Celebrating Stritch through 85 images

64. Spring Cotillion

The caption from this April 6, 1963, CSC News story reads: 

Belles of the ball! Mary Feider, Pat Thomas and Barbara Derridinger display the formals they plan to wear to the Spring Cotillion, May 3. Pat is one of many Cardinalites who made their formals, while Mary and Barb are fortunate enough to have mothers who sew. If any CSC belle needs a beau for the Cotillion, the blind date committee will be functioning under the chairmanship of Yvonne Vigue. The dance will be held at Mitchell Park Pavilion with music by the Starliners. 

63. Doctoral program

In 1998, the North Center Association of Colleges and Schools approved Stritch’s first doctoral program – the Doctorate in Leadership for the Advancement of Learning and Service. Years of discussion and input from the experts among education faculty developed into a once-a-month, weekend program that reflected the University’s core Franciscan values and mission of transformation. “We determined the program wouldn’t just be about leadership, but also about learning and service. We absolutely knew (after researching worldwide doctoral programs) that we had a unique idea and something that really fit Stritch,” said Dr. Nancy Blair, professor emerita. 

62. Study abroad

In 1959, art student Mari Ann Bloniarz and history student Mary Catherine Murph set sail on Feb. 10 from Hoboken, New Jersey, arriving on Feb. 18 in the Southampton, England, port to begin Stritch’s first “study-travel” program with the Institute for European Studies. Their five-month experience not only included living in an Austrian home and taking courses at the University of Vienna, but also embarking on faculty-led study tours to Western Europe, Italy, Yugoslavia and Greece. Since then, generations of Stritch students have enjoyed study abroad experiences all over the world.
 

61. Basketball championships

Since the start of intercollegiate athletics in 1971, the Stritch community has cheered many teams to winning seasons, conference championships and tournament wins. The men’s basketball team brought home national championship trophies twice. The National Little College Athletic Association (NLCAA) awarded the regular season national championship to the 1978-79 Red Devils under Coach William Stier. Decades later, the Wolves, coached by Drew Diener, won the 2013 National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) national championship after coming into the tournament ranked second with a 31-3 regular-season record.
 

60. The Sisters of St. Francis of Assisi

More than 300 Sisters of St. Francis of Assisi have worked in various faculty, staff and leadership roles at Stritch. To their classrooms and offices they brought the expertise of advanced education, global perspectives from world travels, mothering hearts rooted in their Franciscan formation, creative minds that innovated methods and programs, a passionate belief in social justice and a charitable spirit rooted in humility. On campus, their names are listed on plaques in the Leadership Commons and on paving stones in Heritage Park. Their influence and essence remain at the foundation of everything that happens at Cardinal Stritch University today. 

59. Alternative Spring Break trips

Campus Ministry Director Sister Adele Thibaudeau, OSF, led one of Stritch’s first Alternative Spring Break trips to Gainesville, Florida, during Holy Week 1997. At the beginning of the week, their Habitat for Humanity house was just a foundation and wood frame. When they left, there was a three-bedroom house with plywood walls and a shingled roof. “When we were building the house, it seems like just nails and wood. But, when I saw the smile and excitement on (homeowner) Rosie’s face, my work seemed to be something more,” said student Kim Pulvermacher.
 

58. Civil Rights Pilgrimage

Starting in October 2008, annual groups of Stritch students traveled to Memphis, Tennessee, and Birmingham and Selma, Ala., for Civil Rights Pilgrimages. Immersed in the places and landmarks where marches, riots and other historically significant events took place, the students encountered people and lessons that inspired deep emotion, new perspectives and a resolve to take the experience to heart, both personally and professionally. “The trip was inspirational, educational, and despairing all at the same time,” said senior education major Amy Simmert of her participation in the first pilgrimage. (Pictured: May 2015 pilgrims)

57. The Laramie Project

In 2004, the Stritch theater department joined other college theaters across the nation in staging “The Laramie Project,” a production based on the true story of Matthew Shepard who was murdered in Laramie, Wyoming, because he was gay. Years later, in 2018, the University hosted “Erasing Hate with Judy and Dennis Shepard,” an event featuring Matthew’s parents who shared details about their son’s life and the 20 years of advocacy and outreach done in his name to replace hate with understanding, compassion and acceptance.

