FRIEDL, Francis (Msgr.)

Photo courtesy: Telegraph Herald

FRIEDL, Francis (Msgr.) (Waterloo, IA, 1917- ). President, LORAS COLLEGE. Friedl accepted the presidency of Loras in 1971. As its twentieth president, he witnessed the start of the college as a co-educational institution. Friedl believed his accomplishments as president lay in the areas of providing the college with financial stability, re-emphasizing the Catholic identity of the college, creating a climate that would encourage future growth, and structuring an outstanding board.

Monsignor Francis Friedl graduated in 1939 from Loras College. His seminary training was in Cincinnati. He was ordained in 1943 and named a monsignor in 1956. Friedl was assigned back to Loras in 1947 becoming the vice-president in 1956, executive vice-president in 1963 and academic dean from 1965 until serving as president from 1971-1977. During his Loras years, he earned his master’s and doctoral degrees in psychology from Catholic University in Washington, D.C.

After his Loras presidency, Monsignor Friedl served a parish in Elkader. He returned to Dubuque as pastor of SAINT COLUMBKILLE'S CHURCH before retiring in 1987. He continues to travel and has been the acting chaplain on four cruise ships.

Named the recipient of the 2008 FIRST CITIZEN AWARD, Monsignor Friedl stated that he wanted to be remembered for his preaching and his writing. He is author of “The Loras College Story”; “Homilies Alive: Creating Homilies that Hit Home,” with former professional basketball star and inspirational speaker “Easy Ed” Macauley; “Extraordinary Lives,” the story of 34 priests, and two books of stories – “One Good Shoe, One Bad Shoe” and “To Make a Long Story Short.”