day for submission of course work to instructor for all “I” and “NM” grades for Spring 2012 and Summer 2012. Last day to withdraw from Term I courses.
October 25 • Thursday
Term I classes end
October 29 • Monday
Term II classes begin.
November 2010
November 1 • Thursday
Solemnity of All Saints
November 7 • Wednesday
Last day to change to Pass/Fail for semester and online courses.
November 19 • Monday
Registration for Wintersession and Spring courses begins.
November 21-25 • Wednesday-Sunday
Holiday: Thanksgiving Recess
All classes suspended.
November 26 • Monday
All classes resume.
November 30 • Friday
Last day to withdraw from semester and online courses.
December 2010
December 2 • Sunday
Advent begins.
December 8 • Saturday
Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception
December 9 • Sunday
Hanukkah begins.
December 15 • Saturday
Last day of Fall Semester classes
December 18 • Tuesday
Wintersession III (online) courses begin.
December 20 • Thursday
Term II classes end.
2010-2011 Spring Semester
January 2011
January 7 • Monday
Winter Session I begins.
January 14 • Monday
Winter Session II begins.
January 18 • Friday
All Winter Session courses end.
January 21 • Monday
Holiday: Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.
January 22 • Tuesday
Spring semester and Term III classes begin.
January 28 • Monday
Feast of St. Thomas Aquinas
February 2011
February 13 • Wednesday
Ash Wednesday
February 18 • Monday
Holiday: Presidents’ Day
All classes suspended.
February 19 • Tuesday
All classes resume.
MONDAY CLASS SCHEDULE TO BE FOLLOWED FOR ALL COURSES.
March 2011
March 2-10 • Saturday-Sunday
Spring Recess
All classes suspended.
March 11 • Monday
All classes resume.
March 15 • Friday
Last day for submission of course work to instructor for all “I” and “NM” grades for Fall 2012 and Winter 2012.
March 21 • Thursday
Term III classes end.
March 25 • Monday
Term IV classes begin.
March 26 • Tuesday
Passover begins.
March 28-April 1 • Thursday-Monday
Holiday: Easter Recess
All classes suspended.
April 2011
April 2 • Tuesday
All classes resume.
Passover ends.
April 3 • Wednesday
MONDAY CLASS SCHEDULE TO BE FOLLOWED FOR ALL COURSES.
April 26 • Friday
Last day to withdraw from Spring semester and online courses.
May 2011
May 10 • Friday
SCE Graduation Banquet
May 13 • Monday
Last day of Spring Semester and online classes
May 14 • Tuesday
Term IV classes end.
May 18 • Saturday
Commencement Mass
May 19 • Sunday
Commencement
Dunkin Donuts Center, 11:00 a.m.
Campus and facilities
The 105-acre campus of Providence College, situated in Rhode Island’s capital city, is removed from the traffic and noise of the metropolitan area but still remains close to the many cultural and educational offerings of Providence, a city that is enjoying a lively urban renaissance. The city is located only an hour’s drive from Boston and just a few hours’ drive from New York City. Interstate bus, train, and air transportation are conveniently available.
Campus Parking
Parking is allowed only upon issue of a permit from the Office of Safety and Security, open at times convenient for School of Continuing Education students. Students must present a current student ID card, driver’s license, automobile registration, and proof of automobile insurance. All cars must be registered. Strict ticketing and driving rules are enforced.
Note: While display of a campus parking permit allows a student access to designated parking areas, the availability of a parking space is not guaranteed. Students may have to park on adjacent streets, as city parking codes allow.
Academic Facilities
Classroom and laboratory facilities are found in Accinno Hall, Albertus Magnus Hall, the Ceramics Building, the Feinstein Academic Center, Harkins Hall (also the main administration building), Hickey Hall, Howley Hall, Hunt-Cavanagh Hall, Koffler Hall, Moore Hall, Phillips Memorial Library, St. Catherine of Siena Hall, Smith Center for the Arts, Sowa Hall, and Sullivan Hall.
Technology Classrooms/Facilities
Nearly all of the College’s general use classrooms are equipped with multimedia technologies. These classrooms have the latest in audio, visual, and computer and Web connectivity to enhance the instructional environment. Most classrooms have wireless network access as well.
Technology facilities are located in buildings across the campus. Accinno Hall houses the College’s Department of Information Technology and four computer laboratories. Additional public computer labs for PC faculty, staff, and students are found in Albertus Magnus Hall, Harkins Hall, Howley Hall, and Koffler Hall.
Phillips Memorial Library
Phillips Memorial Library is at the heart of the College’s intellectual life, providing resources, services and facilities that facilitate academic excellence. It is a national model for the “library commons”— a seamless integration of a traditional library with a technology-rich commons—and features one of the largest collections of electronic databases and eBooks in the region.
Focused on PC students’ and faculty’s needs, the library combines traditional personalized services with multiple electronic resources, including extensive digitization technologies and a Digital Commons for the online repository of faculty and scholarly research. The library—which maintains a collection of approximately 379,000 print volumes, 410,000 electronic books, more than 39,000 full-text e-journals, and 800 print periodical subscriptions—is a member of the HELIN (Higher Education Library Information Network) consortium, giving students access to over six million research items from any of 10 partner institutions and organizations.
