In Brief–Winter 2026

Franciscan Magazine

Franciscan University of Steubenville

Tuition & Financial Aid

Make a Gift

In Brief

A look at recent news from the Franciscan University community.

Winter 2026

In This Article

Celebrating Our Faithful Alumni

Homecoming Weekend drew many alumni, families, and friends to Franciscan University September 26-28.

Festivities included the Kelly Roggensack Memorial Race, St. Francis Festival, the Presidential Golf Outing, the blessing of the animals, and much more. The weekend was also full of athletic events such as the alumni lacrosse matches, and volleyball and rugby matches. Students, alumni, and the community also joined in eucharistic adoration at a Saturday night Festival of Praise.

During the 36th annual Alumni Awards Banquet on September 26, the University honored four exceptional alumni who are helping to transform the Church and the culture.

Noelle Mering MA ’22 received the Bishop John King Mussio Award for “shining the light of truth within a culture that is often clouded in confusion.” She is a fellow in the Life and Family Initiative at the Ethics and Public Policy Center in Washington, D.C., a scholar for the Institute for Human Ecology at The Catholic University of America, and a prolific author. She also wrote the bestselling book, Awake, Not Woke: A Christian Response to the Cult of Progressive Ideology and is the guest host for the Confronting a Woke World season of In Focus on Faith and Reason.

“I’m grateful to Father Dave and for the witness of Franciscan University. It’s a witness not just in argumentation, not just in propositional truth, but a witness to the dignity of the human person that you encounter every day,” Mering said. “It’s a school of joy.”

Anne Foster ’17 received the Outstanding Young Alumni Award for her work at the popular Hallow prayer app and in the pro-life movement. As a partnership executive at Hallow, she builds and maintains relationships within Catholic higher education institutions, dioceses, schools, and parishes.

“At Franciscan, you receive the gift of an encounter with the person of Jesus Christ. And that’s the greatest thing that we can do for our students,” Foster said.

Judge Joseph Corabi ’74 received the Rose M. DeFede ’60 Faithful Franciscan Award for his work in the legal field and for his service to the University.

Jennifer (Butler ’05) Routh received the Professor Edward J. Kelly Award for her career as a lawyer and her commitment to her faith.

Father Dave Pivonka, TOR ’89, president of Franciscan University, congratulated and thanked the awardees.

“What happens at Franciscan University matters. People pay attention because what we’re doing here, nobody else in the world is doing,” he told them. “Thank you so much for being good and faithful servants. Thank you for your commitment to the University. Thank you for representing us so well.”

Franciscan on the Rise

Franciscan University earned high marks in U.S. News & World Report’s 2025-26 Best Colleges guide, climbing the ranks in two key categories.

Franciscan advanced into the top 25 in the Regional Universities Midwest category, moving up three spots from 28th to 25th. Retaining its place in the top tier of the region’s 161 colleges,
Franciscan’s rating makes it one of Ohio’s top 5 universities. The ranking reflects the University’s continued growth in academic reputation, student success, and commitment to providing a transformative Catholic education.

The University also rose from 36th to 28th in Social Mobility among Regional Universities Midwest. Franciscan has jumped 64 spots in three years in this category. Social Mobility highlights schools that excel in enrolling and graduating large proportions of students awarded Pell Grants, a marker of success in supporting students from diverse backgrounds and helping them achieve strong outcomes.

“Our continued rise in these rankings highlights the extraordinary momentum we’re experiencing at Franciscan,” said Father Dave Pivonka, TOR ’89, president of Franciscan University.

“Here, students are immersed in a vibrant intellectual life, supported by new facilities, record enrollment, a world-class faculty, and an unwavering commitment to academic rigor and our
Catholic mission. Franciscan is increasingly recognized as a university where faith and reason flourish together, preparing students for lives of greatness and service.”

