History

On July 2, 1954, David O. McKay, ninth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, announced the establishment of a college in Hawaii, fulfilling what he had envisioned 33 years earlier. At that time, as an apostle for the Church, he witnessed a flag-raising ceremony put on by children of the Church-sponsored elementary school in Laie and foresaw an institution of higher learning in this small community.

On February 12, 1955, President McKay presided at a groundbreaking ceremony attended by more than 1,000 Church members and guests that marked the beginning of what it is today, Brigham Young University–Hawaii.

Now in its seventh decade, BYU–Hawaii's unique history combines solid moral roots, a prophetic destiny, and interwoven cultures with legacies of evolving academics.