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September 2022
Celebrate your #HFUpride at Homecoming 2022 on Saturday, October 1! 

  • Cheer on the Tigers to victory in Women’s Volleyball and Men’s and Women’s Soccer and attend the Esports Facility Open House.
  • Reconnect with friends and enjoy special guest appearances from University staff in the Homecoming Beer Garden (now open to all members of the Holy Family community) with beer provided by Moss Mill Brewing Company.
  • Enjoy delicious treats from our food trucks: Chickie's and Pete's, Fun'nel Cakes and More, and WokWorks.
  • Have fun at our family-friendly activities, including inflatables, pumpkin painting and meet and greets with our mascot, Blue.
  • Listen to rising country-pop vocalist, Melissa Ann Wegfahrt ’15 as she sings the National Anthem before the women's soccer game.
  • Walk down memory lane on a Campus Tour.
  • And more!

See complete details and register at holyfamily.edu/homecoming.
33rd Annual Golf Classic
Thanks to the generosity of the Holy Family University community, the 33rd Annual Golf Classic raised over $70,000 with 90 golfers, 30 more than last year, joining us in support of student financial aid.

For the first time, we also held our first Women's Golf Clinic that brought out alumni and friends alike.

Click here to view photography from Holy Family's beautiful day on the links!
Campus News
  • As reported in the Philadelphia Inquirer, Holy Family University has been awarded a $50,000 Collegiate Recovery Program grant from the Independence Blue Cross Foundation in collaboration with the Association of Recovery in Higher Education (ARHE). Holy Family's Collegiate Recovery Program will be led by Patrick McElwaine '00, M'04, Psy.D., associate professor of Counseling Psychology. 


  • Diane Menago, Psy.D., program and clinical training director of the Doctor of Psychology in Counseling Psychology program in Holy Family University's School of Arts & Sciences, was featured in Montco.Today for work leading the program informed by personal grief journey.
  • On September 21, Holy Family University hosted its inaugural First-Year Convocation, a formal welcome to the Class of 2026. Faculty wore their academic regalia and processed in. Students recited the student pledge and sang the Alma Mater for the very first time. After the event, all guests enjoyed a delicious lunch, including pizza and Mini Melts Ice Cream, donated by Dan Kilcoyne '04.

  • Remarks were provided by Anne M. Prisco, Ph.D., University President, Ilana R. Lane, Ph.D., Vice President for Academic Affairs, Mary Carroll Johansen, Ph.D., Professor of History, Desiree Draper '23, and Matt Topley '94.
  • Through October 13, The Holy Family University Art Gallery proudly presents: Underlands, abstract mixed media wall sculptures by Will Wolf. The Holy Family University Gallery is located on the Lower Level of the Sister Francesca Onley Education and Technology Center.
In Remembrance

  • Holy Family University is saddened to report the recent passing of Father James Collins, who served as a professor and campus minister for over 35 years.

  • The University will celebrate a Memorial Mass for Lisa Woodside, Ph.D., former dean, vice president, and Professor Emeritus on Thursday, September 29, 1 p.m., in the Campus Center Chapel. Dr. Woodside passed away on July 24, 2022.
Athletics News

  • Women’s Soccer Alumna Melissa (Murphy) Witner '03 was one of four honorees inducted into the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) Hall of Fame Class of 2022. Witner is the fourth CACC Hall of Fame inductee from Holy Family, joining Mike McLaughlin '91 (CACC Class of 2016), the 2007-08 women's basketball team (CACC Class of 2017) and Catherine Carr '11 (CACC Class of 2019). 

  • Holy Family Athletics is pleased to announce new hires:


  • Go Tigers! Visit athletics.holyfamily.edu for updated team schedules, livestream information, and other news stories.
Fall Open Houses
Know of anyone interested in becoming a Holy Family Tiger? Fall is a great time to come to visit the campus and meet with University representatives about joining the "Family".

Fall Open Houses will be held on Sunday, October 2 and Sunday, November 6. See complete details and register online.
Family Center Fall 2022 Free Workshops
The Holy Family University Family Center is pleased announce its Fall 2022 "Living Fully" workshops (listed below). These free sessions provide are hosted on Wednesday evenings from 7:00 p.m. until 8:30 p.m.

  • Oct. 5 - Navigating Your Mental Health During These Uncertain Times (presented by: Diane Menago, Psy.D., PsyD Program and Clinical Training Director, Associate Professor, Department of Counseling Psychology, School of Arts & Sciences)
  • Oct. 12 - Becoming a Wise Smartphone User (presented by: Driss Atlagh, End-User Support Manager, Information Technology Department)
  • Oct. 19 - Demystifying Microsoft ® Word (presented by: Sister Angela Cresswell, CSFN, '75, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, School of Arts & Sciences)
  • Oct. 26 - “Who’s On First?” or Is It “Whose On First?”: Grammar Usage for Everyday (presented by: Sister Mary Joan Jacobs, CSFN, '84, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, School of Arts & Sciences)

The Family Center will also offer a "Pathways to Prayer" series, lead by Judy Principe, BS, MA, MBTI Master Practitioner. This series will examine the innate gifts of personality and temperament to foster growth in self-knowledge, one’s relationship with God and others. Sessions will be held on Thursday mornings from 10:00 a.m. until 12:00 p.m.

