The College of Mount St. Joseph was established by the Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati, a religious congregation that traces its roots to Elizabeth Ann Bayley Seton, North America’s first canonized saint. The first Sisters of Charity arrived in Cincinnati from Maryland in 1829 and opened St. Peter’s Academy, then St. Mary’s Academy. By 1853, these schools were replaced by Mount St. Vincent Academy. In 1906 the academy was named Mount St. Joseph after a move to the Mount St. Joseph property in Cincinnati’s Delhi Township, owned by the Sisters of Charity.
Mount St. Joseph Academy offered a four-year high school curriculum but also postgraduate study covering two years of college. In 1920, the Ohio Department of Education granted formal approval for a college curriculum. The College of Mount St. Joseph opened the doors to its first 20 students in September 1920 as the first Catholic college for women in Southwestern Ohio – the same year that American women gained the right to vote.
Within a few years, new construction was underway to accommodate a growing enrollment. By the 1950s, the Sisters of Charity made plans to develop property at the intersection of Delhi and Neeb Roads into a new campus that opened in fall of 1962. By the 1970s, adult education brought a new population of women and men to campus for degree studies, and by 1986, the College was formally declared coeducational. The Sisters of Charity continued to operate the College until 1972 when the Mount was incorporated under a Board of Trustees. The College remains a sponsored ministry of the Sisters of Charity.
In the 21st century, the College of Mount St. Joseph serves a diverse coeducational student population of undergraduate and graduate students. A Mount education is based on an interdisciplinary liberal arts and professional curricula emphasizing values, integrity and social responsibility. To support a student’s academic success, the Mount is a completely wireless campus with smaller class sizes to promote student/faculty interaction. Cooperative Education provides career experience in all of the undergraduate majors, and Service Learning involves students in community and cultural immersion experiences. With an emphasis on personal development and spiritual growth, the College provides a full range of student activities and services, including athletics, campus ministry, leadership programs, marching band, multicultural development, and wellness and fitness services.
The Mount today is nationally recognized for character development (Templeton Honor Roll of 100 Colleges), career preparation (Great Colleges for the Real World), and innovative technology (EDUCAUSE higher education award).