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May 20, 2026, Adrian, Michigan – On behalf of the Adrian Dominican Sisters and Associates, the Adrian Dominican Sisters General Council issued the following statement in response to the shooting at the Islamic Center of San Diego.
 
We Adrian Dominican Sisters stand with Episcopal Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde and Rabbi Susan Shankman in expressing our horror at the May 18 attack on the Islamic Center of San Diego. We extend our prayers and condolences to those who lost loved ones. 
 
This past year, there have been violent attacks on Catholic, Latter-day Saint, Jewish, and Muslim houses of prayer. As women of faith, we join Bishop Budde and Rabbi Shankman in saying, “An attack on one community’s sanctuary wounds us all.”  We join them in working “to promote and protect each faith tradition’s rightful place among us."

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Members of the Adrian Dominican Sisters General Council are Sisters Elise D. García, OP, Prioress; Frances Nadolny, OP, General Councilor; Lorraine Réaume, OP, Vicaress and General Councilor; and Corinne Sanders, OP, General Councilor.

May 19, 2026, Adrian, Michigan – During the weekend of Siena Heights University’s final Commencement, 11 Adrian Dominican Sisters, Associates, and Co-workers were among more than 60 people recognized for their dedicated service to the University.

Founded and sponsored by the Adrian Dominican Sisters in 1919, Siena Heights closed its doors at the end of the 2025-2026 academic year. The announcement was made by University administrators and the Adrian Dominican Sisters General Council in June 2025 to allow the university to come to an honorable close.

“You have not simply followed a path – you have forged one,” Dr. Cheri Betz ’07, President, said at the beginning of the Honors and Awards Ceremony, May 8, 2026, in the University’s Performing Arts Center. “You’re a torchbearer to the world. You allow us to weave your legacy into the very fabric of Siena Heights University.”

Among the 10 recipients of Dr. Betz’s President’s Distinguished Service Awards were two Adrian Dominican Co-workers: Jennifer Hunter, Chief Operating Officer, and Sara Stoddard, Chief Financial Officer. The two worked closely with Siena Heights University administrators during the final academic year. 

Harry “Dusty” Steele, Chairman of Siena Heights University’s Board of Trustees, presented the Chairman’s Distinguished Services Award to members of the Board, including Sisters Mariane Fahlman, OP, Frances Nadolny, OP, Corinne Sanders, OP, and Mary Soher, OP. 

Tim Fortescue ’01, Chair of the Academic and Student Affairs Committee of the Board of Trustees, bestowed the Catherine of Siena Medal – the highest honor of the University – on nine individuals, including Sister Peg Albert, OP, President of Siena Heights from 2006 to 2023; Trudy McSorley, and Adrian Dominican Associate and long-time faculty member and administrator; and Sister Sharon Weber, OP, who ministered for more than 40 years at Siena Heights, most recently as Vice President of Academic Affairs. The final Siena Heights Medal was presented to the Adrian Dominican Congregation and accepted by Sister Elise D. García, OP, Prioress of the Congregation.   

Two surprise Honorary Degrees were bestowed during the closing Commencement Ceremony on May 9, 2026: Sister Nancy Murray, OP, who travels throughout the world with her one-woman portrayal of St. Catherine of Siena and other notable Sisters and saints, and her brother, comedian Bill Murray. The commencement celebrated the graduation of 440 students who crossed the stage to receive their degrees, bringing the desired honorable closure to a beloved institution.  

“President Cheri Betz, Provost Julie Barst, Board Chair Harry Steele, and the other outstanding members of the President’s Cabinet and Board of Trustees, as well as incredibly dedicated faculty and staff rightly celebrated the awesome achievement of bringing the University to honorable closure through this most challenging year,” Sister Elise said later.

 

 

 

 

Caption for above feature photo: From left, Sisters Mary Soher, OP, Corinne Sanders, OP, and Frances Nadolny, OP, wait to receive the Chairman’s Distinguished Service Award from Harry “Dusty” Steele, Chair of the Board of Trustees of Siena Heights University. Sister Mariane Fahlman, OP, also received the award but was unable to attend the event.