Opus College of Business Records

Business courses have been part of the St. Thomas curriculum since 1888. One- and two-year commercial courses first appeared in the undergraduate catalog in 1899, offering instruction in bookkeeping, penmanship, typewriting, business arithmetic, and commercial law. These programs were formally organized under the Department of Commerce in 1913. In 1922, the School of Commerce was established and began offering a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in Business. A night school program, open to both men and women—“anyone who wanted to develop mentally”—was introduced in 1923. Despite having a balanced enrollment of men and women, the program was discontinued after three years due to financial constraints.

The first Master of Business Administration (MBA) program was launched in 1974 under the Graduate Programs in Management. As graduate business offerings expanded, the Graduate School of Business was created in 1990 to oversee these programs. In 2001, the management of undergraduate and graduate business programs was consolidated into the College of Business. Five years later, in 2006, the college was renamed the Opus College of Business in honor of St. Thomas alumnus and trustee Gerald Rauenhorst and the Opus Corporation, which he founded.