St. Mary's Seminary is the first Roman Catholic seminary in the nation: rich in tradition while focused on priestly preparation for the 21st-century.
These pages provide information on the history, personnel, environment, and formation (in the Sulpician tradition) at St. Mary's.
The three pages in this section of our site touch on the very basics of the formation process.
A major part of priestly formation is intellectual formation, accomplished through the pursuit of academic degrees.
Desiring to assist in the strengthening of Hispanic ministry and recognizing the need for well-prepared priests dedicated in-part or in-full to this ministry, St. Mary’s Seminary and University has established a specialized track in Hispanic ministry.
St. Mary’s Propaedeutic Stage implements the vision of the Program for Priestly Formation (6th edition). It takes place in a revitalized and expanded structure on the historic grounds of the original St. Mary’s Seminary in downtown Baltimore. The McGivney House welcomes candidates from all dioceses and is not limited to candidates destined to enter St. Mary’s Seminary & University, but is the recommended program for those who will come to St. Mary’s.
St. Mary’s Ecumenical Institute (EI) was founded in 1968 by St. Mary’s Seminary & University, America’s oldest Roman Catholic seminary, in cooperation with ecumenical leaders. St. Mary’s is accredited by the Association of Theological Schools and by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools. The Ecumenical Institute encourages people of all denominations to explore theological studies in a serious, open-minded, and supportive environment. All EI programs are available wherever you are - on campus in Baltimore, and on-line.
The Ecumenical Institute invites people of all denominations into theological study that pursues excellence and promotes ecumenical understanding and respect. All EI programs are available wherever you are - on campus in Baltimore, and on-line.
St. Mary's Ecumenical Institute has a rolling admissions policy. Students may apply at any time for admission by submitting the appropriate materials.
The Ecumenical Institute offers accredited graduate theological programs for two master’s degrees, several graduate certificates, and introductory explorations.
The post-master’s Certificate of Advanced Studies in Theology (CAS) is designed for individuals who possess a master’s degree in theology (e.g., MAT.), ministry (e.g., MACM), divinity (e.g., MDiv), or a related field and who desire to continue their theological education with a general or focused program of study.
The Doctor of Ministry program roots ministry in the mission of God, the ways God is working in your context, in your ministry, and in you.
Students have a host of resources available to support their theological education, from free parking and a great library to writing assistance and advising.
St. Mary's Ecumenical Institute offers accredited graduate theological education that is intellectually rigorous, personally enriching, and professionally empowering.
More than 750 alums of St. Mary's Ecumenical Institute are making a difference in Baltimore, in Maryland and D.C., West Virginia and Pennsylvania, and around the world.
General communication and individual contacts
It is the mission of the Center for Continuing Formation to encourage bishops, priests, deacons, and lay ecclesial ministers to engage in human, spiritual, intellectual, and pastoral growth and to enable processes of growth that are ongoing, complete, systemic, and personalized.
Conference space rentals include a large room that will seat as many as 58 and smaller rooms that will seat from 4 to 30.
St. Mary's Center for Continuing Formation offers and hosts a variety of continuing formation programs for priests in the spirit of the Bishops' new Basic Plan for the Ongoing Formation of Priests.
St. Mary’s Seminary & University’s Pinkard Scholars is the cornerstone of Youth Theological Studies at SMSU.
For more information about any of our conference facilities or space rentals, please contact our offices directly.
The Marion Burk Knott Library of St. Mary’s Seminary and University is the largest specialized theological library in the Baltimore area, with additional materials in the areas of philosophy, psychology, pastoral counseling and church history, among others. The library receives over 390 periodicals and maintains a collection of 20,000 volumes of bound periodicals. Other holdings include newspapers, microfilm, and audio-visual materials.
The Associated Archives at St. Mary’s Seminary & University opened in the spring of 2002. Located on the campus of the nation’s first Roman Catholic seminary, this program brings together the archives of the Archdiocese of Baltimore (est. 1789), St. Mary’s Seminary & University (est. 1791), and the Associated Sulpicians of the United States (U.S. Province est. 1903), making it one of the most significant repositories for records relating to the early history of the Catholic Church in the United States.
Click here for more information about hours and visitor policies.
This section was created to provide researchers with a brief description of the open collections in the archives of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, St. Mary's Seminary & University, and the Associated Sulpicians of the United States.
The Associated Archives at St. Mary’s Seminary & University has developed a genealogical policy responsive to individuals researching their Catholic roots.
We facilitate personal integration of the human, spiritual, intellectual, and pastoral dimensions necessary for authentic priestly witness and service in the image of Jesus Christ.
