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This project investigates the history of St Mary’s University which, in 2025, is celebrating its 175th anniversary.

Through carrying out several pieces of research and dissemination, the project aims to share the unique history of this institution with a wide audience. Archival research in St Mary’s own archives, as well as those of the Association of Religious in Education, is being undertaken and the team are also conducting oral history interviews with past staff and students while engaging current students with the university’s history. The research will contribute to the anniversary heritage initiatives in 2025, including work on a pop-up exhibition.

You are currently on a landing page for the project. Here you can find out more about our work and people. We will publish additional information here during the course of our activities. 

Books in a boxAbout

‘The history and heritage of St Mary’s University: from Catholic teacher education institution to Catholic university, a future in retrospect’ is a project within The Centre for Catholic Education, Research and Religious Literacy (CERRL) funded jointly by CERRL and UKRI. The project initially runs between February and July 2024, and we are actively seeking extension funding to expand our activities into St Mary’s anniversary year.

The project has four key elements:

  • A systematic search and analysis of the university’s archival holdings, and the newly acquired Association for Religious in Education (ARE) archive, to map the changing shape of Catholic education (higher and school) over time.
  • Collection and analysis of an oral history of the university’s former students and staff.
  • Work with existing students in engaging with key sources in the archive, with a view towards creating a permanent deposit of present-day students’ reflections upon their experiences of St Mary’s.
  • Working towards the selection of appropriate sources for a stand-alone and a ‘pop-up exhibition’.

People

Stephen Parker

Stephen is Director of CERRL and Professor of Education and Religious History. He joined St Mary’s in May 2023 from the University of Worcester, where he was Professor of the History of Religion and Education, a long-serving research lead, and, formerly, Head of Postgraduate Studies in Education. Prior to this, Stephen has taught across sectors of education, from primary to sixth form, as well as being a Diocesan RE Adviser and lecturer in Theology and Religious Studies at the University of Chester. Stephen is the Principal Investigator on the project.

Anna Cusack

Anna’s background is varied, and she began her career in the heritage industry and worked at various museums and galleries across London. She has worked as a freelance historian since finishing her PhD and is a sessional lecturer for the University of Oxford’s Department for Continuing Education and has held fixed-term teaching posts at the Universities of Essex and Canterbury Christ Church. Anna is one of the Research Fellows on the project.

Joe Saunders

Joe is currently working toward a PhD at the University of York. He works as a freelance historian and is a tutor at two adult learning organisations. Joe is passionate about family and local history, is the current vice-chair of the British Association for Local History and sits on the Editorial Board of The Historian, the magazine of the Historical Association. Joe is one of the Research Fellows on the project.

Contact

If you are interested in finding out more about this project or believe you might be able to contribute, please get in touch with one or both of the project’s Research Fellows.

Anna Cusack: anna.cusack@stmarys.ac.uk

Joe Saunders: joe.saunders@stmarys.ac.uk