TO AND BEYOND

Xavier Embarks on A Centennial Journey in Further Pursuit of a More Just and Humane Society

—By Leslie D. Rose

Designed to create a more just and humane society through higher education, Xavier University of Louisiana, founded in 1925, historically provided this outlet to students without such access. Now, nearly 100 years later, the mission of Xavier remains dedicated to supporting the future of continued justice and humanity through modern education and sustainability. As the University embarks upon our centennial, significant strides are being taken to honor our rich history and culture in preparation for 2025 and beyond.

Recognizing the need to make a college education more accessible and affordable while still providing the immense quality that Xavier is known for sits atop our list of goals as we enter our next century of excellence. To kick off the forthcoming celebration, University President Dr. Reynold Verret announced the Comprehensive Centennial Campaign, a fundraising mission to garner $500 million to deepen and broaden Xavier’s impact over the next 100 years so all students go forth to lead, serve, and better the world in the spirit of foundress Saint Katharine Drexel.

Time, Talent, and Treasure

Many Xavierites and community members have been impacted by the power of this prestigious university, whose rich history is not only marked by academic excellence but also steeped in accolades, dignitary visits, and civil servitude.

“The history of Xavier is so significant,” said Dr. Sharlene Sinegal-DeCuir, ‘99, Associate Professor of History. “We have to make sure that the students know that they didn’t get to where they are without the sacrifices of others. They have to know that without Katharine Drexel’s vision, we would not be here. There would be so many fewer African American leaders throughout the world, not just our nation, not just Louisiana, the world.”

Among several notable occurrences at Xavier, the Freedom Riders, denied lodging elsewhere, were permitted to stay at St. Michael’s Residence Hall. Countless famous and historically relevant people have visited the campus, including Pope John Paul II, who gave a Catholic college address from the courtyard of the Administration building. Just before his official presidential campaign, former President Barack Obama served as commencement speaker in 2006. Pop culture icons like Stevie Wonder and Jackie Robinson have stepped foot on the ever-growing campus. Notable alumni such as New Orleans’ first Black mayor Ernest “Dutch” Morial, ‘51, former United States Surgeon General Regina Benjamin, ‘79, artist and McArthur Genius fellow John T. Scott, ‘62, and the first Black U.S. Secretary of Labor Alexis Herman, ‘69, among several other highly revered and accomplished alumni further fill the University with prestige and promise.

“The connections of people and the long legacy of people that Xavier has been educating since [1925], our students need to know that that legacy is a legacy that they have to carry on,” Sinegal-DeCuir said.

It’s hard to think of legacies and Xavier and not think of President Emeritus Dr. Norman C. Francis, ’52, arguably one of the University’s most endeared graduates. Under the early years of his leadership, enrollment drastically increased, and the campus not only expanded but became more modernized. Xavier’s endowment grew from $20 million to over $160 million throughout his tenure.

Francis carried on the goals set forth by Drexel, and it has become a defining trademark that separates Xavier students from other college students. Xavierites don’t compete against one another. Instead, they study together, support each other, and lend a hand when needed.

“It is the Xavier that ties us together,” Ronald Dorris, ‘72, former Xavier professor, said. “We call it the Xavier bond, the Xavier magic. We went on to become pharmacists, medical doctors, and mathematicians; you name it, to make any contribution that we felt was instrumental in advancing and contributing to the history and culture of a broader world, but to make a unique contribution to our own history and culture. We went on to do that. What we wanted when we got to Xavier, we went on to do.”

Time, talent, and treasure are within the fabric of a Xavierite.

“We all know that change doesn’t take place just because you want it to take place,” Francis said. “You can’t expect things to happen if you don’t become a part of it. There are always some people willing to give a hand. When somebody is in need, or somebody has something that you can do that will be progressive, that will help somebody else – raise your hand.”

Press Forward. Fear Nothing.

An Overview of the Comprehensive Centennial Campaign

Much has changed in our world since 1925, but access to a high-quality education remains unattainable to many potential students. This is why we seek to raise $500 million through our Comprehensive Centennial Campaign to support the future of the University, our students, and the subsequent impact collectively made wherever Xavierites may land.

“This campaign isn’t one of choice — it’s about accomplishing Xavier’s mission to promote a more just and humane society,” University President Dr. Reynold Verret said. “It’s about increasing affordability and access through financial assistance; investing in student success, well-being, and a prosperous future; matching our campus to our potential; and recruiting and retaining exceptional faculty and expanding academic programs.”

Xavier has continuously ranked among top colleges and universities throughout departments, programs, and general student well-being and success, repeatedly proving to be a major force in the educational realm and many industries, impacting the world.

“It’s about changing the world, one Xavierite at a time,” Verret said.

