It is affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America[3] and is one of the smallest colleges in the region with about 100 full-time and part-time faculty members.

At the Lutheran Church Pittsburgh Synod convention in Greensburg in 1869, it was decided that Thiel Hall would become a college and serve western Pennsylvania from an initial campus in Philipsburg (now known as Monaca).

In his book “The Search for Amelia Earhart,” author Fred Goerner said, “The most satisfying recognition, however, came from her father’s alma mater, Thiel College of Greenville, Pennsylvania in the form of an honorary Doctor of Science degree.”[5] Thiel was also the first institution to grant an honorary degree to Fred Rogers in 1969.

Thiel is situated on a wooded 200-acre campus in the small western Pennsylvania town of Greenville, which is about halfway between Cleveland and Pittsburgh.

[8] Additionally, the new Haer Family Science and Arts Connector and a competition-certified Barry and Carol Stamm Track and Field complex opened in the fall of 2017.

The Maenpa Court in the Rissell-Beeghley Gymnasium was remodeled in the fall of 2022[9] and the Paul Bush '66 Memorial Fitness Center opened in 2016 to provide a great atmosphere for Thiel students, faculty and staff to exercise and help reach their full potential.

Thiel offers a variety of activities, clubs and organizations; college sources claim 28 honorary societies and academic clubs, fraternities and sororities, service organizations, student government, a theatre troupe, multicultural and religious groups, marching and concert bands, and several choirs..[16] TCTV is the Thiel College television station.

[22] The Thiel College men’s volleyball team beat the tournament’s top two seeds with a 3-1 win over Wittenberg in the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference on Saturday, April 14, 2019.