McAuley Marks 60th Year on 99th Street With Special Liturgy

CHICAGO, IL — From its roots as Chicago’s first chartered “select school” to present day, Mother McAuley Liberal Arts High School has been educating young women since 1846. On Sept. 1, McAuley celebrated 60 years on 99th Street with a special liturgy celebrated by Most Reverend Archbishop Blase J. Cupich.

Students, faculty, staff, alumnae, Sisters of Mercy and honored guests gathered in the in the school gymnasium to share in the observance of the school’s history and heritage. and special guests Sisters of Mercy and honored guests gathered in the school gymnasium to share in the observance of the school’s history and heritage.

Assisting with the liturgy was Deacon Robert Cislo, theology faculty member. During the Mass the Archbishop blessed items to be placed in a special time capsule, which will be buried on campus later this month as the celebration of 60 years on 99th Street continues.

Founded by the Sisters of Mercy within weeks after their arrival in Chicago from Ireland, the sisters established a “select school” which provided primary, secondary and collegiate education for young women in 1846. Then known as St. Xavier Academy for Females, the first building was located on Wabash between Madison and Monroe. When the Chicago Fire destroyed the building in 1871, the sisters relocated St. Xavier Academy to 29th Street and Chicago Avenue in 1900.

Hearing of a need for a Catholic girls high school on the Southwest Side, the Sisters of Mercy drew plans or construction of a new property at 3737 W. 99th St. in Mt. Greenwood. It was Cardinal Stritch of Chicago who later suggested the school change its name to Mother McAuley Liberal Arts High School, in honor of foundress Catherine McAuley, the foundress from the Sisters of Mercy. The high school opened its doors in the fall of 1956.

“The Sisters of Mercy were pioneers in reshaping the educational landscape for young women in Chicago,” school president Mary Acker Klingenberger ’75 said in a news release. “As we look back, we are grateful for their vision and work which has brought us to this point – from Catherine McAuley’s labors on Baggot Street in Dublin, Ireland, to our early home in Chicago as Saint Xavier Academy on 49th Street, to our current campus on 99th Street.”

During the McAuley’s 60 years on 99th Street, the girls’ high school has produced many notable alumnae, including Jenny McCarthy ‘90, a model and actress;professional basketball player Joanne McCarthy ‘92; actress Alexandra “Alex” Meneses ‘83; Miss Illinois Erin O’Connor ‘06; State Rep. Emily McAsey; and country musician and artist Katie Quick (‘00).

Throughout the next year, McAuley will be holding a series of events commemorating the school’s 60 years on 99th Street.

Photo: Archbishop Blase Cupich distributes the Eucharist to students of Mother McAuley Liberal Arts High School during a liturgy celebrating the 60th anniversary of the school. Provided.