History of SMWC

Quick History

• 1840, college founded by Saint Mother Theodore Guerin
• 1899, first bachelor degree conferred
• 1973, "Womens External Degree" program launched
• 1984, first graduate programs introduced
• 2005, "Womens External Degree" program went co-ed; renamed "Woods External Degree"
• 2010, "Woods Online" program launched

College's Founding

In 1840, six Sisters of Providence left their convent in Ruille-sur-Loir, France, on a journey to the wilderness of Indiana to establish an academy for young women in Indiana. Saint Mother Theodore Guerin, a woman whose spirit and philosophy are the foundations the College relies on to this day, led the sisters on their journey.

The story of the journey to Indiana has enough adventure for an action movie. During the 40 days of the stormy ocean crossing, they were robbed of a good portion of the money meant to finance the rest of their trip. When they arrived in New York, they faced the task of crossing half of a continent where they could barely speak the language.

The sisters traveled cross-country by train, canal, stagecoach and ferry. Finally, on Oct. 22, 1840, more than three months after leaving France, the women crossed the Wabash River, and they arrived in the middle of a dark woods with no house and no other people in sight. It was only human to shed tears of frustration and disappointment; but the women quickly offered prayers of thanksgiving. Mother Theodore’s journals show that the source of the disappointment was not that they had no home – but that they did not know where they would find students.

Despite these fears, students came seeking their education even before the first buildings were standing. In 1846, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College was granted the first charter for the higher education of women in the state of Indiana. The College conferred its first bachelor of arts degree in 1899.

Growth of women's education

During the next century, SMWC continued the tradition of pioneering in women’s education. It was the first women’s college to offer journalism courses and the first to offer degree work in secondary education, home economics and secretarial science. These offerings are evidence of an early commitment to preparing women for professional roles. As the careers open to women have expanded, the College has moved ahead in areas such as paralegal studies, digital media and pre-professional studies. Since the early 1990s, the College has also invested considerable resources in the refurbishment of campus facilities and the use of technology to support teaching and learning.

Women's External Degree / Woods External Degree

SMWC is also recognized as a pioneer in the area of distance education. In 1973, the College introduced one of the first independent study programs in the nation, the Women's External Degree (WED) Program. This program served adult women who needed flexible schedules to earn a degree while balancing important family and job responsibilities. In 2005, the College expanded access to its undergraduate distance and adult programs to men while maintaining its longstanding mission to the advancement of women's education and firm commitment to preserving its campus-based resident undergraduate degree program for women only. Today, through the renamed Woods External Degree Program, women and men can earn a college degree at their own pace in a wide variety of majors.

Graduate Programs

SMWC has been offering graduate degree programs in the distance format since 1984. Today, women and men can enroll in the Master of Arts in Pastoral Theology (MAPT) program, the Master of Arts in Earth Literacy (ELM) program, the Master of Arts in Art Therapy (MAAT) program, the Master of Arts in Music Therapy (MAMT) program, the Master of Leadership Development (MLD) program and the Master of Education (M.Ed.) program. All six master‘s degree programs utilize distance learning and intensive campus-based residencies.

Online Degrees

In January 2010, the College launched the coeducational, fully-online Woods Online Program. This program uses interactive technology and a virtual classroom environment; students study in accelerated eight-week class sessions. The program originally launched with two majors (business administration and computer information systems) with more majors planned to be added in subsequent semesters.