The U.S. News & World Report rankings also show Franciscan as vastly exceeding national averages with its 85 percent first-year retention rate, 74 percent graduation rate, and 19-1 student/faculty ratio.

The recognition from U.S. News & World Report comes at a time of continued growth for Franciscan University. In September, the University announced record enrollment numbers for the 11th consecutive year, with a record of 1,227 new students—including freshmen, graduate students, and transfers—beginning their classes on campus and online.

Franciscan Leaders Gather for Renewal and Mission

Trustees, benefactors, and an all-star lineup of guest speakers converged on Franciscan University for the annual President’s Retreat, held October 16–18.

The weekend offered spiritual renewal and thought-provoking insights from Dr. Arthur Brooks, Dr. Scott Hahn, Ester Munt-Brooks, Dr. John Bergsma, Noelle Mering, Heather Khym, and
other speakers.

During keynote talks by Arthur Brooks and Hahn, each addressed the urgent need to renew faith and unity in a divided age. Brooks, a Harvard professor, author, and Catholic convert,
invited attendees to reflect on America’s growing unhappiness and political polarization through the lens of Catholic social teaching.
“The climate for happiness comes about because of four basic forces—faith, family, friends, and work,” he said. “Those are the four habits of the happiest people.”

Yet, he warned, all four habits have been in decline.

Brooks urged Catholics to see this cultural moment as “the greatest period of opportunity for us as people of faith in America.”

“Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,” he said, citing both Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount and Martin Luther King Jr. “Each one of us has an opportunity, notwithstanding our feelings, to love the people with whom we disagree and to do so publicly. Not only do we have the opportunity, we have the obligation as Catholic people to do that.”

Hahn, the University’s distinguished Scanlan Professor of Biblical Theology and the New Evangelization, offered a complementary vision in his talk, “The Apostle of Light.”

Drawing from St. Paul’s conversion and missionary witness, Hahn reflected on how the apostle transformed suffering into strength. It’s a lesson he connected to Brooks’ own work. Quoting
Brooks’ book From Strength to Strength, Hahn noted that St. Paul’s secret was simple yet radical.

“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness,” Hahn said. “The secret to going from strength to strength is to recognize that your weakness, your loss, your decline can be a gift to others.”

From the Areopagus of ancient Athens to today’s culture, Hahn reminded listeners that St. Paul’s brilliance lay in his friendship and faithfulness.

“Together, Paul and Luke accomplished what they could never have done separately. This is the power of friendship in the plan of God,” said Hahn.

Through the reflections and talks, the President’s Retreat became more than a weekend gathering. It was a call to holiness in a fractured world, rooted in faith, friendship, and the courage to love.

You can watch select talks from the President’s Retreat on Franciscan’s YouTube channel.

Alumna Kim King New Vice President of Student LifePresident of Student Life

Portrait of Kimberly King smiling wearing a sleeveless top and a necklace. Franciscan University welcomed Kimberly King MA ’95 as the new vice president of Student Life in mid-November.

King brings more than 30 years of higher education experience to her alma mater.

She had a successful career in collegiate athletics at Binghamton University and then at Ave Maria
University, before moving into student life roles.

For almost a decade at Ave Maria, King served as vice president of Student Affairs and dean of Students, as well as Title IX coordinator. She spearheaded efforts to cultivate and maintain a positive student experience on campus, overseeing everything from residential life and campus ministry to career services and health services to student engagement.

“I’m excited to welcome Kim King to the Franciscan University community. She brings a great wealth of higher education experience to this position, as well as her strong Catholic faith,” said University President Father Dave Pivonka, TOR ’89. “She is passionate about forming our students as joyful disciples and creating an environment of encounter, conversion, and community.”

In her new role, King will steward Franciscan’s vibrant Catholic campus culture. She will oversee an integrated portfolio of residence life, student activities and leadership, student conduct, international student services, wellness and counseling, dining, orientation and campus events, and athletics. She will also further the formation and care of students and advance Franciscan’s mission and vision, guided by the Be Light Strategic Plan.