56. Franciscan pilgrimages

Recognizing the diminishing numbers of the founding Sisters of St. Francis of Assisi working at Stritch, the University began sending faculty, staff and students on Franciscan pilgrimages to Italy in 2000 to immerse them in the radical and inspirational lives of patron saints Francis and Clare. Each group came back to campus with expectations that they would stand alongside the remaining Sisters to carry on the Franciscan spirit and values that set the University apart from other schools. This commitment to Stritch’s Franciscan heritage continues with the latest pilgrimage group traveling in February 2023.

55. Student publications

Students have showcased their writing and art in a series of publications. From 1947-1985, Stritch published the C.S.C. News, which won numerous awards. The student newspaper then revived in 1989 and continued until 2008 under various names. In 2008, Wolfprint moved online but did not last. Stritch also published two literary magazines. The first, Eminence, featured poems and stories by Stritch students from 1951-1962. Then Clare, a student-run literary journal that accepted international submissions, began in 1998. Printed issues ended in 2013, and online issues continued until 2017.
 

54. Stritch Wolves

In 2001, Stritch changed its team name from “Crusaders” to “Wolves” to better reflect the University’s Franciscan heritage and values. The Wolves emerged as the winner of a campus-wide vote, and the new mascot served as a visual reminder of the University’s connection to St. Francis of Assisi. According to Franciscan tradition, a ferocious wolf was terrorizing the Italian community of Gubbio until St. Francis approached it with compassion and turned it into a friend. Other team names in contention were the Saints and the Storm.

53. O.A.A.U.

With 23 charter members in September 1980, the Organization for Afro-American Unity formed to bring balance, education and understanding to a campus that was overwhelmingly white at that time. The group planned entertainment, exhibits, speakers and a fashion show. In the 1990s, Stritch focused more intentionally on inclusivity by recruiting a diverse student body, hiring a multicultural director and establishing a multicultural Advisory Council. In 1988, Stritch was 90 percent white. In 2018, Stritch was the most diverse school in Wisconsin with students of color making up 60 percent of the student body.
 

52. Franciscan Center

51. Wing dinners

Wing Dinners started in the late 1970s when Food Services owner John Stewart invited students to help plan the monthly meals. Residence hall wings took a turn hosting these dinners – planning the entertainment, the food and the theme. “Each Wing Dinner is quite different and special from the rest. One may take you on a voyage to a warm tropical paradise, another to the animated world of Mickey Mouse, and still another to Seoul, for the 1988 Summer Olympics.”

50. Civil Rights

In the mid-20^th century, the Stritch community supported civil rights activism. During a 1940s conference of Catholic college students, Stritch students joined in condemning all “prejudicial laws and practices.” In 1965, Stritch Sociology Chair Sister Jeanine Gruesser, OSF, traveled to Selma and participated in the protest which led to the passage of the voting rights act. “Our purpose was to witness the truth that these men and women are our brothers and sisters in Christ and that they have the right to all the privileges of United States citizenship.”
 

49. Ski trips

In February 1968, Stritch students organized a ski trip to Mount Telemark in Cable, Wisconsin, with the Rendezvous Ski Club of the Milwaukee School of Engineering. The three-day excursion included transportation by Greyhound bus, lodging, ski tows and meals, all for $29.95 per person. Earlier that same month, 15 women from Stritch ventured for a daytrip to Rib Mountain in Wausau, Wisconsin, with students from MSOE. Pictured here are freshman Janet Jacobs, sophomore Alicia Shiland and senior Charlotte Howlin as they packed up their gear following the Wausau excursion.

48. Christmas caroling

Strolling through the snowy grounds of the Stritch’s southside campus in December 1947, five students sang carols on their way to the annual Christmas feast. Pictured from left to right are: Joanne Heyne, Nellie Durrell, Grace Dwyer, Patricia Siekert and Evelyn Sanders. That year, Stritch music groups also spread holiday cheer beyond campus when the 25-member choir sang hymns at St. John’s Cathedral and when the Glee Club presented a music festival of Christmas numbers for friends and relatives.
 

47. Fruit cakes

“What could be a better gift for any mom?” asked Sister Carol Ann Newlon, OSF, referring to the rum and nut fruit cakes cooked up by Home Economic students and Food Service Department during at least two holiday seasons in the 1950s and 1960s. For this 1967 sale, Sister Carol Ann along with Sister Jonathan supervised, mixed and baked the cakes, which were packaged in Christmas foil containers and decorated with fruit or nuts. Sales began in October.

