Section 1: Mission, History, and General Organization
1.2 History and Development of the Institution
The institution was founded in 1908 as the State Normal and Industrial School for Women in Fredericksburg. The name was changed in 1924 to the State Teachers College at Fredericksburg, and again in 1938 to Mary Washington College, having transformed over the years to Virginia’s public liberal arts college for women. Then in 1944, Mary Washington College became affiliated with the University of Virginia as its women’s undergraduate arts and sciences division. In 1970 the entire University became coeducational and in 1972, by action of the General Assembly of Virginia, the College became an independent, state-supported institution for women and men, with its own governing board. On July 1, 2004, the General Assembly named the institution the University of Mary Washington. The University Mission Statement, adopted on July 17, 2004 by the Rector and Visitors of the University of Mary Washington, identifies Mary Washington College on the Fredericksburg campus as the University’s undergraduate, residential college of arts and sciences.
Through an emphasis on quality, the University attracts students from all areas of Virginia, particularly the urban areas of Northern Virginia, Richmond, and Tidewater. Approximately twenty-five percent of its on-campus resident students are from other states and foreign countries, with the largest population coming from Southern, Middle Atlantic, and New England states. Located in the middle of a rapidly growing Washington-Richmond “urban corridor,” the University serves the educational needs of both full-time and part-time commuting students.
To meet the diverse academic goals sought by students in today’s society, the college of arts and sciences, Mary Washington College, is organized into academic departments of one or more disciplines and offers more than thirty undergraduate programs in the liberal arts and sciences. Five degrees are awarded at the Fredericksburg campus: Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science, Master of Science in Elementary Education, Bachelor of Liberal Studies, and Master of Arts in Liberal Studies, which will be discontinued as soon as all students remaining in the program have either graduated or have left the program. Emphasis upon excellence in the pursuit of liberal learning has traditionally been at the core of the College’s educational philosophy, and commitment to this concept will continue.
In 1999, responding to accelerating demographic changes that increased the demand for educational services within the region, the University opened the Center for Graduate and Professional Studies (formerly called James Monroe Center), located at a new campus in nearby Stafford County. In 2004, this became the University’s College of Graduate and Professional Studies. With its own distinctive mission, this College offers programs appropriate to the region’s economic development needs and provides educational opportunities for the personal lifelong learning and professional advancement objectives of the citizens of the region.
As the University evaluates its offerings, it will build upon its high-quality liberal arts and sciences programs and propose curricular additions and adjustments specifically designed to meet new and increased demands.