[7] Established in 1887 as a graduate and research center following approval by Pope Leo XIII,[8] the university began offering undergraduate education in 1904.

[9] Its campus is adjacent to the Brookland neighborhood, known as "Little Rome", which contains 60 Catholic institutions, including Trinity Washington University, the Dominican House of Studies, Archbishop Carroll High School, and the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.

[10] In 1882, Bishop John Lancaster Spalding went to Rome to obtain Pope Leo XIII's support for the university, also persuading his family friend Mary Gwendoline Caldwell to pledge $300,000 to establish it.

On April 10, 1887, Pope Leo XIII sent James Cardinal Gibbons a letter granting permission to establish the university.

[10] On March 7, 1889, the Pope issued the encyclical Magni Nobis,[11] granting the university its charter and establishing its mission as the instruction of Catholicism and human nature together at the graduate level.

When the university first opened on November 13, 1889, the curriculum consisted of lectures in mental and moral philosophy, English literature, the sacred scriptures, and the various branches of theology.

The president of the first undergraduate class was Frank Kuntz, whose memoir of that period was published by The Catholic University of America Press.

[13] Bishop and Rector Thomas J. Shahan gave a speech to the Ancient Order of Hibernians in 1894 in which he advocated for Irish independence in language, culture, and politics.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt, "on his way to church, became an unwitting parader, when the march de triumph jammed traffic in front of the White House.

"[18][19] In 1938, due to the rise of the antisemitic priest Charles Coughlin and not long after Kristallnacht, CUA officials asked CBS and NBC to broadcast an event live from the university campus.

[21] The presence of CUA attracted other Catholic institutions to the area, including colleges, religious orders, and national service organizations.

[22][26] In 1920, the order contributed $60,000 toward the Catholic University gymnasium and drill hall, which later was adapted for use as the Crough Building housing the School of Architecture.

[32][33] Pope Francis visited on September 23, 2015, during his trip to the United States, where he celebrated Mass on the east portico of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.

Between McMahon and Gibbons halls and alongside the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception runs The Mall, a large strip of grass often used by Ultimate Frisbee players and sunbathers.

[36][citation needed] Columbus School of Law is on the main campus and has a building with mock courtrooms, a library, chapel, classrooms, and offices.

Several organizations of religious life also have seminaries nearby—including the Josephites, Carmelites, Franciscans, Oblates of Mary Immaculate, and Paulist Fathers, each of which send students to CUA.

O’Connell and Gibbons halls, was built to house the 4 ton sculpture Angels Unawares by Canadian artist Timothy Schmalz.

[52][51][49] Local business leaders as well as faculty and staff at the Catholic University of America main campus in Washington, DC serve as adjunct professors.

[54] In 2021, a new site in Alexandria, Virginia, occupying 18,500 square feet (1,720 m2) on the second floor of Catholic Charities USA's headquarters building, was opened to offer a number of noncredit certificate programs.

[66] Undergraduate degrees are awarded in 72 programs by six schools: architecture and planning, arts and sciences, engineering, music, nursing, and philosophy.

[78] In 1967, a tenured professor of theology, Reverend Charles E. Curran, was fired for his views on birth control but was reinstated after a five-day faculty-led strike.

The areas of dispute included publishing articles that debated theological and ethical views regarding divorce, artificial contraception, masturbation, pre-marital intercourse, and homosexual acts.

The two conditions for having the censure removed are inviting Curran, whose license to teach Catholic theology had been suspended by the Vatican, back to campus and changing the university's "Statement on Academic Freedom".

[85] President David M. O'Connell refused to do either, saying, "every American university has a right to govern itself according to its own identity, mission, standards, and procedures.

The university as a policy does not allow outside guests to speak on campus to any audience if they have previously expressed an opinion on abortion or other serious issues conflicting with the Catholic Church's teaching.

Applying this policy in 2004, CUA was criticized for rescinding Stanley Tucci's invitation for a seminar about Italian cinema, because he had lent past support for Planned Parenthood.

[93] There are over 100 registered student clubs and organizations at CUA for a wide variety of interests including athletics, academics, social, Greek life, service, political and religious.

[97] Albert Von Tilzer, composer of Take Me Out to the Ball Game, wrote two songs for the university, We're Rooting For You and CU Will Shine Tonight.

The university is a member of the Division III of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), primarily competing in the Landmark Conference for most of its sports since the 2007–08 academic year.

CUA competes in 25 NCAA Division III intercollegiate varsity sports: Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, lacrosse, rowing, soccer, swimming & diving, tennis and track & field (indoor and outdoor); while women's sports include basketball, cross country, field hockey, golf, lacrosse, rowing, soccer, softball, swimming & diving, tennis, track & field (indoor and outdoor) and volleyball.