Virginia Wesleyan University

Batten University (formerly Virginia Wesleyan University) is a private university in Virginia Beach, Virginia, United States. The university is nonsectarian but historically affiliated with The United Methodist Church. It enrolls 4,632 learners in all locations: 1,676 students annually in undergraduate and graduate programs, 2,601 in VWU Global Campus (online and continuing education), and 355 students at LUJ/VWU Global (Japan). Virginia Wesleyan transitioned from a college to a university in 2017. The Batten University campus is also home to the Chesapeake Bay Academy, an educational institution that educates and guides students with learning disabilities, and the Tidewater Collegiate Academy, a teaching laboratory that extends from the primary grades through high school. Batten collaborates with Virginia Beach Economic Development for a work development center, The Hive, in Virginia Beach. In 2025, the University opened VWU-Chesapeake, a comprehensive program for those incarcerated at St. Brides Correctional Center and Indian Creek Correctional Center. In August 2025, university leadership announced that the university will operate as Batten University beginning July 1, 2026. This name change is to honor the substantial long-term financial support from Jane Batten, the wife of Frank Batten, and the Batten family.