Board of Trustees Chair Inducted into Cardinal Ritter Prep Inaugural Hall of Fame

Joseph Conran (A&S ’67, Law ’70), chairman of the Saint Louis University Board of Trustees and a SLU alumnus, has been named a Legacy Inductee of Cardinal Ritter College Prep’s Inaugural Hall of Fame.

Cardinal Ritter Prep Hall of Fame Dinner

Inductees of the inaugural Cardinal Ritter College Prep’s Hall of Fame pose for a photo during a special dinner Sept. 26. Cardinal Ritter Prep photo

In honor of Cardinal Ritter’s 40th anniversary, the school’s alumni association decided to honor distinguished alumni and benefactors “whose lives and legacies represent the mission of faith development, academic excellence and leadership.”

Conran served on the Cardinal Ritter College Prep Board of Directors from 1998 until 2011, ultimately serving as the board’s president. The school officials say Conran was instrumental in the fundraising, development and construction of its $30 million school building in Grand Center.

"I have seen firsthand the impact of the Cardinal Ritter College Prep experience because I have personally spent time in these classrooms,” Conran said. “I have met our students. I have listened to their goals for the future. And I have been inspired. That's why it's so easy for me to invest in this mission, and invite my friends and colleagues to do the same.”

Conran wasn’t the only one with a SLU connection to be honored during Cardinal Ritter’s Inaugural Hall of Fame Dinner and Ceremony Sept. 26.

John C. Vatterott, Sr. (A&S '65) also was recognized for his philanthropy as another Legacy inductee in the Hall of Fame. Vatterott is the founder and chairman emeritus of Access Academies, which helps propel at-risk middle school students through high school and on to college and career success.

Margena Christian, Ph.D. (A&S ’90) was a Cardinal Ritter Prep alumni inductee in the school’s inaugural hall of fame. Christian is a former senior editor of Ebony magazine and the author of Empire: The House That John H. Johnson Built.

Duane Moore, M.D. (Med ’02) also was a Cardinal Ritter Prep alumni inductee. Moore is a SLUCare physician specializing in emergency medicine who practices at SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital.

Another Legacy inductee, Cardinal Ritter’s former principal and president Carmele Hall, served on SLU’s Board of Trustees in the early 1990s.

Cardinal Ritter College Preparatory High School was established in 1979 as the first African-American co-educational Catholic college prep high school in the nation. Learn more about Cardinal Ritter College Prep at cardinalritterprep.net.