Grace Mary Flickinger
Grace Mary Flickinger | |
|---|---|
| Born | September 7, 1935 Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Died | June 11, 2024 (age 88) Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Occupation(s) | College professor, sports administrator, religious sister |
Grace Mary Flickinger SBS (September 7, 1935 – June 11, 2024) was an American religious sister and college professor. She was a biology professor at Xavier University of Louisiana (XULA) from 1968 t0 2016, and served as the school's faculty athletics representative from 1981 to 2016.
Early life and education
[edit]Flickinger was born in the District of Columbia and raised in Millville, New Jersey,[1] the youngest child of Edmond J. B. Flickinger and Helen C. Reardon Flickinger.[2] Her mother was a nurse, and her father was a glassworker and veteran of World War I.[3] She graduated from Sacred Heart High School in 1952.[4] She attended Blessed Sacrament College, and earned a master's degree from Catholic University of America. She completed doctoral studies at the University of Southern Mississippi.[5]
Flickinger joined the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament in 1952, and professed her final vows in 1960.
Career
[edit]Flickinger was a biology professor as Xavier University of Louisiana from 1968 to 2016,[6] and was active in the school's athletic programs, and in sports administration at the conference level. She was president of the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference (GCAC) twice, from 1990 to 1991, and from 1995 to 1999. She was academic advisor to the XULA basketball team, and founded the Academic Coordination of Athletes program at XULA in 1981.[5] She took particular interest in preparing the school's students for admission to medical schools.[7][8]
Flickinger was inducted into the NAIA Hall of Fame in 1998. She received NAIA's Wally Schwartz Award in 2007. She was inducted into the XULA Hall of Fame in 2022.[9]
Flickinger's area of research was dermatoglyphics, or the characteristics of fingerprints and palm prints, especially as indicators of health or genetic conditions.[2][10]
Publications
[edit]- "Dermatoglyphics of Apache and Navajo Indians" (1976, with Karen M. Yarbrough)
- "Let a Slinky Do Your Teaching!" (1978)[11]
Personal life
[edit]Flickinger retired to her order's mother house in Pennsylvania.[12] She died in 2024, at the age of 88, in Pennsylvania.[13][14] A banner honoring Flickinger is displayed in the rafters at XULA's Convocation Center.[12]
References
[edit]- ^ "Graduate 20 at St. Mary's School". The Millville Daily. 1948-06-14. p. 1. Retrieved 2024-12-11 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Former Millville Resident Doing Research; Nun Says Palm Prints Help Diagnose Disease". Vineland Times Journal. 1977-02-17. p. 8. Retrieved 2024-12-11 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Obituary for Edmond J. Flickinger". The News of Cumberland County. 1984-01-30. p. 4. Retrieved 2024-12-11 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Vineland Catholic High Graduates 46 at Ceremony". Press of Atlantic City. 1952-06-04. p. 3. Retrieved 2024-12-11 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Appreciation banquet scheduled at N.C. A&T". News and Record. 1989-04-25. p. 43. Retrieved 2024-12-11 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Xavier University of Louisiana Mourns The Passing of Sr. Grace Mary Flickinger, SBS". Xavier University of Louisiana. Retrieved 2024-12-11.
- ^ McConnaughey, Janet (1996-10-06). "Tough-love theory becomes a science at small college". Evansville Press. p. 15. Retrieved 2024-12-11 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Yardley, Jim (1994-09-13). "Xavier is No. 1 i placing blacks in medical school". The Atlanta Constitution. p. 3. Retrieved 2024-12-11 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Sister Grace Mary Flickinger (2022) - Hall of Fame". Xavier University of Louisiana Athletics. Retrieved 2024-12-11.
- ^ Flickinger Sr., Grace Mary; Yarbrough, Karen M. (1976). "Dermatoglyphics of Apache and Navajo Indians". American Journal of Physical Anthropology. 45 (1): 117–121. doi:10.1002/ajpa.1330450115. ISSN 1096-8644.
- ^ Flickinger, Grace Mary. "Let a Slinky Do Your Teaching!" Journal of College Science Teaching (1978): 332-332.
- ^ a b "Homecoming was a banner day for Sister Grace Mary". Xavier University of Louisiana Athletics. 2017-11-21. Retrieved 2024-12-11.
- ^ "XULA icon Sister Grace Mary Flickinger dies at age 88". Xavier University of Louisiana Athletics. 2024-06-11. Retrieved 2024-12-11.
- ^ O'Connor, Shay (2024-06-12). "Sister Grace Mary Flickinger, longtime Xavier University educator, dead at 88". WDSU. Retrieved 2024-12-11.
External links
[edit]- "Sister Grace Mary Flickinger discusses her XULA memorabilia" (December 22, 2016), a video interview with Flickinger, uploaded to YouTube by XULA Athletics
- "Photograph of Sister Grace Mary Flickinger, S.B.S. with Unidentified Students", uploaded to Flickr by Xavier University Library