Loyola welcomes Class of 2022

Loyola University Maryland greeted the Class of 2022 as they arrived on campus on Aug. 30, 2018.

At the New Student Convocation today, parents, faculty, and other members of the campus community celebrated the Class of 2022.

When Rev. Brian F. Linnane, S.J., addressed the students, the president of Loyola asked them to use their gifts of time and freedom as new college students responsibly and creatively, and to apply them beyond the classroom to the broader community and to all aspects of their student experience.

“If not the best years of your life, I will concede that your undergraduate years are special and likely to be unique in your experience,” Fr. Linnane said. “They are special for many reasons—among them the ideas you will encounter in your studies and the life-long friends you will make—but I suggest that these years are special and unique because you will experience the luxury of time: time to explore, to think, to read, to pray (especially during finals), to engage in community service and reflection, to work out at the FAC any time of the day.”  

This year’s common text for Messina is The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin. A national bestseller when it was published in 1963, the book is a personal reflection and account of Baldwin’s early life in Harlem and the examination of consequences of racial injustice. Loyola faculty members, administrators, and students chose this book largely because of the powerful questions it raises about the fundamental assumptions and underlying logic of American society.

New students have the opportunity to make connections and get acclimated to college life at numerous events during Fall Welcome Weekend scheduled through Monday, Sept. 3, 2018.

Fun facts about the Class of 2022:

• Two new Greyhounds share a birthday with Loyola’s president, the Rev. Brian F. Linnane, S.J., on August 25. Just one shares a birthday with our patron saint and namesake, St. Ignatius Loyola, on October 23.
• One in ten students comes from a long line of proud Loyola alumni (meaning at least one parent and/or grandparent is a graduate).
• The most popular names among incoming students are Michael, Olivia, Christopher, Grace, Matthew, and Anna.
• The longest journey by a first-year student to the Evergreen campus worldwide is 7,200+ miles—from China. Two new students claim the record for the longest trip within the United States to join the Class of 2022. Each of them traveled nearly 5,000 miles to Baltimore from Hawaii.
• The states represented by the most new students (in descending order) are New Jersey, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Florida, Virginia, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, and California.
• There are five sets of twins and one set of triplets in the Class of 2022.

Class of 2022 by the numbers:

• 3.5 average GPA
• 17% first-generation college students
• 24% students of color
• Students represent 34 different states and 6 different countries
• 214 students from Maryland
• 1,081 total students enrolled