Two kilometres south of central Rensselaer, the campus of Saint Joseph's College spreads across a tree-lined site in the small community of Collegeville. The Catholic college, run by the Society of the Precious Blood, was founded in 1889 and at its peak educated nearly 1,000 students.
Saint Joseph's suspended operations in 2017 after long financial trouble; the campus is now partly used for local high-school programmes and partly mothballed. The grounds remain open to visitors, and the older buildings — the chapel, the Charles Halleck Student Center, and the Gallagher Stadium — are interesting to walk past even if you can't go inside. The campus is most pleasant in fall, when the maples turn.