News
Midwest Jesuits Welcome New
Gift Officer for Omaha
Anna Scherr Nubel joins the Midwest Province after more than two decades at Creighton University.
After more than 24 years at Creighton University in Omaha, Anna Scherr Nubel has joined the Midwest Jesuits as a gift officer. She will work closely with volunteers and constituents throughout Omaha, Iowa and South Dakota.
“I am grateful for the opportunity to continue serving the Jesuit mission, but in a new way,” Nubel says. “Partnering with generous volunteers and friends to support the Midwest Jesuits is a meaningful next chapter for me.”
Nubel, who earned a master’s degree from CU (’03), joined the Midwest Province in February and will continue to live and work in Omaha. Her connection to the Jesuits began at Creighton Preparatory School (CPS), where she served for four years before joining the university relations team at CU in 2001. There, she worked in alumni relations and, most recently, development.
Cris Otepka, CU’s senior director of development, says Nubel has consistently brought insight and grace to her work. “Personally, what I will miss most is Anna’s warm personality, her ability to bring calm to any situation, and her natural ease in connecting with others,” he says.
Nubel succeeds Diane “Dede” Dougherty Crowley, who served the Midwest Jesuits for more than six years following two and a half years at CPS and more than 25 years at CU, her alma mater.
First Woman President Will Lead
John Carroll University
Carolyn Noll Sorg will be the first woman to serve as president of John Carroll University in Ohio.
John Carroll University (JCU) in University Heights, Ohio, has named its 27th president, Carolyn Noll Sorg.
She will be the third lay person and the first woman to serve as president of JCU, marking a significant moment in the university’s 139-year history.
As JCU’s vice president for enrollment and marketing, Noll Sorg has spearheaded several consequential initiatives. Her teams have generated the largest two-year increase in first-year enrollment this century, strengthened the university’s financial position and ignited a renewed sense of possibility across campus. Student diversity has increased under Noll Sorg’s tenure, and JCU has seen a 43% increase in out-of-state students since 2023.
Her official duties as president will begin on June 1, coinciding with the May 31 retirement of current President Alan R. Miciak, who has served as president for five years.
“Throughout the search process, Carolyn Noll Sorg stood out for her strategic thinking, her understanding of our community and her commitment to our Jesuit Catholic mission,” says Bill Donnelly (’83), co-chair of the JCU Board of Directors and chair of the Presidential Search Committee. “As a Board, we have no doubt that her extraordinary leadership will continue the momentum and help us reach new heights.”
New President at Loyola High School in Detroit
Denise Bertin-Epp brings decades of Catholic leadership to her role as president of Loyola High School in Detroit.
Detroit’s Loyola High School (LHS) has named its new president, Denise Bertin-Epp.
“Denise comes with a remarkable reputation as a distinguished leader, renowned for visionary guidance, unwavering commitment to excellence and deep faith in others,” says Very Rev. Karl Kiser, SJ, provincial of the Midwest Province. “I am certain that she will be the leader to ensure a transformative Catholic education rooted in hope, dignity and the promise of the Gospel as expressed in our Jesuit tradition.”
Bertin-Epp previously served as president and CEO of Guest House, which provides national leadership in service to priests and religious across the United States.
Her school leadership experience includes extensive engagement with K–12 educational programming and longstanding collaborations with Catholic school systems.
“As we begin a new chapter at LHS, I’m confident we will flourish in empowering young minds, strengthening families and shining as a beacon of Christ’s light,” Fr. Kiser says.
Calling LHS a vital educational ministry in the Midwest Province, he also thanked Fr. Thomas McClain, SJ, for serving as interim president. “Father McClain’s dedication, wisdom and grace have guided us while keeping the mission of LHS alive,” Fr. Kiser says.
New Superior at St. Camillus Jesuit Community in Wisconsin
Brother Jim Boyton, SJ, will take over as superior of St. Camillus Jesuit Community in September.
