Overview

• Loyola’s vice president of communications confirmed to The Loyola Phoenix that Sister Jean is stepping back from official duties and declined to share additional medical details to protect her privacy.
• University president Mark C. Reed said she cannot be physically present on campus but remains a trusted adviser who continues to support and pray for the community daily.
• Her transition followed growing health concerns noted after missing the men’s basketball team’s NIT semifinal in April and her August birthday letter mentioning a “bad summer cold and other health issues.”
• She rose to national prominence as the men’s basketball chaplain during Loyola’s surprise run to the 2018 NCAA Tournament Final Four.
• A member of the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary since 1938, she served at Mundelein College starting in 1961, continued after its 1991 merger with Loyola, became team chaplain in the mid-1990s, and later published a 2023 memoir with ongoing institutional honors preserving her legacy.