History of the Alumni Association

From its humble beginnings in 1895, to a few thousand alumni in the 1940s, to now being more than 40,000 alumni strong, the Loyola University New Orleans Alumni Association has served as a link between Loyola and its alumni.

Beginnings (1895 – 1925)

The Alumni Association evolved from an organization formed in 1895, at the College of the Immaculate Conception, the membership of which was open to the alumni of any Jesuit college.

In 1911, this Jesuit Alumni Association was transferred to Loyola University. The Rev. Albert Biever, S.J., first president of the university, was appointed honorary president of this association in 1912, which continued to be open to alumni of any Jesuit college.

In 1925, the association became the Alumni Association of Loyola University. Its purpose was “to promote the best interest of Loyola University, to maintain among its graduates a spirit of fellowship and of service and to promote an effective relationship between the University and the Alumni.”

Growing numbers (1925 – 1940s)

The first elected president by the membership was Henry B. Curtis, A‘17, in 1925.

In 1926, Loyola’s alumnae, responded to a call by Fr. J.C. Kearns, dean of faculties, to organize the Alumnae Association to assist the university when needed.

The Alumni Association continued to grow in numbers, and by 1937 was in need of a communications medium. The Men of the South was first published in that year.

In 1938, a full-time alumni secretary, Clay Calhoun, was employed by the university.

Raising money, buildings (1940s – 1950s)

At the beginning of World War II, the Alumni Association inaugurated an annual drive to build a student center in honor of the 1550 alumni and students who fought in the Armed Forces. Father Percy A. Roy, S.J., president of Loyola during the war years, encouraged the drive. By the war’s end, $25,000 had been collected. In 1945, the new president, Fr. Thomas J. Shields, decided that providing the campus with a library should take priority over construction of a new student center.

The building was begun in 1947 and dedicated in 1950, at a total cost of $800,000. University funds were used for the project, in addition to the $25,000 raised by the Alumni Association. The plaque that was installed in the library is inscribed as follows:

“ Dedicated as a perpetual memorial of the Loyola students and alumni who gave their lives in the service of our country in World War II „

The names of the deceased are listed below the inscription.

The Alumni Association later participated in the drive to raise funds for the Loyola Field House. It was completed in December 1954, with a seating capacity of 6500. The Recreational Sports Complex now stands on the site of the old field house.

Reaching out (1960s – 1970s)

Groups of alumni in nearby cities in Louisiana formed the alumni association’s first chapters. Shreveport was the first and others followed. By 1968, we had chapters in Alexandria, Baton Rouge, Dallas, Houma, Houston, Lafayette, Lake Charles, Miami, Mississippi Gulf Coast, Mobile, New York, Shreveport, Tampa, and Washington, D.C.

In 1967, the Alumnae Club merged with the Alumni Association. In 1969, the Alumni Association’s programs and activities were covered by a university budget instead of with membership dues. In 1975, the Alumni Association’s primary publication was renamed Loyola of the South in 1975.

In 1976, he Adjutor Hominum Award was established. The award, symbolized by hands holding a world globe is presented to outstanding alumni. The first to receive the Adjutor Hominum Award, in 1977 – 78, was the Honorable Robert A. Ainsworth, Jr., United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit, J.D. ’32.

In 1979, the Alumni Association elected its first woman president, Mary Jane Becker ‘61.

Going strong (1980s – present)

The association’s magazine underwent several name changes during the last 30 years: Loyola New Orleans in 1981, Loyola New Orleans Magazine in 1991, and since 2001, Loyola University New Orleans Magazine. The magazine is now produced by a full-time editor.

In 1989, the Office of Alumni Relations was provided office space in Greenville Hall on the Broadway campus. Greenville Hall, built originally for St. Mary’s Dominican College, was designated a historic landmark by the Orleans Parish Landmarks Commission and is on the National Register of Historic Places.

In 1992, the Loyola Alumni Association reinstated the Loyola University Hall of Fame honoring past athletes, reflecting a renewed interest in intercollegiate sports on campus. The Hall of Fame was originally founded in 1964 and the last induction ceremonies had been held in 1967. In 1993, the first group of Loyola athletics to be inducted in more than 26 years was named and honored.