Xavier University of Louisiana

Xavier University of Louisiana (also known as XULA) is a private, historically black, Roman Catholic university in New Orleans, Louisiana. It is the only Catholic HBCU and, upon the canonization of Katharine Drexel in 2000, became the first Catholic university founded by a saint.

Xavier University of Louisiana

Motto	Deo Adjuvante Non Timendum (Latin)
Motto in English	With God's help there is nothing to fear
Type	Private historically black university
Established	October 6, 1925
Founder	St. Katharine Drexel
Religious affiliation	Roman Catholic (Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament)
Academic affiliations	ACCU, UNCF, Space-grant
Endowment	$171 million (2018)[1]
Chairman	Sonia Perez
President	Dr. C. Reynold Verret
Provost	Dr. Anne McCall
Students	3,231 (Fall 2018)[2]
Location	New Orleans , Louisiana , United States 29°57′55″N 90°06′25″W
Campus	Urban
Colors	Gold   and   White
Nickname	Gold Rush and Gold Nuggets
Sporting affiliations	NAIA – GCAC
Sports	9 varsity teams (4 men's & 5 women's)
Website	www.xula.edu

History

In 1915, Katharine Drexel and the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament established a coeducational high school in New Orleans. Ten years later, it was expanded with a College of Liberal Arts & Sciences to become the Xavier University of Louisiana on October 6, 1925.[3]

Drexel, supported by the interest of a substantial inheritance from her father, banker-financier Francis Drexel, founded and staffed many institutions throughout the United States in an effort to help educate Native Americans and African Americans.

Aware of the lack of Catholic education available to young black people in the South, Katharine Drexel came to New Orleans and established a high school. The site was previously occupied by Southern University, which had moved to Baton Rouge, Louisiana after an influx of white neighbors petitioned for its relocation. Drexel purchased the property through an agent, but vandals smashed all the building's windows after learning of Drexel's intent.[4]

The high school, now known as Xavier University Preparatory School, opened on 27 September 1915[5] and was named after Francis Xavier.[6] Also known as Xavier Prep, it remained in operation until 2013; today, St. Katharine Drexel Preparatory School operates from the same location on Magazine Street in New Orleans.

In 1917 the school was expanded to include a normal school both to provide training for black teachers and because Archbishop James Blenk was eager for graduates to teach six new black parishes that were planned.[6] In 1925, Xavier University of Louisiana came into being when the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences was established. The first degrees were awarded three years later. The College of Pharmacy was opened two years later in 1927. By 1922, the school was described, using the name "Xavier University," as the only Catholic institution in the United States that offered "a full four years' high school course to colored boys."[7] While this may not be true, Xavier University was certainly by far the most prominent Catholic institution offering such educational opportunities at the time.[8]

Recognizing the university's need for a separate identity and room to expand, Drexel bought a tract of undeveloped land for a campus on the corner of Palmetto and Pine Streets in 1929. To avoid blockage of the deal, Drexel again purchased the property through an agent.

As of 2021, of the 251 Roman Catholic Colleges and Universities operating in the United States and the 107 schools recognized as "Historically Black Colleges and Universities", Xavier University of Louisiana remains the first and only institution to be both.[9]

Construction of the U-shaped, Gothic Revival-style Main Building, Convent and Library, made from Indiana limestone and now on the National Register of Historic Places, were completed between 1932 and 1937.[10] The Administration building is also a City of New Orleans landmark.[11]

In 2018, Xavier had an endowment of approximately $171 million, which is the fourth highest among Louisiana's colleges and universities.[12]

In 2020, Xavier received $20 million from philanthropist MacKenzie Scott, the largest single gift in the university's history.[13]

Campus construction

Through the years, as needs dictated, the campus gradually expanded:

• Administration Building (1933)
• Old Library, now music department (1937)
• Gymnasium (1937)
• Saint Michael's Hall men's dorm (1955)
• Old Student Center (1962)
• Saint Joseph's Hall women's dorm (1965)
• House of Studies (1967)
• Saint Katharine Drexel Hall women's dorm (1969)
• College of Pharmacy (1970)
• Norman C. Francis Academic/Science Complex (1988)
• Xavier South office building purchased (1990)
• Library/Resource Center and College of Pharmacy Addition (1993)
• Peter Claver women's dorm (1994)
• Norman C. Francis Science Complex addition (1998)
• The Living Learning Center upperclassmen coed residence (1998)
• University Student Center (2003)
• St. Martin de Porres upperclassmen residence (2003)
• Qatar Pharmacy Pavilion (2010)
• Convocation Academic Center (2012)
• Saint Katharine Drexel Chapel (2012)
• Fitness Center (2015)

The campus of Xavier University of Louisiana is often referred to as "Emerald City" due to the various buildings on campus that have green roofs. These include the Library/Resource center, the Norman C. Francis science addition, the University Center, the Living Learning Center, the Saint Martin De Porres hall and the Katharine Drexel hall.