PC’s library commons features the TecHub and TechStation for collaborative research and technology support, a Faculty Commons, numerous individual and group study spaces with very robust wireless access; the 2nd-floor InTeLeR/Interactive Teaching, Learning, and Research station for research support; 4 technology-rich instructional spaces, 105 public access computers; and 35 PC and Mac laptops and 14 iPads available for student check-out, sophisticated digitization resources in Digital Publishing Services and Macintosh labs throughout the library, a presentation rehearsal/recording room, and an extensive array of productivity software, as well as an 18-workstation electronic classroom. The library accommodates approximately 800 students in quiet and group-study areas.
Smith Center for the Arts
This building serves as the premier teaching and performance facility for undergraduates enrolled in performing arts courses or participating in extracurricular activities involving music, theatre, and dance. The primary performance venues are the 283-seat Angell Blackfriars Theatre and the 272-seat Ryan Concert Hall. Teaching spaces include a “black box” studio theatre, the Bowab Studio Theatre; the Higgins Clark Dance Studio; a 20-keyboard piano lab; a film-screening classroom; a music library; and choral and instrumental practice rooms. The building also contains the Reilly Art Gallery, as well as offices, conference rooms, and storage areas for the Department of Theatre, Dance, and Film and the Department of Music.
Slavin Center
Slavin Center, the student union, is one of the main hubs of the Providence College campus and is home to the College’s many student organizations and clubs. It also houses a variety of offices and facilities that provide services to students, from the Office of Off-Campus Living and the Providence College Bookstore to the Office of Career Services and ’64 Hall, which serves as a theatre, cinema, ballroom, and lecture hall. Slavin is also home to Dunkin Donuts, which is open throughout the day and late night for meals, beverages, or snacks. Slavin Center is wireless so students may check e-mail, do homework, or surf the net from one of many lounge and seating areas.
Alumni Hall Food Court
The Alumni Hall Food Court is located in the lower level of the Slavin Center. The food court is open seven days per week during the academic year: Monday through Thursday from 7:30 a.m. until midnight; Friday from 7:30 a.m. until 1:00 a.m.; Saturday from noon until 1:00 a.m.; and Sunday from noon until midnight. Hours of operation are limited during the summer months, holidays, and other times when day school classes are not in session.
Bookstore
The bookstore is located on the lower level of the Slavin Center. Regular bookstore hours during the academic year are Monday-Wednesday from 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.; Thursday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.; Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.; and Saturday from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. (excluding intersessions and holidays). Students can call the bookstore at 401.865.2181 for the extended hours at the start of each semester to accommodate School of Continuing Education students. Textbook information and ordering is available online.
Campus Chapels
Providence College encourages the spiritual as well as the intellectual growth of each student. St. Dominic Chapel and the Campus Ministry Center are the center of spiritual life on campus. Additional places of prayer are the Chapel of Our Lady of the Rosary in the St.Thomas Aquinas Priory-Gragnani Dominican Center, the principal Dominican residence on campus, and the oratories in Harkins and Siena halls.
Center for Catholic and Dominican Studies
The Center for Catholic and Dominican Studies is located in the former Aquinas Chapel. Administratively, the center is part of the Office of Mission and Ministry and, in collaboration with the Office of the Chaplain/Campus Ministry, it assists in coordinating the collegewide process of maintaining, enhancing, and promoting the distinctive mission of Providence College as a Catholic and Dominican college.
Believing that we are called to be transformed so that we may transform society, the center serves as a place of intellectual exploration and dialogue where students, faculty, staff, administration, and alumni can gather for study, discussion, reflection, and service.
Through a variety of events and educational opportunities for the College community, the center strives to share the richness and diversity of the Catholic and Dominican intellectual and spiritual traditions, which offer crucial perspectives for today’s challenges and concerns and invite us together to partake of and benefit from a common mission inspired by faith and enabled by grace.
Safety and Security
The Office of Safety and Security operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, year-round. The principal objective of the office is to safeguard members of the College community and to protect private and institutional property on campus. As a service organization, the security department attempts to contribute to the smooth functioning of College community life by stressing crime prevention, the individual’s obligation to take necessary precautions, the cooperation of each member of the College community to safeguard personal and College property, and the care that must be taken to comply with fire regulations. The Annual Campus Security Report is available through the security office.
Lost and Found
The Providence College Office of Safety and Security maintains a “Lost and Found.” You can check for lost items or turn in something you have found at the office. The Information Desk in the Slavin Center also maintains a “Lost and Found.” Additionally, items may be left in the School of Continuing Education office. For further information, please call 401.865.2391.
Policy on Drug-Free Campus
Providence College, in compliance with the Drug Free Schools and Communities Act Amendment of 1989, has adopted and implemented a program to prevent the illicit use of drugs and the abuse of alcohol by students and employees of the College which includes enforcement of policies and standards of conduct with respect to behavior on College property, and behavior at any College-sponsored events. |
