She made history last spring by being named Le Moyne’s first female lay president, but it is not until tomorrow that Dr. Linda LeMura will be officially sworn in as Le Moyne College’s 14th president.
Since last June Le Moyne’s inauguration committee (comprised of faculty, staff, students and alumni) has been meeting regularly to plan the multiple events that make up LeMura’s inauguration.
Le Moyne’s Director of Communications, Joe Della Posta, said the preparation process has been a significant amount of work. First the committee had to select a date that worked for both the Le Moyne community and those external to Le Moyne, such as the Jesuit provincial and the Syracuse Bishop; then they had to finalize all the events they wanted to comprise the inauguration.
For this inauguration week the committee made sure to schedule events that held a special significance with LeMura like the fun Run (Thursday 9 a.m.) and “A Musical Celebration” (Thursday 8 p.m.), which will encompass some of her favorite pieces that honor her heritage.
Other events include a champagne and dessert reception in the Drescher Community Room (Friday 9 p.m.), Mass of Celebration in the Panasci Family Chapel (Friday 10:30 a.m.), Buffet Lunch in the Campus Center (Friday 12 p.m.), Formal installation ceremony in the Henninger Athletic Center (Friday 2:30 p.m.) and the Inaugural reception in the Henninger Athletic Center (Friday 4p.m.).
Woven into all the events are several elements that will help benefit the school LeMura attended as a little girl growing up in Syracuse, Cathedral Academy at Pompei (CAP). In fact, over the past several months there has been a campus wide held book drive that brought in more than 1,000 books. The books will be delivered to the students of CAP today, and the proceeds from the registration for the Fun Run will also be donated to the school.
As one of two student representatives senior Claire Woodburn said it was a great privilege to be a part of the inauguration process, excitedly explain that, “ I was given to opportunity to help with the inauguration of the first woman president of any Jesuit institution in the world. We’ve been working since September to plan all of the events, so I’m excited to see how they pan out.”
The Inauguration committee is expecting a great turn out for all the events. “We have individuals from literally all over the country planning on attending, including delegates representing approximately 50 colleges and universities,” said Della Posta.
Freshman Heather Lee said she that although LeMura is the only president of Le Moyne that she has ever known, she is still very excited to take part in the celebration.
“Everyone seems to love having her as the president and I’m looking forward to seeing Le Moyne further under her guidance,” said Lee. “As for the inauguration, I’m interested to see how it all turns out and what LeMura has to say.”
Della Posta said the inauguration committee is hopeful that as many members of the community take this opportunity to participate in at least one of the many events arranged to properly and officially welcome LeMura.
“This is really a time for all members of the Le Moyne community to come together to celebrate and give thanks,” said Della Posta. “Dr. LeMura’s inauguration is truly historic—not just for Le Moyne but in the nearly 500-year history of Jesuit education—as it marks the first time a lay female has become president of a Jesuit institution in the world.”
