Efforts for the establishment of a university date back to the late pre-revolution period. At that time, prominent Epirot intellectuals had ventured to establish university schools in the region. Following the foundation of the Society for Epirot Studies (1954), the request for the establishment of a Higher Education Institution, which would affirm Epirus’ cultural background and would promote the city of Ioannina and the wider region in every aspect, held strong. In 1962, a Central Committee for the Foundation of a University in Ioannina was established in Athens. Its sole purpose was to effectively assert and broadly promote the Epirots’ fair request for the foundation of a third University or independent post-educational theoretical or technical schools in Ioannina. In 1964, an educational reform changed the organization and administration of schools. Under this reform, the establishment of a Department of the School of Philosophy in Ioannina, as a branch of the same School of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki was announced in the daily press on 8 May 1964. The Department was founded under Royal Decree 735/64 and opened in 1964-65 academic year with two hundred students. It was initially housed in the old building of the Zosimaia School of Ioannina. The first faculty members had to run the Department themselves, which was a hard task that entailed great responsibility. In the second 1965-66 academic year, the Department moved to the new teaching building that was intended to house the Technical School of Ioannina. Georgios Mylonas, the then Alternate Minister for Presidency, worked towards the relocation of the Department and promoted the development and establishment of a campus in the Dourouti monastery region. The University of Ioannina is a large Higher Education Institution which has been at the forefront of teaching and research in Greece for over 50 years. The wide spectrum of educational activities, the top-ranking faculty members, the infrastructure of the Departments and research teams, have positioned our University amidst the top universities achieving national, European and international excellence. Over the last years, due to the establishment of new Departments, the University of Ioannina has almost doubled its size (it numbers 11 Schools and 26 Departments), and its growth potential looks very promising.
Efforts for the establishment of a university date back to the late pre-revolution period. At that time, prominent Epirot intellectuals had ventured to establish university schools in the region. Following the foundation of the Society for Epirot Studies (1954), the request for the establishment of a Higher Education Institution, which would affirm Epirus’ cultural background and would promote the city of Ioannina and the wider region in every aspect, held strong.