Mission
As a Catholic university, Mount St. Mary’s graduates ethical leaders who are inspired by a passion for learning and lead lives of significance in service to God and others.
History
Father John DuBois, the founder of Mount St. Mary’s, came to America in 1791 to escape the French Revolution. He settled in Richmond, Virginia, where he tutored Patrick Henry’s children and learned English. He asked Bishop John Carroll of Baltimore, the first American bishop, for an assignment in 1794; Bishop Carroll sent him to Frederick, Maryland, 20 miles south of Emmitsburg.
Father DuBois soon opened a small school on a mountain near Emmitsburg and taught area children. Some years later the Society of St. Sulpice in Baltimore closed its preparatory seminary in Pennsylvania and transferred the seminarians to Emmitsburg. Their arrival in 1808 marked the formal beginning of Mount St. Mary’s. Father Simon Gabriel Bruté, another French émigré priest, joined Father DuBois in 1812; he remained at the Mount for the next 25 years and played a large role in the institution’s growth.
During these early years, Elizabeth Ann Seton lived on campus while her first home was built. The Mount helped her establish the Sisters of Charity and open parish schools-the work that led to her canonization as America’s first native-born saint. Father DuBois, named bishop of New York, left the Mount in 1826. Father Bruté and Father John Purcell, who became the Mount’s president in 1829, obtained the first official charter for the University from the state of Maryland in 1830.
Because of the work of its clerical graduates during its early history, Mount St. Mary’s became known as the “Cradle of Bishops.” Father John Hughes succeeded Bishop DuBois in New York, became New York’s first archbishop and directed the building of St. Patrick’s Cathedral. Father John McCloskey, who succeeded Hughes, was the first native-born American cardinal. Mount alumni served as first bishops of 15 newly formed dioceses; in all, 32 dioceses in this country have been directed by at least one Mount graduate.
In addition to the founding fathers, graduates Archbishop Emeritus Harry J. Flynn of St. Paul and Minneapolis, Bishop Emeritus William B. Friend of Shreveport, Archbishop William E. Lori of Baltimore, Bishop Paul S. Coakley of Salina, Bishop Michael O. Jackels of Wichita, Bishop Edward J. Burns of Juneau Alaska, and Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades of Fort Wayne-South Bend, former vice president and rector, continue the tradition of church leadership. Today, Mount priests serve in more than one-third of the nation’s dioceses.
Graduates of the Mount provide important contributions to virtually every facet of American life. Matthew F. McHugh, C’60 of New York, served nine terms in Congress. Rear Admiral William Maguire, C’74 (Ret. USN) was vice commander of the Naval Supply Systems Command, Admiral Thomas Brown, C’53, (Ret. USN) had command of the USS Midway. Thomas J. Harrington, C’78 is the Managing Director and Chief Information Security Officer, Citigroup, and Susan Janowiak, C’81 is the acting associate director of the Office of Preparedness & Response for the EPA, Region 3.
Alumni in the legal field include Fran O’Brien; C’78, Assistant Commonwealth attorney for Arlington, Va.; Jennifer Anderson, C’81, Associate Judge in the District of Columbia Superior Court; Julie Stevenson Solt, C’80, and Teresa O’Connell, C’77, are both Frederick County, Md., Circuit Court judges. Heath Tarbert, C’98 served under Chief Justice Clarence Thomas and currently serves as the Vice President and Deputy Director of The Committee on Capital Markets Regulation Organization. Former Maryland State Senator Leo Green, C’54, and his son, Leo Edward Green, Jr., C’81 Associate Judge, Prince George’s County Circuit Court, 7th Judicial Circuit.
Corporate leadership positions have been held by Paul J. Norris, C’70 (retired chair, president and CEO of global manufacturing giant W.R. Grace and Co.), John Ido, C’80 (CEO of Michael Kors), Scott Newkam, C’72 (retired CEO of Hershey Entertainment) and numerous others.
In the medical field, alumnus Dr. William F. Magee, C’66, heads Operation Smile, a major international charitable foundation for healthcare. Dr. Frank Delmonico, C’66, is a professor of surgery at Harvard Medical School and Dr. Joseph Daniel, C’81, is Chief, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey School of Osteopathic Medicine.
In the sports world, Susan F. O’Malley, C’83, became president of the Washington Bullets (now Wizards) NBA basketball team at age 30. Fred Carter, C’69, played and coached in the NBA and provides broadcast analysis of pro basketball for the ESPN2 network. Agnus McGlade Berenato, C’80, was the women’s basketball head coach at the University of Pittsburgh from 2003-13.
While the Mount’s history is long and its traditions are rich, the University does not rest on its history or its traditions. Mount St. Mary’s looks for its success in the lives of its graduates. The ongoing history of Mount St. Mary’s is the story of their lives.
Undergraduate Program Goals
The undergraduate program goals of Mount St. Mary’s flow from and embody the ideals found in the University mission statement.
As a Catholic University grounded in the liberal arts, we ask all students to complete a common, sequenced, and interdisciplinary core curriculum. The University intends the whole of its undergraduate program to enable students to:
The Catholic Vision of the Human Person: Understand and articulate the Catholic vision of the human person, particularly as it relates to the nature of the good, the relationship between faith and reason, and the human relationship with God;
The Western Tradition: Integrate diverse modes of human inquiry and expression through rigorous study of the Western tradition, including its American expression;
Competencies: Master the skills of analysis, interpretation, communication, and problem solving;
Major Field of Study: Understand the purposes and concepts of at least one major field of study and become proficient in its methodology;
Social Justice in a Global Community: Understand the diversity of human cultures in a global community, to see and seek to respond with justice and solidarity to all in the global community, to protect human dignity, to work for peace and freedom, and to respect the integrity of creation;
A Life Well-Lived: Continue a life of learning, growth in faith and mature spirituality, and service to the common good.
Accreditation
Mount St. Mary’s University is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, 3624 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, 267-284-5000.
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