Living Stones

Set against a crystal blue, albeit abnormally toasty October sky, with the sound of heavy machinery piercing the late morning air, Dr. Tina Holland’s voice broke with emotion as she discussed what she called a “monumental step” in the history of Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady University in Baton Rouge.

Holland, in her seventh year as FranU president, was addressing a crowd of more than 100 supporters and friends who attended groundbreaking ceremonies for the new St. Francis Hall on Oct. 14.

“We are building a state of the art, incredible, beautiful building and I can’t wait for y’all to start seeing it,” Holland said. “But it’s more than bricks and mortar, we are forming living stones to build a greater community, to serve the community, to serve those in need.”

St. Francis Hall represents the initial step in the development of the university’s campus master plan. The 75,000 square foot, three-story building will be dedicated to better accommodate student learning and development at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. 

The building will contain modular spaces that can support multiple educational activities and social events of varied sizes. Learning outside of the classroom will be facilitated by interactive student spaces adjacent to instructional spaces, promoting ongoing synergies between formal and informal learning and enhancing the relationship-based education characteristic of a Franciscan university.  

 “While our eyes are always focused on the future, I think it’s really important to keep our feet firmly planted in our tradition, especially our historic Franciscan tradition, that which is given to us so generously by St. Francis of Assisi and of course our beloved Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady,” Holland said. “We have the responsibility and privilege to ensure their university thrives.

“We have the responsibility to invest and continue to invest and to reinvest not only but certainly in the physical campus but also to invest in everything that it takes to educate and form the living stones we build in our community. It is a commitment to students who graduate, who are the living stones, that we are going to continue to shape within the physical space of this magnificent building.”

She called the university’s mission an extension of the Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady order.

Dr. Michele Blackwell, a FranU graduate and Faculty Senate president, said she experienced first-hand how the university’s staff makes the students feel welcome and assure they have the necessary tools they need not only to survive but to thrive. 

“This is a family atmosphere,” she said. “We persisted in building a culture of excellence and a reputation of faithfulness to our mission.”

East Baton Rouge Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome said the construction of St. Francis represents another great stride in the Baton Rouge education and medical communities. 

“Creating a healthier city is no easy task,” she said. “Educational institutions like FranU play an essential role creating the foundation needed for the necessary work.”

For Holland, the symphony of heavy machinery was sweet sounding as the former Marine has spent much of her tenure discerning how best to accommodate the burgeoning FranU student body. There was some talk of building a new campus in another part of the city but ultimately the decision was made to build on its current site, adjacent to Our lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center.

“Emotions are overwhelming, joyful and gratitude,” a beaming Holland said following the 30-minute ceremony. “It is something our students need and deserve and something our mission requires in order for us to continue to advance it.

“We put our hearts into fulfilling the mission of this organization.”

Bishop Michael G. Duca, who offered the blessing, said for the Diocese of Baton Rouge to have a Catholic university is a privilege and an honor.

“It’s something I’m very proud of,” Bishop Duca said. “The university is important and this building in particular because not only does it provide excellent medical care and people who are working in the medical field, that is a long tradition, but they bring to our diocese a full Catholic university.

“They teach our deacons. They are a resource for us.”

St. Francis Hall will support FranU’s ongoing expertise in experiential learning with simulation suites that re-create patient-centered clinical environments, including high-fidelity rooms, standardized patients and multi-bed skills labs. Flexible and adaptable classrooms, team rooms and labs for project-based, interdisciplinary and interprofessional learning will help to prepare graduates for healthcare delivery methods that improve outcomes and reduce healthcare costs.   

The university began in 1923 as a school of nursing with the purpose of serving the workforce needs of Our Lady of the Lake, its affiliated hospital. The original school of nursing has grown to more than 1,400 students.

St. Francis Hall, scheduled to be completed by January 2023, is the initial step in the planned new campus that will feature more usable square footage on a significantly smaller footprint.