University of Wisconsin Newman Center

Welcome to Panther Catholic

Panther Catholic is the name of both the UWM-chartered Catholic student organization and the broader Newman Center ministry. The Archdiocese-owned building at 3001 N. Downer Ave. (corner of Downer and Linnwood) is the day-to-day home of the community, while most student activities also spill out onto the UWM campus, into student apartments, and around the Milwaukee area — and out into the wider world on retreats and mission trips. The center exists to give UWM students and Milwaukee-area young adults a place to grow in friendship with Jesus Christ alongside peers.

Worship & Sacraments

Worship is the heartbeat of the ministry. The center offers Mass five days a week during the school year, with Reconciliation available 30 minutes before each Mass, plus a full day of Eucharistic Adoration every Tuesday. Mass and Confession schedules change during summer and winter break — during summer 2026 (May 25 – Aug 29), the only scheduled Mass is Saturday at 9:00 AM, with Confession 30 minutes before.

• Sunday Mass — 10:30 AM
• Tuesday Mass — 5:15 PM
• Thursday Mass — 12:00 PM
• Friday Mass — 12:00 PM
• Saturday Mass — 9:00 AM
• Confession — 30 min before every Mass, plus by appointment
• Eucharistic Adoration — Tuesdays 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM
• Summer 2026 (May 25 – Aug 29): Saturday 9:00 AM Mass only

Get Involved

Most students start by simply showing up. The flagship gathering is the free Tuesday-night student dinner at 6:00 PM, open to anyone — bring a friend, Catholic or not. From there, students plug into Bible studies, retreats, pilgrimages, and mission trips, and can join the student leadership board. Volunteers from the wider community are also welcome to cook a Tuesday meal for the students.

• Free Student Dinner — Tuesdays 6:00 PM at 3001 N. Downer Ave.
• Bible studies
• Retreats
• Pilgrimages and mission trips
• Volunteer to cook a Tuesday meal
• Student leadership board

Our Staff

Panther Catholic is led by a priest-chaplain/director and a full-time campus minister, supported by a four-person FOCUS missionary team and a year-long intern cohort. Together they run the day-to-day life of the center — preaching, teaching, mentoring students, organizing retreats, and being present on the UWM campus. The Archdiocese of Milwaukee assigns the priest and owns the building; donations to the center are restricted to Newman Center ministry.

• Fr. Andrew Infanger — Director / Priest Chaplain (ordained 2018; previously served in West Bend, WI; originally from St. Louis, MO)
• Amy Rebholz — Campus Minister (UWM alumna; Master's in Systematic Theology, 2019)
• Alayna, Katie, Summit, Nicholas — FOCUS Missionaries
• Haley — Outreach Intern
• Calli — Formation Intern
• Lucy — Hospitality Intern

Our History

Catholic student life at what is now UWM goes back more than a century. The community was founded in 1913 as the Gibbons Club for Catholic Students at the State Teachers College, was renamed the Newman Club in 1950, and grew through several institutional mergers into today's University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee. Priests originally lived at the Fenwick Club on Prospect Avenue, which also served MSOE and Spencerian College. The Fenwick Club sold its Prospect Avenue property in 1961, the current Downer Avenue property was acquired that year, the chapel was built on the site of the old garage in 1962, and the entryway was added in 1967. Over the decades the center has been served by a long succession of priests, sisters, and lay ministers — and in 2024 the Archdiocese of Milwaukee purchased a 1929 former Christian Science church on East Kenwood Boulevard to serve as a much larger, campus-adjacent home for the ministry going forward.

• 1913 — Gibbons Club for Catholic Students founded at the State Teachers College
• 1950 — Renamed the Newman Club
• 1961 — Current Downer Avenue property acquired after the Fenwick Club closed
• 1962 — Chapel built on the former garage footprint
• 1964 — UWM formed through institutional mergers
• 1967 — Entryway added to the chapel building
• 2024 — Archdiocese purchases 2519 E. Kenwood Blvd. (former Fourth Church of Christ, Scientist, built 1929) for $2.2 million as the center's future home

Donate & Support

Because Panther Catholic is a ministry of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee rather than a separately incorporated parish, donations are restricted to Newman Center ministry. The center accepts monetary gifts, gently used furniture (couches, lamps, bookshelves) for the new Kenwood building, and in-kind help cooking Tuesday-night student meals. The annual Witness Support Dinner is the ministry's signature fundraising event.

• Donate online at panthercatholic.com/donate
• Cook a Tuesday-night student meal
• Donate gently used furniture for the new building
• Attend the annual Witness Support Dinner