Marywood University: Moving Forward with Purpose

The story is told that, when the former IHM Motherhouse-Mount Saint Mary’s Seminary (the original home of Marywood College) was being constructed in the early 1900s, Mother M. Cyril Conway, IHM, Congregation Superior, would walk (due to a streetcar strike at the time) from St. Cecilia’s Academy on the 300 block of Wyoming Avenue in Downtown Scranton to the building site in the heights of Green Ridge, to ensure the project’s proper progress. She followed the leadership of her predecessors, Mother Mary Magdalen Jackson, IHM and Mother M. Crescentia Foster, IHM, in continuing the important work they had done by procuring the 50-acre tract of land and breaking ground. Mother Cyril’s ambitious agenda was not without its challenges; namely, preventing the Lackawanna and Wyoming Valley Railroad from building an extension line through the heart of the new campus, where the Shrine of Our Lady of Victory was built instead, as a testament of faith, perseverance, triumph, and gratitude.

These bold efforts at the turn of the last century and the courageous women who carried forward Marywood’s founding vision still serve as role models for us today. While the pressing societal and educational issues may differ vastly, the willingness to embrace reality and to persevere in the face of difficulty was required of them then; it, too, is required of us now.

What higher education looks like and how it is delivered have changed dramatically. Yet, the role of IHM sponsorship is as important now as it was then. While the blueprint for Catholic institutions of higher education in the 20th century was comprehensive, those who survive and thrive in the 21st century (and beyond) require that blueprint to be reworked to ensure continued success.

Marywood University recognizes the challenges of today’s employment and higher education environments and is taking steps to meet them. To that end, Marywood just launched the EMPOWER Campaign, a multi-year effort to raise $30 million, with three priority areas in line with our mission: to create access to education through scholarships for students with financial need, to reimagine the campus through the construction, renovation, and renewal of buildings and spaces to support growing programs and next-gen learning, and to enhance the student experience through annual and endowed philanthropic support. As of this writing Marywood has raised more than 80% of this goal from alumni, benefactors, members of the campus community, and friends.

Priorities in action

We can already see the outcomes of some of these priorities in action: 

• Given the urgent need for advanced practice and allied health professionals, Marywood, through its Health & Wellness Initiative, is taking the necessary steps to fill gaps in healthcare services, both in our region and throughout our nation. The Pascucci Family Health Sciences Pavilion, a 15,000-square-foot addition to the Keith J. O’Neill Center for Healthy Families, will support growing enrollment in the Nursing program, Physician Assistant program, and other health sciences programs. 
• Marywood’s nationally-renowned School of Architecture is offering a new undergraduate Construction Management Program, which provides students the opportunity to learn about buildings and construction alongside architecture, interior architecture, and business students. Marywood is also recruiting students for its newly established Master of Architecture (M.Arch) graduate program, which will start in Fall 2024. 
• The iconic Liberal Arts Center, Marywood’s first dedicated educational facility beyond the former Motherhouse, has begun to transform classrooms from the traditional desks-and-chalkboard model to the look and feel of multimedia centers for learning. 
• The School of Business and Global Innovation’s new undergraduate Financial Crime Investigation (FCI) program is unique to northeast Pennsylvania and provides a solid foundation for students interested in accounting and criminal justice. 
• The wave of pilot retirements has created an industry-wide shortage of aviation professionals, but Marywood’s signature program in aviation management, the only one in the region, is ready to meet that need with qualified pilots and aviation management professionals. 

There are so many more stories of curricular innovation, enhancements to the student experience, investments in our signature programs, and, of course, in our students. Marywood’s mission and core values, inspired by those of the IHM Congregation, are the driving forces that create the right atmosphere and community, so students feel safe and empowered to think critically, to find their purpose, and to discover and ignite their passions from Day One. Marywood Board of Trustees Chair Lisa Lori, Esq., an IHM Associate who is co-chairing the EMPOWER Campaign, observes, “Marywood’s steadfast, empowering students to believe in themselves and serve their communities…Together, we will create, reimagine, and enhance the future of Marywood University.”

Marywood educates people of all backgrounds as trained professionals who are ethical, responsible, and in demand in this increasingly interdependent, ever-changing world. Students learn in person and online. They serve their communities—locally, nationally, and globally. They make their mark, both as students and as graduates, carrying forward that “special something” that is distinctly Marywood.

Sister Mary Persico, IHM, Ed.D., Marywood University’s President, notes,

“By empowering our students, by fostering innovation and learning, we are sparking a chain reaction that will uplift our local communities, stimulate economic growth, grow the workforce, and inspire a brighter future for all.”

Sister Mary Persico, IHM

As a vital IHM-sponsored institution, inspired by its founding vision and strengthened by its willingness to respond innovatively and strategically to its emerging future, Marywood University is moving forward with purpose.

Historical Resources

• The Sisters of IHM, published in 1921 by “A Member of the Scranton Community” (a.k.a., Sister M. Immaculata Gillespie, IHM)
• Marywood College: The First Seventy-five Years, published in 1990 by Margaret Yarina, Ph.D.