“Having dedicated my lifework to accompanying students in their growth, I find deep joy in walking with them as they integrate faith, learning, and daily life, and in witnessing their unfolding call to live out their unique vocation,” King said. “Franciscan has long been a leader in faithful Catholic higher education and continues to set the standard in this transformative work. It will be a privilege to give back to the place that so profoundly shaped my own formation as a Catholic disciple.”

Austria Awaits This Summer

Franciscan University will host its annual Austria Summer Experience from May 15–June 5, 2026, in Gaming, Austria.

Held at the Kartause Maria Thronus Iesu, a restored 14th-century Carthusian monastery and the University’s study abroad site in the foothills of the Austrian Alps, the program offers anyone
age 16 and older the opportunity to take one-of-a-kind courses and travel abroad while also living in community.

“The Austria Summer Experience provides unique and transformative classes within the Catholic tradition to students from a range of universities and of all ages,” said Dr. Brandon Dahm, philosophy professor at Franciscan University and director of the Austria Summer Experience. “Students and faculty participate together in everything from afternoon hikes to drawing nights to trips around Austria. Although the classes are the backbone of the three weeks, the community beyond the classroom makes it the singular and life-changing experience it is.”

Participants can choose to enroll in one of the six courses planned for summer 2026.

In “Knead Virtue: From Gluten to Glory,” students will learn about the theology of virtue formation through the art of sourdough bread making from Dahm and psychologist Dr. Matthew
Breuninger.

Students standing at easels in a large, ornate room with a painted arched ceiling and tall windows, working on drawings. “Writing a San Damiano Crucifix: Hear God Speak Through
Franciscan Art” will allow students to explore sacred art through
creating their own icon. Sacred artist and Franciscan professor Amber (Pitts ’17) Knorr will teach students icon writing while Franciscan professor Father Gregory Plow, TOR MSA ’11, explains the spirituality of sacred art.

Dr. Ben Reinhard, Franciscan English professor and author of The High Hallow: Tolkien’s Liturgical Imagination, will teach “The Last Homely House: Tolkien and Imagination.” Participants will explore the works and literary artistry of J.R.R. Tolkien and learn to see the world as Tolkien saw it through liturgical prayer, com munal life, and immersion in nature.

In “Around the Catholic Table: A Theology of Food, Friendship, and Hospitality,” Emily Stimpson Chapman, the author of the Around the Catholic Table cookbook, will unpack the meaning of food through a scriptural and sacramental worldview.

Students will also discover why hospitality is key to fostering Christian community.

Enrollees will see how God’s work unfolds in the story of salvation and within their personal lives in “History Is Built With the Heart: Catholic Spiritual Autobiography.” Led by Dr. Shane Owens MA ’15, Franciscan theology professor and author of Return to the Heart: The Biblical Spirituality of St. Augustine’s Confessions, the class will study spiritual masters such as St. Augustine and St. Thérèse, grow in prayer and self-knowledge, and uncover how God is divinely authoring the stories of their lives.

In “Principles of Marketing and the Power of the New Evangelization,” entrepreneur and visiting professor Bob Olson will lead students through an immersive class where they will apply modern marketing principles to Christian evangelization.They will develop their leadership skills while also crafting effective and practical tools to share the Gospel.

Austria Summer Experience participants can also enjoy events such as Theology on Tap talks, trivia and movie nights, praise and worship, and an Austrian ball. Daily Mass and eucharistic adoration are offered in the Kartause’s chapel.

Day trips to Dürnstein, Vienna, and Salzburg, as well as a pilgrimage hike to the Marian shrine at Mariazell, are included. The second week of class also provides a long weekend so students can travel on their own in Europe.

For more information, visit the Austria Summer Experience webpage.

