Gonzaga University (pronounced "gahn-ZAG-uh") is a private, co-educational university located in Spokane, Washington. Founded in 1887 by the Society of Jesus, it is one of 28 member institutions of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities and was named after the patron saint of youth, Aloysius Gonzaga. The campus has 87 buildings scattered along 108 acres (437,000 m²) of grassy land along the Spokane River, in a residential setting one-half mile from downtown Spokane.

Gonzaga's liberal arts tradition lies in its core curriculum, which integrates philosophy, theology, mathematics, literature, natural and social sciences, and extensive writing in students' major disciplines. In addition, Gonzaga offers programs in preparation to professional schools in dentistry, law, medicine, nursing and veterinary medicine. Gonzaga also sponsors an Army ROTC program. Students may study abroad at Gonzaga's campus in Florence, Italy, or at other programs in England, France, Spain, Japan, China and Mexico. Biology majors have options for field studies in Australia, Baja-Mexico, British West Indies, Costa Rica and Kenya.

The annual 2004-05 budget is listed on the university's website as being $100.43 million, with an annual payroll of $47.40 million. Average class size is 25, and there are 299 employed faculty. There are 44 Jesuits on campus, as well as 582 non-faculty employees. Enrollment in totality is estimated to be about 5,826 (about 3,945 undergraduate) students. Gonzaga's Law School, once thought to be among the top in the northwest United States, currently has 627 students enrolled.

Famous alumni

Both singer Bing Crosby and former Speaker of the House Tom Foley attended Gonzaga, though neither graduated there. Washington governor Christine Gregoire, the state's first female state attorney general, and George Nethercutt, former Representative and 2004 Republican candidate for US Senate, are alumni of Gonzaga Law School.

Among sports figures, John Stockton of NBA's Utah Jazz fame, the New Orleans Hornets' Dan Dickau,Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder 2004 National League Rookie of the Year Jason Bay, and Cleveland Cavaliers NBA Rookie of the Year guard Ryan Patingale are all graduates.

Sports

Gonzaga University, officially nicknamed the Bulldogs but often called the Zags, is part of the NCAA Division I West Coast Conference. Its men's basketball team, which did not make its first appearance in the NCAA tournament until 1995 (more than a decade after Stockton graduated), has become nationally prominent since making the regional finals of the NCAA tournament ("Elite Eight") in 1999.

Gonzaga University basketball games are now held in the newly constructed McCarthey Athletic Center.

Like many smaller private universities, Gonzaga discontinued its football program during World War II, due to declining enrollment.