Creighton University is a

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research university A research university or a research-intensive university is a university that is committed to research as a central part of its mission. They are the most important sites at which knowledge production occurs, along with "intergenerational kn ...

Omaha, Nebraska Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest ...

. Founded by the

Society of Jesus , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

in 1878, the university is accredited by the

Higher Learning Commission The Higher Learning Commission (HLC) is an institutional accreditor in the United States. It has historically accredited post-secondary education institutions in the central United States: Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Io ...

. In 2015 the university enrolled 8,393 graduate and undergraduate students on a campus just outside Omaha's downtown business district. It is

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among " R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity".

History

The university was founded as Creighton College on September 2, 1878, through a gift from Mary Lucretia Creighton, who stipulated in her will that a school be established in memory of her husband, prominent Omaha businessman Edward Creighton. Edward's brother,

John A. Creighton John Andrew Creighton (October 15, 1831 – February 7, 1907) was a pioneer businessman and philanthropist in Omaha, Nebraska who founded Creighton University. The younger brother of Edward Creighton, John was responsible for a variety of instituti ...

, is credited with fostering and sustaining the university's early growth and endowment. In 1958, the college split into Creighton Preparatory Schools and the present-day Creighton University.

Academics

The schools and colleges at Creighton are: * College of Arts & Sciences * Heider College of Business (formerly known as the College of Business Administration) * College of Nursing * School of Dentistry * School of Medicine * School of Pharmacy & Health Professions * School of Law * Graduate School * College of Professional Studies The College of Arts & Sciences is the largest school, containing about 28% of the university's enrolled students.2015-2016 Creighton University Fact Book
Creighton.edu. Retrieved August 22, 2016. Creighton's acceptance rate is 72.7%. In 2018, the university announced a Phoenix Health Sciences Campus, which opened in 2021.

Athletics

Creighton competes in

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major collegiate athleti ...

athletics as a member of the Big East. Nicknamed the Bluejays, Creighton fields 14 teams in eight sports. Notable basketball players at the university include Paul Silas,

Benoit Benjamin Lenard Benoit Benjamin e-NOYT(; born November 22, 1964) is an American former professional basketball player who was selected by the Los Angeles Clippers in the 1st round (3rd overall) of the 1985 NBA Draft. A 7'0" center from Creighton Unive ...

, Kyle Korver, and current coach Greg McDermott's son Doug McDermott, while famous former Bluejays coaches include Eddie Sutton,

Willis Reed Willis Reed Jr. (born June 25, 1942) is an American retired basketball player, coach and general manager. He spent his entire professional playing career (1964–1974) with the New York Knicks. In 1982, Reed was inducted into the Naismith Me ...

, and

Dana Altman Dana Dean Altman (born June 16, 1958) is an American college basketball coach who is the head coach of the Oregon Ducks men's team. Previously he was head coach at Creighton, Kansas State and Marshall. Altman has won conference coach of the y ...

. The women's basketball team won the WNIT championship in 2004. It plays all home games on campus at D. J. Sokol Arena. The men's soccer team maintained 17 straight

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges ...

tournament appearances between 1992 and 2008. During that time, the Bluejays made three College Cup appearances, including one championship game appearance (2000). It plays all home games on campus at

Morrison Stadium Morrison Stadium is a 6,000-seat soccer-specific stadium located between 17th and 19th Streets to the north of Cass Street, on the east side of the Creighton University campus in the NoDo neighborhood of Omaha, Nebraska. The main entrance and t ...

. Creighton's baseball team has one appearance in the

College World Series The College World Series (CWS), officially the NCAA Men's College World Series (MCWS), is an annual baseball tournament held in June in Omaha, Nebraska. The MCWS is the culmination of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Divisi ...

(1991). Jim Hendry, the former general manager of the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is locate ...

, was Creighton's head coach for its 1991 CWS appearance. The program's graduates include

Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actual halls or muse ...

pitcher

Bob Gibson Robert Gibson (born Pack Robert Gibson; November 9, 1935October 2, 2020) was an American professional baseball pitcher who played 17 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the St. Louis Cardinals (1959–1975). Nicknamed "Gibby" and "Hoot" ...

. The women's softball team has had two appearances in the

Women's College World Series The Women's College World Series (WCWS) is the final portion of the NCAA Division I softball tournament for college softball in the United States. Eight teams participate in the WCWS, which begins with a double-elimination tournament. In other wo ...

(1982 and 1986) and has appeared in six of the past eight NCAA Tournaments. Tara Oltman (2007–2010), the best pitcher in MVC history, was a three-time league Pitcher of the Year and finished her career with conference records for wins, innings pitched, starts, appearances, strikeouts, and complete games. She remains the only student-athlete in Bluejays history to earn first-team all-conference honors in four consecutive seasons.