The Blessed Sacrament Sisters remain a vital presence on campus, providing much-needed staffing and some financial assistance, but today Xavier is governed by a multicultural Board of Trustees. In 1987, Pope John Paul II addressed the presidents of all U.S. Catholic colleges from the courtyard of the Xavier administration building. Norman C. Francis retired in 2015, after 47 years as president of the university.

United States civil rights movement

In May 1961, a group of Freedom Riders, anti-racial segregation civil rights activists, arrived in New Orleans by plane after bus drivers in Alabama refused to take them to Montgomery, Alabama. Locals, aware of the fire bombings and other attacks against other Freedom Riders, refused to accommodate them with lodging out of fear of retaliatory violence. Norman C. Francis, then the university's Dean of Men, secretly arranged for the group to stay several days in a dormitory on campus. Francis received permission from University President Sister Mary Josephina to allow the group to occupy space on the third floor of St. Michael's Hall under the condition that the press would not be alerted as to the move.

Hurricane Katrina

Hurricane Katrina made landfall in August 2005, striking the New Orleans area. Xavier, located in the lower-lying Gert Town section and adjacent to the Washington-Palmetto Canal,[14] suffered damage to almost every structure on campus. Many buildings sat partially submerged for extended periods of time following the hurricane. University president Norman Francis organized boats and buses to transport stranded faculty, staff, and students from the campus to safe areas.[15] Students began returning to the university in January 2006.[16]

• 
  Limestone facade
• 
  Katrina, 2005
• 
  Xavier, across canal
• 
  Library
• 
  Qatar Pharmacy Pavilion

In April 2006, the nation of Qatar donated $17.5 million to assist the university in hurricane recovery and in expanding the school's College of Pharmacy.[17] The groundbreaking ceremony in 2008 was attended by Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, leader of Qatar, and on 15 October 2010 the school's Qatar Pharmacy Pavilion opened, adding 60,000 square feet (5,600 m²) adjacent to the existing College of Pharmacy building.

President Barack Obama visited New Orleans in August 2010 to commemorate the fifth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. He gave his address at Xavier, complimenting the work of the leaders of the community and affirming the commitment to continue to aid in the re-building of the area.[18]

Xavier University received the "Katrina Compassion Award" from the United States government Corporation for National and Community Service in 2006, for the combined efforts of an estimated 60% of its students in rebuilding the neighborhoods damaged by the hurricane.[19]

Student demographics

Xavier is Catholic and historically black, though it has always been open to students of any race and religion. Today 25.1 percent of its students are not African-American and 74.3 percent are not Catholic.

More than half (58.2%) of Xavier students are from Louisiana – primarily from the New Orleans area. Non-local enrollment continues to increase with students coming from at least 40 other states – most notably Texas (7.5%) and Georgia (4.9%). Five foreign countries are represented on campus. Student life is enriched by the social and cultural setting of New Orleans and by campus activities designed to enhance personal growth, interpersonal skills, and leadership in such areas as community service, the environment, cultural concerns, and social justice.

Administration

University President

President Verret

Presidents of Xavier University of Louisiana have included Reverend Edward J. Brunner S.S.J. (1915-1932), Mother M. Agatha Ryan (1932-1955), Sister Josephina Kenney (1955-1965), Sister Maris Stella (1965-1968), and Dr. Norman C. Francis (1968-2015).[20]

Dr. C. Reynold Verret currently serves as Xavier University of Louisiana's sixth president. He assumed his position as the university's leader during the Summer of 2015 and was officially inaugurated in the university's Academic Convocation Center on 26 February 2016.

