Congratulations to Getsemani Arteaga (BA Biology 2022) and Isabella Guerrero (BS Chemical Biology 2023)! They will be enrolling in pharmacy school this fall.
Arteaga will be attending the University of Texas at El Paso. Guerrero will be attending the University of the Incarnate Word.
The Fall 2024 Graduation Application is available in the “Graduation” tile on Saints Connect. If you plan to graduate at the end of the fall 2024 semester, please submit the graduation application before the Thursday deadline.
If you have any questions about your degree requirements, please reach out to your advisor for assistance. If you have any questions regarding the application, please reach out to graduate@ollusa.edu.
Please note, once the graduation application is submitted in Saints Connect, the $100 graduation fee will be added to your fall balance.
OLLU students taking seven or more credit hours are required to carry health insurance and it is automatically added to the student account. If you have your own health insurance or health insurance through your parents, you can have the cost of the OLLU health insurance removed from your student account (does not apply to international students).
The last day to remove the OLLU health insurance fees from your fall 2024 student account is Aug. 30.
Details on how to waive the OLLU Student Health Insurance are available on this webpage: https://www.ollusa.edu/health-safety/health-services/student-health-insurance.html.
If you need further assistant, please contact the Student Business Office at studentaccounts@ollusa.edu or 210-434-6711, ext. 3929.
The OLLU softball team is welcoming five transfers and six freshman to the class of 2024-2025. The transfers are Krystal Castaneda, Jazlyn Gomez, Annika Litterio, Lilly Rocha and Kayla Rogers. The freshmen joining the team are Alexia Alegria, Danika Jimenez, Yezenia Perez, Brianna Ramirez and Ayanna Trejo.
Head Coach Bruce Lenington is eager to see the contributions these new student-athletes will make to this upcoming squad. The team is coming off a NAIA World Series National Championship – the first in OLLU history. The Saints finished out the season with a 57-3 overall record and a 24-0 Red River Athletic Conference
Krystal Castaneda is a native of Magnolia, Texas, where she graduated from Magnolia High School. She attended Trinity Valley Community College. Her awards include 2023-2024 All-American Scholar-Athlete, Four-Time President’s Honor Roll, Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, Pauline Knight Perkins Scholarship, 2024 Academic All-Region, 2023 All-Academic First Team. She is majoring in physical therapy.
Jazlyn Gomez is from Horizon, Texas, where she graduated from Eastlake High School. She is a transfer from the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff. She will major in rehab services.
San Antonio native Annika Litterio is a graduate of Warren High School. She attended University of Texas at El Paso. She is a Two-Time Second Team CUSA All-Academic. She is majoring in psychology.
Lilly Rocha, who is from Harlingen, Texas, is a graduate of Harlingen High School. She attended McLennan Community College. Her awards include Two-Time RSL Homerun Derby Champ, Defensive Player of the Year, First Team Third Baseman, Second Team Third Baseman. She is majoring in health services.
Kayla Rogers is from Harlingen, Texas, where she attended Harlingen High School South. She is a transfer from Huston-Tillotson University. Her awards include Most Improved HTU 2022 Women’s Softball, CAS Scholar HTU, UNCF Scholar HTU, Dean’s List HTU and Honor Roll HTU. The graduate student will pursue an MBA.
Alexia Alegria is a native of Hebbronville, Texas, where she graduated from Hebbronville High School. Her awards include Three-Time First-Team All-District shortstop, 2024 First-Team Caller-Times, All-South Texas infielder, Four-Time Caller-Times, All-South Texas infielder, Three-Time Team MVP, 2024 CC Hooks Preseason All-Star Selection and Two-Time Sports Live All-Star Selection. She plans to major in kinesiology.
Danika Jimenez comes to OLLU from Edinburg, Texas, where she graduated from Robert Vela High School. She plans to major in biology.
Yezenia Perez is a native of Harlingen, Texas, where she graduated from Harlingen High School South. Her athletic awards include Second-Team All-District, Sophomore of the Year, All-District MVP, THCSA All-State, THCSA Super Elite Team and TGCSA All-State. Perez plans to major in kinesiology.
Brianna Ramirez, who is from San Antonio, graduated from Brennan High School. She was named to the All-District First Team and will major in kinesiology.
Ayanna Trejo is a native of San Antonio, where she graduated from Warren High School. She plans to major in kinesiology.
The OLLU women’s tennis team has won its first Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) All-Academic Team Award and six players have been named ITA Scholar-Athletes.
The Saints finished the season with a remarkable 3.649 GPA—the best among the 18 athletic teams at OLLU. ITA All-Academic Team Awards are given to teams with a GPA of 3.2 or higher.
All eight team members demonstrated their commitment to both academics and athletics, with GPAs of 3.0 or above, two earning a perfect 4.0 GPA and four earning 3.5 GPAs or above.
Winning the ITA Scholar-Athlete Award are Lucia Popluharova – 4.0 GPA, Saskia Vogelzang – 4.0 GPA, Alexandra Mille – 3.73, Angela Pozos Perales – 3.66 and Millie Wileman – 3.55. These students have not only excelled on the court but also in the classroom, making OLLU proud of their achievements.
ITA Scholar-Athlete recognition is given to athletes with a GPA of 3.5 or higher.
