Franciscan University is a private Catholic liberal arts university that has become one of the more influential conservative Catholic institutions in the United States since its revival by Franciscan friars in the 1970s. The campus itself is pleasant — brick buildings on a hillside above the Ohio River — and visitors are welcome to walk the grounds. The Portiuncula Chapel is the main attraction for visitors: it is a full-scale replica of the 4th-century chapel in Assisi that Francis of Assisi rebuilt with his own hands, reconstructed here in 1977 and surrounded by a garden. The surrounding woodland is quiet and well maintained.
The university is a significant presence in Steubenville and has brought considerable outside attention to the city since the 1980s. The annual summer conference attracts thousands of young Catholics from across the country.