Lebanese American University - History

History

LAU’s early days in 1835 find a reminder in an engraved stone in Beirut’s city center: “Site of the first edifice built as a school for girls in the Turkish Empire.” The engraving refers to the American School for Girls, established in Beirut by American Presbyterian Missionaries. In 1924, the high school added a two-year junior college program. Three years later, the university was separated as the American Junior College for Women, and moved from downtown to Ras Beirut. In 1933, it relocated once again to its present location in Koreitem, West Beirut. The founding institution was a force for the education of women in Lebanon and the Middle East long before most of the world recognized the need and moral obligation to educate women in a collegiate setting.

In 1948-1949, university expanded into a four-year, university-level institution, and changed its name to the Beirut College for Women. In 1955, the university was chartered by the Board of Regents of the State of New York. In 1970 the Bachelor's degree program was recognized by the Lebanese government as equivalent to the License. In 1974, fifty years after its founding, LAU became co-educational and was renamed Beirut University College.

Adding to LAU’s constantly evolving programs, in 1985, the Board of Regents amended the charter to include two campuses. In 1987, based on the amended charter, BUC opened its northern branch on a hill above the historical port-city of Byblos and in rented buildings in Amsheet. Classes started in the newly built campus in October 1991, and the Byblos campus was officially inaugurated on July 16, 1992.

In 1994, the college changed its name to Lebanese American University. As of 2011, over 8,000 students were enrolled in the seven schools of the University: the School of Arts and Sciences, the School of Business, the School of Engineering, the School of Architecture & Design, the School of Medicine, the School of Nursing, and the School of Pharmacy .

In 2009, businessman, philanthropist, and board member Gilbert R. Chagoury and his wife, Rose-Marie, provided a donation of $10 million dollars to fund the medical school and $3.5 million for the construction of the Alice Ramez Chagoury School of Nursing.