46. Pancake feasts

For nearly 30 years, Student Affairs staff have served up a late-night pancake breakfast for students coping with the stressors and long hours of exam week. While the menus vary each year, pancakes often are enjoyed with fresh fruit, sausages, eggs, juice and, of course, coffee to fuel students late into the night.

A recap of the very first feast in May 1993 said, “All students who attended appreciated the royal treatment which our Student Development Staff gave them.”

This photo appeared on the cover of the Winter 1996 issue of Stritch Magazine.
 

45. Tree Lighting tradition

Dating back to 1950 (and possibly even earlier), one of Stritch’s longest traditions is the annual tree lighting ceremony which gathers people of all faiths around the Christmas tree for music, prayers, a presidential address and the lighting of the tree. Each year is a little different, with past events featuring plays and dramatic readings, student dinners, campus processions, reflections from Assisi pilgrims and more.

“The Christmas tree lighting is one of those anchors that has always been a part of our communal life at Stritch,” said Franciscan Mission Office Director Father James Lobacz, ’86, in 2003.
 

44. Sister Margaret Ruddy, OSF, Archives

“I look forward to assuming a new position in the University where I will be able to put my dedication to the institution, my knowledge of the history of the University and my research skills to good use,” wrote Sister Margaret Ruddy, OSF, as she concluded 30 years of service in Stritch’s library to found the University archives. In 2009, she began collecting artifacts, files and photos in the space once occupied by the Frederick Layton Honor Gallery and, before that, the student union. In 2019, the University named the Archives in her honor.
 

43. Thanksgiving food drives

“Thanksgiving boxes are checked before being distributed to needy families by (l-r) Sharon Landergott and Pauline Wannemuehler, co-chairman and chairman, respectively, of the Thanksgiving Basket Drive,” said the caption from the Dec. 7, 1956 issue of the C.S.C. News. This year, Stritch continued this tradition with its annual collection of food boxes to benefit the families served by the Capuchin Community Services in Milwaukee. The University community donated 60 boxes full of Thanksgiving fixings to be distributed just in time for the holiday.

42. Home Economics

Generations of students studied nutrition, textiles, interior design, finance, fashion and health through Stritch’s Bachelor of Science in Home Economics program. When introduced in 1948, Home Economics classes were held in a house purchased specifically for the new program on South Superior Street near the original Cardinal Stritch College campus in St. Francis, Wisconsin. In this 1954 C.S.C. News image, the Home Economics president “combines nature’s novelties found along the lakeshore for a unique and beautiful fall centerpiece.” The Home Economics program closed in 1989.

41. Ecumenical/Interfaith

Inspired by Vatican II reforms, Stritch took the lead in the ecumenical and interfaith movement. In the 1960s students learned about Judaism and protestant Christianity in classes and at university-wide lectures. In the 1980s, Stritch hired protestant campus ministers, held ecumenical retreats and prayer services and sponsored a conference on Islam. In the early 1980s, Sisters Jessine Reiss, OSF, and Lucille Walsh, OSF, joined with University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Professor Dr. Abbas Hamdani (pictured) to found the Islamic-Christian dialogue in Milwaukee, which was one of the first in the nation and received papal recognition.

Photo originally appeared in Interfaith Engagement in Milwaukee.

40. 75 years of theater

Stritch has presented theater productions continuously since 1947 when the Dramatics Club presented two one-act plays. In the 1940s and 1950s many productions had religious themes. In the 1950s the Dramatics Club changed its name to the Genesian Players (after St. Genesius, patron saint of actors) and began producing some non-religious shows. This mix of religious and secular shows continued until the 1970s when most of the productions were non-religious – including both new and classics works – and, at times, took on socially relevant themes.
 

39. T.G.I.T.s

“A T.G.I.T…is the social happening of the week where students mingle and relax after a hard day of classes.” (1987 yearbook)

For years, T.G.I.T. (Thank God It’s Thursday) brought students together in the Student Union for entertainment and refreshments every Thursday from 8:30 p.m. to midnight. A sponsoring student organization chose the theme, decorations, contests, prizes and menu and handled all the logistics. Themes in the 1986-87 year featured pajamas, 50s, togas and game shows, while contests that year included snoring, hula hoops and ice cream eating.

