History

The University of Holy Cross (UHC), formerly Our Lady of Holy Cross College, has the distinction of being the only four-year college on the West Bank of New Orleans, as well as one of eight Holy Cross colleges and universities nationwide. It has provided South Louisiana a tradition of academic excellence and has been setting the standard for quality education for nearly a century.

UHC was established by the Marianites of Holy Cross. The history of the Congregation of the Marianites of Holy Cross began in 1841 with the founding of the Marianites by Father Basil Anthony Moreau in Le Mans, France. Two years after their founding, the Sisters were ready to leave Le Mans to set up foundations in North America. Several Marianites accepted the invitation of Archbishop Antoine Blanc in 1848 to come to New Orleans to work with the Holy Cross Brothers in administering the St. Mary's Orphan Boys Asylum. Soon, the Sisters were concerned over the plight of young girls who were orphaned as a result of the yellow fever epidemic. Thus, in 1851, the Sisters began the Immaculate Conception Industrial School to instruct orphan girls. This school evolved into the Academy of the Holy Angels, which was dedicated in 1866 as a high school for girls. Holy Angels was the parent school of University of Holy Cross.

In 1916, the Louisiana State Board of Education granted the Marianites the right to open Holy Angels Normal School to prepare teachers for the many schools the Marianites staffed in southern Louisiana. This approval assured that teachers would be prepared according to the Louisiana State Norms of Education.

In 1938, the Louisiana State Department of Education, again at the request of the Sisters, approved a program which would lead to the Bachelor of Arts degree in Education. Its first graduation was held in 1942 in the renamed College Department at the Academy of Holy Angels. Five years later, the Ernest B. Norman family presented the Sisters with a gift of forty acres of land on the West Bank of the Mississippi River in Algiers to be used for educational and religious purposes.

In the early 1950s, the College admitted lay women who were teaching in schools administered by the Marianites. When it was moved to its new quarters in Algiers in 1960, the name of the College was changed to Our Lady of Holy Cross. In that same year, the first lay student received her degree. The first male students were admitted in 1967. The Marianite Corporation organized a governing board in the late 1960s according to the requirements of the Commission on Colleges (COC) of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS). The Provincial Superior of the Marianites was the President of the College until 1969, when the two positions were separated, and for the first time the Board of Regents of Our Lady of Holy Cross selected the President.

In the Spring of 1971, the Board of Regents submitted the first status report, and the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACS-COC) approved candidacy for accreditation of the College. The College grew in student enrollment, adding new academic and professional programs to the initial teacher education curriculum. In the academic year 1975-1976, the College awarded its first honorary degree and celebrated its sixtieth anniversary. In 1976, UHC received accreditation for a ten-year period from the Commission on Colleges of SACS.

To coordinate the best use of faculties and facilities on the West Bank, UHC and Delgado Community College, also accredited by SACS-COC, formed the West Bank Higher Education Union in 1976. They pledged cooperation, exchange of faculty, mutual support of programs, and agreements for joint degree programs and use of libraries. The Institutions discontinued this arrangement in 1993.

In the Spring of 1984, the Louisiana State Board of Nursing (LSBN) granted approval for a four-year baccalaureate degree program in Nursing. Today, it remains the only Catholic generic baccalaureate nursing program in the state of Louisiana. The LSBN gave full approval to the program in July 1987. In the Fall of 1989, a self-study was submitted to the Council of Baccalaureate and Higher Degree programs of the National League for Nursing, and the nursing program was granted full approval.

A Master of Education program was begun in the Fall of 1984. In 1986, the program received approval from SACS-COC as a Level Three Master’s degree program and graduated its first students.

In 1990, the College received approval from SACS-COC to grant the Master of Arts degree in Counseling. Students may select one of the following areas of specialization: Marriage and Family Counseling or School Counseling. Certification is offered at the post-Master’s level in Marriage and Family Counseling. The program educates students to provide services that are preventive and developmental in nature in order to help individuals and families deal more effectively with problems and decisions of everyday living in urban/rural environments. The department offers a comprehensive program in counselor preparation, leading to professional licensure, professional certification, and state certification. It reflects the belief in individual differences among students, provides for a balance of didactic and experiential learning activities, and offers experiences for the personal growth and development of students. The Thomas E. Chambers Counseling and Training Center was dedicated in 1998. Providing counseling services to the UHC family and the community at large, it also serves as an educational resource for students pursuing both Master's and undergraduate degrees in counseling.

In the late 1980s, 1990s, and into the Twenty-first Century, the Institution attained financial stability, made substantial renovations to the physical plant, built an addition to the library, added classroom and office space, increased parking facilities, and established a program of long-range maintenance. New science labs and a state-of-the art nursing lab have also been recent additions. The Institution has been successful in increasing student scholarships and financial aid as well as increasing the endowment fund. Ongoing curriculum renewal has taken place in order to maintain the Institution’s compliance with accreditation standards and cultural needs.

Largely undamaged by the effects of Hurricane Katrina in August of 2005, the Institution resumed instruction in January of 2006.

In 2011 the Institution signed articulation agreements with Delgado Community College to facilitate the entrance of Delgado graduates to pursue Bachelor’s degrees in Education and Business. A similar agreement was signed with Nunez Community College to accommodate its education graduates.

The College continued to meet the growing needs of its students, the community, and the Church. The Business department offers an Accelerated Organizational Management Program for a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration. The Education Department provides Alternative Certification Programs for elementary and secondary teachers. The Archdiocesan Teachers Institute (ATI) is a partnership between the Office of Catholic Schools and UHC. This exciting program was created to provide additional educational opportunities for the teachers of the Archdiocese of New Orleans. All of these programs are designed for non-traditional adult students who are already working in the community.

The Institution now offers two doctoral programs: a Ph.D. in Counselor Education and an Ed.D. in Executive Leadership. The first doctoral degree was awarded in May of 2015. A Master’s degree in Catholic Theology began admitting students in the Summer of 2016.

In January of 2016, the Board of Regents made the historic decision to change the name of the Institution to the University of Holy Cross. With the leadership of President Dr. David M. “Buck” Landry, it also formed a new Board of Trustees of the University of Holy Cross Corporation that assumed sole ownership and control of the land and buildings that house the University. The evolution of the name of the Institution reflects both the amazing chronicle of its past, as well as the incredible opportunities that lie in our future. As the University enters a period of unprecedented growth in undergraduate and graduate education, this new name represents a milestone in the history of our institution as a university recognized for its outstanding degree programs.

Rich in historical experience, following the celebration of its centennial year in 2016, the University of Holy Cross continues to guide its students toward self-realization, professional competency, and dedicated service to the human family. The University’s institutional accreditation was reaffirmed by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges on December 3, 2017. Reaffirmation continues through 2027.

With the opening of its first Residence Hall in Fall 2018, the University continued its evolution from a local college to a nationally recognized university. With the appointment of Dr. Stanton F. McNeely, III, himself an alumnus of the school, in July 2019, University of Holy looks toward a bright and promising future.

As we face the unprecedented challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, we remained committed to providing quality education in novel ways to meet the needs of our students.