Demographics

, Creighton's enrollment was 8,435, of whom 4,163 were undergraduates. From Creighton's Class of 2020, 14% count themselves as first-generation college attendees in their families. 26% are students of color, and 56% of the class is female; 82% of the class have taken part in volunteer service.

Student clubs and organizations

The university has more than 200 student organizations:

Halls of residence

There are currently eight halls of residence: Davis Square, Deglman Hall, Heider Hall, Kenefick Hall, Kiewit Hall, McGloin Hall, Opus Hall and Swanson Hall. They are all

co-educational Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to t ...

. A ninth, currently unnamed residence is (as of January 2022) under construction on 23rd Street, south of Burt Street. Expected to be completed in August 2023, it will be able to accommodate 400 first-year students. It is Creighton's first new residence hall since 2006, and the first built exclusively for first-year students since the 1960s.

Academic honor societies

Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States, and the most prestigious, due in part to its long history and academic selectivity. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal ...

– National Honor Society * Alpha Sigma Nu – Jesuit Honor society * Sigma Pi Sigma – Physics *

Psi Chi Psi Chi () is a college student honor society in psychology with international outreach founded in 1929 at the University of Kansas in the United States. Psi Chi is one of the largest honor societies in the United States, with more than 1,150 cha ...

– Psychology *

Phi Sigma Phi Sigma () is an honor society for students of biological sciences, formed at Ohio State University. History The Phi Sigma honor society was founded on March 17, 1915 at Ohio State University to honor excellence in biological research. In 1928 ...

– Biology *

Theta Alpha Kappa Theta Alpha Kappa () is the national honor society for religious studies and theology. It was founded in 1976 at Manhattan College in Riverdale (the Bronx), New York City to recognize the academic achievements of religion and theology students. Cu ...

– National Honor Society * Phi Sigma Tau – Philosophy * Pi Sigma Alpha – Political Science * Sigma Tau Delta – English * Beta Alpha Psi – Accounting * Eta Sigma Phi – Classics * Alpha Psi Omega – Theatre * Sigma Theta Tau - Nursing

Student government

* Creighton Students Union (CSU) is Creighton University's comprehensive student government, consisting of students from each of Creighton University's schools and colleges. CSU has served as the student body's official voice to faculty, staff, and the outside community since 1922. CSU also devotes significant resources to other student organizations, including a large part of its budget dedicated to funding student organizations; its former name was Student Board of Governors. * Each school has its own student advising body for academic affairs. *Inter Residence Hall Government (IRHG) was formed in 1984 by Steven Conroy and serves as the voice for all students who live on Creighton's campus. IRHG represents all of Creighton's residence halls and sponsors programs and legislative actions.

John P. Schlegel, S.J., Center for Service and Justice

The John P. Schlegel, S.J., Center for Service and Justice (SCSJ) promotes weekly local community service projects, Fall and Spring Break service trips, student leadership development, and education about contemporary justice issues. The center helped develop the Cortina Community, a sophomore intentional-living community named for Jesuit priest Jon de Cortina.

Performing arts

* Several vocal groups exist. The Department of Fine and Performing Arts, within the College of Arts and Sciences, houses a Chamber Choir (selective), Gospel Choir, Jazz Ensemble, Wind Ensemble, Orchestra, and University Chorus. The men's a cappella ensemble is known as the Creightones. * The Creighton Dance Company's eclectic repertoire draws on classical ballet, contemporary and modern dance, jazz and musical theatre dance. * The Department of Fine and Performing Arts offers undergraduate degrees in Art History, Studio Art, Dance, Music, Theatre, and Musical Theatre. * Several theatrical productions are held each year in the university's Lied Education Center for the Arts.

Student media

* The student newspaper ''The Creightonian'', first published in 1924, is now published every Thursday during the school year. Student reporters, editors, photographers, and designers produce the paper, covering campus news, features, sports, entertainment, opinion, and photos. In 2007 and 2008, ''The Creightonian'' was named Nebraska's top college newspaper in the Nebraska Press Association contest. Staff members won numerous individual awards. ''The Creightonian'' was a finalist for the 2007 and 2010 Pacemaker Award, one of the top awards in college journalism. * Creighton's literature and arts publication ''Shadows'' has received one of college journalism's top honors: a 2007 Silver Crown award from the Columbia Scholastic Press Association (CSPA). ''Shadows'', which is published twice a year, selects literary and visual art by Creighton students, faculty, and staff. The magazine is the oldest student organization on campus.

