HISTORY OF NOTRE DAME UNIVERSITY
(1948-2020)
The Congregation of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate came to the Philippines on 
September 25, 1939 upon the invitation of Bishop Luis del Rosario, S.J. of Zamboanga. Taking over from the Jesuits, the Oblates continued the evangelization of the Empire Province of Cotabato and the Sulu-Tawi-Tawi group of islands. With fidelity to the Christian faith, they sought to win friends and allies among the Christian, Muslim and Indigenous People populace in the heart of Morolandia.
The Pacific War in 1941 interrupted the Oblate Mission in Mindanao. Some Oblates were taken as prisoners and incarcerated at the University of Santo Tomas by the Japanese. After the war, the Oblates returned to their mission stations in Cotabato and Sulu. Although faced with the gargantuan task of reconstruction and rehabilitation, they were undaunted. They forged ahead pursuing their mission with greater zeal, vigor and vitality in the spirit of their founder, St. Eugene de Mazenod.
The Oblates established the Notre Dame College (now Notre Dame University) in 1948. It was the first college founded in Cotabato City and the entire Empire Province of Cotabato, a vast territory comprising the present-day provinces of North Cotabato, South Cotabato, Sarangani, Maguindanao and Sultan Kudarat and the cities of Cotabato, Kidapawan, Tacurong, Koronadal, and General Santos. Although primarily established as a teacher training institution, it offered courses in Liberal Arts, Commerce and Elementary Education, the most basic courses needed in the context.