Marylhurst University was a private applied liberal arts and business university in

Marylhurst, Oregon Marylhurst, Oregon is the location of a U.S. Post Office, ZIP Code 97036, in southern Lake Oswego, Oregon on the campus of Marylhurst University (closed in 2018). Marylhurst, more commonly accepted, is the name of a neighborhood within the city o ...

. It was among the oldest collegiate degree-granting institutions in Oregon, having awarded its first degree in 1897. Marylhurst was founded as St. Mary's College and run for many years by the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary. The former campus is located about nine miles south of

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: * Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States * Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...

Oregon Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idah ...

on the

Willamette River The Willamette River ( ) is a major tributary of the Columbia River, accounting for 12 to 15 percent of the Columbia's flow. The Willamette's main stem is long, lying entirely in northwestern Oregon in the United States. Flowing northward ...

. Although Marylhurst University was a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

school, it served students of all faiths and backgrounds. The university offered bachelor's degree completion programs in diverse liberal arts and business fields, and graduate degrees in such fields as business and nonprofit administration, food systems and society, teaching, art therapy counseling, divinity and applied theology, and interdisciplinary studies. After its establishment in 1893, Marylhurst became the first

women A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female humans regardl ...

liberal arts college A liberal arts college or liberal arts institution of higher education is a college with an emphasis on undergraduate study in liberal arts and sciences. Such colleges aim to impart a broad general knowledge and develop general intellectual capac ...

in the

Pacific Northwest The Pacific Northwest (sometimes Cascadia, or simply abbreviated as PNW) is a geographic region in western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though ...

. The university closed at the end of the summer of 2018. Declining enrollment was given as the main reason, with enrollment having dropped from 1,409 to 743 in just four years, from fall 2013 to fall 2017. In recent years, the university's student population had peaked around 2,000 during the

Great Recession The Great Recession was a period of marked general decline, i.e. a recession, observed in national economies globally that occurred from late 2007 into 2009. The scale and timing of the recession varied from country to country (see map). At ...

of 2007–2009. Prior to the closure, however, Marylhurst's faculty challenged this narrative.

History

The Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary, a Roman Catholic religious teaching congregation, arrived in Oregon in 1859. The Sisters came to Oregon from

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple- ...

at the request of the people and

clergy Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the t ...

of the state to serve their educational needs, and established St. Mary's Academy in Portland that year.

St. Mary's College

In 1893, the group started St. Mary's Academy and College as the first

liberal arts Liberal arts education (from Latin "free" and "art or principled practice") is the traditional academic course in Western higher education. ''Liberal arts'' takes the term '' art'' in the sense of a learned skill rather than specifically th ...

college to serve the educational needs of Pacific Northwest women. The school began in downtown Portland, where St. Mary's Academy is still located. The Sisters purchased between Lake Oswego and West Linn in 1908. The Sisters named the pastoral land Marylhurst, which means "Mary's Woods". In 1929 it became the only accredited standard four year college for women in the Pacific Northwest. The college was moved to the new property in 1930, and St. Mary's was renamed Marylhurst College. Starting in 1977 the school was accredited by the Northwest Association of Secondary and Higher Schools.

Marylhurst College

In 1959, Marylhurst College became an independent institution and formed a Board of Trustees, separate from the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary. In 1974, the college transitioned to a co-educational institution and it became the first liberal arts college in the United States to be designated as a college for lifelong learning. The American Art Therapy Association reviewed the program positively numerous times including 1991, 1996 and 2002. Beginning in 1996, '' U.S. News & World Report''s Guide to America's Best Colleges recognized Marylhurst. The university remained as "unranked" for the Western Region in the ''U.S. News & World Report'' college rankings since the mid-1990s.

Marylhurst University

In 1998, Marylhurst College became Marylhurst University, Clackamas County's first university. Several new academic programs were added including a Master of Arts in Applied Theology program, a Bachelor of Music Therapy program, and a cooperative Doctor of Ministry degree program with San Francisco Theological Seminary. Judith Johansen was named president of the university in 2008 and left in 2013. Melody Rose served as president from August 2014 until late 2018. In May 2018, the university announced that it would be closing. The university's enrollment had declined significantly in just a few years, from over 1,400 students in 2013 to about half that many students in 2018. The university turned the campus over to the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary, the religious order with which it is affiliated. Saint Martin's University was selected to serve as the custodial institution for Marylhurst University. As of Dec. 3, 2018, Marylhurst alumni can access their records and transcripts through Saint Martin's University.