Dr. Norman C. Francis

President Emeritus

At the time of his retirement, President Emeritus Dr. Norman C. Francis was the longest serving president of a university in the United States. Himself a Xavier graduate, he led the university for 47 years (1968-2015) and became a nationally recognized leader in higher education. Among other honors and roles entrusted to him, he served as the head of several national educational groups and in 2006 was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom.[21][22]

Academics

Academic divisions

• Biological and Public Health Sciences
• Business
• Education and Counseling
• Fine Arts and Humanities
• Mathematical and Physical Sciences
• Social and Behavioral Sciences

Academic divisions

• Division of Basic Pharmaceutical Sciences
• Division of Clinical and Administrative Sciences

Premedicine and biological science programs

University rankings
Regional
U.S. News & World Report[23]	17 (South)
Master's University class
Washington Monthly[24]	114

More African-American alumni of Xavier consistently place into medical school and graduate with baccalaureate degrees in the physical sciences and biological sciences than African-American alumni of any other college or university in the United States.[25][26] Xavier's College of Pharmacy is one of just two pharmacy schools in Louisiana.[27] Xavier consistently ranks among the top three colleges in the nation in graduating African Americans with Pharm.D. degrees.[28]

Dual degree engineering program

Xavier does not offer engineering degrees but belongs to partnerships with several engineering institutions that automatically admit qualified Xavier science students interested in pursuing a bachelor's in an engineering discipline. Students who successfully complete the program will receive a bachelor's degree from Xavier and the chosen engineering institution in approximately five years. Engineering institutions in partnership with Xavier are Tulane University, University of New Orleans, Southern University at Baton Rouge, Louisiana State University, University of Notre Dame, North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, University of Detroit Mercy, Georgia Institute of Technology, and University of Wisconsin at Madison.[29]

Campus life

Athletics

Xavier's athletics teams are nicknamed Gold Rush for men's teams and Gold Nuggets for women's teams. The university is a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), competing in the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference (GCAC). Men's sports include basketball, cross country, tennis, and track & field; women's sports include basketball, cross country, tennis, track & field, and volleyball.

Xavier's basketball and volleyball teams compete on campus in their new facility, the Xavier University Academic Convocation Center. The Convocation Center is a $25 million facility with a seating capacity of 4,500.

Student organizations

Student Government Association Homecoming Committee Student Advisory Board Student Life Council Pharmacy Student Association Residence Hall Association Commuter/Off-Campus Student Network

Academic/departmental clubs Honor societies Professional Greek organizations NPHC Greek organizations Special interest organizations Intercollegiate athletics Performing groups

Notable alumni

In addition to former president, Norman C. Francis, distinguished alumni include:

	Class	Notability
LaToya Cantrell	1997	The first African-American female mayor of New Orleans.[30]
Jimmie McDaniel	c.1940	Famed African-American tennis player who unofficially broke tennis' color barrier with an exhibition match against Don Budge.
Herb Douglas	c.1944	Olympic Bronze Medalist in the long jump (1948 Summer Olympics) and the oldest living African-American Olympic medalist. Transferred from XULA in 1942
Nathaniel Clifton	1946	First African-American to sign a contract with an NBA team and stick with a team; member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Attended but did not graduate; left to join the Army during World War II.
Mary Munson Runge	1948	First woman, and first African American, to be elected president of the American Pharmacists Association (APhA).
Ernest Nathan Morial	1951	First African-American mayor of New Orleans. Also the father of former New Orleans mayor and head of National Urban League Marc Morial.
John Stroger	1953	First African-American president of the Cook County, Illinois, Board of Commissioners.
Bernard P. Randolph	1954	USAF General, retired: only the third African-American to reach the rank of four-star general in any branch of the U.S. Armed Forces, serving as head of the USAF Space and Defense Systems Command. Later an executive with the defense contractor TRW Corporation.
Marino Casem	1956	Head football Coach at Alabama State University, Alcorn State University, and Southern University; member of College Football Hall of Fame.
Débria Brown	1958	Mezzo-Soprano opera singer
Philip Berrigan	1963	One-time Josephite Catholic priest and lifelong activist.
John T. Scott	1963	World-famous African-American sculptor, painter, printmaker, collagist, and MacArthur Fellow. Served as Xavier Professor of Art.
Marie McDemmond	1968	First female president at Norfolk State University. Previously served as vice president for finance and chief operating officer at Florida Atlantic University.
Gilbert L. Rochon	1968	Sixth President of Tuskegee University.
Bishop Moses Anderson	1968	The first black bishop to serve in the Catholic Archdiocese of Detroit; Pastor of Precious Blood Parish, Detroit, MI (1992-2001).
Alexis Herman	1969	First African-American U.S. Secretary of Labor; director of the White House office of Public Liaison.
Ivan L. R. Lemelle	1971	Twice U.S. Magistrate Judge, U.S. District Court in New Orleans (eight-year terms).
Vernel Bagneris	1972	Playwright, actor, director, Obie Award Recipient.
Donald "Slick" Watts	1973	NBA Player for the Seattle Supersonics, New Orleans Jazz, and Houston Rockets.
Bruce Seals	1973	ABA Player for the Utah Stars, drafted by the Seattle Super Sonics in the second round of the 1975 NBA draft; NAIA All American, and Associated Press All American.
Regina Benjamin	1979	United States Surgeon General; first physician under the age of 40 and first AA woman named to the American Medical Association's Board of Trustees. Formerly president, Alabama State Medical Association; recipient of MacArthur Genius Award.
Stephen W. Rochon	1984	Director of the Executive Residence and Chief Usher at the White House; Rear Admiral of the Coast Guard.
Todd Stroger	1985	Elected Cook County, Illinois Board President in 2006, succeeding his father, John Stroger.
Gary Carter, Jr.	c.1996	Member of the Louisiana House of Representatives for the Algiers neighborhood of New Orleans.
Jared Brossett	c.2004	Member of the New Orleans City Council for District D; member of the Louisiana House of Representatives for District 97 in Orleans Parish, 2009-2014.
Candice Stewart	2006	First African American Miss Louisiana USA, she was also Miss Louisiana Teen USA, and an NFL cheerleader for the New Orleans Saints and Houston Texans.
Landon Bussie	2010	Head Men’s Basketball coach at Alcorn State

