Good friends and new buildings

As any university president will tell you, your life and that of your institution are inextricably intertwined. The past two weeks were rich and rewarding ones for both of us.

Photo from left to right: State Representative Kevin Joyce (D- 35), State Representative Jim Brosnahan (D-36), SXU President Judith A. Dwyer, Ph.D., Cook County Commissioner John Daley (D-11), State Senator Ed Maloney (D-18).

On Wednesday, Oct. 8, Saint Xavier University hosted the third annual “Breakfast with Your Legislators,” coordinated by a partnership with the Beverly Area Planning Association and the Evergreen Park Chamber of Commerce. Approximately 100 area business people attended the event.

Elected officials taking part included State Senator Ed Maloney, D-18, State Representative Kevin Joyce, D-35, State Representative Jim Brosnahan, D-36, and Cook County Commissioner John P. Daley D-11. Our guests discussed the impact of the current financial crisis on state and local government, the passage of a capital bill, a potential Cook County sales tax increase, and the pros and cons of a constitutional convention.

On Wednesday, Oct. 15, we dedicated our newest residence hall, named as a tribute to Mother Mary Agatha O’Brien, R.S.M., one of the six founders of the Sisters of Mercy of Chicago. Through this legacy name, we celebrate Mother Agatha’s pioneering achievements and the continued ministry of the Sisters of Mercy. Please click below for an excerpt of the ceremony.



More than 100 Saint Xavier University students recently moved into this new environmentally friendly residence hall. The 36,664 square-foot residence hall is the sixth residence hall at the Chicago campus.

The hall was built to LEED Gold Environmental Standards as set forth by the U.S. Green Building Council. Last year, SXU’s Arthur Rubloff Hall became the first university building in the state of Illinois to receive the coveted LEED Gold designation from the U.S. Green Building Council for environmentally friendly design elements.

Saint Xavier is a proud leader in green practices. We are a member of the Illinois Sustainable University Compact, which has pledged to accomplish multiple environmentally sound goals by December 31, 2010. More recently, SXU became the first university in Chicago to sign the Presidents’ Climate Commitment, joining 557 other schools nationwide in a pledge to eliminate greenhouse gas emissions.

Internet/Intranet

A few weeks ago I wrote about several changes coming to Saint Xavier’s physical facilities. I’m pleased to say that our information infrastructure is also due for a major overhaul.

On Oct. 31, we will unveil Saint Xavier’s new public Web site with pages reorganized to make browsing easier. At that same time, we will launch our intranet site, which will house many of the tools students, faculty and staff currently use on our existing Web site.

The new intranet site will have a personalized portal page, reorganized content and better search capabilities. The portal will be customized with news, events and Web links tailored specifically for you.

Beyond Internet and intranet pages, Information Services has teamed with Google to provide students with a new robust e-mail system powered by Gmail, which will also go online Nov. 1. Each new MyMail account will provide more than six gigabytes of storage from famously reliable Google servers.

We are also streamlining our identity login practices. Formerly known as your SXU Domain account, the new netID and password will be used to logon to mySXU, CLAWS and Web Files. Students who log on to my SXU will have one-click access to their myMail inbox. We are also launching a new Password Management System to allow you to reset your password instantly, without needing to call the Help Desk.

These are significant changes, and there are bound to be a few challenges during the first few weeks of operation as everyone becomes used to the new system. I ask your patience during this period as we provide you and the public these top-flight information tools. This is an extraordinary year for Saint Xavier.

Chicago Police Officer Nathaniel "Nate" Taylor Jr.

One hears phrases such as “outpouring of support” so often that, in time, they can lose their meaning. However, we can also experience events that redefine them for us. Saint Xavier University conferred a posthumous graduate certificate at the funeral of Chicago Police Officer Nathaniel "Nate" Taylor Jr., who was shot and killed Sunday, Sept. 28, while serving a warrant.

With great sadness but also with great honor, I presented the graduate certificate to Officer Taylor’s wife, Alcione, at the service in St. Bede the Venerable Roman Catholic Church on Friday. I have rarely seen such love and support as shown by the friends, family and significant numbers of officers from nearly every police force in the Chicago area.

A 2007 Saint Xavier University graduate, Officer Taylor was enrolled in the Graham School of Management’s financial fraud examination and management MBA program. He was by all accounts a warm and dedicated person with a bright future.

Saint Xavier has a long educational partnership with the Chicago Police Department, and we feel keenly such a tragic loss. I worry that we as a society too often take for granted the risks these brave men and women take every day to protect us.

Our thoughts and prayers are with Alcione, her young daughter, Naomi, their family and extended family throughout the Chicago Police Department.