Foundational Values

As an institution of higher education in the Presbyterian tradition, we celebrate God through the use of our minds and the exercise of reason, believing that God is the source of all truth. “You shall love the Lord our God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37).

Our Christian and Reformed tradition embraces the liberal arts and the ongoing search for knowledge and truth as a way of liberating the human spirit and of understanding the world we share with others. University of Jamestown promotes education as a means to improve lives, search for vocation, and create lifelong seekers of truth and wisdom. We value the life of the mind and the life of the spirit and therefore hold that faith and reason reinforce each other and that through mind, heart, and hands one can honor God and serve humanity.

Historically, this strong belief that learning and the search for truth are closely connected to faith formed the basis for the Presbyterian Church’s early and significant commitment to higher education. As a result, prior to the Civil War, one-fourth of the colleges in the United States were Presbyterian. In 1883, when the Presbyterian Church extended its mission into the Dakota Territory’s frontier, University of Jamestown was founded in a newly incorporated city ninety miles west of Fargo.

University of Jamestown is a fully independent, self-governing institution that shares an historic relationship with the Presbyterian Church (USA). We are proudly non-sectarian and welcome students of all faiths and beliefs. Our Latin motto, “Lux et Veritas,” proclaims to all that the pursuit of truth lights our journey today as it has since 1883.