38. Political convention of 1964

In May 1964, the Current Affairs Club staged a mock political convention complete with sign waving, candidate speeches, delegates representing every U.S. state and votes to determine the Republican candidate who would face incumbent Lyndon B. Johnson. The Stritch students nominated U.S. Ambassador Henry Cabot Lodge as their Republication nominee, with Governor William Scranton finishing a close second and Senator Barry Goldwater (the actual nominee) in third. The purpose was to “acquaint the student body with the possible candidates for President and their views on certain issues,” according to the C.S.C. News.
 

37. Protests at the School of the Americas

In the 1990s and early 2000s Campus Ministry Director Sister Adele Thibaudeau, OSF, led several groups of Stritch students to protests at the School of the Americas, a U.S. military training camp in Benning, Georgia, that trained the armies of U.S. allies in Latin America. The school became controversial after the assassination of a group of Jesuits reportedly by a person who trained at the School of the Americas. This led many Catholic college students to protest at the School of the Americas.

36. Cianciolo Collection

In 2003, Dr. Patricia J. Cianciolo, ’49, gifted her collection of nearly 35,000 pieces of literature, illustrations, articles and artworks to Cardinal Stritch University. This expansive collection includes every recipient of two prestigious accolades – the Newbery Medal Award and the Caldecott Award – which honor, respectively, excellence in children’s literature and illustrations for children’s literature. The collection, which is vital to educators, scholars and children alike, is housed on the second floor of the Library.
 

35. Era of Growth

In 1980, Stritch had 1,200 students. By 2010, enrollment boomed to more than 7,000. This growth was caused by three factors. First, there was a large population of 18-22-year-olds to be recruited. Second, Stritch added nursing and other programs that attracted new populations of students. However, most of Stritch’s growth was driven by the innovative evening programs that accommodated working professionals. Often designed in an accelerated format, programs in business, education, history, religious studies and other areas served students eager to earn their degrees without giving up their day jobs.

34. Day of Indebtedness

On Oct. 15, 1976, the Sisters of St. Francis of Assisi paid off the mortgage for the new campus, celebrating their “Day of Indebtedness” with an official mortgage burning, liturgy and luncheon two days later. Planning for the new campus began in the 1940s and involved years of saving, scrimping and collecting coupons and stamps before the North Shore campus opened in 1962. Even then, the Sisters continued to be very conservative with their spending, often purchasing needed linens, dishes and housewares through redemption programs.
 

33. Rose window logo

Mission Week 2012 included an unveiling of a new logo modeled after the rose window that adorns the front of the Basilica di Santa Chiara (St. Clare) in Assisi, Italy. The logo honors the patron saint for whom the school was originally named and also pays homage to the legacy of the Sisters of St. Francis of Assisi. With this unveiling, the school colors changed from maroon and gray to red and gray. On the day of the announcement, Stritch pilgrims in Assisi posed with the actual window.
 

32. Stritch Crusaders

In 1982, the Student Government Association held a campuswide vote for a new team name. The Crusaders beat out the Cavaliers, the Cardinals and five others. The Red Devils – the mascot since 1971 – came in second to last. Some students loved the new name, with one saying it “emphasized both the strength of the team and the religious affiliation with a Catholic college.” Others expressed disappointment with one quoted as saying, “It sounds medieval and does not suit the women’s teams.”
 

31. Stritch Service Day

On April 29, 2016, the University held the inaugural Stritch Service Day. More than 450 faculty, staff and students served 10 nonprofit organizations throughout Milwaukee. Over the last six years, Stritch Service Day has grown to include more service sites and is now held in October when the University celebrates Mission Week.

30. Franciscan values

In the mid-20th century, fewer women were joining religious orders, so there were fewer Sisters of St. Francis of Assisi at Stritch and at all corporations sponsored by them. To ensure their Franciscan charism continued to permeate Stritch, the University sought to infuse the values into campus life. This effort began in 1988 when a group of mostly Sisters identified the four values – creating a caring community, sharing compassion for others, reverence for creation, peacemaking – that “uniquely exemplified Stritch’s spirit and heritage.” This 1988 photo captures the six directors of the Sisters’ corporations who discussed defining shared values at all these ministries.
 