Very Rev. Karl Kiser, SJ, provincial of the Midwest Province, has appointed Br. James Boynton, SJ, the next superior at St. Camillus Jesuit Community in suburban Milwaukee.
Brother Boynton replaces Fr. George Winzenburg, SJ, who began there in July 2020. Father Sean O’Sullivan, SJ, will remain as minister and guestmaster. As part of the transition, Br. Boynton will periodically visit St. Camillus this year before beginning his new mission on Sept. 1.
Since October 2022, Br. Boynton has served as president of the University of Detroit Jesuit High School and Academy (UDJ). He will be replaced there by UDJ alumnus Fr. Dan Dixon, SJ. Prior to permanently leading UDJ, Br. Boynton served as the school’s interim principal and president. He has been active in education for almost 30 years, including teaching at UDJ for 10 years and teaching at Saint Ignatius High School in Cleveland for three. He also served 10 years in the vocations office of the Midwest Province.
Much of Br. Boynton’s ministry has been dedicated to missionary work in northern India, Mexico and Haiti, and with migrant workers in northern Michigan. In addition to his other talents, Br. Boynton is an accomplished Irish fiddle player and an avid hunter. For more on that, see “Clerics & Camouflage,”
Casa Romero Begins 25th Year With New Executive Director
Jill Drzewiecki, the executive director of Casa Romero Renewal Center in Milwaukee, spent nearly a decade working for Jesuit Refugee Service in Rome.
Casa Romero Renewal Center, a fixture within the Latinx community on the south side of Milwaukee, has begun its 25th year under the direction of recently appointed Executive Director Jill Drzewiecki.
Drzewiecki brings many years of dedicated service and leadership among people on society’s margins, including immigrants and migrants, both domestically and internationally. She has been motivated in this service by both St. Ignatius of Loyola and St. Oscar Romero, her favorite saint.
Casa Romero Renewal Center opened its doors in 2001 as a Catholic urban retreat and renewal center in the Ignatian tradition. From the beginning, Casa Romero attempted to complement the work of local parishes without duplicating their efforts. The center also initiated its own programs, including retreats for girls and mothers and religious leadership formation in the Ignatian tradition, leading to men and women being able to direct the Spiritual Exercises in Spanish.
Drzewiecki comes to Casa Romero with established Jesuit roots, having spent nearly a decade working for Jesuit Refugee Service in Rome. She succeeds Michael Coffey, who succeeded Casa Romero’s founder, Fr. David Shields, SJ, in 2018.
To learn more about Casa Romero, visit www.casaromerocenter.org
Brebeuf Jesuit’s $12 Million Endowment Grant
Brebeuf Jesuit Preparatory School in Indianapolis was founded in 1962.
Brebeuf Jesuit Preparatory School in Indianapolis has received a $12 million grant, the largest in school history, from Lilly Endowment, Inc.
The money will be used to launch an Arts and Innovation Initiative designed to enhance student learning, foster creativity, improve mental health and drive academic success. As part of the initiative, Brebeuf Jesuit will create both a Performing Arts Center and an Artificial Intelligence Innovation Lab.
“We are thrilled for the opportunity to enhance Brebeuf Jesuit’s approach to the education of the whole person through this Arts and Innovation Initiative,” says Brebeuf Jesuit Principal Greg VanSlambrook. “In the Jesuit educational tradition, we believe that a strong education in the arts, as well as a spirit of innovation, are impactful to all students’ academic achievement and post-secondary success. We are so grateful to Lilly Endowment for its support of this initiative.”
Founded in 1962, Brebeuf Jesuit is the only Catholic Jesuit school in Indiana. It is a coeducational, private, college preparatory school with an enrollment of 829 students in grades 9 through 12.
