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Mount Saint Mary's University, Los Angeles

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Mount Saint Mary's University, Los Angeles
Seal of Mount Saint Mary's University
MottoDeus Illuminatio Mea (Latin)
Motto in English
God, My Light
TypePrivate
Established1925
Religious affiliation
Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet (Roman Catholic)
Endowment$174.1 million (2024)[1]
PresidentAnn McElaney-Johnson
ProvostAdam Weyhaupt
Academic staff
127 full-time, 312 part-time[2]
Administrative staff
289 (2024)[3]
Students2,030 full-time, 278 part-time (2025)[2]
Undergraduates1,767 (2025)[2]
Postgraduates541 (2025)[2]
Location
Los Angeles
,
California
,
United States
Campustwo urban campuses
Chalon (Brentwood):
34°05′06″N 118°28′56″W / 34.08512°N 118.48216°W / 34.08512; -118.48216
56 acres (23 ha)
Doheny (Downtown):
34°01′47″N 118°16′40″W / 34.02978°N 118.27771°W / 34.02978; -118.27771
20 acres (8.1 ha)
ColorsPurple and gold   
NicknameAthenians
AffiliationsACCU
NAICU
CIC
MascotAthena
Websitewww.msmu.edu
Map

Mount Saint Mary's University, Los Angeles (known as Mount St. Mary's College until January 2015)[4] is a private, Catholic university primarily for women, in Los Angeles, California.

Colloquially referred to as "The Mount" by the community, the university served as a women's-only educational institution until 1960, when the university chose to offer a selection of co-educational graduate programs.[5] Men are now welcomed into all Graduate programs, as well as the Weekend/Evening & Online College. All nursing programs are also co-educational.[6] As of 2025, women still make up 88 percent of the undergraduate student body.[7]

Founded in 1925 by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet, today the university has two campuses 16 miles (26 km) apart: Chalon in Brentwood and Doheny in the West Adams district, near downtown Los Angeles. There is also a multimedia arts studio in Hollywood, for use by the Film, Media, and Communications Department.[8]

The university offers 40+ undergraduate majors and minors, 15+ graduate programs, and 10+ Weekend/Evening & Online College programs. A total of 10 different degree types are available, as well as 10 professional development certificates and 8 teaching credentials.[9] The most popular for 1st year undergraduate students are Pre-Nursing and Nursing, Biology, Psychology and Business.[10]

Campuses

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Chalon Campus

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The university first held its classes at St. Mary's Academy, then located at West Slauson Avenue and Crenshaw Boulevard.[11] In 1928, the Sisters purchased 36 acres (15 ha) of land along the foothills of the Santa Monica Mountains from the Rodeo Land and Water Company for $162,000. In 1947, an additional 20 acres (8.1 ha) was acquired to complete what is today the university's Chalon campus. The campus contains a blend of architecture familiar to Los Angeles, largely in the tradition of the Spanish Colonial Revival and Mission Revival styles. The location of the campus in Brentwood, on a 1,100-foot (340 m) ridge, provides an overlook to both the Getty Center and 40 miles (64 km) of the Pacific Ocean.

Being the university's first campus, Chalon has been home to a number of important events in the history of the university. In 1929, the university's first graduation was held on the Chalon campus. 20 years later, the university founded its historic Nursing program under the direction of Sr. Rebecca Doan, CSJ.[12] After receiving full accreditation from the California Board of Nursing Examiners for its Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree, Mount Saint Mary's produced California's first BSN graduates in 1952.[13] In 1955, the university also began offering graduate degree programs.

Today, the Chalon campus is home to the university's traditional undergraduate students, though some classes and student housing are also offered at the Doheny campus.[14]

Doheny campus

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The Doheny Mansion, the center of the university's Downtown campus

The university grew to two campuses in 1962 when it was given 20 acres (8.1 ha), holding two city blocks of Queen Anne style and Victorian mansions, in the West Adams District[15] The property was formerly owned by Edward L. Doheny and his wife, the Countess Estelle Doheny, who made their fortune in oil. The Chester Place residences were built at the turn of the century by Judge Charles Silent. The Dohenys purchased the mansion at #8 Chester Place in 1901. Due to his wife's desire for more privacy, Edward L. Doheny went on to purchase all thirteen remaining lots on Chester Place in order to make it into a secure, gate- guarded street.[16][17] The university named the campus after the Countess Doheny and her husband.

