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[Page S5646]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
CONGRATULATING LOYOLA UNIVERSITY CHICAGO ON 150 YEARS
Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, this year, Loyola University Chicago
celebrates the 150th anniversary of its founding, which occurred on
September 5, 1870. Loyola Chicago is a world-class institution with a
storied history as a Roman Catholic Jesuit university, a strong track
record of academic excellence, and the proud home of the Loyola
Ramblers.
Loyola University Chicago was founded under the name of St. Ignatius
College by Arnold Damen, S.J., to serve Chicago's Catholic immigrants.
In 1909, the school was granted a new charter by the State of Illinois
and renamed ``Loyola University Chicago''. That same year, the newly-
named Loyola Chicago granted its first professional graduate degrees
and organized its first football, basketball, and indoor baseball
teams. Today, Loyola Chicago is the only Jesuit Catholic university in
Illinois.
Throughout its history, Loyola Chicago has upheld its Jesuit values--
being an institution of rigorous liberal arts education and academic
excellence, while also being a place of inclusion and acceptance for
marginalized communities, including immigrants. Loyola Chicago's
Stritch School of Medicine led the country as the first medical school
to accept DACA recipients, many of whom have committed to working in a
medically-underserved community in Illinois after graduation.
In addition, under its previous president, Father Michael Garanzini,
Loyola Chicago created Arrupe College. Arrupe is a 2-year degree
program that brings Loyola Chicago's academic quality together with a
focus on affordability and care for the whole person. Arrupe's low-cost
and wrap-around services--including meals, chilcare, and
transportation--bring a high-quality Loyola Chicago education to low-
income and students of color in the Chicagoland area who otherwise may
not have a chance to succeed in college.
Loyola Chicago's focus on service is part of the fabric of the
institution and its community. Loyola Chicago supports more than 300
community partner organizations in Chicago and the Chicagoland suburbs
through student, staff, and faculty service and volunteer work. Loyola
Chicago's impact can be found almost anywhere in the Chicagoland area.
Illinois has been served well and enriched by the many contributions
of Loyola University Chicago. I look forward to the school's many
contributions in the years ahead and several more successful runs at
the NCAA basketball tournament being led by their team chaplain, the
now world famous Jean Dolores Schmidt, known to all as simply Sister
Jean.
I thank Loyola for its many contributions to our State and country.
It is my distinct honor to congratulate President Jo Anne Rooney--the
school's first female president--and the entire Loyola community of
staff, faculty, students, and alumni on your 150th anniversary.
____________________
