Kelsey Volkmann, The Examiner
2007-10-15 07:00:00.0
Current rank: Not ranked

BALTIMORE -

A Yale alumnus and Boston native, the Rev. Brian Linnane, 52, became president of Loyola College in Maryland in 2005. Founded by Jesuits in 1852, Loyola was the first Catholic college in the nation to bear the name of St. Ignatius Loyola, the founder of the Society of Jesus.

Q What makes a Jesuit education different?

A At 450 years old, the Jesuit education is the longest continuous education in the world. Our roots are in liberal arts and sciences. We want our students to reflect on a variety of human experiences and to think about the larger questions of “Why are we here?” and “What’s my purpose?” This is about 40 percent of our core curriculum.

Students often don’t “get it” when they are here and wish they could pick more of their courses, but after they leave, they appreciate it. We had an accounting major who told us that his boss said he loved Loyola students because not only were they well-trained in accounting, but they also knew more than accounting.

There are a lot of schools that link undergraduate studies to a career, but we want our sons and daughters to be happy and fulfilled, too. Not just at 22, but equipped for the rest of their lives and for that unknown job they may have 30 years from now.

Students need those critical thinking skills to adapt. We can’t plan out our lives, so they need to learn how to reason and solve problems. We also seek to educate the whole person, the spiritual part. It isn’t our job to indoctrinate but to present students with the whole array of human experiences and let them decide for themselves.

Q What’s behind the Year of the City (a yearlong initiative to encourage students to volunteer throughout Baltimore)?

A There are so many challenges in the surrounding neighborhood, but students don’t interact with respect when they just go out to bars on York Road. Watching New Orleans unravel after Hurricane Katrina really shook us — to see people abandoned, left on the streets and on the rooftops — and showed this big divide. The population there is largely African-American and poor.

Years ago, I was visiting a friend in Baltimore, and someone mentioned that when someone asks you where you went to school, they mean high school because “no one goes to public school.” But obviously thousands of people do. So we wanted to reflect on what it means to be in a city and profess a commitment to the people who are left behind in our society.

That’s the test of graduates, that they are exposed to the gritty side of society. We wanted our students to be aware of the people who haven’t had the advantages they have had. We want them to see the world as it is.

Q What were some the experiences of students?

A Some were dramatic, and some simple. The first-year writing students wrote about the city, and it was published in a book. Some kids rode the bus, and this can be a big deal because most kids are used to being picked up and dropped off or taking taxis. This allows them to see things differently.

We also partnered with St. Mary of the Assumption School, which has seen its population decline. We’ve rehabbed the school, and students volunteer there as teachers’ aides, and they tutor children and help with fine arts and sports. Our business school has helped St. Mary’s plan its budget.

Q What are some of your goals?

A We’d like to focus on diversity. Our population is 80 to 85 percent Catholic, so most of our students come from Irish, Italian and Polish backgrounds. We’d like to have more African-Americans, Asians and Latino students. That would encourage a better diversity of ideas and experiences.

DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI

» Jim McKay, ABC Sports broadcaster, 1943

» U.S. Sen. Barbara Mikulski, D-Md., Mount St. Agnes College, 1958 (Mount St. Agnes, a women’s college in Baltimore, merged with Loyola College in 1971)

» Tom Clancy, best-selling author, 1969

» Mark Bowden, author of “Black Hawk Down,” 1973

» John Cochran, senior executive for Bank of America Card Services and former chairman and chief executive officer of MBNA America Bank, 1973

» H. Edward Hanway, chairman and chief executive officer of CIGNA Corp., 1974

FAST FACTS

» Enrollment: 3,500 undergraduate; 2,600 graduate

» Student breakdown: 58 percent female; 42 percent male

» Student makeup: 20 percent from Maryland; 80 percent from out of state

» Unusual degrees offered: Classics, speech-language pathology (undergratuate); pastoral counseling (pastoral)

» Tuition: $33,150

» Room: $7,350 to $8,400

kvolkmann@baltimoreexaminer.com

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