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On August 4, Saint Xavier University officially opened its new location in Gilbert, Arizona. Members of the SXU and Gilbert communities celebrated the grand opening with a ceremony that included a ribbon cutting and a blessing of the new location.
The ceremony also included remarks by SXU President Christine Wiseman, J.D., and the late SXU Provost Paul DeVito, as well as John Lewis – mayor of Gilbert. Also in attendance was The Most Reverend Thomas J. Olmsted, bishop of the Diocese of Phoenix, who blessed the new campus and gave an opening and closing prayer.
While the location officially opened in August, classes in the Gilbert campus will not start until October. The University is initially offering degrees in Liberal Arts, Business and Nursing. Undergraduate students have the opportunity to pursue a Bachelor of Arts in Professional Studies or a Bachelor of Business Administration.
For graduate students, SXU’s Gilbert location offers Masters of Arts in Education, Masters of Business Administration, and Masters of Science in Nursing. The idea to open a new satellite campus originated from the town of Gilbert, not from the administration of Saint Xavier.
According to Wiseman, the town of Gilbert, represented by Mayor John Lewis, Patrick Banger, the town’s manager, and Kyle Mieras, the town’s director of development, invited SXU to bring their university to Gilbert.
The town, which has a large Catholic population, was particularly interested in incorporating a faith-based university into their community. The building displays SXU banners, pictures, and the university logo across the campus.
President Wiseman stresses that the Arizona campus is not a satellite campus that is disengaged from the rest of the university, but is instead an integral part of the Saint Xavier community.
“The faculty were insistent that we would be one university, with one identity, with one mission, and that the quality of our programs in Arizona will be the same as the quality of the programs that we offer to all of you students here,” said Wiseman.
Once the town’s interest in SXU was communicated in 2012, President Wiseman initiated a telephone conference with the town of Gilbert to discuss whether the interests between SXU and Gilbert were mutual and worth pursuing.
Soon after, the town of Gilbert had the opportunity to give a formal presentation to members of the SXU administration who were in Arizona for an event organized for SXU alumni living in the state. Since then, Mayor Lewis and other council dignitaries of Gilbert have visited Chicago several times to personally meet with the SXU board of trustees.
“It has been over two and a half years in development so this is not a decision that was made without extensive consultation with members of our community, both staff and faculty, and the entire board of trustees,” said Wiseman.
According to President Wiseman, SXU’s online nursing program, which is ranks number two in the country, was a big draw for the town of Gilbert. Both Gilbert and the State of Arizona as a whole face a prospect of a nursing shortage and had a great need for additional nursing programs.
Another factor that made the prospect of a relationship between SXU and Gilbert attractive is the legacy of the Sisters of Mercy that is shared between Chicago and Arizona. The first hospital in Phoenix Arizona, St. Joseph Hospital, was opened by the Sisters of Mercy in 1895. The Sisters of Mercy also sponsor a hospital in Gilbert, Mercy Gilbert Medical Center.
The new facility which is located in the downtown Heritage District of Gilbert, is very different then the facilities in Chicago and Orland Park. The Gilbert facility was also built to the specific needs of the Arizona environment.
For this reason the building utilizes glass and open spaces much more than the other two campuses. The contemporary design and utilization of technology are some of the most talked about aspects of the new campus.
“I have heard the campus is built modern and a majority, if not all, of the classrooms are smart classrooms. Technology integration is the key to our future and it really sounds like the new campus is integrating it effectively,” said SXU Junior, Nathaly Gal.
Construction of the new campus was funded by the Town of Gilbert, not by Saint Xavier. According to Wiseman, the town issued bonds to build the university in the amount of $40 million and built the building to the specifications made by SXU.
Despite the structural differences between the facilities, the Gilbert campus shares the same character as the Chicago and Orland Park campuses. There is also the possibility of students from Arizona choosing to attend the Chicago campus if the programs they are interested in are not available in the Gilbert location.
The Gilbert campus has also employed former SXU students who now work for the campus’ information technology department. “I am excited that the school is expanding. The photos I have seen are beautiful and I feel enthusiasm towards my recently graduated friends who have earned jobs in the new campus. I am hoping the new campus allows the SXU community to expand its horizons and seek to continue growing,” said Gal.
Yasmeen Abdellatif
News Editor