History
There are 106 historically Black colleges and 251 Catholic colleges in the United States, yet only one is both Black and Catholic. That distinction belongs to Xavier University of Louisiana, which strives to combine the best attributes of both its faith and its culture. Located in New Orleans, the small liberal arts college dates back to 1915, when St. Katharine Drexel and the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament founded the coeducational secondary school from which it evolved. St. Katharine, supported by the interest of a substantial inheritance from her father, banker-financier Francis Drexel, founded and staffed many institutions throughout the U.S. in an effort to help educate Native Americans and Blacks. She was canonized by Pope John Paul II in October, 2000.
Specialties
Xavier University of Louisiana, founded by Saint Katharine Drexel and the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament, is Catholic and historically Black. The ultimate purpose of the University is to contribute to the promotion of a more just and humane society by preparing its students to assume roles of leadership and service in a global society. This preparation takes place in a diverse learning and teaching environment that incorporates all relevant educational means, including research and community service.[View a presentation made by Sr. Monica Loughlin, S.B.S. at the Board of Trustees Orientation, October 2008.] Overview: * St. Katharine Drexel of Philadelphia and her Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament, a religious community dedicated to the education of African Americans and Native Americans, established Xavier as a high school in 1915. The four-year college program was added in 1925. Today Xavier retains its distinction as the only historically Black, Catholic University in the United States. * In 1970, the Sisters transferred control of the University to a joint lay/religious Board of Trustees. Dr. Norman C. Francis, a 1952 XULA graduate, served as president for 47 years before retiring in 2015. Dr. C. Reynold Verret now serves as President.