Pittsburgh Institute of Mortuary Science Inc

The Pittsburgh Institute of Mortuary Science has been providing training for students entering funeral service for over seventy years. When first established in 1939, the new training institute was known as the Pittsburgh School of Embalming. The co-founders included three educators, Dr. Otto S. Margolis and Professor John Rebol formerly affiliated with the Cleveland School of Embalming, and Dr. Emory S. James, Instructor in the Anatomy Department of the Ohio State Medical School in Columbus, Ohio.

The inaugural class of sixty students enrolled for a nine-month curriculum September 18, 1939 and graduated June 23, 1940. The excellent dedication and cooperation of the students, which still exists today, resulted in outstanding academic achievement as well as the completion of several traditional projects for the new school. These endeavors included the development of the logo or school seal, school motto, and the Alma Mater. The Motto, "Scientia, Sollertia, Servitium," translated from Latin means, "Knowledge, Skills, Service," which expresses in part the objectives of the Institute. The lyrics of the Alma Mater were written by a student, Geraldine K. Johnson from Berlin, Pennsylvania, and the music was composed by her uncle, Alfred H. Johnson, a member of the faculty.

The many modifications in the mortuary science curriculum, as well as the broader objective and increased responsibilities justified the change of the name from the Pittsburgh School of Embalming to the Pittsburgh Institute of Mortuary Science in 1945. The Pittsburgh Institute remained as a private educational institution.

On the weekend of August 19-20, 1989, the Pittsburgh Institute of Mortuary Science moved its facilities from its original site to 5808 Baum Boulevard, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in the Shadyside area of the city. The new location remains within easy access of the various cultural opportunities which Pittsburgh presents. The move has resulted in greatly expanded space which allowed for larger classrooms and library facilities, contemporarily designed state-of-the-art preparation room and restorative art laboratory, model casket selection room and funeral merchandise center and computer laboratory.
As Pittsburgh Institute entered the new millennium, a new initiative to reach out to the non-traditional student was announced. PIMS would be offering its core Diploma program "at a distance." Internet. The first class of PIMS OnLine is admitted for classes starting January 29, 2001.
Change is no stranger to Pittsburgh Institute of Mortuary Science as it continues into the twenty-first century updating its services to its public and to the field of funeral service. It continues to remain a model for other funeral service education programs to follow.