(Photo: Regis University)
By: Natalia Zreliak, Digital Editor
In celebration of both Regis University and Regis Jesuit High School’s 140th anniversary, Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper proclaimed November 5, Regis Day in Colorado. Hickenlooper’s proclamation is a long list of the reason why both Regis University and Regis Jesuit are worth celebrating from being the only Jesuit university in the Western Rocky Mountains and the largest private and Catholic high school in Colorado to Jesuit values that make the schools so special.
Both schools were founded in 1887 on November 5 by two Jesuit Priests in Las Vegas, New Mexico but were very shortly relocated to Denver not too long after. Up until 1989 the high school and university shared space on what is now Regis’ Northwest Denver Campus. Originally Regis was known as the College of the Sacred Heart but was given a new name to honor Saint John Francis Regis, a member of The Society of Jesus during the 17th century who worked with prostitutes and the poor in the mountains of Southern France.
Regis University and Regis Jesuit are known for their service to the community surrounding them through clubs and projects like those put on by Father Woody. Hickenlooper’s proclamation even notes both school’s missions to “educate men and women to make a positive impact in a rapidly-changing global society by emphasizing academic excellence, service, and developing the whole person, as prescribed by the principles of the Society of Jesus.”