Regis University

Regis University
Motto	Men and Women in Service of Others
Established	1877
Type	Private
Endowment	$125 Million[1]
President	Michael J. Sheeran, S.J.
Academic staff	1,226[2]
Undergraduates	7,535[2]
Postgraduates	7,732[2]
Location	Denver, CO, USA
Campus	Urban, 81 acres
Athletics	Rangers
Colors	Blue █, and Gold █
Website	www.regis.edu

Regis University (formerly known as Regis College) is a private, co-educational Roman Catholic, Jesuit university in the United States. Founded by the Society of Jesus in 1877, it is one of 28 member institutions of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities.^[3][4] Based in Denver, Colorado, Regis University is divided into three colleges: Regis College, The Rueckert-Hartman College for Health Professions, and the College for Professional Studies.^[5]

Establishment

Regis University was established by a group of exiled Italian Jesuits in 1877 in Las Vegas, New Mexico.^[6] That institution was named Las Vegas College.^[6]

In 1884, the Bishop of Denver invited the Jesuits to create a college at Morrison where Sacred Heart College was opened. In 1887, the two colleges merged and moved once again to the present location of Regis University. The name from then on was College of the Sacred Heart. In 1921 it adopted the name of Regis College in honor of Saint John Francis Regis, a 17th century Jesuit who worked with prostitutes and the poor in the mountains of Southern France. In 1991, it was renamed Regis University and consists of three colleges: Regis College, the College for Professional Studies, and the Rueckert-Hartman College for Health Professions.

Regis University, in accordance with its Jesuit heritage, has a long tradition of charitable service, which includes the well known Father Woody Projects, which originated with the Archdiocese of Denver; including a well known Father Woody Christmas Party for the homeless.^[7]

Regis College is a small, liberal arts, undergraduate/graduate, selective^[8] school located on the Lowell Campus. Its approximately 1,600 students are high school graduates from over 40 states.^{[citation needed]}

Regis University operates a radio station, KRCX^[9] Other media programs include a weekly student-run newspaper, the Highlander.^[10] The school also fields 12 varsity athletic teams the Rangers.^[11] Regis competes at the NCAA Division II level and is part of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC). Men's basketball coach, Lonnie Porter,^[12] has the record for most won games as a basketball coach in Colorado history (505).

Many students participate in service learning activities by volunteering with various organizations throughout the Denver area. According to current President Fr. Sheeran, the goal of Regis University is to educate "leaders in service to others."

Regis University played host to the rock icon, Jimi Hendrix, as well as the British rock band Queen (band), that played their first concert in the United States (April 16, 1974).

Father Michael Sheeran, S.J. will step down as president effective June 1, 2012. Taking his place will be Fr. John P Fitzgibbons, S.J. Fr Fitzgibbons will be the 24th president of Regis University.^[13]

Accolades

On August 12, 1993, Pope John Paul II visited the Lowell campus of Regis University, where he met with President Bill Clinton for the first time. The pope and the president landed in separate helicopters on Boettcher Commons amid tight security. Each greeted the crowd of about 150 visitors who had been chosen through a lottery system before an hour-long private meeting in the President’s Dining Room of Carroll Hall. In addition, Regis University and its alumni celebrate the following successes:

Main Hall at Regis University in Denver, Colorado.

Carroll Hall from the side.

The Townhouses.

• Two nursing students in the Rueckert-Hartman College for Health Professions have received the Fuld Fellowship.^[2]
• In 2009 William Gohl was named the second American Rhodes Scholar in the history of Regis University.^[14]
• Two students, Hung Pham and Charity Sunshine TIllemann-Dick, were selected for the USA Today College All-Academic Team.^[15]
• The Henry Luce Foundation has awarded Regis College the Clare Boothe Luce Professorship two times.^[16]
• Four years in succession, Regis University professors were awarded Fulbright professorships.^[2]
• Regis University has won the National Parliamentary Debate Championships twice (one of only three schools).
• Basketball Coach Lonnie Porter holds the record for most victories as a college basketball coach (at any level) in Colorado history with 505 wins. Additionally, the basketball team maintains a 95 percent graduation rate among players.^[17]
• Since 2000, the Lowell campus has been designated an arboretum with more than 500 trees and shrubs, including three championship trees.^[18]

Schools

Regis College

Regis College houses the traditional, undergraduate (and Master's of Art in Education & Master's of Science in Biomedical Sciences) programs. These programs are designed for traditional students. Traditional students are recent high school graduates, or transfers students, with little or no professional work experience. Regis college offers a choice of majors, minors, emphases, and pre-professional tracts. Students wishing to enter the nursing, physical therapy, or pharmacy programs often enter Regis College to complete pre-requisite requirements.^[19]

Rueckert-Hartman College for Health Professions

When Regis absorbed her sister school, Loretto Heights College, the Rueckert Hartman College for Health Professions was born.^[20] Regis now operates a nationally-recognized nursing program, and one of the premiere physical therapist programs.^[21] The school is divided into three schools and two departments: Loretto Heights School of Nursing, School of Pharmacy, School of Physical Therapy, Department of Health Care Ethics, and Department of Health Services Administration. The college offers three doctoral programs, Doctor of Nursing Practice (entirely on-line), Doctor of Physical Therapy, and Doctor of Pharmacy.^[22]

College for Professional Studies

In 2007, the School for Professional Studies was renamed the College for Professional Studies, with the mission of providing higher education to working professionals. The College for Professional Studies serves over 13,000 adult students worldwide and offers classroom-based, online and mixed course formats. The College for Professional Studies consists of four distinct schools: the School of Management, the School of Humanities & Social Science, the School of Computer & Information Science, and the School of Education & Counseling. Each of the schools offers Bachelor's and Master's degrees as well as certificate programs.^[23]

Athletics

A distant view of the athletic fields, Field House, and Main Hall.

