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The state-of-the-art, climate-controlled archive room atop �Թ�tv's library is a historian’s haven, thanks to Sister Brendan O’Brien, CSFN, ’75. This meticulously organized vault holds millions of documents, collections, and photographs detailing the University’s 70-year history. Founded by the Sisters of the �Թ�tv of Nazareth in Northeast Philadelphia, the archives include everything from building blueprints to curriculum changes.

Visitors access these treasures through advanced shelving systems that open at the push of a button, reflecting the meticulous care taken in their organization. Sister Brendan, who began her full-time role as the University’s archivist in 2005, has devoted 30 years to �Թ�tv. Her labor of love has been to catalog and preserve the University’s evolution and impact.

“I’m not sure people understand archives,” Sister Brendan noted. “The work is very time-consuming and can be tedious, but for me, it is all living history. I work alone, but that is okay because I need to remain focused. As an archivist, you become part of the records, so I innately know a lot of history. The archive, like the University, is organic – it was meant to change and always will.”

Throughout her tenure, Sister Brendan has served under three University Presidents: Sister Francesca Onley, CSFN, ‘59, Ph.D., Sister Maureen McGarrity, CSFN, ‘70, Ph.D., and Anne M. Prisco, Ph.D. A member of her congregation for 61 years and a former Mother Superior of Delaney Hall, Sister Brendan also authored a comprehensive book on the University’s 50th Anniversary in 2004 before becoming the archivist.

“I am personally proud to have been the University’s first full-time archivist,” she said. “Becoming a certified archivist was very important to me. I wanted that prestigious credential.”

Besides her �Թ�tv degree, Sister Brendan holds a master’s degree in history from Seton Hall University and a master’s degree in library science with a certification in archives management from Drexel University.

Sister Brendan emphasizes that �Թ�tv has continuously adapted to serve its students and document these changes. “The education we have provided over 70 years has always been of high quality. Our professors could have taught anywhere because of the standard and level of professionalism we maintain,” she said.

“To achieve what I have achieved has been amazing,” Sister Brendan continued. “My vocation has been my whole life, and it is my community that established this University. It is in my blood. This work has been important to me because I treasure it.”