Wheeling Jesuit University has been making an impact on the lives of people in Wheeling and Appalachia for 50 years, and the 2004-2005 academic year will be a time of milestones and historic celebrations.

This fall Wheeling Jesuit will see the launch of its 100th BOLD Class and the kick off of its 50th anniversary celebration.

In September, the University’s Bachelor of Arts in Organizational Leadership or BOLD Program will launch its 100th class. Started in 1987, BOLD allows adults 25 or older with 60 transferable credit hours to earn a degree in as little as 15 months.

BOLD was started as a way to allow people in Wheeling to earn a college degree by attending classes one night a week, says Deene Yenchochic, director of Adult Admissions and Marketing for the Adult and Continuing Education Division.

“Since 1987, we’ve watched the program grow and expand. BOLD was started to give older adults an alternative way to earn a college degree, while working and raising a family. BOLD has been offered in Wheeling, Weirton, Clarksburg, Charleston, Beckley, Martinsburg and Parkersburg in West Virginia, and East Liverpool, Cambridge and Zanesville in Ohio and is still offered in many of those cities on a rotating basis,” Yenchochic adds.

The start of the 100th class will be a time for the program to celebrate its accomplishments and welcome back many of its graduates to mark this historic milestone, she adds.

For many graduates, earning their degrees through Wheeling Jesuit’s BOLD program has made an impact on their lives professionally and personally.

“Obtaining my degree through BOLD was not only beneficial to my academic success but all of the curriculum, including the spiritual aspects of love and 'being men and women for others,' had a great impact on my direction and desire to help my fellow man. Through my studies at Wheeling Jesuit and the biblical principles I study each day, I have a better appreciation for people and a deeper love and understanding of God,” says Valerie Nutter, a member of BOLD Class 73.

Nutter turned her capstone project for the class into a viable program for one Ohio county. “The Success Program” is designed to help single and unwed mothers get off subsidized assistance, become empowered, improve their self-esteem and complete an undergraduate degree.

BOLD graduates, Yenchochic says, are making an impact throughout West Virginia and the region through their leadership in business and in the community.

And as BOLD celebrates its 100th class, the University will spend the 2004-2005 academic year celebrating 50 years of success, service and significance to the people of Wheeling and the Appalachian region.

Wheeling Jesuit University’s 50th Anniversary celebration will allow people in the community to learn more about the history of the Ohio Valley and it’s relationship with the state’s only Catholic institution of higher learning.

“Luceat Lux Vestra (Let Your Light Shine),” Wheeling Jesuit University’s 50th anniversary celebration will officially begin on Sept. 21 when the first of eight special presentations that make up “The 50th Anniversary Lecture Series.” The presentations will utilize historical reenactments, lectures and panel discussions to celebrate the relationship of Jesuits and Jesuit education to the Upper Ohio Valley. The eight programs will use episodes from Wheeling Jesuit’s past as springboards to discussion of the future of education, social justice, labor, technology and community and economic development in the region.

Wheeling Jesuit University President Joseph R. Hacala, S.J., points out that, in effect, the Lecture Series will explore the role Wheeling Jesuit has had in preparing men and women for life, leadership and service.

“Since our founding in 1954, Wheeling Jesuit has been committed to providing educational opportunities to the men and women of Appalachia. Fifty years later, the University remains committed to providing the people in the region with a Jesuit, liberal arts education. The Lecture Series will be a time for students, alumni, friends and the community to remember and examine significant events in our history, and explore what role Wheeling Jesuit will have in the future of this region,” he says.

The Lecture Series, which has received funding from the West Virginia Humanities Council, launches will run through April 2005. Topics to be presented will include the founding of the college, John F. Kennedy’s 1960 visit to Wheeling, and the future of technology in the Upper Ohio Valley. To view the complete schedule, visit the Wheeling Jesuit Web site at www.wju.edu.

A launch party for the 50th anniversary will be held on Saturday, Sept. 25, when students, alumni, friends and staff gather for a photo opportunity and picnic.

Another key part of the celebration is the Nov. 12-14, 2004 Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities National Conference on Mission and Identity. Wheeling Jesuit will host the national conference, which will attract representatives from the 28 Jesuit colleges and universities in the country.

As the youngest of the Jesuit institutions, Rev. Paul Stark, S.J., director of Campus Ministry, believes next year’s conference, coinciding with the 50th anniversary of Wheeling Jesuit, will bring national attention to the University.

“I want to use the conference to showcase Wheeling Jesuit and the region, as well as the conjunction between our mission and the people of this region,” Fr. Stark says. “Hosting the conference will be a great opportunity to show our sister schools that Wheeling Jesuit lives its mission every day. We know why this University was brought here 50 years ago – to serve the people of Appalachia. We did it then, and we continue that trust and mission now.”

Judith Geary, a member of the class of 1963 and co-chair of the anniversary committee, says the celebration is a time of remembrance and thankfulness.

“The 50th anniversary celebration is a time for alumni to come together to celebrate their unique experience. It is also an invitation to all who have been a part of the University - faculty, staff, administrators, benefactors and friends - to join us as we remember Archbishop John J. Swint, who shared his dream of a Catholic college for the youngsters of his Diocese with a remarkable group of Jesuits from the Maryland Province. We want to give thanks for their stewardship,” Geary explains.

Profound changes have occurred in the community, the state and the world during the past 50 years, she says. “Wheeling Jesuit and our alumni have made a considerable impact in religion, social justice, science, education, technology, medicine and law. We now live and work in all 50 states and 23 countries around the world. To come together in this time of grace and favor from the Lord is the finest way to honor our founders and to ensure the future success of the University.”

Wheeling Jesuit University integrates the Jesuit traditions of intellectual excellence with the best of advanced technology to help students develop lives of service, success and significance. The University's mission is to educate students for life, for leadership, and for service with and among others. U.S.News & World Report ranks Wheeling Jesuit University 16th in the "Best Master’s Universities in the South," making it the highest ranked institution in West Virginia for the seventh consecutive year. Wheeling Jesuit--the only Catholic institution of higher education in West Virginia--offers more than 30 undergraduate programs of study and six graduate degrees to about 1,500 students each year. It has a student-to-faculty ratio of 13 to 1, and 17 intercollegiate NCAA Division II athletic teams. The 65-acre campus located in Wheeling, W.Va., includes 15 modern buildings, multi-million dollar Acker Science Center, and residence halls, and a modern recreation and athletic facility that includes a soccer/track and field complex. The campus is home to the Robert C. Byrd National Technology Transfer Center, the Erma Ora Byrd Center for Educational Technologies, a Challenger Learning Center and the Clifford M. Lewis Appalachian Institute.

To arrange a visit of the Wheeling Jesuit University campus, or to apply, call 1-800-624-6992 or e-mail admiss@wju.edu or visit Wheeling Jesuit online at www.wju.edu