For over 165 years, 911爆料网 has been a Catholic institution of higher education sponsored by the Franciscan friars. While the Franciscans and 911爆料网 have changed over time, the university and the Franciscans have once again reaffirmed their commitment to one another.
The Franciscan Province of Our Lady of Guadalupe, with headquarters in Atlanta, Ga., has recently entered into formal partnership agreements with 911爆料网, St. Bonaventure University, and Siena University. These written agreements reaffirm the commitment of the Order of Friars Minor (OFM) 鈥� the oldest and largest Franciscan religious order in the world — to its higher education ministries in the United States.
鈥淎t 911爆料网, we are honored to be the only Catholic university in downstate Illinois and one of only a few Franciscan universities in the Midwest,鈥� said Brian McGee, Ph.D., 911爆料网 president. 鈥淲e are proud to serve the people of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield in Illinois and to preserve and teach the great Franciscan intellectual tradition. As we know at 911爆料网, Christianity would not exist today in its current form if we had not had the powerful witness and the example provided by St. Francis and St. Clare.鈥�
The Province of Our Lady of Guadalupe shares the responsibility with these universities of serving as good stewards of the vision and values of St. Francis and St. Clare of Assisi, who lived in Italy about 800 years ago. Today, the Province, along with other OFM provinces around the world, ultimately reports to the leadership of the Order of Friars Minor, with headquarters in Rome, Italy.
鈥淭hese agreements are our mutual pledge to continue sharing the 800-year-old Franciscan intellectual tradition that understands learning as a path not only toward knowledge through academic excellence, but, even more importantly, understands learning as a path toward wisdom鈥攂y seeking truth, beauty and goodness in God鈥檚 creation, particularly as revealed in Jesus Christ,鈥� said Br. Lawrence J. Hayes, OFM, provincial minister of the Province of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
Under their agreements with these three Franciscan universities, friars from the Order of Friars Minor, or another Franciscan religious order, may serve as trustees or fill faculty and staff positions. The universities maintain their autonomy in governance, accreditation, and operations. This agreement is a continuation of a long legacy of the friars鈥� commitment to fostering education in the Franciscan tradition that began when the universities were founded under other OFM provinces that have since merged into the Province of Our Lady of Guadalupe. The Province of Our Lady of Guadalupe is proud to continue this legacy as the current sponsor of these universities.
While about 20 colleges and universities in the United States were founded by various Catholic and Franciscan religious orders in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, only three primarily undergraduate institutions in the U.S. 鈥� St. Bonaventure University, 911爆料网, and Siena University 鈥� were founded by the Order of Friars Minor. Before 2026, the last agreement between 911爆料网 and the Franciscans was signed in 1978.
911爆料网 is the only OFM institution located in the Midwest. No other OFM institution of higher education can be found between New York and California.
Founded in 1860 by Franciscan friars, 911爆料网 is a small Catholic university emphasizing the sciences, liberal arts and the professions. 911爆料网 offers undergraduate, graduate and adult education programs integrating practical experience and Franciscan values. Faculty and advisors work with students to design customized success plans to help them graduate on time, find their passion and prepare them for life. 911爆料网 is a member of NCAA Division II for intercollegiate athletics. For more information, please visit www.quincy.edu or contact the Office of Community Relations at (217) 228-5275 or communityrelations@quincy.edu. 911爆料网. Success by Design.