Notable faculty and staff

• Arthur P. Bedou - Xavier University Photographer; African-American photographer noted for being the personal photographer of Booker T. Washington.
• Regina Benjamin - MD, MBA, 18th Surgeon General of the United States.
• Edward S. Bopp - Xavier Adjunct Professor of Pharmacy; New Orleans lawyer, and state representative from 1977 to 1984[31]
• Dr. Joyce Hooper Corrington - Xavier Director of Research in Science and Associate Professor of Chemistry; American television and film writer including Battle for the Planet of the Apes (1973), General Hospital, and One Life to Live.
• Dr. Norman C. Francis - Xavier President from 1968 to 2015. Also served as Dean of Men, and Vice-President of XULA prior to presidential appointment.
• Dr. Antoine Garibaldi - Xavier Professor and Chair of the Education Department, Dean of Arts and Sciences, and Vice President for Academic Affairs; first lay and first African-American President at University of Detroit Mercy’s, and sixth and first African-American President of Gannon University.[32]
• Frank Hercules - Xavier Visiting Professor and Writer-in-Residence, English Dept.; author of "Where the Hummingbird Flies" (1961), "I Want a Black Doll" (1967), and "American Society and the Black Revolution" (1972).[33]
• Bob Hopkins - Xavier Basketball Coach (1969-74); NBA Player for the Syracuse Nationals and Philadelphia Tapers; NBA Coach for the Seattle SuperSonics (1974-77) and New York Knicks (1978-79).
• Harold Hunter - Xavier Basketball Coach (1974-77); first African American to sign a contract with any National Basketball Association (NBA) team.[34]
• Father Jerome LeDoux, S.V.D. - Xavier University Chaplin, Professor of Philosophy and Theology; African-American priest and author noted for his Afrocentric Catholic Masses, his ebullient style, and his writings.
• Ralph Metcalfe - Xavier Professor of Political Science and Track Coach; African-American track and field sprinter, 4-time Olympic medal recipient, and was regarded as the world's fastest human in 1934 and 1935
• Sister Mary Elise Sisson - Chairwoman of Xavier Music Department; founded Opera-South in Jackson, MS (encompassing Jackson State University, Utica State College, and Tougaloo College), and founded the National Opera Ebony in New York and Philadelphia.
• Pearl L. Stewart - Xavier Journalist-in-Residence; editor of the Oakland Tribune in 1992, the first African-American woman editor of a major metropolitan daily newspaper.[35]
• Dr. Michael White - Xavier Professor of Spanish and African-American Music; world-famous Jazz clarinetist, bandleader, composer, jazz historian and musical educator.
• James Yestadt - Xavier Professor of Music; world-famous symphony conductor, previous resident conductor of the New Orleans Symphony Orchestra, Baton Rouge Orchestra, Louisiana Youth Orchestra, Mobile Symphony Orchestra, West Valley Symphony, and Zurich Radio Orchestra.[36]

