Have you ever looked up at that old white building and wondered why the word “Academy” is printed on its side?  The Augustine Academy, an Augustinian parochial school, was founded in 1811 by the Augustinian Friars. The school was eventually renamed St. Nicholas Academy and moved from its parish in Philadelphia to Villanova. Classes were held in the Mansion, or the building we now know as Alumni Hall. When the structure was completed in 1879, Villanova put up the “Academy” plaque that is still found above the entrance door today. St. Nicholas Academy closed in 1921, and the resident students were transferred to what is now Malvern Preparatory School in 1924.    Source: Reverend John Marty, O.S.A.