Nazareth College was a private Roman Catholic college in Kalamazoo, Michigan that operated from 1914 until 1992. Origins Nazareth Academy opened in 1897 and received a charter from the State of Michigan which provided for the future extension of the school to the collegiate level. On May 7, 1913, Monsignor O’Brien announced the formation of the O’Brien scholarship and the opening of Nazareth College. In 1914, Margaret Packard became the first recipient of the O’Brien scholarship and Nazareth's first graduate in 1918 with a Bachelor of Arts degree. Sister Mary Celestine Connors, S.S.J., served as Acting Dean of the college from 1918 to 1932 when she became the college's first President, a post she held until 1938. Chartering Under the auspices of Bishop Michael J. Gallagher, of the Diocese of Detroit, Nazareth College was chartered in 1924 at Nazareth, Michigan by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Nazareth. At that time the college was granted its Articles of Incorporation by the State of Michigan as a four-year liberal arts college. Construction A seven million dollar campus construction project was begun in the 1950s. In 1959, groundbreaking began on Albers Hall, named after Bishop Joseph Albers of the Diocese of Lansing, which by then was the local diocese. Construction began on Connors Hall in 1959. Originally named Immaculata Hall, it was renamed in honor of Sister Mary Celestine Connors, S.S.J. In 1962, the administration building was begun, closely followed by Dooley Hall in 1963, initially called Madonna Hall. The change of name was to honor the famed Naval officer, Dr. Tom Dooley, who had worked in refugee camps in South Vietnam during the Vietnam War and later went to Laos to help the people there. He received a Congressional Gold Medal posthumously for his humanitarian work in that country. Work on Dillon Hall and the library was completed in 1967. The next major addition to the physical campus was the completion of the Athletic Center in 1989, though it was never truly finished. This provided the students with a much needed outlet for physical fitness and activities as well as contributing to the college sponsored varsity sports for men in soccer, basketball and baseball; and for women in volleyball, basketball and softball. It surely also contributed to the victory of the women's volleyball team in 1991 at nationals. Change in admissions Under the Presidency of Sister Mary Bader, S.S.J., (1962-1974), the