Xavier graduates have made even their boldest dreams come to fruition through the dedication and support of people who want to see them succeed at a level for which they may reach back their hands and help someone else actualize their goals.

“Year after year, Xavier’s graduates enter the workforce in the top 70th percentile of earners in the U.S., with many coming from families who earn in the bottom 20th percentile. Xavier provides its students with a path to living the American dream. That’s impact,” said Gladstone Jones, Comprehensive Centennial Campaign Chair.

The Comprehensive Centennial Campaign, supported by four pillars, reaches back to Saint Katharine Drexel’s vision and asks simply, what if? The answers make way for big dreams.

“Looking toward the next century, the world needs Xavier now more than ever, and to keep pressing forward, we ask you to join us, to walk toward the future – a future of supporting students, faculty, and our campus in exciting new ways to produce exponential impact we can only have with your support,” Jones said.

PRIORITY #1 Increasing Affordability and Access Through Financial Assistance

Caitlyn A. Duffie, ‘21, an admissions counselor at Xavier, hears direct monetary concerns from potential students she counsels in her territories of Florida and the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan area.

“Many students in my territory are worried about not just coming to [Xavier] or being able to survive academically, but they’re worried about their financial support,” Duffie said. “So, if some of that worry can be alleviated, if they had an accessible income stream, many more students would just believe a Xavier education is a more realistic goal for them.”

This campaign priority will work to serve more students who can benefit from a Xavier education, retain more students to help them reach their goals, and support more students to ensure their dreams come true after graduation.

Xavier has proven that when students receive access, it changes their lives. While 94% of our undergraduates apply for and receive need-based financial aid, the University boasts a 93% job-placement rate, allowing that population the opportunity to begin earning at a high level immediately post-grad.

“I know the value of a Xavier degree, and I know the value of a Xavier network which is why I push that so hard,” Duffie said. “When I’m out recruiting, I always tell people I do not know one unsuccessful person who graduated from Xavier.”

PRIORITY #2 Investing in the Well-Being and Success of the Entire Student

Xavier is known to educate the whole student, and reinvestment into the community is truly the benefit of this form of education. The University was named among the top HBCUs for student success and social mobility. Studies show that students who earn 32% more early in their careers increase their social mobility and transform lives in the communities they serve.

“Coming to Xavier as a student, certainly academics is a part of it, but we’re talking about the whole person, not just the academic part of that person, said Dr. Marguerite S. Giguette, Interim Senior Vice President of Academic Affairs and Provost. “What are some things that we can do? What are some programs that we can do? How can our counseling center serve our students better? These are all really critical pieces of the University. And to me, that’s what this campaign is all about. It’s central to the student. And that’s, once again, what Xavier’s about.” This campaign priority will work to provide 360-degree academic support, career collaboration, and connection, opportunities for healthy eating and living, spiritual support, and mental wellness.

“HBCUs were designed so that students wouldn’t have to worry about navigating life in their Black bodies; they could just be brilliant scholars, thoughtful citizens that were able to get an education,” said Vice President of Student Affairs Curtis Wright. “Our students at Xavier get a world-class education. But I also think they come to us with so many more challenges than we’ve probably ever seen in the history of our institution. So I’m excited about this campaign because I think that there are opportunities for us to go back to who we were called to be, and that’s creating these more just, humane people.”

PRIORITY #3 Matching Our Campus to Our Potential

As the story goes, Saint Katharine Drexel wanted the finest limestone to build the Administration building. When questioned why she would spend so much money on something for Black and Native students, she replied, “Do they, too, not deserve the best?” Historically speaking, the best has always been available to Xavierites, and this campaign area wishes to continue down that path.

This campaign priority will work to renovate the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament Convent, modernize science labs to support exceptional study, build a new and vibrant residence hall, and create a sustainable campus for the Xavier of tomorrow.

“If we want to expand some of our academic programs, we need some space in order to do that,” Giguette said.

Other projects under this priority area are adding a performing arts and art exhibition space and an athletic field for intramural sports for a nextgeneration energy campus with new and improved infrastructure.

“We need facilities to support our students with who they are right now,” Wright said. “Our facilities need to match our students’ brilliance. We need a campus with green spaces for them so that they can get outside and commune; we need community gardens for various reasons, like addressing our food insecurities. But also, we know that when people are out in the community, their mental and physical wellness improves.”

PRIORITY #4 Recruiting and Retaining Exceptional Faculty and Expanding Academic Programs

Faculty recruitment and retention depend on having top-notch offerings and faculty support. This campaign priority will include creating 10 new faculty chair positions, increasing salaries, visiting professorships, research initiatives, faculty award programs, start-up funds, professional development, and support for the Center for the Advancement of Teaching and Faculty Development.

“Once we recruit a faculty member, we want that faculty member to stay,” Giguette said. “So, one of the ways we can make that happen is by supporting our faculty in as many ways as possible. What’s critical is that the faculty member truly understands Xavier’s mission, which is our students’ success.”

