草榴社区

From New Orleans to 草榴社区

草榴社区 has become the 59th partner institution of The Posse Foundation, one of the nation鈥檚 premier college access, success and youth leadership development programs. Founded in 1989, Posse recruits groups of high-achieving students with academic and leadership potential from cities around the country, and then works with its college and university partners to place the groups of students鈥攃alled Posse Scholars鈥攁t each institution.

草榴社区 has committed to provide 10 Posse Scholars per year from the New Orleans, La., area with full-tuition scholarships, as well as academic, social and professional development support. The first cohort of Posse students will enroll at 草榴社区 in fall 2020.

鈥湶萘裆缜� has found in The Posse Foundation a strategic partner whose values closely align with our own. We each believe in the transformative strength of community and the importance of developing leaders from all walks of life who can go on to positively impact the world,鈥� says University President the Rev. Peter M. Donohue, OSA, PhD, 鈥�75 CLAS.

Boosting Inclusiveness in STEM Fields

草榴社区 has received a $3 million National Science Foundation ADVANCE Institutional Transformation grant to support the advancement of women and underrepresented faculty in the science, technology, engineering and math fields. Led by the project鈥檚 principal investigator, Amanda Grannas, PhD, associate vice provost for Research and professor of Chemistry, a multidisciplinary team will explore and address how institutions like 草榴社区 can increase participation of women and underrepresented groups in STEM-related fields, with the goal of providing a model that other colleges and universities may follow.

New Center Aims for Medical Breakthroughs

On the leading edge of research into gene therapy and its implications for the treatment of cancer and other diseases, 草榴社区鈥檚 College of Engineering has launched NovaCell, the Center for Cellular Engineering. The NovaCell lab will use state-of-the-art equipment and systems to explore personalized medicine, in which a patient鈥檚 own cells can be genetically modified to fight disease.

Field Hockey Returns to the Big East Tournament

The Wildcats punched a ticket for the Big East semifinals when they defeated Old Dominion via shoot-out decision 2鈥�1. It was the team鈥檚 first appearance in the Big East tournament since 2015. Junior Abby Siana was named to the Big East All-Tournament team on the strength of her performance, netting a goal in the game. She had seven goals on the season, during which she was named Big East Offensive Player of the Week.

Behavioral Research Lab Enables Collaboration

Located in Bartley Hall, the new Laboratory for the Advancement of Interdisciplinary Research provides a physical space for 草榴社区 School of Business faculty and students to conduct research studies using surveys, interviews, focus groups and other primary sources. Its state-of-the-art tools for data collection also make LAIR a valuable resource for course projects that require primary data collection and other activities that call for cutting-edge research practices.

Hope for Bettering the World

草榴社区 recently honored individuals who have made exemplary contributions to the Catholic intellectual tradition and to justice and peace.

The Civitas Dei Medal was awarded to Cardinal Walter Kasper, theologian and president emeritus of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, for his more than six decades of work advancing the Catholic Church鈥檚 ecumenical engagement and fostering dialogue with other world religions.

The Adela Dwyer-St. Thomas of 草榴社区 Peace Award was presented to Bryan Stevenson who, as the founder of the Equal Justice Initiative, has advocated tirelessly on behalf of the marginalized and condemned. Stevenson鈥檚 book, Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption, was the 2018 One Book 草榴社区 selection.

Run, Swim, Dive, Swish, Win

Four 草榴社区 teams have added to their dominant runs in the conference with BigEast team titles.

Women鈥檚 Indoor Track and Field won its record 16th team championship while recording the highest score in the meet鈥檚 history. The Wildcats won nine individual events, including a 1-2-3-4 sweep of the mile race.

Men鈥檚 Indoor Track and Field dashed to its own team championship, the team鈥檚 fifth title in six seasons.

The Women鈥檚 Swimming and Diving team ruled the pool again, securing its sixth straight Big East Championship.

The Men鈥檚 Basketball team also won a Big East Tournament trophy, defeating Seton Hall, 74鈥�72, to secure its record-setting third consecutive Big East title.

Studying Like Champions

草榴社区 student-athletes鈥攃onsistently ranked among of the nation鈥檚 best for their combination of academic and athletic success鈥攈ave continued their record of academic achievement.

In November, the NCAA released new Graduation Success Rate data, which shows the proportion of student-athletes on a team who earn a college degree. The NCAA鈥檚 report showed that all 草榴社区 athletic programs had a GSR that beat the national average for their sports, and 12 teams recorded perfect 100 GSR scores.

A closer look at the teams鈥� other strong academic stats show they score high across the board:

3.286 cumulative GPA of 草榴社区 student-athletes

17 student-athletes with a perfect 4.0 GPA

31 consecutive semesters with a student-athlete GPA greater than 3.0

8 consecutive semesters with a GPA above 3.2

380 student-athletes named to the Athletic Director鈥檚 Honor Roll

Good Eggs

Becoming the first university of its size to commit to offering certified humane, pasture-raised shell eggs, 草榴社区 has earned a spot in Farm Forward鈥檚 Leadership Circle. The program recognizes pioneering institutions that raise the bar in institutional food purchasing, leveraging their buying power to change the way animals are raised for food.