Fordham University is a private, co-educational university located in the Bronx in New York City (but with campuses also in Manhattan — at Lincoln Center — and Westchester). Founded by the Society of Jesus in 1841, it is one of 28 member institutions of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities. While officially an independent institution, it strongly embraces its Jesuit heritage. "For most students, the Roman Catholic influence is positive," one reads in The Fiske Guide to Colleges 1998, "and many students say that the Jesuit tradition is the school's best attribute."