In developing academics for the future, adaptability is vital in an ever-changing workforce. Some programs are already in the works – African American Diasporic Cultural Studies, Institute for Pastoral Studies, Health Care Management, and Data Science and Analytics.

“One of the critical things for any university, but especially for Xavier, is to make sure that our academic programs are moving forward, and we are creating new programs to position our students to remain leaders. I can’t predict what might be a new program in 10 years, but I know that it’s with great faculty who are thinking about what our students will need moving forward. In every one of these healthrelated programs we’ve [recently] started, the [current] percentage of African Americans practicing in these fields is less than 5%.”

Giguette said the idea isn’t just to create new things. It’s also to infuse new ideas into current programs. Community engagement, which is a historic investment for Xavier, will look to provide a summer faculty-in-residence program and a faculty fellowship program.

Building a Culture of Alumni Philanthropy

Xavierites live the scripture Luke 12:48 – to whom much is given, much will be required. Honoring the legacy of paying it forward and bestowing their time, talent, and treasure unto a place that has meant so much to them is a rite of passage.

Teal Holden, ‘02, who serves as the Vice Chair on the Comprehensive Centennial Campaign Committee and is also the Second Vice President for the National Alumni Association, said she believes that creating opportunities for someone to follow their passion is the type of legacy Xavierites want to create as a community.

“If we are blessed with talents, wealth, knowledge, time, and a robust network, it is expected that we give back to others,” Holden said. “When I think about this in relationship to Xavier, our alma mater, and knowing how much they have given us – they have expanded upon our talents as we matriculated through Xavier, and they’ve given us a community where we feel valued and the stepping stones to create the life we want to live.

They’ve given us friendships; Xavier has given us mentors and just so much more. When I think about that and know that while I may have only physically been at Xavier for four years, the institution has continued to open doors for my community and me, I don’t know if any other organization has had the type of impact on my life that Xavier has.”

While Holden has created an endowed scholarship at the University and donated $10,000 on Give. Love. Xavier day, she notes, giving time is equally essential.

“Alumni have a shared responsibility for the growth and development of Xavier,” Holden said. “We’re all connected to the mission of creating a just and humane society and focused on engaging our current students and alumni. One of the ways that we could do that is through fundraising and developing strong partnerships and relationships that will help sustain Xavier for the next 100 years. Giving doesn’t just require financial giving; it’s also the investment of your time, experience, vision, and personal connections. More than anything, it’s just really striving to create that culture of alumni philanthropy.”

Dr. Derek Robinson, ’98, sees Xavier as a place where dreams come true. It’s part of the foundation that helped him secure a lucrative medical career, including roles as an active emergency medicine physician, clinical associate professor, and senior leader at a major healthcare provider. He continues to pay his good fortune forward, including serving as Vice-Chairman of Xavier’s Board of Trustees.

“I give to Xavier because Xavier’s given so much to me over the years, and truthfully, my journey would not be what it has been if not for

Xavier,” Robinson said. “It’s a place where the socioeconomic trajectory of our students and their families is elevated, and it’s a place where lives are transformed. I know my investments in Xavier will pay dividends for generations of local and national communities.”

Robinson, who donated $25,000 on Give. Love. Xavier day said there are many invaluable ways to support, and Xavier needs all that support on an ongoing basis. He hopes Xavierites give with the understanding that every offering of time, resources, and finances is essential.

“I think it’s important for folks to give what they can give, how they can give,” he said. “I haven’t always been able to give at this amount, and I won’t always be able to give at this amount. All types of service and philanthropic gifts are important. It’s not as much about the financial amount as it is about individuals giving back and contributing to a university that continues to invest in and support the development of young people who will continue to do remarkable things across the nation and worldwide.”

2025 and Beyond

For nearly 100 years, Xavier has broken barriers in reputation and education to help shape the world. The University can transform even more lives at the crossroads of 100 more years of impact.

“What this campaign is doing beyond 2025 is providing the foundation and the funds that we need to move forward and maintain the excellent programs that we have, as well as create new programs so that the students of the future will also be able to create a more just and humane society as they become leaders and move forward,” Giguette said.

The unimaginable awaits Xavier at the turn of this century, but as we prepare for the future, the student experience remains at the heart of it all.

“Our students tell our story better than we could ever tell it,” Wright said. “We’ve given them the tools to use their voice to bring about change. The great part about it all is the student input we’ve received. They’re excited about who we could become as a university, even though they may not be here to enjoy it. They want it for future generations of Xavierites.”

Xavier is ready to exponentially unlock access as our graduates personify societal change for generations. If you’re prepared to support that change, please visit giving. xula.edu, call (504) 520-7575, or email IA@xula.edu.