“The College & Academy Building”, Aoyama Gakuin, c. 1920.

“Aoyama Gakuin University is part of a comprehensive educational institute called Aoyama Gakuin, which includes a kindergarten, an elementary school, junior and senior high schools, and a women’s junior college.

“Its history dates from October 1874, when missionaries (Dora E. Schoonmaker, Robert Samuel Maclay, Julius Soper) from the Methodist Episcopal Church of the United States established three schools. Canadian Methodist missionary Davidson MacDonald played a role in the establishment of Aoyama Gakuin, and his contribution to the improvement of Japan’s educational system is considered an important episode in the early history of Japanese-Canadian relations.

“For the Academic Year 2003 (as of May 1, 2003), the undergraduate student population at AGU is approximately 19,372. The university has graduated around 155,219 students in all. Aoyama Gakuin University is accredited by the Japanese University Association and is a member of the Japan Association of Private College and Universities.”