Loyola University Chicago (colloquially referred to as Loyola) is a private Jesuit

Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities

The Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities is a consortium of the 28 Jesuit colleges and universities and two theological centers in the United States committed to advancing academic excellence by promoting and coordinating collaborative activities, sharing resources, and advocating and...

 research university located in Chicago

Chicago

Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...

, Illinois

Illinois

Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. Founded by the Society of Jesus

Society of Jesus

The Society of Jesus is a Catholic male religious order that follows the teachings of the Catholic Church. The members are called Jesuits, and are also known colloquially as "God's Army" and as "The Company," these being references to founder Ignatius of Loyola's military background and a...

 in 1870 under the title St. Ignatius College, it is now the largest Jesuit university in the United States with a total enrollment of 16,040 as of September 12, 2011.

Loyola University Chicago has six campuses: the Lake Shore Campus in the Rogers Park

Rogers Park, Chicago

Rogers Park is one of the 77 Chicago community areas on the far north side of Chicago, Illinois, and is also the name of the Chicago neighborhood that constitutes most of the community area...

 neighborhood of Chicago, the Water Tower Campus in the downtown Gold Coast neighborhood, the Stritch School of Medicine

Stritch School of Medicine

Stritch School of Medicine is the medical school affiliated with Loyola University Chicago. It is located at the heart of the Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, Illinois. The medical campus includes Foster G...

 in Maywood, Illinois

Maywood, Illinois

Maywood is a village in Proviso Township, Cook County, Illinois, United States. It was founded on April 6, 1869 and organized October 22, 1881. The population was 26,987 at the 2000 census.-Overview:...

, Cuneo Mansion and Gardens in Vernon Hills, Illinois

Vernon Hills, Illinois

Vernon Hills is a village in Lake County, Illinois, United States. The population was 20,120 at the 2000 census, and estimated to be 23,957 as of 2005...

, the Retreat and Ecology Campus in Woodstock, Illinois

Woodstock, Illinois

Woodstock is a far northwest suburb of Chicago in McHenry County, Illinois. The population was 20,151 at the 2000 census. The 2010 Census shows 24,770 residents. It is the county seat of McHenry County...

 and the John Felice Rome Center in Rome, Italy.