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Baltimore, Maryland – February 15, 2024 – St. Mary’s Seminary and University (“St. Mary’s”) is writing to inform you of a recent data security incident that may have resulted in the disclosure of your personal information. While we are unaware of any fraudulent misuse of your personal information at this time, we are providing you with details about the event, steps we are taking in response, and resources available to help you protect yourself from the possibility of identity theft and fraud, should you feel it is appropriate to do so.
On December 31, 2023, St. Mary’s became aware of a suspicious activity on its network. Upon discovery of this incident, St. Mary’s immediately disconnected all access to the network and promptly engaged a specialized third-party cybersecurity firm and IT personnel to assist with securing the environment, as well as, to conduct a comprehensive forensic investigation to determine the nature and scope of the incident. While the forensic investigation remains ongoing, St. Mary’s found evidence to suggest some files were accessed by an unauthorized actor.
Based on these findings, St. Mary’s began reviewing the affected systems to identify the specific individuals and the types of information that may have been compromised. While this process remains ongoing, St. Mary’s will notify affected individuals by mail as the information becomes available.
Based on the investigation, the following information related to potentially impacted individuals may have been subject to unauthorized access: name; address; Social Security Number, financial account information; and date of birth. In addition, student identification number may have been accessed for those students who were potentially impacted. The potentially impacted information varies by individual.
At this time, we are not aware of your information being used in an unauthorized manner.
Data privacy and security is among St. Mary’s highest priorities, and we are committed to doing everything we can to protect the privacy and security of the personal information in our care. Upon discovery of the Incident, St. Mary’s moved quickly to investigate and respond to the Incident and assessed the security of its systems. Specifically, St. Mary’s engaged a specialized cybersecurity firm and IT personnel to conduct a forensic investigation to determine the nature and scope of the Incident. Additionally, St. Mary’s took the following steps, including, but not limited to: disconnecting all access to the network; reset credentials; installed SentinelOne and Huntress on all end points.
Affected individuals will be notified by mail with enrollment information. Depending on what information potentially impacted, we may also be providing affected individuals with complimentary credit monitoring and identity theft restoration services, as necessary.
We encourage you to remain vigilant against incidents of identity theft and fraud, to review your account statements, and to monitor your credit reports for suspicious or unauthorized activity. Additionally, security experts suggest that you contact your financial institution and all major credit bureaus to inform them of such a breach and then take whatever steps are recommended to protect your interests, including the possible placement of a fraud alert on your credit file. Please scroll down below to see Steps You Can Take to Help Protect Your Information, to learn more about how to protect against the possibility of information misuse.
We recognize that you may have questions not addressed in this notice. Please call the help line 1-800-405-6108 for additional information about this Incident. Representatives are available for 90 days from the date of this letter, to assist you with questions regarding this incident, between the hours of 8:00 am to 8:00 pm Eastern time, Monday through Friday, excluding U.S. holidays.
St. Mary’s apologizes and sincerely regrets any concern or inconvenience this matter may cause and remains dedicated to ensuring the privacy and security of all information in our control.
Sincerely,
Rev. Phillip J. Brown, P.S.S. President Rector St. Mary’s Seminary and University
Credit Reports: You may obtain a copy of your credit report, free of charge, whether or not you suspect any unauthorized activity on your account. You may obtain a free copy of your credit report from each of the three nationwide credit reporting agencies. To order your free credit report, please visit www.annualcreditreport.com, or call toll-free at 1-877-322-8228. You can also order your annual free credit report by mailing a completed Annual Credit Report Request Form (available at https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0155-free-credit-reports) to: Annual Credit Report Request Service, P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta, GA, 30348-5281.
Fraud Alerts: You can place fraud alerts with the three credit bureaus (below) by phone or online. A fraud alert tells creditors to follow certain procedures, including contacting you, before they open any new accounts or change your existing accounts. For that reason, placing a fraud alert can protect you, but also may delay you when you seek to obtain credit. As of September 21, 2018, initial fraud alerts last for one year. Victims of identity theft can also get an extended fraud alert for seven years.
P.O. Box 9554 Allen, TX 75013 1-888-397-3742
P.O. Box 2000 Chester, PA 19016 1-800-680-7289
P.O. Box 105069 Atlanta, GA 30348 1-888-525-6285
Monitoring: You should always remain vigilant and monitor your accounts for suspicious or unusual activity.