29. Stritch Splash

The Stritch Splash fundraiser for Athletics — held during Homecoming 1997 weekend — brought the Stritch community together for a 5K Walk, Run and Roll; campus parade; youth sports challenge; sports card show and soccer games. The culminating event was a Ping-Pong ball race down the Milwaukee River at Kletzsch Park in Glendale. Tossed from the Greentree Road bridge, the numbered balls floated to a finish line to score a grand prize trip to Las Vegas or Orlando for the winner.
 

28. Mental Health

In the early years, the Sisters who lived and worked on campus provided the guidance and counseling services. Students turned to their professor-Sisters or the Sisters who supervised them in the residence hall for counsel. However, in the 1960s, students began to feel that the Sisters’ workloads prevented them from being as available as the students needed. The Student Government Association and other groups advocated for a professional counselor to be hired, but the request was initially declined. After continued student demands, a full-time counselor was hired in 1967.
 

27. Smocking Ceremony

New art students used to undergo a solemn ceremony of investiture called a “Smocking Ceremony.” Stamping the San Damiano Studio seal on the backs of their blue smocks, the students then had their smocks placed upon their shoulders by Sister Thomasita Fessler, OSF, founder and head of the art department.
 

26. Remembering Sept. 11, 2001

The morning of September 11, 2001, Stritch President Sister Mary Lea Schneider, OSF, was in an airplane en route to Washington, D.C. Her flight was diverted to Columbus, Ohio, and she drove back to Wisconsin with a few others. When Sister Mary Lea traveled to New York City for an alumni event later that fall, she visited Ground Zero, as well as the Ladder 24, Engine 1 firehouse and the Church of St. Francis of Assisi.
 

25. Flag football

In the 1970s and 1980s co-ed flag football was one of the most popular fall recreational activities on Stritch’s campus. Students formed their own nine-person teams, and each club had to have at least three women. They came up with their own team names, so those names often were creative and sometimes off-color. Students played the games on campus with the winner decided once a team scored eight touchdowns or based on which team was ahead after one hour of play.
 

24. International students

International students have been an important part of Stritch’s student body since the 1950s when approximately 8% of students enrolled from countries including Peru, Jamaica and China. Today, 22% of the Class of 2026 are international students and represent Spain, the Netherlands, Mexico, Germany, Kenya, Micronesia, Sweden, Scotland, Switzerland, Greece, Brazil, Albania, South Africa and Norway.

23. Commuter students

Stritch once served mostly residential students. This began to change in the 1970s and, by 1980, about 80 percent of students lived off campus. These commuter students were concerned about the lack of quiet study space for them on campus. The school paper reported that some commuters were taking refuge in their cars to “avoid cigarette smoke and noisy soap operas." In 1980, Stritch created a Commuter Council and later added a commuter student representative to the Student Government Association, leading to the creation of a commuter lounge. Dedicated commuter events began in the 1990s.
 

22. Freshmen Orientation

In the middle 20th century, the school year began with freshmen orientation. The upperclassmen led the “freshies” through mixers, picnics and tours of the campus and served as big sisters during orientation and the first weeks of school. The freshies attended a lecture on school rules and college expectations and took a battery of achievement and psychological tests to help place them in classes and advise them. Orientation closed with a talent show and an “off the record concert,” featuring music on the record player (pictured).

21. Convocation & Capping Ceremony

Students and faculty used to attend the convocation ceremony in full academic regalia. The event began with a Mass presided over by the archbishop, followed by a program that included a candle-lighting ceremony and the “capping” of the freshmen. The capping ceremony required freshmen to pledge to “make their caps and gowns the symbol of a new inner formation” and live up to Stritch’s motto “to approve the better things.” This ritual initiated freshmen into the Stritch academic community.

20. Move-in Day

Move-in Day signifies the kick-off of a new academic year, bringing fresh life, excitement and anticipation among students, faculty and staff each year. So much changes throughout history, and yet this move-in day flurry is a constant, an occasion that is circled on calendar each and every year. This 1968 move-in shows families unloading items into a basement door of Clare Hall.

19. Samuel Cardinal Stritch

Born August 17, 1887, Samuel Alphonsus Stritch was ordained at the young age of 22. Recognized early on for his holiness, intelligence and love, Stritch rose quickly through the ranks of the Catholic Church. When named Bishop of Toledo at age 34, he was the youngest bishop in America at that time. He later served as archbishop of Milwaukee and then Chicago where he was appointed a cardinal. In 1946, St. Clare College changed to The Cardinal Stritch College in recognition of his encouragement of the Sisters of St. Francis of Assisi when they founded the college.

