A History of Eastern Mennonite University

The humble beginnings of EMU in 1917 came on the heels of America's first real encounter with modern warfare as the U.S. entered World War I. It seems an odd time for pacifist Mennonites who celebrate peacebuilding to be launching a new venture, but it is a moving counterpoint in an era of violence abroad.

Humble Beginnings

Eastern Mennonite School, as it was first called, began as a Bible academy that has grown into a fully accredited university with over 1,400 students in the undergraduate, seminary and graduate programs.

EMU was founded to provide a place for young men and women of the Mennonite Church to deepen their biblical faith, study the liberal arts and gain specific skills in a variety of professions.

That tri-part objective has remained central to the purpose of the university, and its history is the story of an everbroadening curriculum and program. In 1930 the university was accredited by the Virginia Board of Education as a junior college.

Seventeen years later, in 1947, a four-year degree program was approved by the state of Virginia, and the school received regional accreditation by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools in 1959.

In 1948 Willis Johnson, a local African American, enrolled, making EMU one of the first Southern universities to admit a black student. Peggy Webb became the first African American graduate of EMU in 1954.

 

Seminary and Grad Programs Formed

By 1965 a graduate theological school had evolved. Eastern Mennonite Seminary, which seeks to prepare persons for Christian ministry–especially in the local congregation–offers an intensive, well-rounded program of biblical, theological, historical and practical studies.

During the early 1960s, the university instituted a unique interdisciplinary core curriculum, Christianity and Civilization. That program has evolved into a 49-semester-hour core curriculum entitled the Global Village Curriculum which is not only interdisciplinary but also cross-cultural in its focus.

The first graduate program (other than seminary)–counseling–began in 1993. It was followed by two others in the next two years–conflict transformation and education. An adult degree completion program was established in 1994. A distinctive MBA program began in the fall of 1999.

Becoming a University

The school's name was changed from "college and seminary" to "university" in August 1994.

Biblical studies, liberal arts, graduate programs and professional training– EMU is still evolving, but its roots reach deep into Mennonite heritage which takes history seriously and reveres humble service guided by faith and knowledge.