Security Freeze: You also have the right to place a security freeze on your credit report. A security freeze is intended to prevent credit, loans, and services from being approved in your name without your consent. To place a security freeze on your credit report, you need to make a request to each consumer reporting agency. You may make that request by certified mail, overnight mail, regular stamped mail, or by following the instructions found at the websites listed below. The following information must be included when requesting a security freeze (note that if you are requesting a credit report for your spouse or a minor under the age of 16, this information must be provided for him/her as well): (1) full name, with middle initial and any suffixes; (2) Social Security number; (3) date of birth; (4) current address and any previous addresses for the past five years; and (5) any applicable incident report or complaint with a law enforcement agency or the Registry of Motor Vehicles. The request must also include a copy of a government-issued identification card and a copy of a recent utility bill or bank or insurance statement. It is essential that each copy be legible, display your name and current mailing address, and the date of issue. As of September 21, 2018, it is free to place, lift, or remove a security freeze. You may also place a security freeze for children under the age of 16. You may obtain a free security freeze by contacting any one or more of the following national consumer reporting agencies listed below.
P.O. Box 160 Woodlyn, PA 19094 1-888-909-8872
P.O. Box 105788 Atlanta, GA 30348-5788 1-888-298-0045
File Police Report: You have the right to file or obtain a police report if you experience identity fraud. Please note that in order to file a crime report or incident report with law enforcement for identity theft, you will likely need to provide proof that you have been a victim. A police report is often required to dispute fraudulent items. You can generally report suspected incidents of identity theft to local law enforcement or to the Attorney General.
FTC and Attorneys General: You can further educate yourself regarding identity theft, fraud alerts, security freezes, and the steps you can take to protect yourself, by contacting the consumer reporting agencies, the Federal Trade Commission, or your state Attorney General. The Federal Trade Commission can be reached at: 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20580, www.identitytheft.gov, 1-877-ID-THEFT (1-877-438-4338), TTY: 1-866-653-4261. The Federal Trade Commission also encourages those who discover that their information has been misused to file a complaint with them. You can obtain further information on how to file such a complaint by way of the contact information listed above. Instances of known or suspected identity theft should also be reported to law enforcement.
For residents of Hawaii, Michigan, Missouri, North Carolina, Vermont, Virginia, and Wyoming: It is recommended by state law that you remain vigilant for incidents of fraud and identity theft by reviewing credit card account statements and monitoring your credit report for unauthorized activity.
For residents of Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Maryland, Missouri, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, and West Virginia: It is required by state laws to inform you that you may obtain a copy of your credit report, free of charge, whether or not you suspect any unauthorized activity on your account. You may obtain a free copy of your credit report from each of the three nationwide credit reporting agencies. To order your free credit report, please visit www.annualcreditreport.com, or call toll-free at 1-877-322-8228. You can also order your annual free credit report by mailing a completed Annual Credit Report Request Form (available at https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0155-free-credit-reports) to: Annual Credit Report Request Service, P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta, GA, 30348-5281.
For residents of Iowa: State law advises you to report any suspected identity theft to law enforcement or to the Attorney General.
For residents of New Mexico: State law advises you to review personal account statements and credit reports, as applicable, to detect errors resulting from the security breach.
For residents of Oregon: State law advises you to report any suspected identity theft to law enforcement, including the Attorney General, and the Federal Trade Commission.
For residents of District of Columbia, Illinois, Maryland, New York, North Carolina, and Rhode Island: You can obtain information from the Offices of the Attorney General and the Federal Trade Commission about fraud alerts, security freezes, and steps you can take toward preventing identity theft.
District of Columbia Office of the Attorney General – 400 6th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20001; 202-727-3400; www.oag.dc.gov Illinois office of the Attorney General – 100 West Randolph Street, Chicago, IL 60601; 1-866-999-5630; www.illinoisattorneygeneral.gov Maryland Office of the Attorney General – Consumer Protection Division: 200 St. Paul Place, 16th floor, Baltimore, MD 21202; 1-888-743-0023; www.oag.state.md.us New York Office of Attorney General – Consumer Frauds & Protection: The Capitol, Albany, NY 12224; 1-800-771-7755; https://ag.ny.gov/consumer-frauds/identity-theft North Carolina Office of the Attorney General – Consumer Protection Division: 9001 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699; 1-877-566-7226; www.ncdoj.com Rhode Island Office of the Attorney General – Consumer Protection: 150 South Main St., Providence RI 02903; 1-401-274-4400; www.riag.ri.gov Federal Trade Commission – Consumer Response Center: 600 Pennsylvania Ave, NW, Washington, DC 20580; 1-877-IDTHEFT (438-4338); www.identitytheft.gov
For residents of Massachusetts: It is required by state law that you are informed of your right to obtain a police report filed in regard to this incident. If you are the victim of identity theft, you also have the right to file a police report and obtain a copy of it.
For residents of Rhode Island: It is required by state law that you are informed of your right to file or obtain a police report in regard to this incident.