18. Beanies

Like many other colleges and universities at the time, Cardinal Stritch College issued beanies to freshman students each year. The front of the red and white beanies were marked with the graduation year. Tradition required freshmen to wear their beanies whenever they were out and about on campus, identifying them as their newest students and exposing them to a bit of ribbing and fun while bonding them to their fellow classmates.

*Pictured: Teresa Terp (B.A. Foreign Language, '73)

17. Urban Ministry Certificate

“I have so many wonderful and fond memories during my time at Stritch, but one memory that stands out is the day I was presented with my Urban Ministry Certificate from Dr. Dan Di Domizio through Stritch’s Brother Booker Ashe Urban Ministry Program in 2016.”

*Photo submitted by Byron Marshall, Jr. (A.S. Business, ’15)

16. The Stritch Red Devils

In 1971, Stritch adopted the Red Devils as its new athletics nickname, partly to attract more men to enroll. Newly coed, the College admitted the first men as students in 1970 and the administration expanded athletics to include men’s basketball and bowling. Prior to the 1970s, Stritch did not have a formal team name, but students and teams were referred to as Cardinalities.

15. Heritage Park

Dedicated in 2008 to honor the Sisters of St. Francis of Assisi, Heritage Park is a peaceful space on the east side of campus. In 2020, the park was transformed into a stage for Stritch's first promenade-style theater production, "Twelfth Night." Rather than cancel the Performing Arts season due to COVID-19 restrictions, student-actors safely performed scenes for a limited audience throughout the 4,000-square foot space.

14. Model UN

Stritch students have served as Model United Nations (UN) delegates since the early 1960s. In 1984, late history professor Sister Justine Peter, OSF, '50, (right) accompanied students to a Model UN meeting in New York City where they engaged in discussions about contemporary world issues and events. The students who represented Ireland at the national event included (left to right) Esther Luke, Walter Ballard, Jeff Krieg, Tim Lenzi and Brion Miller.

13. St. Ben's Community Meal Program

In 1977, under the leadership of Stritch’s first campus minister, Sister Doris Pehowski, OSF, Stritch students, faculty and staff began volunteering to provide and serve one meal per month to Milwaukee’s neediest residents at two parish meal programs - St. Benedict the Moor and St. Gall’s. At that time, Stritch was the only college group committed to be a monthly sponsor of the St. Ben’s Meal Program. Generations of Stritch students have volunteered at the sites, and today’s students carry on that legacy each month at St. Ben’s.

12. Stritch students cut an album

In 1969, Stritch students wrote, produced and recorded their own album. “Dew Drops and Dandelion Dust” featured 15 folk-style numbers including the songs “Silhouette of a Women,” “Dew Drops” and “At Little Moments.” According to the album liner notes, songs were about “life as seen and lived by the students at Cardinal Stritch.” The students performed in Serra Hall and at the Boston Store, a downtown Milwaukee retailer. The album sold for $4.98, and all proceeds went to help buy a pool table for campus.

11. Athletic Hall of Fame

In 2001, Stritch established the Athletic Hall of Fame to honor former athletes, coaches and administrators who have made significant contributions to the University. The inaugural class of inductees included former student-athletes Peter Loyda, ’90, and Jennifer Wittmann, ’93, as well as Dr. William F. Stier, Jr. (former coach and director of athletics). Then-president Sister Mary Lea Schneider, OSF, was a champion for the initiative and presided over the induction ceremony. Pictured: John Pfaffl, ’13; Jessica Scheper, ’03, ’06, and the late Rich Panella, ’12(H) at the 2007 Athletic Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony.

10. Mother's Club

In 1947, a group of women dedicated to promoting the mission of the College formally organized as the Mother’s Club, although most of them did not have daughters attending Stritch. For more than 44 years, they sponsored fundraising projects, raising $126,638 by the time they disbanded in 1991. Funds paid for many things, including the stained glass panels in today’s Leadership Commons, the stained glass “Saint Clare and the Saracens” window in Duns Scotus Hall, several cars and the Bösendorfer concert grand piano.

