Providence University was founded by an American congregation, the
Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods (
Indiana,
United States). In the summer of 1919, Bishop Joseph Tacconi of
Kaifeng,
Henan Province, Republic of
China, met with Sisters of Providence
general superior Mother
Mary Cleophas Foley to request sisters for a school for young women in Kaifeng. In 1921 Mother Marie Gratia Luking (1885–1964) and five other Sisters of Providence founded the Hua-Mei Girls' Elementary and High Schools there, one of the first schools for girls in China. In the spring of 1929, the school was forced to close because of political turbulence. The Providence Sisters, enthusiastic about
female education, endeavored to establish another school in spite of the critical situation. In 1932, by the effort of the Board of Trustees, Ching-Yi Girls' High School was instituted in Kaifeng. Cardinal
Paul Yü Pin was the first chairperson of the Board of Trustees, and Chi-Liang Ing was the first president of the school. In 1942, Mother Gratia and the other sisters were imprisoned and did not regain their freedom until 1945. In 1948, the
Chinese Civil War forced the sisters to retreat first to Shanghai and later to Taiwan. In July 1989, it was renamed the "Providence University for Women". In 1993, it assumed its current name "Providence University", and began to enroll male students. == Successive principals ==