Academics

Marylhurst University offered nearly 50 undergraduate and graduate degree programs. Marylhurst began the Master of Art Therapy program in 1986, the only accredited art therapy program in the

. In 1990, Marylhurst inaugurated its

Master of Business Administration A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accou ...

program and a concentration in interior design was added to the art program. In 2002, the University began to offer a BFA in interior design. Four online MBA programs were offered by Marylhurst: an MBA, an MBA in Healthcare Management, an MBA in Sustainability, and an MBA in Real Estate. The school also offered 12 shorter undergraduate, graduate, post-graduate, teacher endorsement certificate programs. Marylhurst had dual-enrollment agreements with Portland State University, Portland Community College and Clackamas Community College.

The Art Gym

The Art Gym was a contemporary arts exhibition space located on campus. It was the brainchild of Kay Slusarenko, who was the art department chair for 20 years, from 1978 to 1998. With contemporaries Terri Hopkins and Paul Sutinen, she rallied the student body and community support to turn the unused gym into the cultural center that it is now. Each spring the gym displays the year's thesis projects. Since 1980, over 300 artists have shown their work at the gym. Marylhurst University announced it would cease operations in 2018, prompting concern about the Art Gym's future. In July 2018, the Art Gym announced that it would be moving to the Oregon College of Art and Craft effective August 1, 2018.

Oregon Sesquicentennial Film Festival

The Oregon Sesquicentennial Film Festival was held at Marylhurst University May 1–10, 2009. The festival was a celebration of the history of Oregon film making. For the festival a 35mm projection booth was constructed on campus in the Villa Maria building. The opening night of the festival was at the Mission Theater with an on stage conversation between James Ivory and Gus Van Sant. The films shown at Marylhurst included '' Smoke Signals'' with director Chris Eyre in person; '' Marked Woman'' featuring Mayo Methot; Talk Radio with writer Tad Savinar in person; '' The Lusty Men'' (set in and partially shot at the

Pendleton Round-up The Pendleton Round-Up is a major annual rodeo in the northwestern United States, at Pendleton in northeastern Oregon. Held at the Pendleton Round-Up Stadium during the second full week of September each year since 1910, the rodeo brings roug ...

); '' City Girl'' by

F.W. Murnau Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau (born Friedrich Wilhelm Plumpe; December 28, 1888March 11, 1931) was a German film director, producer and screenwriter. He was greatly influenced by Schopenhauer, Nietzsche, Shakespeare and Ibsen plays he had seen at t ...

, shot on location in

Athena Athena or Athene, often given the epithet Pallas, is an ancient Greek goddess associated with wisdom, warfare, and handicraft who was later syncretized with the Roman goddess Minerva. Athena was regarded as the patron and protectress of ...

, Oregon (with a score composed by John Paul and performed by a string quartet; ''A Soldier's Tale'' by Penny Allen, and James Ivory's first international hit film '' Shakespeare Wallah'', with James Ivory attending. The special Oregon Cartoon Institute Day at the festival featured Bill Plympton.

Notable alumni

* Madeline DeFrees, poet and author *

Elizabeth Engstrom Elizabeth Engstrom is an American speculative fiction writer. Biography She was born Bette Lynn (Betsy) Gutzmer, but she legally changed her name to Elizabeth Engstrom a few years after publishing her first novel under that pseudonym. She is marr ...

, author *

Norma Heyser Norma Heyser (born 1933) is an American contemporary artist from Portland, Oregon, who worked in mixed media and new art forms, influenced by Cubism and Abstract expressionism. Early life and education Norma Edythe Heyser, born in Portland in 19 ...

, Oregon modernist artist * Barbara Roberts, former Governor of Oregon *

Mary F. Sammons Mary F. Sammons (born 1946) is an American businesswoman who formerly served as the CEO, and is the former chairperson, of Rite Aid. She was formerly the president and CEO of Fred Meyer. Biography Mary F. Sammons was born in 1946 and hails from P ...

, former president and chief executive officer of Rite Aid *

Shane Bemis Shane Bemis (born c. 1972) is an American politician who is the former mayor of Gresham, Oregon, Oregon's fourth-largest city. He was elected mayor in 2006, at the age of 34, becoming the youngest mayor in Gresham's history. Prior to serving as m ...

, former Mayor of Gresham, Oregon

References

External links

Official website (Archived)
* {{authority control 1893 establishments in Oregon 2018 disestablishments in Oregon Buildings and structures in Clackamas County, Oregon Catholic universities and colleges in Oregon Defunct Catholic universities and colleges in the United States Defunct private universities and colleges in Oregon Education in Clackamas County, Oregon Educational institutions established in 1893 Educational institutions disestablished in 2018 Liberal arts colleges in Oregon Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Portland in Oregon Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary Universities and colleges accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities