Cardinal Stritch University

Roman Catholic university in Wisconsin, U.S.

Cardinal Stritch University

Former names

| St. Clare College
(1937–1946)
Cardinal Stritch College
(1946–1997)
Motto| Latin: Ut probetis potiora

Motto in English

| To value the better things
Type| Private university
Active| 1937 (1937)–2023 (2023)

Religious affiliation

| Sisters of St. Francis of Assisi (Roman Catholic)

Academic affiliations

| ACCU, AFCU, NAICU, CIC, WAICU
Location|

Milwaukee

Wisconsin

United States

Campus| Suburban, 40 acres (16 ha)
Colors| Red & white

Nickname| Wolves

Sporting affiliations

| NAIA – CCAC
Mascot| Wolfie
Website| www.stritch.edu

Cardinal Stritch University was a private Roman Catholic university with its primary campus in Fox Point and Glendale, Wisconsin. Its enrollment as of fall 2021 was 1,365.[1][a] The university closed in May 2023 due to financial challenges and declining enrollment.[3]

## History

[edit]

Cardinal Stritch University was founded in 1937 as St. Clare College by the Sisters of St. Francis of Assisi on Milwaukee's south side as an institution to help the order's sisters effectively train as teachers. The sisters opened a reading clinic in 1943 to help promote literacy in the area; Cardinal Stritch University Literacy Centers still existing today throughout the Milwaukee area, teaching people how to read.

In 1946, the college was renamed Cardinal Stritch College in honor of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee's Cardinal Samuel Stritch. The college opened its programs to lay women for the first time and was subsequently accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools in 1953.

Stritch established its first graduate program in 1956, offering majors in special education and reading. The university also opened its doors to men that year, becoming fully co-educational in 1970.

Stritch moved to its current campus in the northern Milwaukee suburb of Fox Point in 1962. This new campus allowed the college to begin many new programs such as the nursing program in 1980 and its College of Business and Management in 1982.

Cardinal Stritch College was renamed Cardinal Stritch University in 1997. The university's first doctoral program (devoted to Leadership for the Advancement of Learning and Service) opened for enrollment the following year. A $14 million expansion and renovation of the university occurred in 2006 with the introduction of online degree programs.

In April 2023, university administrators announced that the university would close in May due to financial challenges and declining enrollment.[3]

## Campus

[edit]

The university was located on a 40-acre (16 ha) campus 9 miles (14 km) north of Milwaukee in the suburbs of Fox Point and Glendale, less than one mile (1.6 km) west of Lake Michigan.[4] In July 2023 the campus was sold to the Ramirez Family Foundation for the construction of a new K-12 school. As of May 2024 most of the former university buildings were being demolished to be replaced with new ones. The gym, library, campus center, and fine arts buildings are slated to be retained.[5]

### Academics

[edit]

Cardinal Stritch University offered more than 60 fields of study throughout four colleges, with bachelor, master, and doctorate degrees.

## Athletics

[edit]

The Cardinal Stritch athletic teams were called the Wolves. The university was a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), primarily competing in the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference (CCAC) since the 1997–98 academic year.[6] The Wolves previously competed in the defunct Lake Michigan Conference of the NCAA Division III ranks from 1974–75 to 1996–97.

Cardinal Stritch competed in 13 intercollegiate varsity sports.

### Basketball

[edit]

The Cardinal Stritch men's basketball team won the Lake Michigan Conference men's basketball championship in 1987. The men's team was also five-time National Little College Athletic Association (now the United States Collegiate Athletic Association) Great Lakes District men's basketball champion from 1983 to 1987. The Cardinal Stritch men's basketball team won the NAIA Division II National Championship in 2013.[citation needed]

### Track and field

[edit]

In 2016, the men's indoor track and field team accomplished a first in Stritch history with a seventh-place finish at the NAIA indoor track and field nationals.[citation needed]

## Notable alumni

[edit]

* Rosemary Hinkfuss – Wisconsin State Representative
* John E. McCoy – U.S. Air National Guard brigadier general
* Kimberla Lawson Roby – author
* Anthony Shumaker – Major League Baseball player
* Marijuana Pepsi Vandyck – American education professional

## Notable faculty

[edit]

* Tamara Grigsby – Wisconsin State Representative
* Yasmin Mogahed – author and first female instructor at the AlMaghrib Institute
* Marion Verhaalen – composer and musicologist
* Thomasita Fessler – painter and chair of the art department

## Notes

[edit]

1. ^ A decrease from 2,345 during the 2019–2020 school year.[2]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Cardinal Stritch University Student Life". U.S. News & World Report. Archived from the original on 31 October 2022. Retrieved 31 October 2022.
2. ^ Kremer, Rich (2023). "After 85 years, Cardinal Stritch University in Milwaukee is closing in May". Wisconsin Public Radio. Retrieved September 23, 2024.
3. ^ a b "Cardinal Stritch University closing in May". WISN. 2023-04-10. Archived from the original on 2023-04-10. Retrieved 2023-04-10.
4. ^ "Stritch Campus Map (Archived)" (PDF). stritch.edu. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 April 2023. Retrieved 1 August 2024.
5. ^ March, Madison (12 March 2024). "80% of former Cardinal Stritch campus to be torn down for $100M project". WISN 12 ABC. Milwaukee, Wisconsin: WISN-TV. Archived from the original on 1 August 2024. Retrieved 1 August 2024.
6. ^ "About Us". Cardinal Stritch University. Retrieved 26 February 2018.

## External links

[edit]

* Official website

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Colleges and universities in Wisconsin

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Tribal institutions|

* College of Menominee Nation
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Defunct|

* Cardinal Stritch
* Dominican College of Racine
* Downer
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* Madison Media Institute
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Colleges and universities in the Milwaukee metropolitan area

Four-year colleges|

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Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milwaukee

Archbishops|

John Henni
Michael Heiss
Frederick Katzer
Sebastian Gebhard Messmer
Samuel Stritch
Moses E. Kiley
Albert Gregory Meyer
William Edward Cousins
Rembert Weakland
Timothy M. Dolan
Jerome Edward Listecki
Jeffrey S. Grob

Auxiliary
bishops|

Joseph Maria Koudelka
Edward Kozłowski
Roman Richard Atkielski
Leo Joseph Brust
Richard J. Sklba
William P. Callahan
Donald J. Hying
Jeffrey Robert Haines
James Thomas Schuerman

Churches|

List
List of churches in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milwaukee

Cathedral
Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist

Basilicas
Basilica of St. Josaphat, Milwaukee
Holy Hill National Shrine of Mary, Help of Christians, Hubertus

Parishes
St. John Vianney Church, Brookfield
St. John the Baptist Church, Johnsburg
Gesu Church, Milwaukee
Holy Trinity Church, Milwaukee
Old St. Mary's Church, Milwaukee
St. Adalbert's Church, Milwaukee
St. Hedwig's Church, Milwaukee
St. Stanislaus Church, Milwaukee
St. Patrick's Church, Milwaukee
Saints Peter and Paul Church, Milwaukee
St. Vincent de Paul Church, Milwaukee
St. Mary's Church, Port Washington
St. Patrick's Church, Racine
St. Joseph's Church, Waukesha

Former
St. John of God Church, Kewaskum
St. Patrick's Church, Adell
St. Augustine Church, Trenton

Chapel
St. Joan of Arc Chapel, Milwaukee

Shrine
Archdiocesan Marian Shrine

Education|

Higher education
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Seminaries
Saint Francis de Sales Seminary
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High schools
Burlington Catholic Central High School, Burlington
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Messmer High School, Milwaukee
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St. Catherine's High School, Racine
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St. Joseph Catholic Academy, Kenosha (previously as St. Joseph High School)
St. Lawrence Seminary High School, Mt. Calvary
St. Mary's Springs Academy, Fond du Lac
St. Thomas More High School, Milwaukee

Former
Cardinal Stritch University
St. John's School for the Deaf

Priests|

Peter Abbelen
Dismas Becker
Fabian Bruskewitz
Jan Romuald Byzewski
Kilian Caspar Flasch
Raphael Michael Fliss
Augustus F. Gearhard
Boleslaus Goral
James Groppi
Hyacinth (Jacek) Gulski
Francis J. Haas
Jerome J. Hastrich
James Michael Harvey
Wacław Kruszka
David John Malloy
Aloisius Joseph Muench
William Patrick O'Connor
Joseph Perry
Augustine Francis Schinner
Charles Asa Schleck
Paul Francis Tanner

Cemeteries|

Calvary Cemetery, Milwaukee
Mount Olivet Cemetery, Milwaukee

Miscellany|

Saint Dismas Prison Ministry

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43°08′24″N 87°54′36″W﻿ / ﻿43.14000°N 87.91000°W﻿ / 43.14000; -87.91000
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