Loras College
Coordinates: 42°30′10″N 90°40′53″W / 42.502805°N 90.681401°W
Motto |
Pro Deo Et Patria (For God and Country) |
---|---|
Type | Private University |
Established | 1839 |
Affiliation | Catholic Church |
Endowment | $24.3 million (2013)[1] |
President | James E. Collins |
Provost | Dr. Cheryl Jacobsen |
Administrative staff | 172 |
Students | 1,600[2] |
Address |
1450 Alta Vista St., Dubuque, Iowa, USA 42°30′09″N 90°40′52″W / 42.502592°N 90.680984°W |
Campus | Urban[3] |
Colors | Gold and Purple |
Nickname | Duhawks |
Mascot | Dewey the Duhawk |
Website |
www |
Loras College is a four-year Catholic college in Dubuque, Iowa, with an enrollment of approximately 1,600 students. The school offers both undergraduate and graduate degree programs. It is one of four four-year post-secondary institutions in the City of Dubuque and one of three Catholic colleges in the Archdiocese of Dubuque.
History
Loras College, a liberal arts college, was founded in 1839 by the Most Rev. Mathias Loras, first bishop of Dubuque, who established Saint Raphael's Seminary to educate young men for the priesthood with the expressed intention of also providing an opportunity for higher education to the citizens of the area. The college has functioned under several different names: Saint Raphael's Seminary and later Saint Raphael's Academy (1839-1850), Mount St. Bernard's College and Seminary (1850-1860), St. Joseph's College (1873-1914), Dubuque College (1914-1920), and Columbia College (1920-1939).[4] The present name was adopted during the school's centennial in 1939. That same year, the national Catholic honor society, Delta Epsilon Sigma was founded at the college, by Father Fitzgerald. From the time of its founding, the college has devoted its faculty and facilities to an undergraduate program; it conferred the Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees.
In 1963, when The Catholic University of America decided to discontinue its branch program of graduate study on the Loras campus, Loras College, realizing the growing need in the locale for study beyond the baccalaureate degree, initiated its Graduate Division offering the Master of Arts degree in some fields.
The College became coeducational in the fall of 1971. In 1973, the Associate of Arts and the Associate of Science degrees were introduced. The Division of Community Education was initiated in 1975.
Both the Undergraduate College and the Graduate Division of Loras College are accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. The teacher education program, both at the graduate and undergraduate level, is accredited by the Iowa Department of Education. The undergraduate teacher education program is also accredited by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education. The American Chemical Society has approved the undergraduate chemistry program. Loras College is also approved by the Association of American Universities and New York Board of Regents. The Council of Social Work Education has accredited the social work major at the baccalaureate level.
Academics
Loras offers forty-nine majors, eleven stand-alone minors, and nine pre-professional programs for undergraduates. Undergraduates can also participate in summer classes, internships, field experience, study abroad, and much more.
For graduate programs, Loras offers a Master of Arts in Clinical or General Psychology, School Cunseling, Education STEM, and a Masters of Business Administration in Business Analytics.[5]
Athletics
Loras’ athletic teams are known as the Duhawks, a name bestowed upon the football team by a Detroit Free Press scribe in 1924 converging Dubuque and Hawks. The school fields 23 men’s and women’s varsity teams in the NCAA Division III. They are a member of the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC), Midwest Women's Lacrosse Conference (MWLC), and the Midwest Collegiate Volleyball League (MCVL). Loras’ colors are Purple, Rah Rah Gold, and Metallic Gold. The men's soccer team has advanced to the NCAA Division III Final Four five times since 2007, and once to the NCAA Division III Championship game in 2015. Denise Udelhofen ('90) serves as the Director of Athletics for the Duhawks and is assisted by head men's soccer coach and Director of Soccer Operations, Dan Rothert ('96). Jim Naprstek ('13) serves as the Director of Athletic Communications for the Duhawks after his hiring in March 2014.