Regis University is in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference along with Adams State, Chadron State, Colorado Christian,Colorado Mines, CSU-Pueblo, Fort Lewis, Colorado Mesa University, Metro State, New Mexico Highlands, Regis University, UC-Colorado Springs, U. of Nebraska-Kearney, Western New Mexico, Western State. The university offers women's lacrosse, men and women's soccer, baseball, softball, men and women's basketball, volleyball, men and women's cross country, and golf.

Leadership

Recently Ann Martin was promoted to the position of Athletic Director.^[24] Ann follows in the footsteps of Barb Schroeder, who occupied the position for nearly fifteen years before retiring at the end of the 2009-2010 academic year.^{[citation needed]}

Regis academic programs have expanded, including partnerships with the University of Ireland, Galway; and with ITESO, the Jesuit University of Guadalajara, Mexico, for the first online bilingual joint MBA degree program.^[25]

Recent capital improvement campaign

Rowan Gillespie's Ripples of Ulysses at the Coors Life Directions Centre.

DeSmet Hall.

Carroll Hall from the garden to the north.

In the fall of 2007, Regis completed a landmark five-year, $82.7 million capital campaign billed as "The Campaign for Regis University, Writing the Next Chapter."^[26] The school has long owned more property than was used for educational purposes at the Lowell campus. This unused property has now been incorporated into the main campus as sports fields and a new parking lot, a new chapel is complete and picturesque Main Hall has reopened its top floors for the first time in decades.^{[citation needed]} The Science Building and Carroll Hall have also both been renovated.^{[citation needed]}

Notable alumni

• Campbell Brown, Television News Host - CNN^[27]
• Banny de Brum, Ambassador of the Marshall Islands to the United States (1996–2008, 2009–Present)^[28]
• Edwin J. Feulner, President of The Heritage Foundation, a Conservative Washington D.C. Thinktank^[29]
• Arnie Herber, NFL Player for the Green Bay Packers and New York Giants, Member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.^[30]
• Bill Murray, Actor and Comedian, attended but did not graduate. Received an Honorary Doctor of Humanities in 2007.^[31]

Institute on the Common Good

Founded in 1997, by Father Michael J. Sheeran, S.J, the Institute^[32] on the Common Good through practices of Regis University in matters of dialogue, discernment, and democratic deliberation. The Institute on the Common Good believes that because of the diversity inherent in the world, focusing on only one specific model or technique for resolving community issues will not allow those communities to build trust and strong relationships nor to develop innovative solutions to challenges faced by those communities. Rigid processes themselves can be deadly to effective dialogue and relationships. As a result, the Institute does not identify a specific set of techniques or steps for its work, but rather attempts to establish a climate or ethos within which the dialogue happens. The Institute on the Common Good’s Transformational Dialogue emerges from roots deep within Ignatius of Loyola’s (and the Jesuit’s) philosophy underlying communal discernment. We continue to build on these roots using some of the latest research in the emerging field of dialogue.

In addition, the Institute seeks to provide the student body with world-renowned speakers as a fresh avenue of education. Examples of such speakers include:

• Nobel Peace Laureate Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa,
• President Oscar Arias of Costa Rica,
• Robert Bellah a Professor of Sociology at the University of California-Berkley,
• Elizabeth Dole, former President of the American Red Cross and U.S. Senator,
• Sister Helen Prejean, Author of Dead Man Walking.
• Somaly Mam, Cambodian anti-trafficking proponent.

A leading example of social justice in action, the Institute is a prime example of the Jesuit motto of “men and women for others.”^[33] Today, the Institute continues to grow and integrate dialogue, discernment and democratic deliberation into the community practice of Regis University.^[34]

References

1. ^ nacubo.org
2. ^ ^{a b c d e} Regis News: Quick Facts
3. ^ Regis University: About Regis
4. ^ Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities: List of Member Institutions
5. ^ Regis University: Schools/Colleges
6. ^ ^{a b} CollegeProfiles.com: Regis University
7. ^ Archdiocese of Denver: Remembering Father Woody
8. ^ "America's Best Colleges 2008: Regis University: At a glance". usnews.rankingsandreviews.com. http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/usnews/edu/college/directory/brief/drglance_1363_brief.hp. 
9. ^ academic.regis.edu
10. ^ regishighlander.com
11. ^ regisrangers.com
12. ^ regisrangers.com
13. ^ regis.edu
14. ^ regis.edu
15. ^ regis.edu
16. ^ The Henry Luce Foundation: Directory of CBL Professors
17. ^ Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference: Hall of Fame Profile for Lonnie Porter
18. ^ Ecological History of Lowell Campus
19. ^ regis.edu
20. ^ About Regis: Loretto Heights College Timeline
21. ^ U.S. News & World Report: Best Schools for Nursing
22. ^ regis.edu
23. ^ cps.regis.edu
24. ^ regisrangers.com
25. ^ portal.iteso.mx
26. ^ The Council of Independent Colleges: Independent Online Newsletter (Fall '07)
27. ^ Regis Office of Alumni and Parent Relations: Service Learning and Journalism Unite
28. ^ hss.energy.gov
29. ^ The Heritage Foundation, Biography: Edwin J. Feulner
30. ^ pro-football-reference.com
31. ^ denverpost.com
32. ^ icgregis.org
33. ^ en.ignatianwiki.org
34. ^ icgregis.org

External links

• Regis University (official site)
• Regis University Alumni Association (official site)
• Regis Athletics
• (ICG official site)
• Criminology Degrees