Clubs

Many organizations allow students to share their common interests. Examples include: * Cultural – Hui O Hawaii, International Student Association, Spanish Club * Greek – Fraternities:

Beta Theta Pi Beta Theta Pi (), commonly known as Beta, is a North American social fraternity that was founded in 1839 at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. One of North America's oldest fraternities, as of 2022 it consists of 144 active chapters in the Uni ...

Phi Delta Theta Phi Delta Theta (), commonly known as Phi Delt, is an international secret and social fraternity founded at Miami University in 1848 and headquartered in Oxford, Ohio. Phi Delta Theta, along with Beta Theta Pi and Sigma Chi form the Miami Triad. ...

Sigma Alpha Epsilon Sigma Alpha Epsilon (), commonly known as SAE, is a North American Greek-letter social college fraternity. It was founded at the University of Alabama on March 9, 1856. Of all existing national social fraternities today, Sigma Alpha Epsilon is t ...

Sigma Phi Epsilon Sigma Phi Epsilon (), commonly known as SigEp, is a social college fraternity for male college students in the United States. It was founded on November 1, 1901, at Richmond College (now the University of Richmond), and its national headquarte ...

Delta Chi Delta Chi () is an international Greek letter collegiate social fraternity formed on October 13, 1890, at Cornell University, initially as a professional fraternity for law students. On April 30, 1922, Delta Chi became a general membership soc ...

. Sororities: Alpha Phi, Delta Delta Delta, Delta Zeta, Gamma Phi Beta,

Kappa Kappa Gamma Kappa Kappa Gamma (), also known simply as Kappa or KKG, is a collegiate sorority founded at Monmouth College in Monmouth, Illinois, United States. It has a membership of more than 260,000 women, with 140 collegiate chapters in the United States ...

Pi Beta Phi Pi Beta Phi (), often known simply as Pi Phi, is an international women's fraternity founded at Monmouth College, in Monmouth, Illinois on April 28, 1867 as I. C. Sorosis, the first national secret college society of women to be modeled after ...

Theta Phi Alpha Theta Phi Alpha (), commonly known as Theta Phi, is a women's fraternity founded at the University of Michigan – Ann Arbor on August 30, 1912. The main archive URL iThe Baird's Manual Online Archive homepage Theta Phi Alpha is one of 26 nationa ...

. * Political – NAACP College Chapter, College Republicans, College Democrats, Turning Point USA * Professional – Premedical Society, Predental Society, Fellowship of Christian Law Students, Academy of Student Pharmacists, Business Law Society, International Relations Club * Religious – Canisius Society, Inter Varsity Christian Fellowship, Muslim Student Organization, Rosary Club, the Navigators (formerly Jays for Christ), Knights of Columbus, Student Jewish Organization * Service –

Alpha Phi Omega Alpha Phi Omega (), commonly known as APO, but also A-Phi-O and A-Phi-Q, is a coeducational service fraternity. It is the largest collegiate fraternity in the United States, with chapters at over 350 campuses, an active membership of over 25, ...

, Colleges Against Cancer,

Habitat for Humanity Habitat for Humanity International (HFHI), generally referred to as Habitat for Humanity or Habitat, is a US non-governmental, and nonprofit organization which was founded in 1976 by couple Millard and Linda Fuller. Habitat for Humanity is a C ...

, Best Buddies of America,

Circle K International Circle K International (CKI) is an international collegiate service organization that is a service leadership program of Kiwanis International. It promotes service, leadership, and fellowship. It has over 13,000 members. Organization Circle ...

* Sports – baseball, lacrosse, soccer, hockey, curling, cycling, dance, jujitsu, martial arts, rowing, rugby, running, ski & snowboard, ultimate frisbee, volleyball

Notable alumni

There are more than 68,470 living alumni of Creighton University in 93 countries. Nearly 30 percent live in Nebraska. The largest number of alumni outside the United States reside in Canada, Japan, and Malaysia. Alumni include Marcia Anderson, the first

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ensl ...

woman to attain the rank of

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of ...

in the

United States Army Reserve The United States Army Reserve (USAR) is a reserve force of the United States Army. Together, the Army Reserve and the Army National Guard constitute the Army element of the reserve components of the United States Armed Forces. Since July 20 ...

; Michael P. Anderson, an astronaut killed in the Space Shuttle ''Columbia'' disaster;

Donald Keough Donald Raymond Keough (September 4, 1926 – February 24, 2015) was an Irish-American businessman and Chairman of the Board of Allen & Company LLC, a New York investment banking firm. He was elected to that position in April 1993. Keough retired ...

