Marymount Institute

The Marymount Institute for Faith, Culture, & the Arts was founded in 1991, endowed by the Leavey Foundation to preserve the legacy and contributions of the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary (RSHM). The Institute attends to the relationship between different faiths, cultures, and the arts, challenging faculty and students to think in creative and holistic ways about human knowledge.‌

The Marymount tradition begain in Béziers, France, where the first community of the RSHM gathered on Feb 24, 1849. The community focused on the development of the human person in society. The RSHM became involved in the education of women as a powerful means of transforming society. 

The RSHM came to Los Angeles at the request of Bishop Cantwell in 1923 to “train Catholics in their faith and in the principles of social justice.” In 1973 Loyola University and Marymount College merged. The Marymount Institute is designed to strengthen the contribution of the Marymount tradition to the LMU community.