Lilly Endowment Inc. is an Indianapolis-based private foundation created in 1937 by J.K. Lilly, Sr. and his sons Eli and J.K. Jr. through gifts of stock in their pharmaceutical business, Eli Lilly and Company. In keeping with the founders’ wishes, the Endowment supports the causes of community development, education and religion.
For more on how Brebeuf and other Jesuit schools are approaching artificial intelligence in the classroom, see “The Limits of Artificial Intelligence,” .
Coach Al McGuire Movie Funded Through Private Investment
Photo: Gary Dineen/East Edge Gallery Collection
A movie about Marquette University Men’s Basketball Coach Al McGuire is set to begin filming in the Milwaukee area this summer.
The Confessions of Al McGuire, a dramatic biopic chronicling the personal and professional odyssey of the legendary Marquette University (MU) Men’s Basketball Coach Al McGuire, is set to begin filming in the Milwaukee area this summer.
Financed privately, with investment opportunities still available, the independent feature will celebrate McGuire’s philosophy and streetwise charm, which made him one of sports’ most captivating characters. The film also shares his confessions, thus the title.
Written by Wisconsin native and longtime Hollywood veteran Michael Angeli, The Confessions of Al McGuire presents a vivid portrait of the brash New Yorker who turned a small Milwaukee Catholic university into a national powerhouse—second only to UCLA in winning percentage in the 1970s—and ultimately a national champion.
The story unfolds between 1974 and 1977, depicting the anguish of MU’s heartbreaking 1974 NCAA title loss, McGuire’s volatile courtside temperament, and his midseason 1976–77 retirement announcement that initially sent his top-ranked team spiraling before the then-Warriors rallied to beat the North Carolina Tar Heels in the 1977 NCAA Championship, McGuire’s final game.
The movie has a strong Jesuit presence in both the story and the making. Two key characters in the film are Jesuits: Fr. John P. Raynor, SJ, president of MU from 1965- 1990 and McGuire’s personal confidant; and the team chaplain, Fr. Leonard Piotrowski, SJ. The film’s leadership team includes Fr. Bill Johnson, SJ, who serves as co-producer and chaplain.
McGuire was known for both his empathy and his willingness to challenge convention, including allowing female reporters into locker rooms years before professional sports did the same. In many ways, he redefined leadership in athletics. The filmmakers believe the movie will resonate not only with fans who lived through the McGuire era but with new generations eager to meet the eccentric genius who turned basketball coaching into self-expression.
“Al McGuire was one of the most unique sports figures ever as both a championship basketball coach and broadcaster, but his story has never been told on the big screen and it’s long overdue,” says Josh Green, the film’s producer. “To some, he was brash. To others, magnetic. To those who truly knew him, he was love in motion.”
For more information, visit www.mcguiremovie.com.
Most Rev. Ronald A. Hicks served as bishop of the Diocese of Joliet (Ill.) before Pope Leo XIV appointed him archbishop of New York.
Loyola University Chicago Alumnus Named Archbishop
of New York
The Midwest Province of the Society of Jesus congratulates Most Rev. Ronald A. Hicks, an alumnus of Loyola University Chicago (LUC) and the former bishop of Joliet (Ill.), on his appointment to archbishop of New York.
Archbishop Hicks was born in Harvey, Ill., in 1967, and raised in South Holland, Ill. After graduating from LUC in 1989 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in philosophy, he went on to receive both Master and Doctor of Ministry degrees from the University of St. Mary of the Lake in Mundelein, Ill. He was ordained for the Archdiocese of Chicago in 1994.
On July 2020, Pope Francis named then-Fr. Hicks the sixth bishop of the Diocese of Joliet, and in December 2025, Pope Leo XIV missioned him to lead the Archdiocese of New York. Archbishop Hicks was installed in February, succeeding Cardinal Timothy Dolan, the former archbishop of Milwaukee, who served as archbishop of New York from 2009 to 2026.
Four New Books From Loyola Press
Loyola Press, an apostolate of the Midwest Province, recently released the following books.
