Mackenzie Presbyterian University (

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

: ''Universidade Presbiteriana Mackenzie'') is a

private university Private universities and private colleges are institutions of higher education, not operated, owned, or institutionally funded by governments. They may (and often do) receive from governments tax breaks, public student loans, and grants. Dep ...

São Paulo, Brazil SAO or Sao may refer to: Places * Sao civilisation, in Middle Africa from 6th century BC to 16th century AD * Sao, a town in Boussé Department, Burkina Faso * Saco Transportation Center (station code SAO), a train station in Saco, Maine, U.S. ...

. The Mackenzie Presbyterian University is an institution of higher learning that has strong tradition and history in Brazil. It has campuses for undergraduate and postgraduate studies in São Paulo (Campus Higienópolis), Campinas, Barueri (Campus Alphaville), Brasilia,

Curitiba Curitiba () is the capital and largest city in the state of Paraná in Brazil. The city's population was 1,948,626 , making it the eighth most populous city in Brazil and the largest in Brazil's South Region. The Curitiba Metropolitan area ...

and

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a ...

Founded in 1870 as the American School, Mackenzie is one of the oldest institutions of higher education in

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

. The university is regarded nationally and internationally as a center of excellence having graduated numerous important names in Brazilian history.

History

In 1870, the American

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

missionary Rev. George Whitehill Chamberlain and his wife Mary Annesley founded a private grammar school inside their home. The classes were held in their living room and, a few years later, the "American School" was established as a center of excellence in São Paulo. The Chamberlains' American School was revolutionary for the Brazilian standards at that time: no corporal punishment on students was permitted, and both boys and girls could attend classes. Even though the Chamberlains were openly Presbyterians, students from all ethnic backgrounds, social classes, and religious denominations were welcome. The fame of academic rigor allied to religious tolerance soon reached the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. In 1896, John Theron Mackenzie, an attorney from Phelps, New York, and his sisters donated US$50,000 "for the establishment of an engineering school to be built under the auspices of Mr. Chamberlain". The Mackenzie building was built the next year, and the college was named in their honor. After the establishment of Mackenzie College, the institution saw rapid expansion of its activities with the creation of a School of Architecture, a School of Economics, and a Law School, gaining the status of university in 1952. Edifício João Calvino

Notable alumni

In 130 years of history (as of 2000), it is estimated that Mackenzie University has 300,000 alumni, many of them important personalities of Brazilian politics and civil society. Among them surrealist artist André Breton is claimed as an alumnus, although this might reflect a mixup with his friend and collaborator Benjamin Péret, who lived in Brazil in 1929-1931; modernist painter

Anita Malfatti Anita Catarina Malfatti (December 2, 1889 – November 6, 1964) is heralded as the first Brazilian artist to introduce European and American forms of Modernism to Brazil. Her solo exhibition in Sao Paulo, from 1917–1918, was controversial ...

; Brazil's most known basketball player

Oscar Schmidt Oscar Daniel Bezerra Schmidt (born February 16, 1958) is a retired Brazilian professional basketball player. He is also commonly known as Oscar Schmidt in Spain, where he played for Fórum Valladolid for the 1993–94 and 1994–95 seasons, ...

; car racer

Émerson Fittipaldi Emerson Fittipaldi (; born 12 December 1946) is a Brazilian former automobile racing driver who won both the Formula One World Championship and the Indianapolis 500 twice each and the CART championship once. Moving up from Formula Two, Fitti ...

; sea explorer Amyr Klink; Olympic golden medalist

Robert Scheidt Robert Scheidt (born April 15, 1973) is a Brazilian sailor who has won two gold medals, two silver medals and a bronze from five Olympic Games and a Star Sailors League Final. He is one of the most successful sailors at Olympic Games and one of t ...

; journalists

Boris Casoy Boris Casoy (born February 13, 1941 in São Paulo) is a Brazilian journalist, the son of Russian Jewish immigrant parents. He has spent most of his professional life in TV journalism and is currently a Brazilian TV news anchorman. Casoy's journ ...

and Ney Gonçalves Dias; businessmen Márcio Cypriano (CEO Bradesco), Ivan Zurita (CEO Nestlé, Brasil),

Danilo Talanskas Danilo Talanskas (born 1950) is the managing director of Otis Elevator Company. Education and career Talanskas got an undergraduate degree at the Mackenzie University in São Paulo. He then received an MBA from the Marriott School of Management ...

(Otis Elevator Company) and Emerson Kapaz; jurists Álvaro Villaça Azevedo and Carlos Miguel Aidar (former Brazilian Law Society President); Brazilian Supreme Court Justice

Eros Roberto Grau In Greek mythology, Eros (, ; grc, Ἔρως, Érōs, Love, Desire) is the Greek god of love and sex. His Roman counterpart was Cupid ("desire").''Larousse Desk Reference Encyclopedia'', The Book People, Haydock, 1995, p. 215. In the earli ...

; lawyer and scholar Antonio Carlos Rodrigues do Amaral; lawyer José Roberto Batochio; legal scholar Sérgio Pinto Martins (judge and labor law scholar),

Roberto Justus Roberto Luiz Justus (born 30 April 1955) is a Brazilian investor, businessman and television personality. Biography and career Justus was born in São Paulo, Brazil, to a Jewish Hungarian immigrant family. He is best known for ''O Aprendiz'', br ...

; Tales Castelo Branco; and architect

Paulo Mendes da Rocha Paulo Mendes da Rocha (October 25, 1928 – May 23, 2021) was a Brazilian architect. Mendes da Rocha attended the Mackenzie Presbyterian University College of Architecture, graduating in 1954. Working almost exclusively in Brazil, Mendes da Roc ...

Schools and colleges

* School of Engineering * Graduate School of Theology * School of Architecture and City Planning * Biological Sciences and Health College (CCBS, former FCBEE) * College of Economics, Accounting, Business and Marketing (CCSA) * College of Computer Science and Information Technology * College of Communication and the Arts * School of Law * College of Physical Education * College of Philosophy, Language, and Education * College of Psychology

Other information

MackGraphe

MackGraphe is the Graphene and Nanomaterials Research Center at Mackenzie Presbyterian University, which aims to master processes in all stages of technology development, from the modeling of nanomaterials to their application. MackGraphe expects to have a huge impact on society by developing new technologies to fulfil their needs.

References

External links

Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mackenzie Presbyterian University Educational institutions established in 1870 1870 establishments in Brazil Presbyterian universities and colleges Universities and colleges in São Paulo Christian universities and colleges in Brazil Universities and colleges in São Paulo (state)