50 years of coeducation
The 2025–26 school year marks 50 years of co-education at Gonzaga Prep. Welcoming young women reshaped campus life, from academics and activities to leadership and community culture. 50 Stories for 50 Years highlights the women who helped lead that change and explores how co-education strengthened the Prep we know today. Throughout the year, we invite you to reflect, engage, and celebrate this journey of growth and inclusion.
WEEK 20
Carrying Prep lessons into practice: Aeva Lanphere `17
Aeva (Schrambach) Lanphere `17 is an estate attorney whose work is rooted in accompaniment, trust, and care—values shaped during her years at Gonzaga Prep. Through sports, Search, and relationships with teachers and mentors, she learned the importance of belonging, faith, and using her gifts in service of others.
READ MORE »
READ MORE »
WEEK 19
50 years of campus transformation
Fifty years after Prep chose to become coed, campus has expanded in ways that once seemed unlikely—creating room to learn, perform, compete, and grow together. Each addition reflects the lasting impact of welcoming young women into Bullpup life and the school’s ongoing commitment to excellence, faith, and community.
READ MORE »
READ MORE »
Photo courtesy Troy B. Thompson.
WEEK 18
Finding her voice: Julia Keefe `07 and Indigenous jazz
Long before Julia Keefe was performing on national stages and leading the Indigenous Big Band that bears her name, she was discovering her voice at Gonzaga Prep. Steeped in music, creativity, and a growing sense of purpose, her years at Prep helped shape an artist who now honors jazz history and champions Indigenous representation.
READ MORE »
READ MORE »
WEEK 17
Faith, family & courage to lead
When Gonzaga Prep took its first steps toward co-education, Marilyn McKenna was already at the table, quietly shaping a future she believed in. A trustee, mother, and tireless advocate for teachers and students, her leadership grounded in faith helped guide Prep through a pivotal moment that still echoes today.
READ MORE »
READ MORE »
INTRODUCTION
Becoming coed at Prep: How it began
When 317 young women walked into Gonzaga Preparatory School on Sept. 2, 1975, they were stepping through more than just a doorway; they were crossing a threshold that was about to change the school in the most consequential way since its founding in 1887.
READ MORE »
READ MORE »
WEEK 1
The first days of school
Mary Elizabeth “Molly” (Lordan) Schemmel is one of the sixty-nine young women in Gonzaga Prep’s inaugural coed senior class for the 1975-76 school year. To kick off our 50 stories for 50 years series, we offer her reflections about what it was like to be one of the firsts.
READ MORE »
READ MORE »
WEEK 2
What makes Jesuit education distinctive
For nearly 90 years, Gonzaga Prep formed only young men in the Jesuit way of educating the mind, body, and spirit. Then came the fall of 1975. The arrival of women reshaped classrooms, student life, and eventually leadership itself—opening a new chapter that still defines the school today.
READ MORE »
READ MORE »
WEEK 3
Fit check: What to wear, how to be coed
When Gonzaga Prep opened its doors to young women in 1975, the change wasn’t just felt in the curriculum—it was a HUGE change socially for both the young men and young women. What you wore and how you wore it suddenly mattered.
READ MORE »
READ MORE »
WEEK 4
Alumna Q&A: Louise DeFelice `88
We asked alumnae to reflect on their experience at Prep and the paths they’ve taken since. This week, we feature Louise DeFelice `88—a dentist, clinical instructor with the EWU Department of Dental Hygiene, and founder of The Rachel Project. Her story shows how opportunities opened to women at Prep continue to ripple outward in service and leadership.
READ MORE »
READ MORE »
WEEK 5
New curriculum, lifelong friendship
When Gonzaga Prep went coed, new Practical Arts classes—cooking, sewing, typing, financial literacy, and more—were added. Fr. Bill Hayes, S.J., hired young teacher Claudia (Nelson) Couch to lead them, and one of her first students, Nancy Nizich-Andres `79, became her teaching assistant and lifelong friend. Together they recall how these programs helped shape Prep’s coed experience.