The Doheny campus first played host to the university's Associate in Arts program when it opened in 1962. Forty years later, in 2002, the university began its first doctoral degree, in physical therapy, which joined the other graduate programs offered at the Doheny campus. The first class of DPT students graduated in 2005.[18]

In 1992, the university launched its Weekend and Evening College program at the Chalon campus, which primarily focuses on providing working professionals the opportunity to complete their undergraduate degrees within four years by attending classes scheduled on weekends. The Weekend and Evening College program moved to the Doheny campus in 2006, joining a number of courses for the associate and graduate programs offered at Doheny on weekday evenings and on weekends, furthering the idea of accessibility introduced by Weekend and Evening College.

Doheny is home to the university's associate, daytime and evening graduate programs, Weekend and Evening College (undergraduate and graduate), and educational credential programs.

Demographics

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The student body is 90 percent female and 10 percent male.[7]

Spring 2019 Demographics of student body[7]
African American 6%
Asian/Pacific Islander 14%
White 11%
Hispanic 58%
Other/Multiracial 11%

Notable people

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Alumni

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Faculty

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In the media

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Because of its isolated location and scenic vistas and architecture, a number of movies and television shows have filmed on either the Doheny or Chalon campus of the university.[19]

References

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  1. ^ "Mount Saint Mary's University - Audit for period ending Jun 2024". Nonprofit Explorer. ProPublica. Retrieved 7 August 2025.
  2. ^ a b c d "College Navigator - Mount Saint Mary's University". College Navigator. National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved 7 August 2025.
  3. ^ "Institution Data Profile - Mount Saint Mary's University". IPEDS Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System. NCES National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved 7 August 2025.
  4. ^ New Name, Expanded Programs At L.A.'s Only Women's University: Mount Saint Mary's University
  5. ^ "Special Characteristics of the Institution - MSMU". Mount Saint Mary's University, Los Angeles. Retrieved 8 August 2025.
  6. ^ "Nursing Admission - MSMU". Mount Saint Mary's University, Los Angeles. Retrieved 8 August 2025.
  7. ^ a b c "The Mount at a Glance". Mount Saint Mary's University Los Angeles. Retrieved 7 August 2025.
  8. ^ "Hollywood Studio - MSMU". Mount Saint Mary's University, Los Angeles. Retrieved 8 August 2025.
  9. ^ "Find Your Program - MSMU". Mount Saint Mary's University, Los Angeles. Retrieved 8 August 2025.
  10. ^ "Academic Programs - MSMU". Mount Saint Mary's University, Los Angeles. Retrieved 8 August 2025.
  11. ^ Facts – College history (web page archive of October 16, 1997), Mount St. Mary's College.
  12. ^ "Sister Rebecca Doan; Headed Mount St. Mary's". L.A. Times. No. Nov. 24, 1999. Retrieved 7 August 2025.
  13. ^ "The claim to BSN fame - MSMU". Mount Saint Mary's University Los Angeles. Retrieved 7 August 2025.
  14. ^ "Visit the Mount - MSMU". Mount Saint Mary's University, Los Angeles. Retrieved 8 August 2025.
  15. ^ "Doheny Tour". Los Angeles Times. 3 November 2005. Retrieved 10 March 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ Davis, Margaret Leslie (1998). Dark Side of Fortune: Triumph and Scandal in the Life of Oil Tycoon Edward L. Doheny. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press. ISBN 978-0-52020-292-4.
  17. ^ Pool, Bob (July 3, 2003). "SURROUNDINGS CHESTER PLACE; A New Drill for the Lavish Home of an Oil Tycoon; Teapot Dome scandal figure's mansion, owned by a college for decades, will open for tours" (Home Edition). Los Angeles Times. ProQuest. p. B.2. Retrieved 8 August 2025.
  18. ^ "Master List of Accredited Education Programs in Physical Therapy" (PDF). CAPTE. Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education. p. 8. Retrieved 8 August 2025.
  19. ^ "Film at the Mansion". The Doheny Mansion. Retrieved October 20, 2014.
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