Sport | Season | Facilities | Head Coach | Asst. Coach |
---|---|---|---|---|
Baseball | Spring | Petrakis Park | Carl Tebon | Nathan Roling Nick Kirk Don Pirkle |
Men's Basketball | Winter | AWC/Lillis Court | Chris Martin | |
Women's Basketball | Winter | AWC/Lillis Court | Justin Heinzen | Jamie Majerowicz Carrie Kennedy |
Men's Golf | Fall Spring | The Meadows Thunder Hills | Buddy Sodemann | |
Women's Golf | Fall Spring | The Meadows Thunder Hills | Jamie Majerowicz | |
Cross Country | Fall | Dubuque Soccer Complex | Bob Schultz | Matt Jones Dan McDermott Katie McDermott |
Football | Fall | Rock Bowl/Biere Field | Steve Helminiak | Jake Olsen Josh Edwards Michael Gainey David Zoeckler Nic Lloyd BJ Main Nick Holeton Tim Connelly Bob Bucko |
Men's Soccer | Fall | Rock Bowl/Biere Field | Dan Rothert | Matt Pucci Justin McCord Jon Denham |
Women's Soccer | Fall | Rock Bowl/Biere Field | Matt Pucci | Dan Rothert Jon Denham Lynn DeVriese Dani Dodds |
Women's Lacrosse | Spring | Rock Bowl/Biere Field | Emily Goetz | Judy Spencer |
Softball | Spring | Faber-Clark Field | Ashley Winter | Rachael Rogers |
Swimming & Diving | Winter | San Jose Pool | Ben Gill | Ann Foust |
Men's Tennis | Fall Spring | AWC Tennis Courts | Chad Fenwick | |
Women's Tennis | Fall Spring | AWC Tennis Courts | Chad Fenwick | |
Track & Field | Winter Spring | Graber Sports Center Rock Bowl | Matt Jones | Bob Schultz Jesse Ernst Sean Campbell Paul Wagner Dan McDermott Katie McDermott |
Men's Volleyball | Spring | AWC/Lillis Court | Jeremy Thornburg | Jenna Ness Jenna Sullivan Kyle Hunzeker |
Women's Volleyball | Fall | AWC/Lillis Court | Jenna Ness | Jeremy Thornburg |
Wrestling | Winter | AWC/Lillis Court | Randy Steward | TJ Miller Rick Healey Jay Figgins Mark Schultz |
Campus
Loras sits on a 65-acre (260,000 m2) campus located atop several hills in Dubuque. The grounds are bounded by Loras Boulevard on the south, Kirkwood Street on the north, Henion Street on the east, and Alta Vista Street on the west. The campus is surrounded by residential neighborhoods on all sides, some of which are among the most historic in the city. The college consists of 23 buildings, 2 athletic fields, a stadium, and 5 tennis courts. Because of its high location, several of the buildings provide excellent views of Downtown Dubuque and the Mississippi River.
Some of the more notable buildings include:
- Athletic Wellness Center: Built in 2007–2008, the athletic wellness center provides a home to the men's and women's basketball teams as well as the women's volleyball team and men's wrestling. In addition, a cardio-vascular center, upgraded weight room and training room, as well as state-of-the-art locker rooms makes the 'AWC' a great improvement from "The Fieldhouse."
- Academic Resource Center: The ARC is home to the campus' main library, including some 355,000 items. The building also includes the bookstore, and other academic uses.
- Alumni Campus Center: At the center of campus, the Alumni Campus Center is a multi-function building, and includes the student union, dining hall, and meeting rooms.
- Christ the King Chapel: The main chapel on campus, at which is held daily Mass, Thursday night Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament and Reconciliation, and Mass Sunday night with student lectors, cantors, musicians, extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion, greeters, acolytes, and sacristans. The building connects to Keane Hall via a skywalk between the two buildings.
- Hoffmann Hall: Hoffmann Hall is Loras' oldest building, established in 1909. It includes a tall clock tower, and houses various academic uses, a beautiful pre-Vatican II architectural-themed chapel named St. Joseph's, along with an auditorium. The auditorium is the home of the Loras Players, the oldest continually running theater group west of the Mississippi River. The stage in the auditorium features a turntable.
- Keane Hall: Keane Hall is the most visible building on campus, sitting at the peak of one of the highest hills in the city. Designed by celebrated architect Emmanuel Louis Masqueray, the building is multi-use, and includes administrative offices, academics, and faculty offices.
- Lynch McCarthy Apartment Complex: Commonly referred to as LMAC, or LitMAC on account of the parties thrown on the patio that over looks much of Dubuque, this complex is the newest residence hall on campus. It is a 19 unit facility with 4 residents per apartment. It is located in lower campus near Binz Hall.
- The Visitation Complex: The Visitation is a former convent that now houses the school's classes in art and music. Gallagher Hall is where most recitals take place, and the building houses an art museum and practice space for musicians. It also is a residence hall, the south side for male students.
