Tradition

Founded in 1923 by the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth, the University of Saint Mary has a long tradition of academic excellence. Saint Mary is a tight-knit community where one-on-one attention is valued and growth is measured by more than a percent in a grade book.

USM focuses on fulfilling the needs of both our students and society— establishing academic programs where purpose, global impact, and long-term success govern their existence. Students are inspired to follow their dreams and find their potential—choosing from over 30 majors, minors, and concentrations; a growing number of master's programs; and three doctoral degrees.

Foundation in the Liberal Arts

Committed to a liberal arts education, core curriculum is designed to create breadth of knowledge in graduates. USM is one of 700 member colleges in the Council of Independent Colleges supporting a national advocacy program promoting the understanding of the liberal arts and the effectiveness of independent higher education called “Power of Liberal Arts.”

USM: A Timeline

1858 — The Sisters of Charity arrive in Leavenworth

1870-92 — Opening of Saint Mary and Mead Halls

1923 — Saint Mary Junior College opens

1930 — Junior College becomes Saint Mary College; Berchmans Hall opens

1960s — Maria, Miege, and Saint Joseph Dining Halls built

1988 — Saint Mary College goes co-ed

1990 — Saint Mary offers degree-completion and graduate programs in Overland Park

2003 — Saint Mary College becomes the University of Saint Mary

2004 — Launches on-campus BSN program

2009 — Introduces special partnership with Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences (KCUMB) allowing gifted students to matriculate into medical school (without the MCAT) following the completion of their junior year

2012 — Matriculates first class of Stefani Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) students

2014 — Debuts the Círculo de Cuidado (Circle of Care) program—a full-tuition/living stipend scholarship opportunity for Wyandotte County Hispanic and Latino prospective nursing students; also moves the HIM program online and launches new Enhanced Accounting program

2015 — DPT program receives notice of accreditation by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE)

2016 — Accepts first class of undergraduate Exercise Science majors; admits first class of Master of Science in Athletic Training students; and receives notice of acceptance from nursing’s premiere honor society, Sigma Theta Tau International

2019 — Recognized as the only school in Kansas by the Commission on Accreditation for Athletic Training Education (CAATE) as having a professional, accredited Master of Science in Athletic Training program 

2020 — Launches doctorates in Education and Occupational Therapy

The SCL Founding Story

With a strong sense of their pioneer heritage and roots, the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth annually celebrate Founders’ Day on Nov. 11 – the date in 1858 that the first group of Sisters arrived by a steamer boat to serve and make their home in Leavenworth. They had responded to the call of Bishop John Baptist Miege who invited them to “Come North.”

Ten days earlier on Nov. 1, this group had left Nashville, Tenn., for their journey to what was called the Kansas Territory (Kansas was not yet a state). The group of nine travelers included five Sisters, one novice, two postulants and an orphan. They set out from Nashville by rail and transferred to coaches with their trunks, packages, bundles and baskets. In Kentucky, they were mistaken as beggars. They took a train to St. Louis where the Sisters and companions boarded the steamer that made slow progress to Leavenworth due to winds and floating ice. (History of the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth, Kansas, Sister Mary Buckner, 1898)

In her history of the community, Sister Julia Gilmore writes, “This was the band of displaced persons, inconspicuous in manner, but different in dress from other women, who attracted the attention of the loungers at the wharf in Leavenworth City, November 11, 1858.” (We Came North, 1958)

The new arrivals spent their first night in Leavenworth in a hotel. The next day, they visited Bishop Miege and then went to their convent. Their furniture and belongings arrived the same day, and townspeople brought them provisions. “Notwithstanding the kindness of the clergy and the people, the Sisters necessarily had much to suffer, but their confidence in God was great, and they knew well that hardships are to be encountered in all beginnings.” (Buckner, p. 59)

A second group of Sisters arrived from Nashville in December, and the final two – Mother Xavier Ross, foundress and first leader of the community, and Sister Joanna Bruner – came in February 1859. The beginning community in Leavenworth numbered 16. (Gilmore, p. 9) The Sisters soon began teaching boys in one schoolhouse and girls in another that eventually became “St. Mary’s Academy for Young Ladies,” the precursor to the University of Saint Mary.

In succeeding years, the SCLs expanded their ministries to health care, social services, pastoral work, spiritual development and many other ways to serve persons who are poor and vulnerable. Today, the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth number 218 and serve in 11 states and Peru.

They first came to the Midwest in response to the call to serve needs of people in a pioneer territory. Their Mission Statement continues to reflect that commitment and outreach: “Impelled by the love of Christ, we, the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth, offer every loving service in our power to meet the critical needs of God’s people.”

For more information, visit www.scls.org.