9. Women’s school

Until 1970, Stritch was an all-women’s college and the curriculum and extracurriculars both reinforced and challenged women’s traditional roles as wife, mother and helpmate. To develop refined women, Stritch held teas and formal dances and encouraged students to take home economics. However, Stritch also allowed women to engage in activities outside the traditional female roles and provided leadership opportunities. Stritch students also played athletics, something that was frowned upon during that era. The Sisters stood as role models and examples of women leading rewarding lives outside of marriage.

8. Changing to University status

Cardinal Stritch College moved to University status in 1997, changing its name to Cardinal Stritch University and its structure to include four academic colleges. The Board of Trustees signed the official proclamation, emphasizing Stritch’s size, comprehensive academic offerings, heterogenous student body and plans to unveil its first doctoral degree program as reasons for the change. With the new name came a new logo and seal as well as new signage for campus.

7. Sports in 1940s-1950s

In the 1940s and 1950s, sports were among the many extracurricular activities Stritch offered its all-female student body. Some participated in recreational athletics, playing baseball and other sports with girls from neighboring St. Mary’s Academy High School. Other Stritch women played basketball and varsity-level sports. Stritch’s competitive teams played other Catholic colleges in the city, Milwaukee State Teachers College (now University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee) and Wisconsin State College-Whitewater (now University of Wisconsin-Whitewater).

6. Adult education

Stritch has a history of programming for non-traditional students. In the 1950s and 1960s, art programs catered to adult learners. In 1976, Stritch opened its venture program for working adults to earn undergraduate degrees during the day. In 1982, the Program in Management for Adults (PMA) provided opportunities for adults to take evening, accelerated classes to earn their degrees. As the first program of its kind in Wisconsin, PMA experienced tremendous growth for the next 30 years and expanded to include graduate degrees and off-campus sites.
 

5. Mile of Art

The first Mile of Art Faire in 1977 attracted about 3,000 people who strolled along cam­pus roadways perusing the work of artists chosen through a juried process. Originally started by former Art Department Chair and internationally known artist Sister Thomasita Fessler, OSF, and the Friends of Studio San Damiano, the Mile of Art raised funds for the department and the studio and provided a summertime family event featuring artists from throughout the Midwest, including numerous Stritch alumni. Stritch hosted its final fair in 2003.

4. Move to "new" campus

In 1959, Stritch broke ground for a 60-acre campus north of Milwaukee. In 1962, the College closed operations at the “old” campus that was shared with St. Mary’s Academy. Immediately after graduation, furniture, equipment, materials and Sisters moved to the “new” campus which included Bonaventure Hall (administration, library), Duns Scotus Hall (academics), Roger Bacon Hall (science), Clare Hall (residence), Serra Hall (kitchen, dining, chapel) and the Powerhouse.

3. St. Francis of Assisi Chapel

Cardinal Stritch University formally dedicated the St. Francis of Assisi Chapel on Oct. 4, 2011 (the feast day of its namesake). The Most Rev. Jerome Listecki, Archbishop of Milwaukee, presided over the Mass. Prior to 2011, the chapel was located in Cardinal Lounge on the first floor of Bonaventure Hall (2007-2011) and in the basement of Serra Hall (1962-2007). The spaces, however, did not meet the capacity needs for the University’s primary worship space, and students lobbied for the construction of a new, modern chapel. Today, the University community gathers here for daily Masses, holy day observances and personal prayer.

2. Going coed

Cardinal Stritch University was founded as a women’s college, and the Sisters believed this allowed the school to develop strong and refined women. In the 1960s, however, administrators began to see declining enrollment as female students decided to attend coed colleges. As a result, Stritch admitted its first male students in 1970. Some students and faculty worried that the newly admitted men would dominate campus life, but Stritch had a strong culture of women’s leadership. Throughout the 1970s, most clubs and organizations were led by women, and female students continued to be leaders in the classroom. 

1. Founded in 1937

On July 17, 1937, Wisconsin Secretary of State Theodore Dammann signed the official Articles of Incorporation establishing St. Clare College (later named Cardinal Stritch University) as a four-year degree-granting institution. Founded by the Sisters of St. Francis of Assisi as a teacher preparation college for the Sisters, St. Clare College granted its first baccalaureate degrees to four students. Mother Bartholomew Frederick, OSF, served as the inaugural president of the college which shared a campus with St. Mary’s Academy on the south side of Milwaukee.