Lesley University - History

History

The Lesley School was founded by Edith Lesley in 1909. It was a proprietary women's institution until 1941, when it reorganized under a board of trustees. The Lesley School received authority to award the baccalaureate degree in 1944, and became Lesley College. Lesley College received authority to award graduate degrees in 1954, and later expanded to provide majors in the fields of education, counseling, human services, global studies, art therapy, and management. In 1998, Lesley College merged with The Art Institute of Boston (AIB). Founded in 1912, AIB grants Baccalaureate and post-Baccalaureate degrees. Along with the graduate programs, these colleges emerged as Lesley University in 2001. In 2005, the university's undergraduate section, Lesley College, became co-educational. In 2006 the school acquired historic Prospect Hall, a former church listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The motto of the school is "I had perished had I not persisted," though today the phrase "Let's wake up the world" is more often used.