The OLLU men’s tennis team has won the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) All-Academic Team Award and five players have been named ITA Scholar-Athletes.
The Saints finished the season with a remarkable 3.547 GPA. ITA All-Academic Team Awards are given to teams with a GPA of 3.2 or higher.
Eleven of the 14 team members had GPAs of 3.0 and above, while three earned a 4.0 GPA, and three earned 3.5 GPAs and above. This collective success is a reflection of the unity and camaraderie within the team.
Winning the ITA Scholar-Athlete Award are Joshua Alarcon – 4.0 GPA, Luis Lanier – 4.0 GPA, Guido Picasso – 4.0 GPA, Jaroslav Majsajdr – 3.90 GPA, David Daniel – 3.89 GPA and Malachi Farley – 3.83 GPA. These individual achievements are a testament to the dedication and hard work of OLLU’s tennis student-athletes.
ITA Scholar-Athlete recognition is given to athletes with a GPA of 3.5 or higher.
The OLLU baseball team has won the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) Team Academic Excellence Award for the third consecutive year.
The baseball team posted a 3.198 GPA for the 2023-24 academic year. Teams from every level of college and high school baseball were honored with this year’s award, which highlights programs coached by ABCA members that posted a GPA of 3.0 or above on a 4.0 scale.
The baseball team had more Red River Athletic Conference (RRAC) Scholar-Athletes – 33 – than any other Saints team.
OLLU professor and Fulbright Scholar Christopher Rose, PhD, is featured in a new video, “A Day in the Life of a Fulbrighter in Egypt.”
The video, 1 minute and 10 seconds in length, captures fascinating snapshots of the six months Dr. Rose spent in Cairo, Egypt, as a Fulbright U.S. Scholar in 2023.
An Assistant History professor, world historian and researcher who speaks Arabic and Spanish, Dr. Rose poured through old newspapers in Cairo libraries, gathering information for his still-in-progress book, “Home Front Egypt: Famine, Disease and Death during the Great War.”
“I’m very flattered to be featured in the video,” Dr. Rose said. “The idea is to encourage more scholars to apply to Egypt and promote it as a destination for study and research.”
In Cairo, Dr. Rose researched the social and economic impact of World War I on the Egyptian population. Under British occupation, Egyptians were not allowed to fight. As a result, soldiers from Great Britain, South Africa, New Zealand and India arrived in Egypt.
“The troops needed to be fed,” Dr. Rose said. “They got the food from Egyptian farms at the expense of the Egyptian people. The Egyptians got sick and became malnourished. They struggled to make ends meet for their families. Some were pushed into desperate situations.”
More than 100 years later, conditions have improved but economic challenges remain.
“The currency has been devalued 150 percent since November 2022, so people are hurting and it’s not easy to get items that are imported,” Dr. Rose said. “This summer, they’ve also started scheduling rolling blackouts for two to three hours to reduce the strain on the power grid, which I’m very happy to have missed!”
He hopes the Fulbright Scholar Award will attract more students to the history program, which includes professor Valerie Martinez, PhD, who won a National Endowment for the Humanities Faculty Award in 2022.
“We are both internationally recognized faculty,” Dr. Rose said. “I’d love to highlight the quality of scholarship we have going. We both teach undergraduate courses. You can study with us. I’m also a Fulbright Program advisor on campus. I’m hoping to encourage students and faculty to pursue study abroad options. And I’m working with students who are interested in applying for the Fulbright program.”
The university will continue testing its remote-work Friday program on July 26, Aug. 2 and Aug. 9. On these Fridays, student services will be available via phone, email or other virtual meeting options.
The remote-work Friday program aims to promote flexibility and enhance work-life balance among our faculty and staff members.
Most employees, except for those in Facilities Management and University Police, will work remotely on the noted days. Depending on the results of this summer’s test, the program could be extended to include all Fridays next summer.
A web page has been set up to provide easy access to contact information for student services offices. It can be viewed at https://www.ollusa.edu/virtual-services.html.
During remote-work Fridays, most buildings/facilities will be closed including the cafeteria, the MARC, the UWAC and the library. Library services will be available virtually through the library website.
The C-Store will have limited hours from 9 a.m.-1 p.m.
Summer hours will continue to be observed during this time.
In order to meet the needs of our students and the university during remote Fridays, employees are expected to maintain the following:
Availability and Responsiveness: Employees must maintain regular working hours and be accessible so that colleagues, supervisors, and students can reach them as needed. Please review the linked instructions for forwarding office phones to a cell phone or to Webex.
Communication: Clear and timely communication is essential. Employees should respond promptly to emails, messages, and calls from colleagues, supervisors, and students.
Attendance at Virtual Meetings: Employees must attend/participate in virtual meetings, such as departmental meetings, project meetings or student appointments.
Productivity and Deliverables: Employees are expected to meet deadlines for assigned tasks, projects, and deliverables.
Data Security and Confidentiality: Adherence to university policies regarding data security, confidentiality, and privacy is crucial.
Professionalism: Employees must maintain professionalism in all communications and interactions with students, colleagues and others.
National championship softball t-shirts are flying off the shelf! The OLLU Bookstore has a dwindling supply of small, medium and large t-shirts in stock.
Hurry now to get your t-shirt. The online supply is limited as well. To order online:
