Rockhurst News

The following students were named to the spring 2025 Dean's List at Rockhurst University.

Rockhurst University President Sandra Cassady, Ph.D., has been named one of Kansas City’s 2025 Women of Influence by the Kansas City Business Journal.

The shouts of "Habemus Papam!" broke out as soon as the white smoke appeared from the chimney, visible to the massive crowd gathered to witness the papal conclave at ground zero in St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City. Among them was Sister Allison Zink, ’18, a member of the Apostles of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

As the fall semester ended, so too did senior Molly Morris’ competitive cross country career.

Recognizing a need to provide opportunities for those affected by ongoing reductions in force at federal agencies, Rockhurst University officials have announced a new tuition discount program designed to provide retraining and educational opportunities for recently displaced members of the U.S. federal workforce.

It’s been a storybook season for Rockhurst University’s women’s tennis team, and like a lot of good stories, one of redemption. In 2024, the squad fell to the University of Indianapolis in the Great Lakes Valley Conference tournament and narrowly missed out on a NCAA tournament bid. Jamie McDonald, head coach for the team, said that loss helped motivate the team coming into its next season.

The area where Rockhurst University and the University of Missouri Kansas City are located include hundreds of neighbors as well as approximately 15,000 college students. That means a lot of people walking back and forth across the busy Troost Avenue, each day. On May 9, city and university officials together dedicated a new stoplight at the intersection of 51st Street and Troost to make all of that pedestrian travel safer.

More than 600 students earned their degrees from Rockhurst University at its annual commencement ceremony May 10. The culmination of those students’ academic lives to date in Kansas City’s Municipal Auditorium is a chance for graduates to celebrate with each other and loved ones as their degrees are officially conferred.

Jingjing Pan, assistant professor of nursing, had already had a full nursing education by the time she began as a student at Saint Luke’s College of Health Sciences (before it became part of Rockhurst University in 2020).

More than 800 students will earn their degrees from Rockhurst University in front of loved ones during the annual commencement ceremony scheduled for 1 p.m. on Saturday, May 10, at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Missouri.