History of the University
The institution’s story begins with the pioneering spirit of a small contingent of Sisters of Charity, who arrived in Leavenworth - the oldest city in Kansas - in 1858 to teach and care for the needs of the area’s children.
Their first effort, Saint Mary’s Academy/Orphanage, quickly ran out of space, forcing the Sisters to construct a new, much larger boarding school and orphanage at the university’s current location in 1870. That new building filled to capacity with young people from Kansas, Missouri, and the territories of Colorado, New Mexico, Wyoming, and Utah.
The thriving Academy became Saint Mary College in 1923, a junior college for women, and expanded into a four-year institution in 1932, conferring its first bachelor’s degrees. While the college admitted men to many of its programs during most of its history, it did not become residentially co-educational until 1988.
Under the visionary leadership of top educators, Saint Mary continued to grow from its frontier roots over the ensuing decades. The academy remained open until 1950 - the same year the college began its first graduate programs, with a master’s in education.
In the 1970’s, the college opened its first adult-centered campus. This new site, in Kansas City, Kansas, was more centrally located within the greater Kansas City Metro area, and provided accelerated bachelor’s degree-completion and master’s programs.
Recognizing the continued expansion of its graduate offerings, Saint Mary College officially became the University of Saint Mary in 2003. Three years later, it launched a commitment to educating tomorrow’s healthcare professionals.
Today, USM is a regionally accredited coed university with dozens of undergraduate majors, and multiple graduate and doctorate programs. USM students learn at two campus locations - the Sisters’ historic home in Leavenworth, and the Overland Park Campus - as well as across the country in online courses. USM also offers a bachelor’s degree at Lansing Correctional Facility.
Closing in on 100 years of educational excellence, the university embraces the rich history and meaning of the liberal arts tradition, while intentionally connecting learning to the real world in practical ways - including the USM focus on health care education.