, once president and chief operating officer of

Coca-Cola Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. Originally marketed as a temperance bar, temperance drink and intended as a patent medicine, it was invented in the late 19th century by John Stith Pembe ...

; Joe Ricketts, the founder of TD Ameritrade and owner of the

; Mark Walter, founder and chief executive officer of Guggenheim Partners, and part owner of the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League West, West division. Established in 1883 i ...

Symone Sanders Symone D. Sanders-Townsend (born December 10, 1989) is an American political strategist and commentator. She served as national press secretary for Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders during his 2016 presidential campaign. She left t ...

, Democratic strategist and spokesperson for Bernie Sanders' 2016 presidential campaign; Mike Johanns, former Governor of

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the sout ...

, former United States Senator, and former

United States Secretary of Agriculture The United States secretary of agriculture is the head of the United States Department of Agriculture. The position carries similar responsibilities to those of agriculture ministers in other governments. The department includes several organ ...

; Cathy Hughes, first African American woman to head a publicly traded corporation ( Urban One) and currently second wealthiest African American woman;

J. Clay Smith Jr. John Clay Smith Jr. (April 15, 1942 – February 15, 2018) was a lawyer, author, and American educator. Smith was born in Omaha, Nebraska. He graduated from Creighton University in 1964. He received his master's and doctorate's degree from ...

, former interim head of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and former dean of

Howard University School of Law Howard University School of Law (Howard Law or HUSL) is the law school of Howard University, a private, federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C. It is one of the oldest law schools in the country and the ol ...

; novelists Ron Hansen and Theodore Wheeler; and several professional athletes, including

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (A ...

pitcher

and professional basketball players Kyle Korver, Anthony Tolliver, and Doug McDermott.

Notable faculty

* Raymond J. Bishop *

Virgil Blum Virgil Clarence Blum (1913–1990) was an American Jesuit and professor of political science at Marquette University. Early life and education Virgil Clarence Blum was born on March 27, 1913, in Defiance, Iowa, one of twelve children of John ...

* Patrick Borchers * Raymond A. Bucko * Judith M. Burnfield * John Calvert *

Edward P. J. Corbett Edward P.J. Corbett (October 29, 1919 – June 24, 1998) was an American rhetorician, educator, and scholarly author. Corbett chaired the 1970 Conference on College Composition and Communication, and was chair of the organization and a member o ...

Frank Crawford Frank Crawford (March 12, 1870 – November 25, 1963) was an American college football coach, lawyer, and law professor. He served as the first full-time head football coach at both Michigan and Nebraska, and also coached Wisconsin, Baker, and Te ...

* Blase J. Cupich *

Ross Horning Ross Charles Horning Jr. (October 10, 1920 – April 1, 2005) was an American historian and baseball player. He played professional baseball in the minor leagues while completing his studies. Horning was a professor of Russian history at Creight ...

Henry T. Lynch Henry Thompson Lynch (January 4, 1928 – June 2, 2019) was an American physician noted for his discovery of familial susceptibility to certain kinds of cancer and his research into Genetics of cancer, genetic links to cancer. He is sometimes de ...

* D. S. Malik * Francis I. McKenna *

R. R. Reno Russell Ronald Reno III (born 1959), known as R. R. Reno, is the editor of ''First Things'' magazine. He was formerly a professor of theology and ethics at Creighton University. Biography Reno was born in Baltimore, Maryland, in 1959, and ...

* Joseph F. Rigge * William J. Riley * Robert F. Rossiter Jr. *

Roger Lawrence Schwietz Roger Lawrence Schwietz, OMI (born July 3, 1940) is an American prelate of the Catholic Church. Schwieta served as archbishop of the Archdiocese of Anchorage in Alaska from 2001 to 2016. He previously served as bishop of the Diocese of Du ...

Hugh Sidey Hugh Swanson Sidey (September 3, 1927 – November 21, 2005) was an American journalist who worked for ''Life'' magazine starting in 1955, then moved on to ''Time'' magazine in 1957. He covered presidents, from Eisenhower to Clinton, and was auth ...

* Constantine Joseph Smyth * William O. Stephens *

Lyle Elmer Strom Lyle Elmer Strom (born January 6, 1925) is an inactive Senior United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Nebraska. Education and career Born in Omaha, Nebraska, Strom received a Bachelor of Arts degree ...

* LaNada War Jack

Notes

References

External links

*
Official athletics website
{{Authority control Jesuit universities and colleges in the United States Educational institutions established in 1878 Landmarks in North Omaha, Nebraska Buildings and structures in Omaha, Nebraska Education in Omaha, Nebraska Catholic universities and colleges in Nebraska Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Omaha Creighton family 1878 establishments in Nebraska