The Catholic University of America - History

History

In 1882 Bishop John Lancaster Spalding went to Rome to obtain Pope Leo XIII's support for the University and persuaded family friend Mary Gwendoline Caldwell to pledge $300,000 to establish it. On March 7, 1889, the Pope issued the encyclical Magni Nobis, granting the university its charter and establishing its mission as the instruction of Catholicism and human nature together at the graduate level. By developing new leaders and new knowledge, it was believed that the University would strengthen and enrich Catholicism in the United States.

The founders wished to emphasize the Church’s special role in United States. They had a conviction that scientific and humanistic research, informed by faith, would strengthen the Church. They hoped to develop a national institution that would promote the faith in a context of religious freedom, spiritual pluralism, and intellectual rigor.

It was incorporated in 1885 and when the University first opened for classes in the fall of 1888, the curriculum consisted of lectures in mental and moral philosophy, English literature, the Sacred Scriptures, and the various branches of theology. At the end of the second term, lectures on canon law were added and the first students were graduated in 1889. In 1904, an undergraduate program was added and it quickly established a reputation for excellence.

The presence of CUA attracted other Catholic institutions to the area, including colleges, religious orders, and national service organizations. Between 1900 and 1940, more than 50 international Catholic institutions rented or owned property in neighboring Brookland. During the post World War II years, Catholic University experienced an expansion in enrollment thanks to the G.I. Bill.

Today the campus has over 6,000 students from all 50 states and around the world.