Earliest known photograph of John Sutton Hall

From Normal School to University

It was known as Indiana Normal School when it was founded in 1875. The one building everything was originally housed in, John Sutton Hall, still stands today as the heart of the IUP campus, and it is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Over the years, the school’s name changed as it grew, from Indiana State Teachers College in 1920, when it was awarded the right to grant degrees; to Indiana State College in 1959; and finally to Indiana University of Pennsylvania in 1965. Its first doctoral program was offered in 1969.

Fisher Auditorium circa 1940

PASSHE

The Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education was created in 1983. IUP has consistently ranked as one of its largest schools, and it was the first of its universities to offer doctoral degrees. It is still the only school in the State System to offer graduate instruction at the doctoral level (PhD).

Cover of "The IUP Story"

The IUP Story

The IUP Story: Indiana University of Pennsylvania, from Normal School to University, by professor emeritus of history Charles Cashdollar ’65, is available for purchase.