Notre Dame De Namur University celebrating 100 years in Belmont

“We feel like we are turning a corner, and we view this year as a baseline,” Martin said. “We are very optimistic about our future.”

The college has gone through numerous changes in the past few years, including transitioning to a graduate program focused on nontraditional students with online and hybrid options following the proposed sale of the campus to Stanford University. While the in-person and hybrid programs typically bring in people within a 50-mile radius, its online program is opening new doors. The school recently started several new online programs that have drawn interest from around the country, including the Master of Arts Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Leadership program, aimed at training leaders to understand inequality, bias and social justice in organizations. The organization is also seeing increased international interest, particularly from India and Africa, in its MBA Management Science degree aimed at science, technology, engineering and mathematics to help train managers to deal with future needs in Silicon Valley and biotech.

The changes are part of a long history of adapting to the times since the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur moved to the Belmont campus Sept. 17, 1923, after leaving its old location in San Jose. The private Catholic college started with the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur teaching classes in Ralston Hall, the historic landmark on campus, with the high school building constructed five years later in 1928. The land itself was unincorporated, as the city of Belmont wasn’t formed until 1926. The college was originally founded in San Jose by Sister Marie Catherine, Sister Mary Cornelia and Sister Loyola, who hailed from Belgium.

Until the 1970s, sisters comprised most of the school’s faculty, maintaining a strong relationship with the public through education, including the 100th anniversary of Notre Dame High School and elementary school on campus. The Belmont college is known for being the first California university to grant the baccalaureate degree to women and welcomed peaceful protests against the Vietnam War and, recently, demonstrations in support of gun control. Martin said the Sisters have always focused on people living in poverty, particularly women and children. In the 1920s and ‘30s, the college was known for raising money to continue music and arts during the lean times of the Great Depression, with its mission continuing into the new century. Sept. 17 will mark 100 years of the Sisters practicing their education mission in Belmont.

“They have always embraced the community as essential partners,” Martin said.

Stanford has the option to purchase the campus by 2025, which includes Ralston Hall, Koret Field, NDNU theater and Cunningham Chapel. Not included in the agreement are Notre Dame High School-Belmont, Notre Dame Elementary School, Notre Dame Preschool and the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur Province Center. The schools operate separately but are also celebrating their 100th anniversary. Agreed in 2021, NDNU is calling the deal key to long-term financial and enrollment sustainability as it transitions.

“They have always been very forward thinking and being willing to tough it out through hard times,” Martin said.