Performing Arts Center Campus Map Giving COVID-19 Update Apply Visit Get Info Toggle search Menu MAIN NAV (SOKA) A PROUD HERITAGE About Home About A BRIEF HISTORY OF SOKA EDUCATION Soka (“to create value”) education has its origins in the work of Tsunesaburo Makiguchi, a Japanese educator and Buddhist leader. During World War II, Makiguchi was arrested as a “thought criminal” by Japanese military authorities for his opposition to the war and for his defense of religious freedom. He died in prison in 1944. The small education society that Makiguchi founded in 1930 has since grown to become one of the world’s largest lay Buddhist organizations. Soka schools range from kindergartens to the 8,800-student Soka University in Japan. These schools have established a tradition of humanistic learning and scholarship where the focus is on each student’s growth and development. What our world most requires now is the kind of education that fosters love for humankind, that develops character—that provides an intellectual basis for the realization of peace and empowers learners to contribute to and improve society. Daisaku Ikeda Founder of SUA TIMELINE OF SOKA UNIVERSITY OF AMERICA Expand All Collapse All 1987: Dedication of the First SUA Campus 1994: Graduate School Opens in Calabasas 1995: Site in Aliso Viejo Acquired for New Campus 2001: Aliso Viejo Campus Opens 2005: First Undergraduate Commencement and Accreditation 2007: Graduate School Transfers to Aliso Viejo 2009: Graduate School Adds New Concentration 2013: Graduate School Announces New MA Program LEARN MORE ABOUT SUA Mission and Values Explore the foundational elements that make Soka unique. Mascot, Songs, Logo Learn about the expressive elements that demonstrate Soka’s uniqueness. Our Founder Learn more about Daisaku Ikeda, whose vision inspired SUA’s creation. 1 University Drive, Aliso Viejo, CA 92656 949-480-4000 info@soka.edu Facebook Instagram Twitter YouTube Jobs Directory Contact Us Directions Consumer Disclosures Title IX Annual Security and Fire Safety (Clery Act) Report Covid-19 Update © 2021 Soka University All Rights Reserved Site Design by iFactory