Sr. Patricia Jean Manion, SL*: Sister Patricia Jean Manion served as president of Loretto Heights College from 1967 – 1972. She presided over a time called “New Directions” and was innovative in aligning the college with the cultural changes of the time.  The governance of the school was put under a secular Board of Trustees and New Articles of Incorporation were drawn up for the college. In the Fall of 1970, the college became co-educational. Of the thirty schools invited to join the Union for Research and Experimentation, Loretto Heights College was the only Catholic  college. As a result of its membership, in 1971 the college instituted “University Without Walls” a pioneer degree-granting program to serve the many non-traditional students wishing to enter the workforce.

SL = Sisters of Loretto