LISTEN HERE »
LISTEN HERE »
WEEK 6
'Eulogy virtues': Mia Padon `17 pursues the AMDG
Mia Padon embraced the Prep experience—serving through Ancilla, deepening her faith on retreats, and competing in three sports. Salutatorian at graduation, she went on to West Point, where she played Division I soccer and earned a science degree, later completing her master’s from the University of Southampton. Now a U.S. Army captain, she credits Prep with the confidence to thrive in male-dominated fields.
READ MORE »
READ MORE »
WEEK 7
Pursuit of excellence: `00 Bullpup volleyball
A quarter century after leading Gonzaga Prep volleyball to its first state championship match, co-captains Jill Paras-Stewart `01 and Keva Sonderen `01 are back on the court—this time as coaches. Their story is one of grit, renewed friendship, and the enduring pursuit of excellence that continues to shape Bullpup volleyball today.
READ MORE »
READ MORE »
WEEK 8
T.B.I.Y.T.C.: Going coed inspires Search
When Gonzaga Prep first welcomed young women onto campus in 1975, it was clear that new traditions would be needed to bring students together in meaningful ways. Out of that hope, the first Search retreat was held in the spring of 1976.
READ MORE »
READ MORE »
WEEK 9
Legacy & land: Schmidt `22 forges future on the ranch
Rooted in faith and family tradition, Annabelle Schmidt ’22 is forging her own path as a sixth-generation rancher. The lessons she learned at Gonzaga Prep—confidence, community, and perseverance—continue to guide her as she builds a life and livelihood on the land her family has tended for generations.
READ MORE »
READ MORE »
WEEK 10
Gratitude in action: What made Prep possible
For Mary (Smith) Marsh `16, Gonzaga Prep became the foundation for confidence, purpose, and faith, all made possible through the generosity of others. Her story reflects how Fair Share opens doors not just for one student, but for entire families.
READ MORE »
READ MORE »
WEEK 11
Steady heartbeat of Prep: Shared vision & joyful energy
For Taryn (Brinson) League `91, there's a thorough line from her time as a student, longtime teacher, department chair, and current cheer coach and Pup Pack moderator. It's the shared spirit of the Bullpup heartbeat. She reminds us that each of us carry a part of it. Read on for her reflection.
READ MORE »
READ MORE »
WEEK 12
Mackenzie Lewis `18: One of one
Mackenzie Lewis `18 is the first—and only—young woman to play football at Gonzaga Prep. Her perseverance and desire to be part of the brotherhood that is Bullpup football taught her how to handle challenges on the field and in life.
READ MORE »
READ MORE »
WEEK 13
Alumna profile: Karen Floyd `80
A lifelong teacher, mentor, and volunteer, Karen Floyd’s journey reflects the Jesuit value of cura personalis—care for the whole person.
READ MORE »
READ MORE »
WEEK 14
Francis Chau `11 leads programs that once lifted her
Francis Chau’s journey, rooted in gratitude, shaped by mentors, and strengthened through her leadership as a student, shows how one Bullpup now carries forward the same care she once received. Today, she is making the same kind of opportunities possible for students at Prep.
READ MORE »
READ MORE »
WEEK 15
Peggy Haun-McEwen: Journey of accompaniment
Peggy Haun-McEwen, while not an alumna of Gonzaga Prep, is a woman whose decades at the school serving in so many different roles reveal the quiet depth of commitment that has sustained our coed community for 50 years. Her story reflects the strength found in showing up for others again and again.
READ MORE »
READ MORE »
WEEK 16
Seeds planted at Prep become vocation
For Colleen Fuchs `86, the roots of her calling began at Prep, woven through community, service, and the steady encouragement to show up fully. Those early experiences continue to shape how she leads and accompanies others today as CEO of Joya Child & Family Development.
READ MORE »
READ MORE »
Do you have a story to share about the impact of Gonzaga Prep’s move to coed? Firsts, achievements, fun anecdotes? We want to hear about it. Send a note to Kathleen (McKenna) Wilson `80 including "50 years coed" in the subject line.