About the University
About the University
Message from the President
St. Agnes’ University was founded in 1875 by Miss Ellen G. Eddy, a missionary from the Episcopal Church in the U.S., in the Kawaguchi Settlement in Osaka, as Miss Eddy’s School. The school was later relocated to Kyoto in 1894. Since then, it has focused its efforts on nurturing women with the wisdom and courage to handle various social issues, through character-building based on the Christian spirit.
The university was established in 2000 with the founding spirit, “Enlarge their minds, elevate their aspirations, cultivate their hearts and make them know of Him to them.” Its aim, through character-building based on the Christian spirit, is to develop free and independent personalities, and cultivate people with the wisdom and courage to handle various social issues, and contribute actively to local communities and international society.
Being able to contribute to society means being useful to people. We hope your days at university will allow you to discover what kind of contributions you specifically will be able to make to society. The dream you now have in mind may seem unrelated to social contribution, but we believe that by the time you graduate from St. Agnes’ University, you will be able to turn it into social contribution, in some way or another.
History of St. Agnesʼ University
Founding Spirit
“Enlarge their minds, elevate their aspirations, cultivate their hearts and make them know of Him”
These words were found in a letter, dated March 20, 1875, that the Reverend Quinby wrote and sent to the U.S. while working as a missionary for the Episcopal Church in the Kawaguchi Settlement in Osaka. The letter was written when he was preparing for the establishment of a women’s school in accordance with the policies of Bishop Williams, who was a central figure in the American Episcopal mission at the time.
This founding spirit has remained the foundation of the school’s education to this day.
- 1875
- Miss Eddy, having come to Japan from the Episcopal Church in the U.S., opens Miss Eddy’s School in the Kawaguchi Settlement in Osaka.
- 1880
- Miss Eddy’s School is renamed St. Agnes’ School.
- 1895
- Relocated to Kyoto (1894) and reopened in April. Construction is completed for the new school building, the Meiji-kan.
- 1915
- Establishment of St. Agnes’ High School is approved.
- 1950
- St. Agnes’ College opens.
- 1951
- Establishment of Educational Institution St. Agnes’ School is approved. Construction is completed for the St. Agnes’ College building (current Muromachi-kan).
- 1987
- St. Agnes’ College school building and Kindergarten building relocated to the Nanpeidai area of Takatsuki City.
- 2000
- University opens in Moriyama City, Shiga Prefecture.
- 2005
- The university and the junior college are merged into the Takatsuki Campus.
- 2007
- The university’s Faculty of International Tourism is opened at the Kyoto Campus.
- 2009
- The university’s Faculty of Child Studies is opened at the Takatsuki Campus.
- 2015
- The Faculty of Child Studies is renamed to Faculty of Pre-School and Elementary Education.
- 2019
- St. Agnes’ University Kindergarten becomes an accredited childcare center, St. Agnes’ University Childcare Center. Seismic retrofitting of the buildings at Kyoto Campus is completed.
