American College (Leuven)


The American College is a former Catholic seminary in Leuven, Belgium. It is now a student residence of the KU Leuven. Founded in 1857 as the American College of the Immaculate Conception, it was operated by Catholic Bishops to prepare European students to become deacons and priests for service in the United States, and to provide a residence for American clergy studying at the Catholic University of Louvain and its two successor institutions, the KU Leuven and the Université catholique de Louvain. The seminary closed in June 2011 due to low enrollment and a faculty shortage.

History

19th century

The American College was founded in 1857 by American bishops under the leadership of Bishop Martin J. Spalding of Archdiocese of Louisville and Bishop Peter Paul Lefevere of Archdiocese of Detroit. It was created to train young European men to serve as missionary priests in North America and to give American seminarians the opportunity to study at the Catholic University of Louvain. The college's signature song was a Marian hymn, O Sodales, authored by Gustave Limpens in 1862.
The College grew rapidly in its early years, most notably under the rectorship of John De Neve, its second rector. Over 800 priests trained at the American College served in dioceses and vicariates during the second half of the 19th century across the United States. Some of the priests were eventually appointed as bishops of newly formed dioceses:

20th century

The college continued to train young men for service to the Church in the United States into the twentieth century under the rectorship of Jules De Becker. it remained open during German occupation in First World War. The college staff hid many documents and other valuable items of Leuven, including the statue of the Sedes Sapientiae, The staff converted the college into an emergency hospital and dispensary of food and clothing. At its peak, the college was assisting 1,500 Leuven residents per day.
With the declaration of war in 1939, the college closed. It reopened in 1952 under the rectorship of Father Thomas Maloney. The college expanded to accommodate the increased number of American priests and brothers wanting to study at the Catholic University. It also began offering sabbatical opportunities for priests, religious, and lay ecclesial ministers from all nations.
In 1968, a major ethnic dispute known as the Leuven crisis erupted in Belgium between the Flemish-speaking population and the Walloons. To resolve the dispute, the Catholic University of Louvain was split into KU Leuven in Leuven and the Université catholique de Louvain in Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium. The American College, remaining in Leuven, maintained ties with both new institutions.

Sponsorship and governorship

The American College was sponsored and overseen by American Catholic bishops through the USCCB. The other American-sponsored college in Europe was the Pontifical North American College in Rome.
The college was overseen by the Committee for the American College, its board of directors. Fourteen American bishops sat on the committee; the last committee chair was Bishop David Ricken of the Diocese of Green Bay. The college also had an advisory board of lay persons and clergy.
At the close of the 2010–2011 academic year, there were nineteen seminarians in formation with the college. Their sponsoring dioceses were: Boise, Cheyenne, Congregation of Holy Cross, Green Bay, Lublin, Madison, Milwaukee, Orange, Portland (Oregon), Rochester, Salford, and Spokane.

Mission

The primary mission of the American College was the formation of priests who would serve the Catholic Church in North America. In addition to the classes offered by KU Leuven the College provided a comprehensive program of human, spiritual, intellectual, and pastoral formation for seminarians.
The college also hosted graduate students studying canon law and theology in Leuven. The college ran a semester-long sabbatical program for priests, religious, or laity sent by their dioceses or religious congregations. Both the graduate students and sabbaticals took classes through KU Leuven while living at and participating in activities at the college.

Closure

On November 22, 2010, the USCCB released a statement:
"Due to the small number of seminarians and available priest faculty, the American College of the Immaculate Conception in Leuven, Belgium, has announced its closure in June 2011."
On August 19, 2011, the USCCB, the American College board, KU Leuven and UCLouvain signed an agreement on the future use of the American College property. The facility was renovated in 2013 to serve as housing for Mater Dei and the St. Damien Community students, and for American researchers studying philosophy, theology and canon law at KU Leuven and UCLouvain.

Student Residence

The American College currently operates as student residence under the Central Services Residences Coordination office of the KUL, with 141 rooms and 17 studio apartments accommodating approximately 180 students. It is designated an unsubsidized residence, meaning that room prices are determined based on market forces. Residents are a mixture of Belgian and international students. Students are organized into hallways, each of which is named for a notable American. Social events are organized by a student-run praesidium. Additionally, the College houses two autonomous groups of students: The Saint Damien Community, and a community within the network of the University Parish of the KU Leuven. When the College reopened in 2014 it also contained the Mater Dei Community for priests studying at the KUL. This community is no longer active.

Damien Community

The Saint Damien Community is a Catholic intentional community managed as a joint initiative of the KUL, the USCCB, UCLouvain, and the Belgian Bishops' Conference. As part of the agreement for transfer of the buildings of the College to the KUL in 2011, it was decided that the American College would contain a body of U.S. students and researchers in the fields of theology, philosophy, and canon law based either at the KUL or the UCLouvain. This was intended to recognize and maintain the College's historical ties with U.S. Catholicism. The Community has been in operation since the College's reopening as a student residence in the 2014-2015 academic year. It was envisioned as part of a broader Saint Damien Project, including a sabbatical program for visiting clergy and scholars and a summer residential program. It is financially supported by the Peter Kindekens Fund, named for the first rector of the seminary, and overseen by a project board consisting of representatives from its sponsor organizations. Helder De Schutter, dean of the Institute of Philosophy at the KUL, is the current president of the project board. It is named for Damien De Veuster, a Flemish missionary to Hawaiʻi and Catholic saint who entered the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts at their house in Leuven and undertook studies there; his tomb is also located in Leuven, at the.
In addition to its residential function, the Community maintains a chaplaincy which offers pastoral care to both residents of the American College and English speakers in Leuven. It also organizes an annual academic conference focusing on topics of interdisciplinary interest to philosophical and theological research.

Chapels

Chapel of the Immaculate Conception

The Chapel of the Immaculate Conception was built to a neo-Gothic design by the East Flemish priest Petrus Van Loo in 1892-1893, during John Willemsen's tenure as rector. The current stained-glass windows, in a modern style, were designed by and installed between 1961 and 1970, replacing traditionally-executed windows that dated from the chapel's construction. In 2021, the Flemish government awarded a grant of 58,347.31 euros for the restoration of the chapel's facades.
Catholic Mass and evening prayer are regularly celebrated in the chapel by the Saint Damien Community. It is also has an ecumenical function, hosting the services of St. Martha and St. Mary's, a parish of the Anglican Diocese in Europe, as well as St. James the Apostle, part of the Diocese of UK-Europe and Africa in the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church.

Rectors

Episcopal alumni

Over the years, a number of graduates of the American College have been appointed to the episcopacy. Bishop-alumni of the college include: