Construction of the initial building was completed during the summer of 1878 and the completed site was transferred to the ownership Right Reverend James O'Connor, Bishop of Omaha in July of that year. O'Connor then contacted the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) to operate the college and the university was transferred to their ownership in August 1879. Classes began on September 2, 1878 with five Jesuit priests serving as the Board of Trustees, two lay teachers, and an initial enrollment of 120 students. From 1878 to 1958 Creighton Prep functioned as a department of Creighton University. In 1953, both organizations determined their functionality would be best served if they were to separate into two independent institutions. The initial plot of land for Creighton Preparatory School was purchased in 1953, fundraising for the school began in 1956, and construction was completed prior to the start of the 1958 fall term. Both Fr. Henry Sullivan, S.J and Fr. Carl Reinert, S.J. spearheaded the effort, raising $1.7 million for the construction of a 105,000 sq/ft school at its current 7400 Western Avenue location. Once completed, the school was officially given to the Society of Jesus, known more commonly as the Jesuits. In 1958, upon completion of the main building, construction on the Jesuit residence began. The Jesuit residence was completed in 1961, after 3 years of construction. This 50,000 sq/ft building was designed to house 30 Jesuit priests, Scholastics, and Brothers who had been living prior in then-empty classrooms and two houses southwest of the main school building. The same year, a chapel for the Jesuit priests was constructed, later renovated into a school wide chapel, named Skinner Chapel. Creighton Prep's Skinner Chapel, like all Catholic Churches, has housed a number of relics associated with saints. These relics were associated with St. Ignatius Loyola (1491-1556), St. Frances Xavier (1506- 1552), St. Robert Bellarmine (1542-1621), St. Jean de Brebeuf (1593-1649), St. Charles Garnier (1606-1649), St. Gabriel Lalemant (1610-1649), St. Francis of Assisi (1181-1226), St. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274), St. Catherine of Siena (1347-1380), St. Aloysius Gonzaga (1568-1591), and St. Rita of Cascia (1381-1457).