Marylhurst University was founded in 1893 by the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary. We are Oregon's oldest Catholic university, and were the first liberal arts college for women established in the Northwest.

Our founding Sisters believed in educating the whole person through a rigorous liberal arts curriculum. Their mission of serving underserved students continues to inspire us today, as we welcome men and women of all faiths and backgrounds, most of whom are non-traditional students returning to school.

More about the Sisters of the Holy Names

The Marylhurst Timeline

2012
Marylhurst adds Bachelor of Arts in Media & Film Studies

Marylhurst launches MBA in Real Estate

Marylhurst dedicates its outdoor performance venue, the Lajos Balogh Performance Shell

2011
Marylhurst reorganizes its academic structure into a College of Arts & Sciences, School of Graduate Studies and School of Business

Marylhurst launches Bachelor of Science in Sustainable Business program

2010
Marylhurst receives a $1 million gift to fund student scholarships from the estate of Maybelle Clark Macdonald

The Art Gym celebrates its 30th anniversary

2009
Marylhurst launches MBA in Sustainable Business program

Marylhurst hosts the Oregon Sesquicentennial Film Festival, marking Oregon's 150th year of statehood as well as the 150th anniversary of the Sisters of the Holy Names' arrival in Oregon

2008
Judith Johansen, JD is named the 13th president of Marylhurst University

Marylhurst establishes the Master of Education program

2007
Marylhurst inaugurates the Master of Arts in Teaching program, approved by the Oregon Teacher Standards and Practices Commission

2006
Marylhurst Bachelor of Fine Arts in Interior Design program earns accreditation from the Council for Interior Design Accreditation

Marylhurst launches new accelerated online undergraduate and graduate business degree programs

2004
Marylhurst receives the Council for Adult and Experiential Learning's Institutional Service Award for "outstanding commitment to the expansion of lifelong learning opportunities and for innovative efforts to improve access and quality in academic programs for adult learners"

2003
Marylhurst University is ranked as a "best value" in the 2003 U.S. News & World Report college guide

2002
The International Assembly for Collegiate Business Education recognizes Marylhurst for its MBA, BS in Business and BS in Real Estate Studies programs

Marylhurst begins offering a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Interior Design

2000
Marylhurst establishes the Master of Arts in Applied Theology program

Marylhurst inaugurates the Bachelor of Music Therapy program, the only program of its kind in the Northwest accredited by the National Association of Schools of Music and approved by the American Music Therapy Association

1998
Marylhurst College becomes Marylhurst University, Clackamas County's first university

Marylhurst establishes an online degree completion program, and makes bachelor's degree programs in management and organizational communication available online

Marylhurst is one of six institutions in the country – the only one on the West Coast – recognized by the Council on Adult and Experiential Learning for best practices in adult learning

Marylhurst launches a Doctor of Ministry program with San Francisco Theological Seminary

1996
Marylhurst begins offering online courses

1994
Marylhurst establishes the Master of Interdisciplinary Studies program, with concentrations in organizational communication, and spiritual traditions and ethics (a gerontology concentration is added in 1998)

1993
Marylhurst College celebrates its 100th year of academic excellence and installs its online library

1990
Marylhurst inaugurates its Master of Business Administration program

Marylhurst adds a concentration in interior design to the art program

1986
Marylhurst inaugurates the Master of Art Therapy Counseling program, the only accredited art therapy program in the Northwest (the program is approved by the American Art Therapy Association in 1991)

1980
The gymnasium and auditorium in the BP John Administration Building becomes The Art Gym, providing a showcase for Northwest artists

1977
Marylhurst College receives accreditation from the Northwest Association of Secondary and Higher Schools, now known as the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities

1976
Marylhurst establishes the Prior Learning Assessment program, which provides adult students with the opportunity to earn credit for college-level learning gained through life and work experience

1974
Marylhurst becomes a co-educational institution and the first liberal arts college in the country designated as a college for lifelong learning

1968
Construction of Shoen Library and St. Anne's Chapel is completed

1961
Marylhurst becomes an institutional member of the National Association of Schools of Music

1959
Marylhurst College becomes an independent corporation with its own board of trustees, separate from the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary

1931
Marylhurst College earns accreditation from the Northwest Association of Secondary and Higher Schools

1930
St. Mary's College is renamed Marylhurst College and moves to its present location

The first buildings on the new campus – the BP John Administration Building, St. Catherine Hall and Aquinas Hall, all designed by noted local architect Josef Jacobberger – are completed

1908
The Sisters purchase 63 acres between Lake Oswego and West Linn and name the pastoral setting Marylhurst, which means "Mary's Woods"

1893
The Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary found St. Mary's Academy and College in downtown Portland, Oregon as the first liberal arts college to serve the educational needs of Northwest women

1859
The Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary arrive in Oregon to serve the educational needs of the community