founded as a women's college in 1959 as Mary College. Our Lady of the Annunciation Chapel was consecrated in 1963 in the second phase of construction. As the school grew, it endeavored to preserve the spirit of Breuer's modernist prairie architecture while implementing new programs and new buildings by lesser-known architects.
=== Coeducation and university status ===
Mary College rapidly expanded and became fully co-educational in the 1960s. It achieved university status—becoming the University of Mary—in 1986. The University of Mary is North Dakota's only private Catholic university. It has been accredited by the Higher Learning Commission since 1969. Since its incorporation in 1959, the university's enrollment has grown from 69 to more than 3,800. Its undergraduate programs have grown from nursing and education to 65+ degrees, ranging from accounting to Catholic studies.
In 1986, the university began offering master's degrees in nursing, management, and education. It has added master's programs in business …