For more information and to register for any of the Fall 2022 workshops, please click here or email Sister Angela Cresswell, CSFN, '75, PhD, Director of the Family Center.
Distinguished Writers Series
Holy Family University will host a Distinguished Writers Series on Tuesday, October 18 at 6:30 p.m. featuring Ananda Lima, author of the award-winning poetry collection Mother/land.

The event is FREE and open to the public. The event will take place in the ETC Auditorium and it will also be livestreamed via Zoom. Click here to register and receive the Zoom details.
Community Blood Drive
In conjunction with the American Red Cross, Holy Family University will host a Community Blood Drive on Friday, October 28 from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. in the Campus Center Lower Lobby.

Click here to make an appointment or visit: redcrossblood.org and enter sponsor keyword: Holy Family University.

Library Guest Speaker: Olde City Paranormal
Wanna meet real-life ghostbusters?

Back by popular demand, the Campus Library is pleased to host welcome Officer John Levy and Glenn Orwan of Olde City Paranormal (O.C.P.) who investigate and educate about paranormal activity in the Philadelphia area.

Join our students in the Campus Library on Monday, October 31 during the University common hour (12:50 p.m. - 1:50 p.m.) to learn about O.C.P.'s investigations at Fort Mifflin, Graeme Park, and more! There is no charge to attend this presentation.

For more information please contact Stephanie Mendes '16, Access Services & Interlibrary Loan Coordinator, at smendes@holyfamily.edu or 267-341-3315
Take Advantage of the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Waiver by October 31, 2022!
Do you have federal student loans? Have you been thinking about the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Program? Have you encountered problems interacting with that program?

The PSLF Program forgives the remaining balance on federal Direct Loans after you have made 120 qualifying payments while working full-time for a qualifying public service employer.

The U.S. Department of Education recently announced a temporary, but significant waiver to PSLF program rules. The Limited PSLF Waiver allows those borrowers who had the wrong type of loans or payments to get credit for those past periods.

Millions of non-profit and government employees have federal student loans and may now be eligible for loan forgiveness or additional credit through the Limited PSLF Waiver, which is available to borrowers until October 31, 2022.

You can learn more about the waiver and if it applies to you here. If you previously applied for PSLF and were denied because of your loan type, you are encouraged to try again.
Holy Family University is actively hiring a number of faculty and staff positions.

Please visit holyfamily.edu/jobs to view all job openings, how to apply, and other detailed information about joining the HFU employee “family”.
Holy Family Travel Opportunities
Holy Family’s Study Abroad program is excited to announce two programs coming in 2023 that are open to the entire Holy Family community:

  • March 2023 – Join Dr. Shelley Robbins, Dean of the School of Arts & Sciences, for a 10-day tour of Costa Rica, exploring rain forests, environment and culture. See complete details here.

  • May 2023 - Join Dr. Melissa Rampelli, Associate Professor of English, for an 12-day, Grand Tour of Italy, including Venice, Florence, Assisi, Sorrento, and Rome. See complete details here. 

All tours are hosted by EF Tours, Holy Family’s travel partner for over a decade, and are subject to evolving health and safety policies, restrictions, and precautions. View previous study abroad itineraries and photos here.
Holy Family Launches New Parents Association
Chaired by Sheila McNulty-Bobholz P'23, the Holy Family University Parents Association group aims to help current parents and families stay connected to the larger campus community, their students, and each other.

For more information or to get involved, please contact Julie Rempfer '10, Director for Alumni and Parent Relations at jrempfer@holyfamily.edu.
Alumni Benefit Spotlight: Insurance Options (and discounts!)
Holy Family's Alumni Association is proud to sponsor an Alumni Insurance Program through Meyer and Associates, which offers a variety of attractively-priced and discounted insurance products available to most alumni, students, faculty, and staff, as well as their spouses, domestic partners, children, parents, and siblings, including:


A portion of all insurance plans purchased through this program benefit the Alumni Association Scholarship Fund.

For complete information and to apply online, please visit HFU.meyerandassoc.com. You can also contact Meyer and Associates directly at 800-635-7801 or by email at info@meyerandassoc.com.
Upcoming Alumni Events
Please visit holyfamily.edu/calendar for all our upcoming events. We look forward to seeing you and your classmates soon!
We Continue to Stand with Ukraine in Prayer
Holy Family University Alumni Office | holyfamily.edu