Avila Now

“I was looking into potentially getting an MBA but felt that was too broad and not specific enough to what I was currently doing and wanted to do for my career,” said Avila alumnus Jeff Kolb. Like many in the Organizational Development master’s program, Jeff was already performing OD-type duties in his job — without...

Now the Director of Research and Organizational Change at Culture Journey — Critical Social Change Project, Breann Branch, MSOD, Ph.D. is a 2014 graduate of Avila University’s Institute for Professional Studies. Branch works with government, corporate, education, and community organizations to provide evidence-based, transformative change solutions relating to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility. Branch came to...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – It is with great sadness that we announce that Avila University head baseball coach and assistant athletic director Daryl Cronk passed away at approximately 2 a.m., December 26, 2021. He was 46 years old. “This morning was hard,” said Avila University Director of Athletics Shawn Summe. “Daryl was a great and genuine man. His...

Samantha Collins, MA.Ed is a 2019 graduate of Avila University’s School of Education. A career-changer, Collins went through Avila’s initial teaching certification program before continuing on to earn her Master’s degree. “When I decided to make a switch to be an educator, I knew I wanted to find an accredited, rigorous program with a strong reputation...

After more than two years away, Avila University will welcome back alumni, friends and family for Homecoming 2021: Back to the Future, October 7-10. Highlighted by numerous class and athletic team reunions, the annual celebration will culminate in the nationally-ranked football team’s 1 p.m. matchup against fellow defending conference co-champion Kansas Wesleyan University at the...

A legacy of dramatic improvements to the campus, student learning programs, and finances...

Avila University announced today its participation in AWS Academy, an Amazon Web Services, Inc. (AWS) program providing a ready-to-teach cloud computing curriculum for higher education institutions. This program will provide opportunities for students and professionals to learn skills that will prepare them for careers in the rapidly expanding cloud computing sector beginning this July. “Avila’s...

Two alumnae of the Avila University School of Education, Athena McCray ’20 and Ashley Rowland ’20, received the Outstanding Beginning Teachers Award from the Missouri Association of Colleges of Teacher Education (MACTE) this February and were recognized during the MACTE Spring Conference March 8-9. Created to identify and recognize early-career teachers, the MACTE awards the...

Donors helped raise more than $940,000 in event's 45th year...

Kansas City public radio station KCUR featured Avila University football coach Marc Benavidez and senior wide receiver Christian Hopkins to discuss the team’s success in 2020 and the team’s incredible turnaround in the past several years on Wednesday, January 27. Appearing on Up to Date with Steve Kraske, Benavidez and Hopkins spoke about the team’s...