SAN ANTONIO – The graduating class of a historic academy in San Antonio is getting ready to celebrate their 50-year reunion this weekend.
Ursuline Academy is no longer operating in the city. The school closed back in 1992.
However, the two original Ursuline Academy campuses and the mission of education live on today.
Founded in 1851 by a group of nuns who traveled from Galveston, Texas, the Ursuline Academy became a cornerstone of education for young girls in the community. Although the original downtown campus is now the UTSA Southwest Campus, its legacy still resonates with former students.
Anne Mitchell, who started first grade at Ursuline at 5 years old, reflected on her time at the school as she toured the historic site.
“It looks the same,” Mitchell said, her eyes shining with nostalgia. “My first-grade teacher was Sister Maureen and when school first started, the principal got sick and she wasn’t able to continue. And so, Sister Maureen was the principal and the first-grade teacher, so she was really busy!”
The academy served and taught girls for 110 years at its original downtown location.
Patti Elizondo, another Ursuline graduate, has been researching the Ursuline sisters’ mission of education.
“They (the nuns) came in a stagecoach, and they made the trip all the way from Galveston to San Antonio. They arrived on September 14, 1851, at 10:30 p.m.,” Elizondo said. “They were exhausted, but two weeks later, they opened their first school, laying the groundwork.”
Elizondo attended Ursuline Academy at the Vance Jackson Road location north of Northwest Loop 410 where the nuns moved the academy back in 1961.
“In 1961, they had begun to be a little bit crowded out by the commercial development in downtown San Antonio. There was noise and there was traffic. And so, they decided to move,” said Elizondo. “And they came to this Vance Jackson location.”
The nuns continued teaching there from 1961 until 1992 when the school closed. The location eventually became Cornerstone. Today, it is now the Somerset Academy Collegiate.
“It gives me the impression that these sisters were very forward-thinking,” said Elizondo. “And that they were very determined to not only keep the schools in operation, but they founded institutions that were attractive to other educational institutes. And that was their goal from the beginning.”
The nuns’ legacy lives on as the Class of 1974 prepares to reconnect for their 50-year reunion.
“Ursuline was a great school, with a fantastic education and lifelong friendships,” Mitchell said, looking forward to reuniting with her classmates.
The reunion festivities will kick off with a tour of Somerset Academy Collegiate, the former Ursuline campus, followed by a celebratory party on Saturday.
On Sunday, attendees will gather at St. Matthew for a special blessing followed by a complimentary brunch at Outback Steakhouse on Interstate 10 and De Zavala Road.