See also

• Gert Town
• St. Katharine Drexel

References

1. http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/ xavier-louisiana-2032
2. http://www2.xula.edu/opira/ir/documents/university-profile/01.pdf
4. Jr, Peter Finney (2016-09-01). "The Legacy of Saint Katharine Drexel". Franciscan Media. Retrieved 2019-04-24.
5. "Industrial school for colored youth". The Times-Picayune. 5 September 1915.
6. Baldwin, Lou (2000). Saint Katharine Drexel: Apostle to the Oppressed. Philadelphia, PA: The Catholic Standard and Times. pp. 150–152. ISBN 0-9618073-1-8.
7. "In the whole United States...". The Catholic Tribune (St. Joseph, Missouri). 15 April 1922. p. 9.
8. McCarthy, Joseph J., "History of Black Catholic Education in the Chicago, 1871-1971" (1973). Pages 72-74.
9. hbculifestyle.com/first-black-catholic-hbcu/#:~:text=The%20Xavier%20University%20of%20Louisiana,both%20historically%20Black%20and%20Catholic.
10. "National Register of Historic Places Nomination: Xavier University Main Building, Convent and Library, Orleans Parish, LA". National Park Service. January 16, 2004. Retrieved December 25, 2017.
11. "Xavier University". KnowLouisiana.org. Retrieved December 25, 2017.
12. USNews rankings. Retrieved December 24, 2017.
13. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/three-hbcus-announce-they-received-the-largest-donations-in-the-schools-histories/
14. Pope, John. "Xavier University being transformed by influx of money following Hurricane Katrina". Retrieved 11 August 2012.
15. Clark, Kim. "Norman Francis: Xavier's President Led Through Hurricane Katrina". USA News. Retrieved 11 August 2012.
16. Block, Melissa. "Students Return to Louisiana's Xavier University". NPR. Retrieved 11 August 2012.
17. Strom, Stephanie. "Qatar Grants Millions in Aid to New Orleans". New York Times. Retrieved 11 August 2012.
18. "Remarks by the President on the Fifth Anniversary of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, Louisiana". The White House. Retrieved 11 August 2012.
19. "Katrina Compassion Awards". Corporation for National & Community Service. Archived from the original on September 16, 2012. Retrieved 11 August 2012.
20. "CONTENTdm". xula.contentdm.oclc.org. Retrieved 2021-01-11.
21. "Norman C. Francis, Ph.D. - U.S. News STEM Solutions". U.S. News STEM Solutions. Retrieved 2017-12-24.
22. "Celebrating Dr. Norman Francis at his last Xavier University commencement: Editorial". NOLA.com. Retrieved 2017-12-24.
23. "Best Colleges 2021: Regional Universities Rankings". U.S. News & World Report. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
24. "2020 Rankings -- Masters Universities". Washington Monthly. Retrieved August 31, 2020.
25. Pope, John. "Xavier leads the nation in African-American medical graduates". Times-Picayune. Retrieved 11 August 2012.
26. A Prescription for More Black Doctors: How does tiny Xavier University in New Orleans manage to send more African-American students to medical school than any other college in the country? New York Times Retrieved September 10, 2015.
27. University of Louisiana at Monroe (ULM) also offers the Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.) degree, but, unlike Xavier, ULM is under public control and in the northern part of Louisiana.
28. "College of Pharmacy General Information". Archived from the original on September 2, 2008. Retrieved 2008-09-03.
29. [email protected], name. "Dual Degree Engineering Program". www.xula.edu. Retrieved 2017-12-24.
30. http://www.xula.edu/mediarelations/tmax_may2018.html
31. "Edward S. Bopp". bopplawfirm.com. Retrieved June 28, 2015.
32. Brack, Naomii. "Antoine M. Garibaldi (1950- )". Retrieved 2021-01-15.
33. "Frank Hercules, 85, Novelist and Teacher (Published 1996)". The New York Times. 1996-05-13. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-01-11.
34. "NBA pioneer Harold Hunter, an ex-Xavier coach, died Thursday". Times-Picayune. 2013-03-07. Retrieved 2013-03-30.
35. Continelli, Louise. "BREAKING JOURNALISM'S CLOSED CIRCLE PEARL STEWART EDITS AND LEADS". The Buffalo News. Retrieved 2021-01-11.
36. "JAMES YESTADT Obituary (1921 - 2020) - New York Times". www.legacy.com. Retrieved 2021-01-12.

Further reading

• "Mother Katharine Drexel and the birth of Xavier University". The Times Picayune. 2017-12-20. - By a contributing writer

External links

• Official website
• Official athletics website
• Official student newspaper - The Xavier Herald