John Paul II Newman Center East FAQ

Q: What is the Newman Center?
A: Named in honor of John Henry Cardinal Newman, Newman Centers, are
residence and Catholic ministry centers throughout the world. The centers
provide pastoral services and ministries to their Catholic communities, in
particular to the Roman Catholic student population within the universities,
and to their communities. A variety of university and parish related meetings
and social events take place at the centers, as well as personal
events including weddings, anniversary celebrations, baptisms, masses
and funeral receptions. Most trace their inspiration back to the Newman
Society of Oxford University.

Q: What goes on at the John Paul II Newman Center?
A: We always have a lot of things going on here at the Newman Center. We
have daily and weekend mass as well as offer all the religious sacraments
that a regular church would but we are primarily for college students.
Some other programs include helping to provide Chicago’s estimated
30,000 homeless with food during our Service Sunday, toy, food, and
clothing drives, religious education, retreats, service trips. We also help
many of UIC’s organizations in their desire to do community service. In
addition we provide ethics programming and lectures that are open to all
business and medical students at UIC.

Q: How long have you been at UIC?
A: This Center was built as a lasting memorial of the visit of His Holiness
Pope John Paul II to the Archdiocese of Chicago on October 4th, 1979
through October 6th, 1979. During that visit, the Holy Father gave his consent
for the center to bear his name; The John Paul II Newman Center.
The dedication stone was used in the altar erected for the Papal mass
offered in Grant Park on October 5th, 1979. That stone was placed here
during the dedication of the John Paul II Newman Center on October
22nd, 1980.
Although the UIC campus was opened in 1965, the University of Illinois
had its start in Chicago at Navy Pier shortly after World War II. Catholic
campus ministry was present at that early site as well until the Navy Pier
campus site closed in 1965.
The Integritas Institute for Ethics opened in 1997 as a response to an
identified need to provide a forum for the study and discussion of ethics
in the professional colleges at UIC.

Q: Are there other Newman Centers?
A: Yes. There are approximately 275 Newman Center across the country and they are located at public colleges and universities.

Q: How many students do you serve annually?
A: We are fortunate to serve the largest Catholic student body in the Midwest. 15,000 of 25,000 students that attend UIC are Catholic or come from Catholic families. Essentially, they are our parishioners.

Q: What is the profile of your students?
A: Our students are a wonderful cross section of American society. The ethnic/ racial distribution of the University is: 46.3% White, 8.5% African American, 12.7% Hispanic, 20.1% Asian, and 7.4% are Foreign students.

Q: What is the relationship between the Newman Center and UIC?
A: We are privileged that the University of Illinois at Chicago, a public university, is open and welcoming to us as a religious organization. The University of Illinois has had a long standing relationship with Newman Centers, beginning with St. John’s Newman Center in Champaign almost 80 years ago. We are a provider of religious services to the university and we assist each other in helping students and enriching their college experience.

Q: Do you have to be Catholic to be involved?
A: Amazingly, of UIC’s 25,000 students, 15,000 of them are Catholic or of Catholic families. Because of this, we have a large number of Catholic students involved in our programs. We do not, however, limit ourselves or our work to just these students or communities. We are open and welcome to all people.

Q: How many Catholic students are at the Newman Center and UIC?
A: Typically in a given year, almost 5,000 students come through our doors and consider us their home away from home. That is only 1/3 of the Catholic student body here at UIC. 15,000 of 25,000 students here at UIC are Catholic or from Catholic families. So, we can always to more to reach out to more students!

Q: What is your stance on the issues facing the Catholic Church right now?
A: The Catholic Church has been around since the days of Jesus Christ and when his disciple Peter was named head of the Church. Our Catholic Church has evolved for over 2,000 years. During that time we have been faced with many circumstances where goodness was tempted by evil, but we continue to strive to be more and more Christ-like. By following closely to Jesus’ teachings, we will continue to flourish.

Q: Are you a part of the Archdiocese?
A: Ministry at Newman Centers across the country and specifically here in the Archdiocese of Chicago is special. We are considered an agency of the Archdiocese and part of their Ministry in Higher Education. Though we don’t have parishioners as a regular church may, we strive off our students and those who believe in our cause.

Q: How many staff members work at the Newman Center?
A: We are pleased to have many wonderful people working for us and with us. Currently, the Newman Center employs 8 full time employees and 5 part time employees.

Q: What are your strategic plans for the future?
A: The Newman center takes pride in continually communicating its mission and strives to reach out to the students here at UIC and with the community at large. We focus daily on those students and their lives in order to help them be the best person they can be, whether in the class room or through their communities. We have a vision to create a community where you can live a faith based life while attending UIC and even beyond.

Q: I have heard about your foundation, what is the John Paul II Newman Foundation?
A: The John Paul II Newman Foundation is a close sister organization with the John Paul II Newman Center. It was created to help students face problems and issues in their civic communities and to take active roles in helping to combat some of the issues that arise; that may involve homelessness, being a big brother or big sister to a child, or by creating safer environments for people to live in.