Loyola Partnership

News Release

New HNJ Brand

After more than a century of working together as neighbors, Loyola University New Orleans and Holy Name of Jesus School and Parish have formed a strategic partnership, one designed to help students, parents, families, faculty and staff to grow in community, faith, learning, ministry and mission. The new partnership, announced in January 2022, will create new opportunities to further celebrate the God-given talents of faculties, staff and students as we help one another learn and grow.

Already, the two schools enjoy a shared Jesuit mission—a mission to form men and women and boys and girls for others: a mission to help the next generation of New Orleanians become the Christian disciples and servant leaders that God is calling them to be.  New leadership at Holy Name of Jesus School and Parish and Loyola University saw fresh possibilities to grow in community, faith, learning, ministry and mission.

For almost 500 years, the Jesuits have stood for excellence in education – in Europe and across the world, they helped create education as we know it.  It is our hope and prayer that our unique and one-of-a-kind partnership will thrive – and in time, serve as a model for Catholic education in New Orleans and beyond. 

What is the Loyola University / Holy Name of Jesus School partnership?  In which ways will we be partners? In which ways will we not?
The Loyola University/ Holy Name of Jesus School partnership is designed to help us all to grow in community, faith, learning, ministry and mission. 

The school and the university already share a common Jesuit mission —a mission to form men and women and boys and girls for others: a mission to help the next generation of New Orleanians become the Christian disciples and servant leaders that God is calling them to be. Through this partnership, we plan to advance that common mission and the Jesuit charism by sharing resources and working together more closely as neighbors and colleagues to the benefit of our students, families and one another. 

Loyola University can share rich resources in the areas of faculty-support, facilities, technology, physical education and more.  And Holy Name of Jesus School provides for Loyola a hands-on training opportunity for students hoping to develop leadership skills and share some of their talents working with elementary children.

How will daily life and operations change?
Our leadership and operations remain separate - and always will.  This partnership is about us working together,  forging new opportunities for growth and sharing our God-given talents and resources to promote faith and learning.

Holy Name remains the excellent private, Catholic elementary school that it is.  Loyola remains a top Jesuit, Catholic university nationally known for its warm culture and excellence in teaching. Each institution will continue to educate and serve its students the best way they know how, and that will include planned opportunities to share resources and knowledge.

Why are we doing this? Why now?
This partnership is a natural outgrowth of a longstanding relationship between the neighboring institutions, who share a common faith and mission.

Several years ago, the Rev. Mark Thibodeaux, S.J., as the new pastor of Holy Name parish, Kirsch Wilberg as the new principal, and Tania Tetlow as the new president of Loyola University began a conversation about the shared Jesuit mission of Holy Name of Jesus School and Loyola University. Together, they saw fresh opportunities for partnering with one another in this common mission.  

Loyola University could share its rich resources in the areas of faculty support, facilities, technology, physical education and more.  And Holy Name of Jesus School could provide for Loyola a hands-on training opportunity for its students. This was the beginning of many conversations on how to develop a partnership built on our Jesuit charism and sharing resources that would strengthen our individual schools. 

Following several years of ongoing conversation and discernment, they announced the partnership on January 11, 2022, with great excitement about the new horizon of possibilities that this partnership will provide both institutions. 

What does this partnership mean for Loyola and Holy Name students and families? Faculty and staff?

Loyola and Holy Name share a common mission, striving to cultivate among students and faculty a deep and abiding faith and a love for lifelong learning.

Partnering with Loyola will ensure that a sense of wonder continues to be cultivated in Holy Name students by providing access to stem labs, news studios, performing arts presentations, and athletic facilities.

Loyola has faculty members who specialize in fields of study directly related to Holy Name classroom standards, such as environmental studies, American history, vocal performance, and areas of Catholic studies. Loyola students will visit HNJ for observations, student teaching, school counseling training, and even work-study opportunities. 

Through work-study, Loyola students will have the opportunity to share their gifts, talents, and passions with Holy Name students while earning their required hours, teaching piano, conducting a STEM lab, tutoring math, or simply helping out during Later Gators.

In Summer 2021, HNJ held its first summer camp thanks to the developing partnership with Loyola. Students were able to use a classroom on campus for brain games and STEM- related centers, sit on the spacious, green residence quad for lunch and down time, use the athletic facilities for basketball and volleyball, and even swim in the rec plex pool. 

Then, HNJ assumed the operation of Loyola’s Whelan Daycare Center, and implemented educational opportunities for infants and toddlers in its Little Gators program.  Loyola faculty and staff may now send their children to Later Gators and the school at a discounted tuition rate - and enjoy the benefits of having their children right next door. 

Holy Name employees can also enroll in classes to further their education, attend seminars on specific areas of interest, and even meet one-on-one with Loyola educators to continue their lifelong learning journey. They will have the opportunity to send their own children to Loyola at a discounted rate, an exclusive perk for HNJ employees. 

Starting this spring, Holy name families and employees will also be able to join Loyola’s University Sports Complex at a discounted rate, gaining access to the pool, basketball and tennis courts, weight room, Zumba classes and more.

What are the downsides?

We don’t see any! This is a win-win situation. Our developing partnership has taken on an amazing form over the past 18 months. We are excited to see what the future holds for both of our schools as we cultivate wonder, achieve success, and make a difference together!