Franciscan Saint

St. Isabel of France (c. 1225-1270)

Without God, St. Isabel of France’s story would appear to be a reverse rags-to-riches tale: A princess gives up a life of grandeur for an austere existence. But with God, hers is a beautiful example of faithfully listening to the Lord’s voice and following it, even if the result might not make sense to others.

Isabel was born in 1225 to King Louis VIII of France and Blanche of Castile. Her father died soon afterward, and her older brother Louis IX, who would also be canonized a saint, assumed the throne.

Like her brother, Isabel developed a devotion to the Franciscan way of life, later having Franciscan friars as her special confessors. She would frequently serve the poor and visit the sick. Thanks to her mother, she also was well-educated, literate, and fluent in Latin.

From a young age, she longed to serve God through remaining a virgin. So, she broke off her betrothal to Hugh XI of Lusignan.

She also refused an offer from Conrad IV of Germany, who held the title of king of Jerusalem. Even the pope wrote to her, urging her to marry Conrad for the benefit of Christendom. However, Isabel’s response proved the sincerity of her calling.

In 1255, her brother acquired land for her to build a Franciscan monastery called the Monastery of the Humility of the Blessed Virgin. With the assistance of Franciscans who included St. Bonaventure, Isabel composed a rule for the new community, which was sanctioned by Pope Alexander IV in 1259; a revised rule was approved by Pope Urban IV in 1263.

Isabel took up residence near the monastery. However, due to her ill health, she never became a nun herself. Rather, she used her wealth to support the community and practice charitable works. She lived much of the same rule of life as the nuns and adhered to a discipline of silence. She died on February 23, 1270, and was canonized in 1696.

Her feast day is February 26.

Bookshelf

Fathering Sons: A Modern Initiation of Bestowing Sonship

Dominic Polito ’03

Children don’t come with manuals. That’s why the stories of parents further along on their journeys can be invaluable resources. For fathers raising sons, alumnus Dominic Polito has put together not a theoretical textbook but rather a field tested guide. In part 1, he explores the original purpose of masculinity and fatherhood. In part 2, he offers a suggested modern manhood initiation rite for sons. Along with his own anecdotes, Polito provides fellow fathers with practical advice for how to raise sons who embrace Christian masculinity and know God as their Father.

Christ, Crime, and Moral Judgment

Dr. Charles P. Nemeth
St. Augustine’s Press

In his latest book, Dr. Charles Nemeth, director of Franciscan’s Criminal Justice Program, offers a thorough compendium of crimes referenced by Jesus Christ in Scripture, such as sexual offenses and offenses against property. Nemeth unpacks the idea of moral judgment and traces the modern shift from seeing God as judge to seeing him as one who just wants to wipe away tears. The book illustrates how justice and charity are not in opposition, as well as how proper correction can be a call to conversion.

Dimestore Saints: Sonnets From the Gospel of St. Matthew

Dr. David Craig
Arouca Press

The spiritual life is not a smooth journey. Rather, it is filled with hills and valleys as sinners strive to become saints. This theme is carried throughout David Craig’s poems in Dimestore Saints. A literature and creative writing professor at Franciscan University for more than 30 years, Craig goes through the Gospel of Matthew and transforms Scripture into short yet powerful sonnets. With referenced verses included alongside each poem’s title, this sonnet collection provides unique insights into familiar Bible passages.

Grüß Gott, Gaming!

Jessica (Lauer ’11) Cain

Alumna Jessica Cain desired to share her experience in Franciscan’s Austrian Study Abroad Program with her children. So, she wrote and illustrated a board book to bring some of Austria’s beauty into their home. This colorful book takes little ones throughout the town of Gaming as they greet various sites, from places around the Kartause to the heights of the surrounding mountains. Filled with German phrases, it also includes a handy glossary of terms. Books can be purchased at grussgottgaming.com.

Issue Home

More from this Issue

Caroline Gambale-Dirkes ’93

Tom Szyszkiewicz ’84

Maggie Mosher ’05