Expansion
The college has been expanded over the years. The Alumni Campus Center was built in 1992, and added a new library in 2001. The Academic Resource Center contains a collection of approximately 355,000 items and 11,000 magazine subscriptions. In addition to its broad general collection, the library contains a rich heritage in its special collections of rare books, as well as the photographs and manuscripts in the Center for Dubuque History located in the lower level of the library. The library is also an official document depository for both the United States government and the state of Iowa. The previous library, Wahlert Memorial Library, was remodeled into classroom space.
The college has purchased Cox Street which runs through campus from the city of Dubuque for $50,000. The school has since shut the street down and replaced it with a pedestrian friendly walk way to improve pedestrian safety and help upgrade the area aesthetically. In 2015, a school spirit shop, The Duhawk Shop, and Einstein Bros. Bagels opened at the corner of Loras Boulevard and the new Loras Parkway.
Alumni and faculty
Notable graduates and faculty of Loras College include:
- Don Ameche, film actor, known to have attended during the 1920s.
- Bill Bartmann (class of 1972), CEO of CFS2 and Nobel Peace Prize nominee for 2014
- Rod Blum (class of 1977), current U.S. congressman from Iowa's 1st District, 2015–present
- Red Faber, Hall of Fame baseball pitcher, attended Loras in 1909. Faber set a college record by striking out 24 St. Ambrose University batters in a 1909 game before moving on to a 20-year Major League career with the Chicago White Sox. Faber-Clark Field on Loras’ lower campus bears his name today.
- Matthew Fox -- Creation Spirituality founder attended Loras in 1958. He was eventually ordained as a Dominican priest but then silenced for a year (forbidden to teach theology) by Cardinal Ratzinger (later Pope Benedict XVI) of the Holy See in 1988. In 1993, he was expelled from the Dominican order and effectively from the Catholic Church at the order of Cardinal Ratzinger. In 1994, he became an Episcopal priest.
- Greg Gumbel (class of 1967), CBS sportscaster
- George Guthridge, award-winning speculative fiction author; taught English at Loras and brought George R. R. Martin to nearby Clarke College
- Chris Jans (class of 1991) Former head coach of the Bowling Green Falcons men's basketball team
- Pam Jochum (class of 1992), Iowa State Senator and first woman to hold the title of Senate President
- Darin LaHood (class of 1990), current U.S. congressman from Illinois's 18th District, 2015–present
- Javier Manzano (class of 1998), freelance photographer, who received the Public Photo Prize Award at the 20th edition of the Bayeux Calvados Awards held in Bayeux, France. In 2013, he received the Pulitzer Prize for feature photography for his photo of two rebel soldiers guarding their sniper's nest in Aleppo, Syria.
- Michael M. Mihm (class of 1964), US District Court Judge for the Central District of Illinois.
- Robert W. Pratt (class of 1969), District Judge for the United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa[6]
- John Joseph Paul (class of 1939), Roman Catholic Bishop of the Diocese of La Crosse.
- David Rabe (class of 1962), playwright and screenwriter.
- Justin Giacotto (class of 2016), Master of Ticket Sales Domination, Semi Professional YSC Thursday Night Soccer Player, Trivia Aficionado
- Jim Romagna (class of 1992) Professional body builder and fitness model; contributor to various fitness magazines
- Raymond Roseliep (class of 1939), American poet famous for haiku.
- Father Aloysius Schmitt, one of those killed on board the USS Oklahoma during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941.
- Dennis Schmitz, contemporary American poet.
- Thomas P. Sullivan (class of 1951), former U.S. Attorney under President Jimmy Carter; has received numerous awards and recognitions as one of the best trial lawyers in the United States and in the State of Illinois
- Thomas Tauke ( class of 1972), US congressman from Iowa, 1979–1991.
See also
References
- ↑
- ↑
- ↑ U.S. Department of Education (2010). "College Navigator". Retrieved April 26, 2010.
- ↑ Encyclopedia Dubuque. COLLEGE "COLUMBIA COLLEGE" Check
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value (help). Retrieved July 25, 2014. - ↑ "Majors and Programs". Loras College. Loras College.
- ↑ "Biographical Directory of Federal JudgesPratt, Robert W.publisher= Federal Judicial Center". Retrieved September 2, 2012.
External links
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